FISH AND FISHING. 



ALMANAC FOR SALT WATER FISHERMEN. 



The following will be found accurate and val- 

 uable for the vicinity of New York City: 



Kingfish — Barb, Sea-Mink, Whiting. June to 

 September. Haunts: The surf and deep channels 

 of strong tide streams. Baits: Blood worms, 

 shedder crabs and beach crustaceans. Time and 

 tide: Flood, early morning. 



Plaice — Fluke, Turbot, Flounder. May 15 to 

 November 30. Haunts: The surf, mouth of tidal 

 streams. Baits: Shedder crabs, killi-fish, sand 

 laut. Time and tide: Ebb, daytime exclusively. 



Spanish Mackerel. Haunts: The open sea, July 

 to September. Baits: Menhaden, trolling — metal, 

 and cedar squids. 



Striped Bass — Rock Fish, Green Head, April to 

 November. Haunts: The surf, bays, estuaries and 

 tidal streams. Baits: Blood worms, shedder crabs, 

 calico crabs, small eels, menhaden. Time and tide: 

 Night, half-flood to flood, to half ebb. 



The Drums, Red and Black, June to November. 

 Haunts: The surf and mouths of large bays. 

 Bait: Skinner crab. Time and tide: Day, flood. 



Blackfish — Tautog, April to November. Haunts: 

 Surf, vicinity of piling and old wrecks in bays. 

 Baits: Sand worm, blood worm, shedder crabs, 

 clams. Time and tide: Daytime flood. 



Lafayette — Spot, Goody, Cape May Goody. 

 August to October. Haunts: Channels of tidal 

 streams. Baits: Shedder crabs sand worms clams. 

 Tide and tide: Day and night flood. 



Croaker. July to October. Haunts: Deep chan- 

 nels of bays. Baits: Shedder crabs, mussels. Time 

 and tide: Day flood. 



Snapper — Young of Blue Fish._ August to No- 

 vember. Haunts: Rivers and all tide ways. Baits: 

 Spearing and menhaden; trolling pearl squid. 

 Time and tide: Day all tides. 



Sheepshead. June to October. Haunts: Surf 

 and bays, vicinity of old wrecks. Baits: Clams, 

 mussels, shedder crabs. Time and tide: Day, flood 

 only. 



New England Whiting — Winter Weak-fish, 

 Frost-fish. November to May. Haunts: The 

 surf. Baits: Sand laut, spearing. Time and tide: 

 Night, flood. 



Hake — Ling. October to June. Haunts: Open 

 sea surf, large bays. Baits: Clams, mussels, fish. 

 Time and tide: Day and night, flood. 



Weak-fish — Squeteague, Squit. June to October. 

 Haunts: Surf, all tideways. Baits: Shedder crabs, 

 surf mullet, menhaden, ledge mussels, sand laut, 

 shrimp. Time and tide: Day and night, flood 

 preferred. 



Blue Fish — Horse Mackerel. June to November 

 1 st. Haunts: .Surf, open sea and large bays. 

 Baits: Menhaden, surf mullet and trolling squid. 

 Time and time: Daytime; not affected bv tides. 



ABOUT THUMPING FOR BASS. 



C. J. DAVIS 



In July issue of peerless Recreation, I 

 noticed an article by Mr. A. M. Mann, en- 

 titled "Thumping for Bass." I have some- 

 thing to say in support of Mr. Mann's as- 

 ertion, that bass can and have been caught 

 by thumping. 



One day last June W. D. Jaworski, Ed. 

 Kohtz and I mat at Kankakee, Illinois, hav- 

 ing planned a 2-day fishing trip on the 

 Kankakee river. Putting our traps aboard 



a skiff we embarked for a 6 mile row down 

 stream. We were anxious to reach the 

 shallows, or riffles, as they are sometimes 

 called, with their 10 to 14 miles an hour 

 current, before dark, but although Kohtz 

 did valiant work at the oars, long before 

 we heard the swirl of the waters as they 

 sped over the rocks darkness had envel- 

 oped the surrounding country. 



Arriving at the shallows, Kohtz changed 

 his seat at the oars so as to face the bow, 

 and we rapidly drifted in between the many 

 jutting rocks and boulders. At about the 

 middle of the shallows, Kohtz saw what he 

 thought was deep water, and in dipping his 

 oars, suddenly struck with a resounding 

 whack on a submerged rock. 



Instantly there shot out from under the 

 rock the dark form of a magnificent bass. 

 Rising to a height of 3 or 4 feet in the air 

 it dropped out of sight in the black waters 

 beyond. To say that we were dumbfound- 

 ed expressed it but mildly. 



By that time we were through the shal- 

 lows, and selecting a suitable spot we ran 

 our skiff on the rocky bank and made camp 

 for the night. Ko'htz and Jaworski busied 

 themselves baiting and stretching across the 

 river our 250 feet set line and rigging our 

 long river rods. I gathered wood along the 

 bank and before long had a roaring fire 

 of logs. We caught several good sized cat- 

 fish during the night. One big fellow, 

 weighing 14 or 15 pounds, after being an- 

 chored to one of our chain stringers for 8 

 hours, bade us goodbye and went down the 

 river, stringer and all, to our great disgust. 



The next morning we started for an 

 island down the river about a mile below 

 our camping place, intending to try our 

 luck for bass. Jaworski was the first to 

 make a cast, using a gray bucktail, .while 

 Kohtz and I pinned our faith to white 

 bucktails. 



The bass rose readily, but we could not 

 get them to take the hook. After about an 

 hour spent in this manner, Kohtz said, 

 "Let's go back to camp and get some hell- 

 gramfimites. They will do the business." 

 So we once more entered our skiff with 

 Kohtz at the oars. 



Jaworski said, "What's the matter with 

 trolling while going back to camp?" 



Attaching trolling spoons (minus hooks) 

 to our bucktails, Jaworski trolled from the 

 stern with about 50 feet of line out, while 

 I trolled from the bow with about 30 feet 

 of line. 



Suddenly there was an exclamation from 

 Kohtz, the dropping of oars, and the worst 

 scrambling in the bottom of the skiff that 

 man ever heard. 



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