258 Book of the Black Bass. 



CHAPTER XV. 



ARTIFICIAL BAETS. 



"And therefore I have, which I will show to you, an artificial 

 minnow that will catch trout as well as an artificial fly; and it 

 was made by a" handsome woman that had a fine hand, and a live 

 minnow lying by her." — Izaak Walton. 



Pkoeablt in no direction has there been more ingenuity 

 displaj'ed than in the loroduetion of artificial baits^ such as 

 trolling spoons, spinners, propellers and artificial minnows, 

 frogs, Crustacea, insects and nondescripts. 



Trolling-E.mts — Spoon-Baits. 



The TDOst commonly-used artificial bait for black bass 

 is the spoon-bait or trolling-spoon. It is now made of 

 all shapes, and many sizes; but all are made upon the 

 same general principle, and are merely variations of the 

 original trolling-spoon, which was fashioned from the 

 bowl of a spoon, a single hook being soldered to one end, 

 and a hole drilled in the other end for attaching the line. 



By trailing or trolling such a spoon at the end of a 

 line from a moving boat, it revolves gracefully beneath the 

 surface of the water, the burnished surfaces flashing at 

 each revolution, and proves quite an effective lure. 



The changes that have been rung upon the original oval 

 metal spoon, with a single hook, have been, to say the 

 least, remarkable; and it is, indeed, surprising to see the 

 number of forms that have been evolved from that simple 

 implement. Every conceivable shape into which the old 

 spoon could be cut, bent or twisted, and still have it re- 

 volve, has been resorted to; it has been fluted, hammered 



