December, 1922 
557 
men, I weighed him and found he 
weighed five and one-half pounds. With 
four casts and two good tiger frogs I 
had these two fish! Now, here is where 
the “bassine” comes in ; 
A friend of mine was in one of the 
boats near the launch at the time I was 
trying to catch the second fish. He 
raised his frog out of the water and 
asked me if his frog was not like mine. 
I looked at it at a distance and said it 
looked like my frog. He said, “What 
can be the difference ?” I said, “Is it a 
male frog?” Male h — ” said he; “how 
the d — 1 should I know whether it is a 
male frog? Is there anything else that 
makes your frog different from mine?” 
And I said : “Have you any bassine on 
your frog? The druggist down here 
sells it.” He said ; “That is strange. He 
is a great friend of mine and never has 
told me anything about it.” I said: “You 
go down there and ask him for bassine, 
and he will sell it to you.” 
As soon as I rowed ashore the clerk 
at the hotel asked me what bassine was. 
I told him to go down to the druggist 
and get a small bottle of nux vomica 
and to put some cologne with it to dis- 
guise it. We all know that the dropping 
of strychnine on a frog will make it very 
active. The clerk did as I told him. He 
came back with the bottle and said : 
“Here’s the dope called ’bassine’ that 
caught the big fish. Bring on your dopey 
frogs and I will show you how it works.” 
They brought on their worn-out, half- 
dead frogs, and they began to jump im- 
mediately. Of course, they all wanted 
to know the cost of the bassine, and he 
said: “I will sell it to you for a cent a 
drop. Put a few drops on each of your 
frogs.” The fishermen started out to 
catch bass with their perfumed frogs. 
Of course, as soon as they were cast 
overboard the “bassine” would be washed 
ofif. 
Many of the boarders were sore be- 
cause the fish were caught, and they 
asked the proprietor why he had not 
moved the launch when he knew I was 
coming to try for the bass. He said that 
that would not have made any difference, 
as the fish would swim to the boat. “Oh, 
we did not think of that,” they replied. 
This has been known as the “Bassine” 
story in that region for a number of 
years. 
Fishing is the greatest recreation man 
or woman can have in God’s domain. 
Many fishermen fish without the proper 
study of the habits of fish. The much- 
talked-of “fisherman’s luck” is where the 
fish comes to a boat and will bite, and 
everyone in the boat wdth a line catches 
fish. If the fish do not happen to come 
to where the boat is anchored they say 
they have no luck. How much better it is 
to know the habits of the fish and hunt 
for them as the hunter hunts for birds ! 
He does not go into the woods and sit 
in one place, hoping that a bird .will 
come his way; he covers all the ground 
in the woods. Why not go all around 
the lake, find where the fish are and how 
they are taking the bait; then one is sure 
of catching some fish. 
A. T. Fox, New York. 
I T is only by a steadfast fol- 
lowing of the ideals estab- 
lished on the founding of this 
business in 1853 the 
“Superior” quality of Smith and 
Wesson revolvers today is 
ensured. 
Smith (^Wesson 
cJ^Canufacturers of Superior Revolvers 
SPRINGFIELD 
MASSACHUSETTS 
No arms are genuine Smith 
& Wesson Arms unless 
they bear plainly marked 
on the barrel, the name 
SMITH a WESSON, 
SPRINGFIELD, MASS, 
Catalogue sent on request 
Address Department I 
In writing to Advertisers mention Forest Rtre.an,.. It. 
