PRESENT-DAY ARTIFICIALS ARE INEFFECTIVE 179 



exposed for sale in the tackle shops, compris- 

 ing rubber "imitations" of frogs, hellgrammites, 

 worms, crickets, grasshoppers, minnows, etc. You 

 never observe them in the expert's kit. He is, 

 however, well stocked with the ever-changing 

 fashion in plugs and other devices. With such I 

 am persuaded to believe he does catch fish; mostly 

 bass and pickerel, when, after considerable prac- 

 tice in casting, he learns just how to use them. I 

 have no interest in debating the subject whether 

 he fully enjoys his sport or why I should try to 

 induce him to change his method. Such a change, 

 if it ever comes, will occur naturally, of his own 

 initiative; more especially from his observations 

 of what others get from their sport as compared 

 with him. 



These rubber images, which in place of a better 

 title I call "frights," aside from the inartistic and 

 poor imitation of the creatures intended, have 

 the hooks always placed in the wrong position. 

 Were it by accident swallowed by the fish, the 

 hook would not take hold. Most important of 

 all, their weight takes them plump to the bot- 

 tom, and if pulled through the water their form 

 makes a motion entirely different from what the 

 creature does in nature. They may deceive ig- 



