248 Bass, Pike, and Perch 



toothsomeness, as the Kentucky darky. He will 

 sit all day long, a monument of patience, on a log 

 or rock at the edge of a " cat-hole" of the stream, 

 with hickory pole, strong line and hook, and a 

 bottle cork for a float. He baits his hook with a 

 piece of liver or a shedder crawfish — " soft craw," 

 he calls it, and only uses minnows when the other 

 baits fail. Apropos of this love for the channel- 

 cat may be related the true incident of the " corn- 

 field " darky who, while fishing for cats, had the 

 luck to hook a fine black-bass, which was landed 

 after a " strenuous " struggle, to the envy of his 

 companions. After surveying it with evident 

 admiration awhile, he unhooked it, and with a 

 profound sigh he deliberately threw it back into 

 the stream to the amazement and disgust of the 

 others. "Good Lawd, Jeff," exclaimed one, "w'at 

 yo' done do dat fur.? dat sholy wa' a good bass; 

 must a weighed more'n a couple o' poun's ! " He 

 surveyed the group with supreme contempt for a 

 moment before he replied, " Wen I go a-cattin', 

 I go a-cattin'. " What greater tribute to the 

 channel-cat than this ! 



On the other hand I was once fly-fishing on a 

 black-bass stream in Kentucky, with a friend from 

 Ohio who was casting the minnow. Having each 



