Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1890-10-16

How DR.. Tompkins, of Penn Van, Made {
Good Thing in Bass Bait
New York Sun


Il like to do little black bass fishing
now and them said DR.. Tompkins, OF
Penn Yam. but am not one OF those en-
5husiastic people who cant get along
without 1t. The other day, though, a
friend of mine came in with q fine catch
OF bass, and the sight OF them rather put
me in the humor of going out and getting
lot myself.
What did you catch 'em with?' I
asked my friend
Grabs, he said
eve call crawfsh crabs in Penn Yam.
had heard that crabs were good bait for
black bass. and thinking that might get
some fun out Of them as well as anybody
else | went over TO Lake Keuka outlet to
the creek for three hours, turning up
stones and stopping about in the water
knee deep, and succeeded in capturing five
little crabs.
We'll, I said to myself, that isn't a
fishing with, but l guess | won't have
any trouble getting two or three nice bass,
anyhow.
Il was about leaving the creek when l
met small boy. He was Penn Yam
SlIldn UOy. dlu liz uClNc, Clllu IdllCtl
me familiarly and said:
'Hullo, mister! What you after!'
Il told him | was gathering crabs for
bait, but that they were powerful scarce
'What'll you give me to get you
some?' inquired the small boy.
Il thought it would be nice thing to
have couple of dozen or so of crabs, for
I'd want to be going out after more bass
the next day, and knowing what tough
and tedious time I'd had getting only FIVE,
| thought I'd make it worth the boy s
while spending a day Juggling and sweat
ing among the stones, and so | said / d
give him five cents apiece for crabs.
How many IL get you?' asked the
boy.
"'Oh, all you cam | replied, feeling
that all he could get would certainly be few
enough.
All right. he said and | went up
the lake mile or so with my five crabs to
get some bass for my supper | fshed all
the rest of the day and never got as much
as a bite. It was supper time when | pull
ed for home
1.-The next man that says crabs to
me, | said to myself, it won't go well
with
After supper | was sitting in my of
fee feeling a little sore yet over my day s
fishing, when knock came to the door.
| opened it. and there stood the small boy
had hired to gather crabs for me. | had
j forgotten all about him.
! = 'Hullo, mister! he said, 1 got some
cTabsr
Grabs were the very last thing I was
! hankering after just then, but Of course a
bargain was bargain.
'''All right, l said. Fetch EN- in
The small boy stepped aside, and i'm
mediately appeared again, accompanied
in big tobacco pail Each pail was filled
with crabs.
Great heavens' | exclaimed. How
many have you got?'
! There's two thousan mister, SAID
the small boy had bargained with. But
we a got a lot more If the pals mad
been bigger.
Two thousand crabs! If you'll take
| the trouble to figure on that you II find
| that at five cents apiece 1000 crabs will
come to Just an even 500, and that was
! he price per crab | had bound myself to
pay. While these boys had nerve I've an
idea that their ideas of fnanciering were
, crude, for after some exceedingly anxious
and apprehensive argument with them
! induced them to compromise on basis of
/ labor by the day, and even then they made
so good d thing out of me That the next
man who mentions crabs TO me will stanC
an excellent chance of having the price Of
! that days labor taken out of his hide.
returned those crabs to Keuka outlet and
any one who wants to may 60 there and
catch them if he can -