OCR Text |
Show BIG BASS IN SOUTH. Kim Up to Pourteen Pounds in St. John's niver, but Aro Not Oame ns Northern Variety. The Northern ImsB even nf the large mouthed gieen vnrlety Is generally gamer than Its Southern brother It lives lu colder water and has not to m, lure the weakening beats of suiii-met. suiii-met. lu size, however. It Is markedly Inferior. A Northern bnss weighing three I omul Is u good b iss, one of Hire, and a h ilf pounds Is n very goo I bass one of four pound Is n beauty ur ti elnlsy, nnv over Hint weight is a whopper. In ti season's catch on any bass luko tho niimbtr of Individuals weighing mora than four isiutuls will lie few. In tho fat South bass of eight nnd nine pounds mc to commnti ns to excite little remark. In tho St John's ilvcr nf riorlda the) run fnqucntly to tin nnd eleven pounds, Hie) go more thnn twelve inunils in limit, il numbers, they huvu betu taken weighing Tour-teen Tour-teen pounds if a Northern man nn n Northern lake should hook nnd land a bass wilgblng fourteen pounds ho would mi out uf the boat as tho bass tame Into It Ihcso enormous Southern fish are lu every tespect idcntleul with the gieen Oswego hiss nt thn North. Tho onl) explanation of their plunumen il growth In that they get moro tu cut, tt richer quality nnd variety nnd moro lime tu tat It In They bavo no lco fiozon over them for four months In Hit )cur und do not spend those four months In n state of scml-hlbtrnallnn. living, an tho cattlemen cattle-men out West sn), on tlulr tallow Fouling liitlustrioiisly rrs. tluyn lu tho yenr has douhtliss Its elfect, but thtro mo attglt rs and nntiirnlists who fuy that, despite their appearance and structure they must belong to u illffer- They uro nnt gnme "liny npfnso dtntl wili.ht to tho line Of intirso tho migler who his the niillniry hiss rod und tucklei nu I honks a llsh of twelve inunds bus a tlmu ahead of him Ha heft Is such that every movemtnt hits u violent effect upon the ncl nnd wrist, If It merely swims nbiut It ixutlscs u considerable diag The Southern bass, however, will not continue to optsise even Its wtlght for tiny length nf time (, morally aflor u mlntito nr ro It svvlmn toward the Inut lo git rid nf the e mil lulling nf the book in It Jaw and so may lit landed with a ellp net even when not lulf tire il Despite Its size, it Is a notably Mol table tlsh the flesh b'lng will llavnrid hard, white an I llaky Some lilt l nf the tiro of the St John's river bass may be gnined from the fnct that u man's duiiblod knee in ty be thrust Into tho mouth of one nf the m The vvnters nf the St Jnhn's river nre warm, the edges lined with llly-pada llly-pada and Hags und rustic h growing thickly, In the eddies where tho bnss lie tho current Is sluggish und f on 1 drops dnvvn In plenty There nri c,ria- creeks th it traverse tho pine woods nf riorlda and Iiulsl ana In vv libit rnnu nf the great hiss lie, and III tin in thn llsh uro of higher eviitrac,e The waters arn mid fur Southern waters, very clear and brlhht, very swift The luns do nnt run to quite tho St John size sol, loin going beyond ten riiimls hut that Is big enough, and one nf them fnlrl) hnnki 1 churns up n hit of water before helper landed They nre fished for with slnut limn lines tied tu cnue toles Hut a mule could not break The hooks nro large and thlilt tn prevent them from teulni? ihiiiutrl, llio fit Ml i T lie nnirler iuiH a spnnn on the end nf his lino and he trolls this baikvvuid ani forward wllh slil, long svvieps, meanwhile standing u on n bank When snaicd and barbed the Inss Is )nnked nut by main strength and awkwardness awk-wardness If the hook holds It Is a goner and It f,ets no chance at ull to tight Its way lo freedom It l Inten sting to lonjccturo what would happen If a ten-pound deck bis should be hooked b) a skillful angler having an ordinary rod of split bamboo u quadruple multiplying leel, which hni little lower In the crunk mil n No B silk line The light vvnul I bo worth watching- nnd tho odds would bo legitimately nn the hats Sn fHr as the reonrds extend nn mm plctcly outlltti 1 angler has ever gone up Into tho far plno wood In se neb of these fresh water mnnsteis Tho iliniculty nf taking ono nf them fairly would bo enhaniel ly the narrowness of tho stream th number nf roots nnd stumps in It und the overhanging blanches, which are In placea so thlcl. nnd long that they tnett uhovo the wuttr, forming a solid arch of green and forcing Ihe man to use only tho low side-cust in order to get his bull out |