466 
FOREST AND STREAM 
April 12, 1913 
LAKE TEMAGAMI—FISH? YES, ALL YOU WANT. 
you get the best teacher right out of experience. 
You may get the beginning pointers through 
reading from the pages of the fish authorities, 
but i-n the main you have to get riglit down and 
study it out for yourself. A bass strikes a bait 
on the side nine times out of ten; then there 
are those inquisitive fellows who will follow 
up a bait for about ten or fifteen feet and will 
finally seize it. The gang on the end will get 
the follow-up fellows, but the bass that comes 
down upon it with a rush are soon caught by 
the side gangs. But around about the time 
when the weeds begin to thrust their noses into 
the upper world, out of the water, these baits 
not only are worthless, but can catch nothing. 
Therefore it is that the weedless bait has proven 
to me a winner. I can cast that bait into any 
water, and if I do not get fish, I am sure I 
won't drag in the whole lake bottom and. its 
contents, and that amounts to quite a bit with 
me. 
Connected w'ith the art of bait-casting there 
is due to he much c.xasperation. as a natural 
course: and the baits that have bare hooks com¬ 
ing in contact with weeds cannot but pave the 
way for the well known explosions. There is 
a time and place for the use of these baits with 
the many hooks. In Minnesota, the kingdom 
of bass fishing, w'here I got my training, there 
are lakes that are w'eedlcss, and the w’ater is 
crystal clear; you can see deep down into the. 
water and a great way out. 11 ere these baits 
can be used with success, and 1 have done it 
to my entire satisfaction. 
It makes no- difference whether a ‘hait is 
a surface bait or an under-water bait, they 
have their time and place. 1 he surface bait 
I have used in the spring and fall. Then the 
bass are in shallows picking up the insects that 
abound and fall to the surface. When the water 
becomes warmer the fish retreat to deeper 
water, say about tbe second week in the month 
of July. In plain view of the hass in the shal¬ 
lows I have caught them with the the use of 
tlie surface bait and have had ample opportunity 
4o study their ways and actions. The use of 
the live bait, as centering around the frog, is 
perhaps one of the best ways of catching the 
black bass for the reason that it is the most 
natural. It is a winner and should be given a 
try-out at all times. 
The bait-caster’s outfit should be as com¬ 
plete as his money can make possible, and right 
here let me put in a word for the man of 
moderate means. In all the time I have been 
pounding this machine in the interest of the 
outdoor press. 1 have always managed to get 
in a word for the man whose pockethook is 
rarely bulging with bills. Get a good outfit— 
one that will last you for years—with an outlay 
of little over twelve or fifteen dollars. The 
reel is the main article of the outfit; on the 
reel depends the success or non-success of your 
trip. A good quadruple multiplying reel that 
will amply do you can be purchased for from 
four to seven dollars. The points demanded 
in good reel construction are durability, firm¬ 
ness, and of such worth as to last through bad 
weather and fine, giving equal service at all 
times. The metal should be of a good grade— 
German silver ])referred—for not only is it 
known for its wearing qualities, but it is of a 
subdued coloration and will not alarm the fish, 
as will the Hashy glitter of the nickel reels. I 
have used German silver reels for many years 
and have fonnd them worthy of any man's at¬ 
tention. A’here they are put out hy reputable 
manufacturers they are especially good. 
In the hands of the beginner, the smooth 
nmning reel, one that will spin for at least five 
minutes, is more or less of an impossibility 
end one cannot learn the game on it. but with 
a reel not so highly keyed up one is better able 
10 practice and become efficient, later ]nirchas- 
ing a better reel. Between four and seven dol¬ 
lars you will find listed some of the best and 
most used reels on the market. They inspire 
confidence and come within the means of every 
man. The quadrup-le multiplying reel is the 
reel best fitted for bait-casting. It has four 
revolutions of the spool to one revolution of the 
liandle This reel should have a large barrel, 
since on such a reel the line can more easily 
and readily be assembled where, in the short- 
barreled reel the quarters are cramped and 
the line cannot be laid correctly without invit¬ 
ing the inevitable backlash, the bane of the bait- 
caster, both the experienced and the inexperi¬ 
enced. A glance through the advertising pages 
of this magazine will suffice to give you an in¬ 
sight into low priced reels, those coming under 
my observation in this article. Do not go under 
four dollars, and it is not necessary for you to 
go over seven. 
In the question of the rod for bait-casting, I 
have found the steel rod pre-eminently the 
leader: the steel rod is the most universally 
used, a recommendation in itself. This rod 
should not have a stiff backbone; the rod with 
the stiff backbone is better used for larger 
fishing, as for the pickerel and the muskelonge. 
Rather let there be a give from the center of 
the rod to the tip; a give that will easily be 
noticeable when you have the rod in hand. 
There are steel rods and steel rods; there are 
better quality in some and much poorer in 
others. Dry goods store specials should be 
banned, relegated, banished, exiled, whatever 
j'on wish, for they are nothing more or less 
than blow-pipes. Pay from four to five dollars 
for a steel rod and you have something you 
can lay hands upon and know that you have 
something worthy of your attention, something 
that will give the pugnacious bass a run for 
his money. Always remember the rod with the 
give, the well defined give, and you will have 
made a step in the right direction. Five or six 
feet is about ideal for a rod. Avoid the very 
short rods and the very long ones. Choose in 
between and yem will have done the right thing. 
In the question of guides, do not get them 
too big. but medium. Those rods having guides 
an inch across are not necessary: they are too 
much exaggerated. The reason of the big 
guides is to allow of less line friction, but the 
medium guides are just as good, if not better. 
If the guides are fitted with agate you are that 
tnuch ahead, but it costs more. I have a rod 
having agate lining in the reel guide and the 
tip guide, for these two stand the most wear, 
the most friction. I have found that it will 
save your line—it will last longer and prove its 
worth. 
In regard to the reel. The average reel is 
held firm by a band that is slipped over one of 
the shoulders; this is all right, providing it stays 
firm. The reel band that locks bj' means of a 
thumb screw, is better and will hold secure 
against wriggling out of place. Some reels are 
provided with the finger pull, a contrivance 
around which the forefinger is hooked, pur- 
IKirting to give the bait-caster a firmer hold 
on the rod. I have used them, but they are not 
necessary. For the beginner they are good 
and are recommended in this article. 
The line for bait-casting is a subject many 
amateurs get tangled up in. They will try this 
and that, something and another thing, but they 
finally find something that is entirely suited to 
their needs. A soft braided silk line is to be 
given preference among all others. Note here 
that I have used quite a few in my day. and the 
one and only one I have come to utterly rely 
upon is the soft braided line. 
Do not forget to get yourself a tackle box. 
I wish I could tell you how much pleasure I had 
packing baits around with me in my pockets be¬ 
fore I had sense enough to get a tackle box. 
It is a necessity and you should not go out 
fishing before you have one. It is not neces¬ 
sary to get a box that will hold four gallons of 
bait and reel and other paraphernalia. A small 
box is quite sufficient—one that will hold your 
(Continued on page 483.) 
