FOREST AND STREAM 
1101 
GOOD BASS FISHING IN FLORIDA. 
Stuart, Fla., June 21, 1916. 
Editor Forest and Stream: 
Yesterday morning George W. Jones, merchant 
at Palm City, two miles from, Stuart, up the 
south fork of the St. Lucie River, took me in 
his skiff, with outboard motor attached, to go 
black bass fishing. 
We went up the north fork of the river about 
three miles, tied our boat to the south bank of 
the river, and walked to ‘‘Big Mouth Lake,” 
about one mile in from the river. As he was 
to bring minnows, and could not catch the same, 
our first work was to secure bait, as at this 
season our bass will not take anything hut live 
bait. We hunted through the water lily patches, 
opening the stems of those whose leaves showed 
signs of worms, and took out a white worm 
greatly resembling the pine sawyer worm, and 
■with these, on very small hooks, we soon caught 
a supply of (“brim”) small sunfish, hooking 
three two-pound bass on our sunfish hooks, and 
landing one while getting our “brim” bait. 
We then fished along the outer edge of the 
lily patches and picked up several two to three- 
pound bass, and I caught a 15-pounds soft-shell 
freshwater turtle as we moved down the lake, 
which is over a mile in length and from 200 to 
500 yards wide. In the widest part of the lake 
the float on my line started for the center of 
the lake, and I let 50 feet of line run off the 
reel before I struck, and then there was a leap 
into the air and I saw that I was fastened to one 
of the granddads of the bass family. The way 
I worked that reel was certainly most rapid, as 
my fish was headed for a big patch of water 
lilies, and towing a good sized skiff with us 
two men in it. I was not able to stop him until 
he entered the lily patch, but the line, an 18- 
thread cuttyhunk linen one, held even if twisted 
around lily stems, and I took it away from the 
stems and lifted “grandpa” into the boat. We 
hurried to the board landing, drew our boat up 
on the shore, turned it over and raised the bow 
up four feet from the ground, and sat under 
the boat and ate our luncheon, while a heavy 
thunder shower passed over us. After a smoke, 
we started out and caught some more three- 
pounders, until we were at the south end of the 
lake, where another shower caught us, and we 
pushed the boat through the grass and lilies close 
to the bank, and then pushed the oars down in 
the mud until they stood up over the rowing seat, 
and over the oars we put a rubber storm coat 
for a tent and sat under it until the storm passed. 
We concluded we had all the fish we could use 
and give away to intimate friends and called 
it a day, and got back to Stuart by 4 P. M. At 
the boat landing in a machine shop we put my 
bass on scales and he weighed 9% pounds. 
Who, of your northern bass anglers, can beat 
it? Come down and try your luck. 
W. F. Rightmire. 
A new association, known as “The Outagamio 
Game and Fish Protective Association,” has just 
been formed at Appleton (Wis.). An effort will 
be made to get every Nimrod and fisherman in 
Outagamie County in the new organization. In 
this way it is thought that the weight of public 
sentiment can be thrown toward the protection of 
game and fish and also to assist game wardens 
in their work. The new association has a char¬ 
ter membership of twenty-five. 
A deputy from the State game department of 
South Dakota has gone into camp northeast of 
Belle Fourche and will undertake to capture a 
herd of antelope for the State game preserve 
in the Black Hills. It is reported that there are 
several herds of these animals in the vicinity of 
Belle Fourche and in the Harding County 
country. 
HHIHig 
Real Luck Lies in Your Reel 
MEEK REELS for 30 yrs. have 
■ 1 1 ■ stood first with the 
“big catchers.” Stand first in quality, 
service and satisfaction. Won more 
v trophies, by over 2 to 1, than all 
\ other reels combined. Write for 
;f \\ Catalogue h 
B. F. MEEK & SONS 
& ;'Y^===»L Louisville, Ky. 
--Vv c—5» 
When There Is Game 
Enough For All 
The day is coming when there will 
be as much wild game in this country 
as there was fifty years ago. Men now 
living can remember the time when 
the sky was darkened by the flight of 
wild ducks, when wild turkeys, quail, 
grouse and other game birds abounded 
in our woods and fields. It does not 
take a great effort of imagination to 
picture what a return of these condi¬ 
tions will mean—not only to the sportsman but also 
to the farmer, the housewife and the market man. 
Game farming is the medium through which the change 
will be brought about. By the establishment of game farms 
throughout the country it will be possible not only to meet 
the present active demand for game birds (now far larger 
than the supply) but also the increased demand which 
will come. 
Game breeding is both profitable and pleasant. Any one 
having a small amount of land may start a game farm and 
raise birds for his own consumption and for sporting and 
marketing purposes. 
If these possibilities appeal to you, or if you are interested 
from any standpoint in the increase of our game birds, write 
us for the book, “Game Farming for Profit and Pleasure”. 
This book, which is sent without cost to those who ask for 
it, takes up the subject in a broad way and gives much 
interesting and valuable information regarding many different 
game birds, their habits, food, enemies, and the methods for 
breeding and marketing them. 
Game Breeding Department, Room 193 
HEHfULES POWDER CO. 
Wilmington, Delaware 
Manufacturers of Explosives; Infallible and “E. C.** Smokeless Shotgun Powders; 
L.<i*R. Orange Extra Black Sporting Powders; Dynamite for Farming 
In writing for your copy please use the coupon below. 
Game Breeding Dept., Room 193 
Hercules Powder Company, Wilmington, Del. 
Gentlemen:—Please send me a copy of “Game Farming for Profit and Pleasure**. I am interested in game 
breeding from the standpoint of_ 
Name_...__ 
Address__.......-- - 
