THE BASSES: FRES H-W ATER AND MARINE 



For still-fishing from the shore or from an an- 

 chored boat, in addition to the ever-useful shrimp, 

 excellent service is performed by crabs of several 

 kinds, preferably in the soft or shedder state. The 

 blue (or edible) crab is the one most frequently 

 employed, but the calico crab, or lady-Crab, also 

 serves a useful purpose wherever found. Shedder- 

 lobster is another well-known and sometimes highly 

 effective bait which is no longer to be obtained in 

 localities near New York. At one time lobster tail 

 was a favorite casting-bait at Gay Head, with the 

 remainder of the animal cut up for chum. 



A very tempting morsel is furnished by the 

 marine worms (the sandworm and bloodworm of 

 our sand beaches), used in trolling or still-fishing. 

 The bloodworm, sometimes called whiteworm, often 

 reaches a length of twelve to fifteen inches, and 

 two or three worms are needed for a single bait. 

 These are threaded through the whole length of the 

 body and must cover the hook entirely from point 

 to snell. Some anglers combine this luxury with 

 a spinner or other artificial bait, but this is unneces- 

 sary and wasteful. 



The mollusks play an important part in bass- 

 fishing. The hard clam or quahaug, the skimmer 

 or hen-clam, the soft-shelled clam, and the scallop, 

 all have their distinctive uses and supplement the 

 work of the shrimp and crab tribes most hand- 

 somely. Some of them are difficult to apply to the 



200 



