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or crawl out upon objects on the surface, if left too long to their own devices.

Salt water shrimps, when they can be procured, are good baits for Black Bass, alive or pickled, that is, preserved in salt or strong brine.

I have seen Black Bass caught with cut bait, and even the humble "wum;" but the angler who is reduced to such severe straits, is more to be pitied than envied. It would be in better taste to offer pork to a Mussulman, or páté de foie gras to a tramp.

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CHAPTER XVII.

MISCELLANEOUS IMPLEMENTS.

"My rod and my line, my float and my lead,

My hook and my plummet, my whetstone and knife,
My basket, my baits, both living and dead,

My net and my meat, for that is the chief:

Then I must have thread, and hairs green and small,
With mine angling-purse, and so you have all."

-IZAAK WALTON.

THE FLY-Book.

AMONG the necessary adjuncts to the fly-fisher's outfit is the fly-book, whose pages, well-filled, are more interesting to the angler than the best written pages of classic lore, poetry, or fiction. Fly-books are now made of many patterns and sizes, and of various grades of quality and material. They are constructed of calf-skin, pig-skin, Morocco, or Russia-leather, with parchment leaves for holding the flies. Those with the "Hyde," or metal-clip, for keeping the flies separate and at full length, are the best and most satisfactory, for obvious reasons. They are made in various lengths, from five to seven inches; and of a capacity for holding from three dozen to a gross of flies.

There is nothing neater, better, or more substantial in this line than Abbey & Imbrie's "Southside" fly-book. It is made of Russia-leather, with strap and patent clasp; has double parchment leaves, well-stitched, and is provided

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with the metal-clip, and two leaves of heavy porous cloth for drying wet flies. It is also furnished with large pockets, and compartments for leaders, and snelled hooks. It has a capacity for one hundred flies, and is made of a uniform quality, which is of the highest grade.

The "Holberton" fly-book, of Conroy, Bissett & Malleson, is one similar in style and construction, and is a first rate article. The price of this book depends on the material used in its construction, its capacity for a greater or less number of flies, and the length of the book. One holding four dozen flies is large enough for all practical purposes in Black Bass angling.

CREEL, OR FISH-BASKET.

For fly-fishing, or bait-fishing, when wading a stream or fishing from the bank, a creel is very useful and convenient for holding the angler's catch. Fish are preserved in much better shape, condition and appearance by its use, and it is altogether more satisfactory than the shiftless way of "stringing" the Bass, and allowing them to become water-soaked and flabby, by immersing the "string" in the warm and shallow water near the shore, or even by "towing" them after the angler, if wading.

For Black Bass, the largest Trout-creels will answer every purpose; say Nos. 3 or 4, having a capacity of twenty or twenty-five pounds. The shoulder-strap should be leather or webbing, with a shoulder-pad, to prevent cutting or bruising the shoulder.

Fish-baskets or creels should always be well washed, and carefully dried after use, to keep them clean and sweet. When washing them, a little carbonate of soda or

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