Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1883-05-28
A MONSTER JACK.
Graphic Account Of His Capture in
a North Carolina Stream.
Fishing in theUpperHiawassee =
Mountain Trout and Black
BASS.
Cor. Of The Nashville American.

AsHEvILLE, N. G., May 22.-This
is the season for catching mountain
trout, and quite ahumber have been
caught, Theo. Davidson, Esq, Of the
AshVille bar, leading the van.
BLACK BASS
are here, but not in large quantities,
nor very large. | think the water is
too cold for them, or else the fish food |
is not plentiful for such fish on account
Of the sand. There are said obe some
fine jack and pike in all of these
waters, but Colonel Allen I. Davidson |
thinks the
UPPER HIAwAssEE RIVER
the best stream in the mountains for
these varieties of the larger game fish.
| think our jack is the muscalonge of
the North. Old man Thaddeus Nor
ris, the greatest angler perhaps of the
North, paid Asheville a visit some
years ago, and he and Colonel David
son spent several months fishing in
the various streams. lt
Near Murphy. in Cherokee county,
and near the Tennessee lne is very
deep hole in the Hiawassee river,
which the Indians named the
"CLAUNoosA,"
meaning the big hole. The Indians
thought this hole had no bottom, and
that it contained a mammoth turtle
which would eat them up, and they
never would go swimming in that
hole. One beautiful day in May, the
Colonel concluded to 90 a fishing in
"Claunoosa. He went to a branch
and caught very large club minnow,
walked to the lower part Of "Clau~
nooss" and waded in near where the
big hole went off in to a shoal. He
threw his minnow away off into deep
water and stood lazily watching it bob
his cork up and down in its frantic
efforts to escape. After awhile he
Glanced to look down at his feet,
which were naked, and around which
minnows were playing. About two
yards from his feet he saw something
that made his heart jump right up
into his throat. He beheld two enor-
nous eyes, and these eyes were look
ing right at his toes, with hungry
look, making him think that the
owner of the eyes might perhaps want
to devour said toes, which looked. no
doubt, very tempting to an omnivor-
GUS jack salmon. The moment
' - THE ENORMOUS FISH
caught the Celonel's eye it turned like
a great ship, apparently without NOV
ing atm, aud sailed off toward deepl
water. The Colonel commenced
Keeling in his line, which pulled the
minnow in the direction to meet the
departing muscalonge. Presently the
Colonel felt an electric thrill run from
the hair of his head to his big toes
down in the water. What was the
natter /
HIS CORK WAS GONE. |
Did you ever have that ecstatic feel
ing? 1t is the only time in life when
you rejoice at your loss-when you
feel that loss Is gain. There is no
feeling like it--your cork gone! You
look all around you on the CLASSY sur
face Of the river to see if possibly you
may not be mistaken, but nowhere
can it be seen. You feel the slack
line quietly Strengthening, and by and
by the end Of your pole slightly pulled,
then your reel goes I
CLICK, CLICK, CLICK, i
then you know it is not the minnow
fooling you, You say to yourself, as
you hear your heart beating quicker,
hes a good one" You let him run
until he stops, and then you know as
we'll what he is doing as if you saw
him. In catching the minnow he
necessarily had to catch him from be-
hind, and he is now stopping to turn
it in his mouth so he can swallow it.
for his instinct teaches him that the
minnow must be swallowed head
foremost. After stopping long enough
to turn his minnow,
HE STARTS OFF AGAIN
at a much brisker gait. Then is your
time to give small, quick jerk. What
| have described is for your blue lime
stone waters of Tennessee, In these |
clear mountain waters it IS different. |
Colonel Davidson's muscalonge, or |
pike perch, as he calls him, started |
for unfathomable depths of "Clau
noosa' with the velocity Of a schooner. |
THE COLONEL BECAME ALARMED,
and put his right thumb on his large
new silk line as it paid out from the
reel. In doing this he burnt his thumb, |
for the line kept going. He ran along
the edge Of the hole until he was
pulled into the water up to his neck,
when he resorted to heroic treatment;
he gave him butt The pole, leng,
splendid bamboo, curved gracefully
until it formed a rainbow, and then q
half moon. This checked
THE TERRIBLE IMPETUS
Of that first mighty rush of the jack,
who rushed hither and thither like a
mad bull. The Colonels hook was
No. 6 o Limerick, tied to gimp
snood, which alone could have with
stood that grand fish. Occasionally
he would come near enough to be seen
and it was sight. He was
OVER FOUR FEET LONG
and as beautiful as rainbow. After
resorting to all the tactics, the science
of which he had learned from his
prognathean ancestors and by innu-
merable contests with the hair lines
and bone hooks Of Indians many de.
cades past, he
BEGAN TO sULK.
The Colonel was afraid to let him rest
long, so he threw rocks at him, and
pulled at him, but to no purpose for
some time, but at last he started down
stream and pulled the Colonel after