I56 AMERICAN GAME FISHES. 



OLD-TIME BASS FISHING. 



If the descriptions of the appearance and habits of the 

 Black Bass by the authors of the angling-books before men- 

 tioned are so brief or inexact, what do they say as to the 

 methods of angling for this grand game-fish? 



Brown says: "He is angled for in the usual way, and with 

 the same arrangement of tackle as the Striped Bass or Salm- 

 on; and with some enthusiastic western sportsmen is 

 thought to give more amusement than either. But the most 

 active and exciting mode of pursuit is with the trolling-rod 

 and boat." His Buffalo correspondent treats briefly and 

 vaguely of still-fishing with minnows and crawfish. 



Another one states that: "The most beautiful mode of an- 

 gling for them known, is trolling either with live bait or an 

 artificial fly of large size and gay appearance," and gives the 

 formula for the "fly," as follows: "Body of a peacock feather, 

 wings of bright scarlet kerseymere and white pigeon feathers; 

 or, the feather stripped from a white goose-quill, and wound 

 round like the hackle, and surmounted with thin strips of 

 scarlet for wings." Shades of Cotton! 



In a later edition of Brown's book, a Detroit correspond- 

 ent says: "The modes of taking this delicious fish are by troll- 

 ing, and still-fishing with the rod and reel,' < and gives very 

 good, but short descriptions of these methods of fishing, as 

 then practiced. 



Herbert throws no additional light on the subject, but 

 after quoting the same correspondents as Brown, states in ad- 

 dition: "A friend of my own has killed many of this fine Bass 

 with a large red hackle, with a gold tinsel body, and also with 

 a green-tailed grannam." 



Roosevelt, as before stated, is the only author mentioned 

 who writes intelligently of Black-Bass fishing. He says: 

 "The}' will take minnows, shiners, grasshoppers, frogs, 

 worms, or almost anything else that can be called a bait. * 



