HABITS OP THE BLACK BASS. 169 



with open mouth, at my smaller Bass, and, at a single gulp, placed 

 himself outside of it! Then he came face to face with our hero. 

 It was an awful moment of suspense for some time. Our finny 

 gladiators remained motionless, eyeing each other, measuring the 

 dimensions of each other's mouth, as it were. The crisis at length 

 came. The Bass, by force of digestion, had made way with his 

 part of the snake rope, and making one mighty effort, stretching 

 maxillary and dental to their utmost capacity, soon enveloped the 

 pike to a point just below the operculum. At this point we de- 

 parted, feeling perfectly satisfied that our hero would take care of 

 himself. 



I presume it is unnecessary to say that I no longer entertain any 

 doubts as to the ability of the Bass to take care of himself, and that 

 heavy feeding is indispensable to a rapid growth. 



The above may, perhaps, seem somewhat fishy to a great many, 

 but when we consider the structure of the Bass, our doubts will be, 

 in a great measure, abated. The variety above-mentioned has a 

 very large mouth in fact, they seem all mouth, thus enabling them 

 to envelop any thing not exceeding their own circumference, with 

 ample room for respiration through the gills. The oasophagus is 

 very large (about the size of the stomach) and short. This enables 

 them to take into the stomach all that may be embraced by the 

 mouth. 



In the warm waters of the extreme South, which pre- 

 serve a more equable temperature than those of the North- 

 ern States, the Black Bass grow to an immense size, their 

 maximum weight, in Florida, being from twelve to four- 

 teen pounds ; but while I have seen them of these weights, 

 I never took one, there, weighing more than nine pounds, 

 with the artificial fly, but, doubtless, I could have done so 

 with live bait or the trolling spoon. 



In Northern waters they do not grow nearly so large, 

 six to eight pounds being the limit. Under conditions 

 and circumstances favorable to their growth they will in- 

 crease in weight, as before stated, about a pound a year ; 

 lo 



