BASS IN THE RIVERS AND STREAMS 



There are many reasons for giving the black bass 

 the title of " gamest fish of fresh water/' For his 

 size and weight he puts up as snappy a fight as any 

 fisherman could wish for. Take a small-mouth bass 

 in a swift-running stream and it will be a case of 

 matching your knowledge of the fishing game against 

 his keenly developed instinct, and at that, you have 

 to keep your eyes open or he will slip one over on 

 you and break for other waters. 



When it comes to main strength the bass, for its 

 size, carries a larger package of that stuff than any 

 other fish. Often, when hooked, it will plunge to 

 the bottom and stick there to a fare-you-well. 

 Nothing can budge him except your strength against 

 his husky muscular development, and this puts a 

 heavy strain on your tackle that often shows up a 

 weak point in your equipment and then it's " good- 

 by " bass. At times you will think that the bass has 

 edged into a rocky crevice and propped his strong 

 fins against the sides to give him leverage, and be- 

 lieve me, he has sense enough to do it. He is wise 

 enough to dart around submerged rocks and saw a 

 line or gut leader on the ragged edges and make his 

 getaway. He will often go down to the bottom and 



86 



