THE STRIPED BASSE. 163 



If the above assertion of Smith's is correct, it is very 

 strange that so important an angle fish has not been known 

 to the angling community of Europe ; for out of upwards of 

 an hundred books on the subject of angling, in Europe, only 

 one or two makes mention of any kind of basse whatever, and 

 they are a species of trout, differing entirely from the striped 

 basse of our waters. However, to us Anglers, (although we 

 should like to see the learned Doctors agree,) it matters not 

 * whether we have the name so long as we have the game." 



As an object of sport, they are sought after with great 

 avidity, by the sportsmen of the parts of New York 

 and New-Jersey, bordering on the Hudson river, and 

 have been taken of quite a large size as far up as Albany * 

 and Troy. They are also made very profitable to market 

 fishermen, at some seasons being taken in great numbers, with 

 very little trouble. In the early part of January of the pre- 

 sent year, 25,000 pounds were taken in Point Judith Ponds, 

 the majority of a large size, that netted the proprietors 

 $5,000. 



They are generally angled for with a strong, pliable rod, 

 12 to 15 feet in length, made of ash, with a lance-wood top. 

 For boat fishing, a rod about 12 feet in length is considered 

 long enough, but for bridge or bank fishing, 14 to 18 feet have 

 the preference. They may be had in every variety of style 

 at the tackle stores in the city of New-York, where no pains 

 or expense is spared in adapting them to the peculiar tastes 

 of the Angler. Attached to the rod should be a reel, suffi- 

 ciently large to contain from 300 to 600 feet of flax, grass, or 

 silk line ; to your line a swivel sinker, and float, according to 

 the current of your fishing ground, and a leader, from three to 

 six feet in length, double for fall fishing, and single for the 

 spring run. Some of the best Anglers, however, prefer using 



* In the spring of 1844, one was taken with a rod and reel, in Sau- 

 gerties creek, weighing fifteen and a half pounds. 



