A Day with the Buffalo Bass. 



and sandy bars where the water flows at the easy pace of about 

 four miles an hour. The banks are lined with oak, soft maple, 

 willow, cottonwood, shrubbery and plants, the leaves of which 

 glisten joyously as the rays of the rising sun fall on the fresh 

 dew which sparkles with animated brilliancy. The stream 

 curves this way and that, out and in among the hills, while 

 here and there a little rivulet trickles down to mingle its wa- 

 ters with the river. It is the breakfast hour along the banks, 

 the birds are darting this way and that, in search of food, or 

 sitting in the branches warbling and caroling forth their joy. 

 Verily, it is good to be in God's outdoors and mingle with his 

 little worshippers on such a morning. 



The fisherman pauses to note a few and marks the cat-bird, 

 bluejay, robin, wren, kingfisher, bluebird, kingbird, and then, 

 as the cast is ready, notices a splash and surge of waters near 

 the foot of an old stump standing at the water's edge. Mentally 

 deciding that the bass are feeding on minnows at this hour of 

 the day, he impales one upon the hook and sends it spinning 

 through the air where it falls naturally a few feet below the 

 stump and is trolled slowly by the lair of Micropterus. 



When the minnow arrives at the suspicious point in its 

 journey, a swelling of the waters is perceived, followed by a 

 violent tug on the line. The battle is on. By all disciples of 

 Izaak the next few minutes are fully appreciated ; but, lest 

 perchance these lines attract the eye of some novice, I will 

 say that, following the first tug, comes a grand rush for deep 

 water, swiftly the line cuts through the water, merrily the reel 

 hums a lively air as the spool makes revolutions faster than the 

 mind can estimate. The supreme effort over, back he comes 

 with rapidity, the reel taking up the slack as he cuts through 

 the water for his favorite haunt by the stump. Here the battle 

 proper is waged. He realizes that, if he can reach his resting 

 place under the old stump, with its roots, limbs and branches, 

 he can by darting about in his subterranean castle, so twist 

 and wind the line around the friendly snags that, while our 

 fisherman was untangling it, he can free himself at leisure. 



[176] 



