248 Bass, Pike, and Perch 



toothsomeness, as the Kentucky darky. He will 

 sit all day long, a monument of patience, on a log 

 or rock at the edge of a " cat-hole" of the stream, 

 with hickory pole, strong line and hook, and a 

 bottle cork for a float. He baits his hook with a 

 piece of liver or a shedder crawfish — " soft craw," 

 he calls it, and only uses minnows when the other 

 baits fail. Apropos of this love for the channel- 

 cat may be related the true incident of the " corn- 

 field" darky who, w^hile fishing for cats, had the 

 luck to hook a fine black-bass, which was landed 

 after a " strenuous " struggle, to the envy of his 

 companions. After surveying it with evident 

 admiration awhile, he unhooked it, and with a 

 profound sigh he deliberately threw it back into 

 the stream to the amazement and disgust of the 

 others. "Good Lawd, Jeff," exclaimed one, " w'at 

 yo' done do dat fur } dat sholy wa' a good bass ; 

 must a weighed more'n a couple o' poun's ! " He 

 surveyed the group with supreme contempt for a 

 moment before he replied, " Wen I go a-cattin', 

 I go a-cattin'." What greater tribute to the 

 channel-cat than this! 



On the other hand I was once fly-fishing on a 

 black-bass stream in Kentucky, with a friend from 

 Ohio who was casting the minnow. Having each 



