FISH AND FISHING. 



107 



exhausted ; especially if the cutting is early 

 in the game. 



I always examine the line after I land a 

 fish. Many times have I landed a macker- 

 el and found the line nearly severed ; some- 

 times in several places, near the hook. I 

 have often seen old anglers attach a wire 

 snell 6 or 8 inches long above the hook to 

 save its being cut by the fish's teeth. When 

 you see a pickerel get a line wound around 

 him and drawn through the jaws, you can 

 wager that chances are 2 to 1 against your 

 landing him, if he is not already played 

 out. Why is it that so many times the line 

 breaks near the hook? A short dis- 

 tance above the hook where the line is 

 wound up to the tip of the rod, it often gets 

 badly worn by casting and breaks easily, 

 but I have seen new lines severed there 

 without even' this excuse. 



I should be pleased to have the opinion 

 of some experienced angler besides your- 

 self on this question, and if I am wrong, I 

 should like a more explicit explanation. I 

 am sure that most disciples of the rod are 

 familiar with the conduct of the pickerel. 

 O. L. Thomas, Dorset, Minn. 



I did not question your statement that you 

 have had pickerel break your line or fray 

 it out, or saw it in 2. That is not the 

 point I raised. Mr. Gordon Wrighter said 

 the pickerel cut the snake in 2. I ques- 

 tioned that statement, and I still maintain 

 that a pickerel's teeth are not set for cut- 

 ting. The pickerel may have torn the snake 

 in 2 and may tear a line in 2, and has done 

 it many a time. I should, however, be glad 

 to hear from other anglers and from some 

 ichthyologist as to whether a pickerel can 

 cut a snake or a fishing line in 2 "as if it 

 had been done with a knife." — Editor. 



THE SHORT CASTING ROD. 



We often read articles about catching 

 large and small mouth black bass by the 

 method known as bait casting, with line 

 and artificial bait. Without exception the 

 writers advise the use of a rod 7 to 9 feet 

 in length. I recently read an article by a 

 veteran bait caster, whom I have always 

 accepted as an authority on the subject, say- 

 ing that no rod shorter than 8 feet should 

 be used, giving as a reason that a fish could 

 not be played properly with a shorter rod. 



While I do not wish to contradict these 

 veterans of the gentle art in a disrespectful 

 spirit, I do say that a person can be as true 

 a sportsman and get as much true sport by 

 using a much shorter rod. 



The rod I have used the past 2 seasons, 

 and expect to use many more, is a 4 foot 

 S l /2 inch solid silk, with agate tip. After 

 much experimenting I consider this rod just 

 right for a man of average height, say 5^2 

 feet. 



The rod must not be so stiff that the line 

 will have to support all the strain should 

 the fish make a sudden rush for liberty ; 

 neither should it be too flexible, else it tires 

 the wrist and is not accurate. The proper 

 stiffness can only be ascertained by much 

 practice, and when the fisherman once finds 

 a rod to fit him he should take the best of 

 care of it, as he may have not a little 

 trouble in getting another. 



An inexperienced person would naturally 

 think that the longer the rod the longer the 

 cast; this is not true, as some of the best 

 casters use comparatively short rods in tour- 

 nament work. 



A long rod is unwieldy and inaccurate. 

 The nearer the hand is to the bait, within a 

 reasonable limit, the easier it is to control it. 



A good outfit for the beginner is the fol- 

 lowing: A solid silk lancewood rod, 4^2 

 feet long, with double grip, large guides, 

 agate or steel tip and finger trigger. A 

 good 80-yard quadruple multiplying reel — 

 the Shakespeare Standard does nicely. The 

 line is important; and if one must econo- 

 mize let it be on something else. I find the 

 Martin "Slickest" line thoroughly reliable. 



For bait I prefer live frogs used on weed- 

 less hook with the Turn-a-frog device. If 

 these can not be obtained, I use the Hark- 

 ouf Wooden Minnow No. 5, the Kayro Pork 

 Pine bait or the old style aluminum spinner. 

 L. J. Tooley, Kalamazoo, Mich. 



FISHING NEAR SAN JOSE. 



Leaving San Jose at 5 a. m., May 14th 

 last, my friend Mr. Shinamon and I started 

 for the mountains on our wheels. After 

 riding 9 miles we reached the foothills. 

 Then 3 miles more of ascent up Guadaloupe 

 creek took us to the end of the road. Leav- 

 ing our wheels at an old Mexican rancho, 

 we pushed up the gorge 3 miles farther, 

 reaching the headwaters at 8 o'clock. We 

 were then in the heart of the Santa Cruz 

 mountains, at the base of Loma Prieta, the 

 highest peak in that range. 



The scenery was grand, the creek at that 

 point coming down through a chasm so 

 wild that no trout ever go above that place. 

 The water was clear and as cold as ice. 

 Starting in there we fished until 11, when 

 we stopped to eat our lunch. I had caught 

 6 trout, while my companion had not got a 

 fish. We had been using worms all the 

 morning, thinking them the best bait, but 

 at length we tried flies. Then our sport 

 began. The creek was alive with trout and 

 in a short time we had taken a dozen 

 apiece. Then we quit. Had we tried flies 

 in the morning we could easily have taken 

 twice as many trout had we wished. 



Wildcats, foxes and coons are numerous 

 in that locality and occasionally a deer 

 is found. We felt well paid for our trip, 

 and were surprised to find such good sport 



