STRIPED BASS FISHING. 675 



Once more, now — that is better ; but the instant the bait falls clap your 

 thumb on the barrel of your reel, to prevent too much line running out. 



The beginner may find, if casting from his left side, that his line may 

 take a course too much to the right, or casting from his right side, that it 

 will swing too much to the left. This is owing to his bearing his thumb 

 on the barrel of the reel an instant longer than he should. Keep on until 

 you have mastered the rudiments, and then go to the side of the water 

 and put on a hook and a bait. Having gone to your stand and made your 

 cast, let your bait sink about a foot and gradually reel in, keeping the 

 line even and level on the barrel, as I have before directed. Should you 

 get a rise, the line will immediately tighten, then strike sharply, to fasten 

 the hook in the fish's mouth. I need not tell you how to handle your fish, 

 but I will say that while you must not hold him too hard, you should ever 

 keep a taut line, and if you give to him with a moderate pressure of the 

 thumb on the barrel of the reel, and wind in whenever he allows you, you 

 will in due time secure your prize. 



Of course you know that you cannot get along in this kind of fishing 

 without a " baiter," i. e., a man who gets your bait, secures your stand or 

 rock, baits your hook, gaff's your fish, &c., &c. And further let me say 

 that you must be a little careful that you do not murder your baiter or 

 some companion who may be within " striking distance," as you swing 

 your rod around. It was only last summer I had my stock torn from my 

 neck by the hook of a Bass-fisher striking it with force enough to carry 

 away my windpipe — and that, you know, would have been an unpleasant 

 fix to be in. So you should always have an eye to leeward or windward, 

 to avoid manslaughter. Sometimes, when there is a good run of large 

 fish, the sport is so exciting and fatiguing that two anglers use the same 

 rock alternately, fishing " bait about," and have sport enough. That is, 

 one fishes till his bait is gone or until he kills a fish, and then his com- 

 panion takes his place, while the first rests and looks on. It is well some- 

 times to change the position of the hands ; fishing from your other side, 

 the right or the left, as the case may be, as constant casting without 

 shifting the hands wearies the arms exceedingly. 



These " baiters," to whom I have alluded, are important personages, 

 and some of them queer fellows, always weather-wise and full of big fish- 

 stories. " Uncle Billy," and his son " Len," are known to all the anglers 

 who visit Narragansett ; they are noted for their quaint humor and oddity. 

 It is impossible to get along without a baiter ; besides attending to the 

 duties already described, he keeps your tackle in order, sleeps on a rock 



