The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1902-09-21

The big bass are biting now" said Mr..
Rocus to a group of fy-fshermen. After
the first frost the three, four and five
Founders seem TO skirmish more actively
than in the ~dog-days. Instinct probably
tells then that the changing temperature
of the water means ice later on, and that
food will soon become scarce. In my
piscatorial experience l have learned a
great deal about the habits of the black
bass, having observed them in all stages of
their existence, in all seasons, and in rivers,
ponds and lakes. They consume more food
Immediately after the spawning period than
at any other time. They generally bite less
freely in the last half Of July and the whole
of August. Sometimes they are a little
chary in the first two weeks of Septem-
Der, especially if the weather be warm, but,
as a rule September and October are good
fishing months and. as 1 said before. the
fish caught average larger than i'm the early
summer. They become less wary, partly
because there are fewer fishermen late in
the season, but mainly because their appe-
tites are more ravenous and food is scarcer.
when the first leaves begin to fall from
the trees along the bank of a river it is
nothing unusual TO see a big bass leap at
a leaf as it approaches the water, the fish
mistaking the leaf for a moth or butter
fly. / have frequently taken. advantage of
the knowledge thus gained tone of the main
things in fy-fishing is to learn where the
fish are to be found and what they feed on)
and cast near where the fish leaped after
the leaf. Sometimes L would be rewarded
with a rise and occasionally with a good
catch.
GOOD CATCHES IN SUGAR CREEK.
"A few years ago, while fishing in Sugar
creek, at Bloomingdale. l noticed bass leap
ing from the water under an ~overhanging
tree. Closer observation showed that the
fish were feeding on caterpillers-a fuzzy,
gray variety-that were blown from the
tree at every gust of wind. This knowl-
edge / quickly put to use. I changed my
flies to small gray bucktails and made a
side cast under the tree. l had a strike
at once on the 'stretcher' fly, and while
working my fish toward the landing net,
another bass took the ~'dropper.' They
were both lively fish, Weighing a pound
each, and / had several minutes of good
sport trying to land them. Finally they
wore each other out by their contrary
rushes and leaps and l guided them into
the net. / took several more bass from
the same place within an hour, the next
day caught five. and the third day six,
making twenty bass that averaged fully a
pound, all caught under the ~overhanging
tree. This is not a proverbial fish story,
and is merely mentioned to illustrate how
fy-fishermen sometimes meet with success
by closely observing the habits of fish,"
Nearly all fishermen have had the same
experience" said Mr.. Perca. Years ago,
before / became educated up to the fly
fishing standard, ! took a mean advantage
of a dozen bass that were feeding below
the mill at Brooklyn, Ind. The mill is
on White Lick, a pretty little stream that
empties into White river above Centerton.
1 was fishing with minnows off the apron
of the dam and had met with no success.
Just as 1 was starting down stream /
noticed a bass leap from a small pool in
the milltail and chase a minnow In the
swift water under the mill. That was
a pointer. / walked around the mill, stood
on the bank above the tail race and swung
a club into the swift water under the mill.
In a twinkling 1T was carried into the pool,
and before it had passed through the ridge
of foam, caused by the churning of the
water, 1T was seized by a bass. In half
a minute the fish was on the bank. The
minnow was uninjured, and / made a Sec
ond cast, with the same result as the first.
1 made thirteen more casts, landed ten
more bass and lost three. Then the mill
stopped running and my fishing ended.
The fish were small, averaging about three
quarters of a pound, but they made a nice
string"
TWO GOOD BASS AT ONE TIME.
Speaking OF initials" said Mr.. Fonti-
nails, reminds me of an incident on the
Tippecanoe river. With others I was in a
| boat floating dow the river from Warsaw
to Monticello by easy stages. Bass were
not plenty. The upper part of the river
was full of logs, and, by all the rules of
fishing, should have proved good hiding
places for bass, but few were found, al
though carp were numerous. Further
down the river the big powders in the
stream did not yield much better results.
Even the pools below the dams generally
were barren. One day we landed near a
mill, and while my companions visited the
adjacent village 1 amused myself by cast
ing into the river where the waters of the
milltail joined those Of the larger stream.
/ had two Lord Baltimore flies tied to the
leader, and on my second cast hooked two
fish. 1t was a difficult place to land them,
for the water was swift and deep and /
was standing in the stern of the boat,
which was tied to a platform. However,
in the course of ten minutes, by consider
able maneuvering. the fish were drawn to-
ward the platform. By this time half the
population of the village was looking ON.
The landing net had been thrown out of
the boat beyond my reach. but a bright boy
saw my dilemma and used the net so skill
fully that both fish were saved. One
weighed a pound and a quarter and the
other nearly two pounds. My rod, a split
bamboo, weighed only six and a half