SPOONS AND HOW TO CAST THEM 237 



is possessed of requisite skill, if not, let him employ 

 the regulation outfit recommended for bait casting. 

 It may be set down as an angling axiom, the lighter 

 and more delicate the tools, the more chances the 

 fisherman takes, the greater the sport. The fresh 

 water angler can experience all the thrills of tarpon 

 fishing while angling for black bass if he employs 

 tackle commensurate with the weight of the fish. I 

 wonder how many bass fans have ever reflected 

 upon the following fact: the salt water fisherman 

 goes after black sea bass, weighing from 100 to 500 

 pounds, with a rod weighing about 26 ounces; while 

 the bass angler may use a rod weighing 6 ounces to 

 capture a fish weighing 2 pounds. 



I can well remember when the only spoon upon 

 the market was the one we called the "kidney," 

 probably because the blade had a fancied resem- 

 blance to that important organ of the human body. 

 What angler of yesterday or the day before does 

 not remember the "kidney spoon," and it was and 

 is a good troll. To-day, however, there are spoons 

 upon the market in all shapes, sizes and colors. If 

 an angler fails to see what he wants he has only to 

 ask for it. In shape, the spoons run from oval to wil- 

 low-leaf and all intermediate forms; while the 

 "wigglers" may be had in hearts, diamonds and 

 what not. In matters of shape I am exceedingly 

 conservative, doubting very much the efficiency of 

 the odd forms, though perhaps my conservatism 



