Los Angeles herald. [microfilm reel] (Los Angeles [Calif.]) 1900-1911, 1908-05-24

ANGLERS RALLY
TO TOURNAMENT
REDONDO CASTING CONTESTS
WELL ATTENDED
GOOD CATCHES REPORTED ALL
ALONG THE LINE
Maintain Streams In Good Condition
for Fly, Water Being Lower
Than at This Date
Last Year
BY EDWIN L. HEppERLY

tournaments, planned by the Southern
California Rod and Reel club for the
summer.
Elaborate preparations for handling a
much larger attendance of rod ana reel
men than participated in either OF last
summers barbecues have been maze,
and the committee expects to care Tor
200 persons if need be, All arrange
ments are better systematized than
they were last year and a more elabo-
rate menu is being prepared. Inc
scheme last summer provided Tor
everybody bringing his lunch and sup
plementing it with coffee, fried fish
and LIQUID refreshments, but today
beef and beans, with chill, i the Span
ish style, coffee, fried fish of perhaps
a dozen varieties and other good things
are planned.
In order that the supply of fish may
be up to the high water marks set by
the previous barbeeues, In which the
club broke all records for an angling
organization by actually catching more
than its members could use, several
launches have been chartered; and in
these, equipped with nine-ounce rods
and nine-thread lines, few even with
the gossamer-like three-six gear, the
experts will set forth in open compe-
tition with the market fishermen. The
trolling off Redondo generally is good
for yellowtail, barracuda and bass, the
varieties most desired. The catches of
the boats are to be helped by the COM
bined efforts of the anglers who will
scatter along the shore line, from Playa
del Rey to Redondo, and rendezvous at
the Redondo pavilion at noon for din
ner, bringing in their fish cleaned and
ready for the cooks. Halibut, corbina,
yellowfins, turbots, mackerel, sardines
and other small fry, such as smelts,
herring $50 called) and surf-perch, gen.
orally are taken along the western
shore line at this season, and although
it Is a little early to hope for excep-
tional catches. the average angler GER
tainly should have no difficulty in
catching enough for himself and one
other at the least. The committee
wishes to impress upon all the neces-
sity of not attempting to rest upon
their laurels, however, Is laurels are
VIGOROUSLY inedible and a most I'M
satisfactory diet as compared with
fresh fish, fried by the master hand of
the barbecue cook.
Providing Against Accidents
! Pits for the roasting of meat have
been dug and oak wood for the fires
has been shipped. This morning Sher-
man Baker of the casting committee
will gather his helpers and lay off the
course, appoint special police for the
day and rope off a space at the casting
point, to avoid accidents. The spec
tators have shown a disposition to
crowd the casters at previous events,
and seem not to realize that the two
and half ounce sinker at the end of a
six-foot rod, when swung by a power
full man of Bakers strength, is a
deadly missile If anything should
break, which is quite possible at all
times.
There is a goodly entry for the two
and half ounce and unlimited event,
but only one man wanted to cast in
the ounce class, and he waived it In
order to avoid complicating the compe-
tition. Baker, Smith Warren, Roy
Shaver, Tracy Shouts, Ellsworth SAL
yer, Eugene Elliott, Sheriff Weber and
several other experts who have been
casting in practice every Sunday, are
to be ON hand, and 1t is thought that
the best exhibition of the sinker-
shyers art ever seen here will result.
Tracy Shouts has offered a fine
split bamboo casting rod to the winner
of the two and half ounce event.
Greatest distance and average will be
taken into account by the committee.
Conditions and rules will be announced
at the opening of the competition; sink
ers will be furnished by the committee
and will be official.
Surf Fish Become Educated
Local sea anglers, the clam casters In
particular, are abount unanimous in
the opinion that corbina and yelloWfins
know when Sunday rolls around just as
well as they themselves do.
The regularity with which big catches
are made during the week at wharvas
which yield barely a mess the follow
ing Sunday is nothing new in the fish
ing world. 1t has come to be an adage
with the surf fishermen that if one
wants to get corbina he must look
rather to avoiding the crowd than to
seeking the fish.
Many have the opinion that sea fish
are not shy, and the luck of the coarse
tackle man at times seems to warrant
their judgment; but the persistence OF
poor sport Sundays when wharVes are
crowded seems to extend to the holt
days when the same conditions obtain
and undoubtedly is caused by the fish
becoming frightened at the constant
plunking in of sinkers and the Vibra-
lions of football upon the WharVes
These sounds are transmitted to the
water and are magnified. The auditory
apparatus of fish is not greatly diff
ferent from that of animals, and Vibra-
v
tribe. Their ears consist of small stones
floating in a sort of sack filled with a
fluid which, when Jared, undoubtedly
conveys an impression to the brain OF
the fish similar to that of the auditory
nerves of creatures higher in the scale
The least shock is sufficient to alarm
these fish and set them on their guard
which is at all times needless. They
become suspicious of food, their biting
changes from the Vora cious snap and
strike to a leisurely nibbling and suck
ing at the clam, which generally re-
suits in the loss of bait.
Unlike many theories this works out
in practice. Often on a wharf which is
crowded near the surf some angler will
venture out to the end, in water deeper
than the surf fish frequent, and there
take several before the remainder OF
the party come in at the charge and
drive away the fish. The sport then
stops abruptly, and the conclusion is
forced that either the fish have quit
biting. or moved off.
How far this effect manifeSts itself
upon the fish is not plain, but the won
derful sound and vibration carrying
properties of the water indicate that OH
busy Sunday the sport immediatelg
adjacent to a wharf for a distance OF
200 feet on either side is spoiled by it.
The big Sunday and holiday catches are
usually made from the beach. Some
beach anglers are so particular that
they will not tolerate another within q
thousand feet and promptly move off or
49, IF ror,,pa nv rhaGa fol.