Cattail

“ Some of the cattails can be made to look as if they were growing in the pond if you make a flat-bottomed ball of burrs around the ends of the stems to hold them upright (Fig. 132) , and put some small stones on top of the ball to weight it down in the water.
Fig.134 - Cut leaves for the water lilies from a Maple leaf as shown here.
For the little water-lilies select perfect white clover-blossoms (Fig. 133) , and for the leaves, or lily-pads, use [113] any rather small, smooth, round leaves. The marsh-marigold leaf will answer, or you can cut out water-lily leaves from oak or maple. ”

“ He could see the implications in their level faded eyes; he could see Sharon swayed by their scorn and delivered from such uncertain fascination as his lustiness and boldness had cast over her.
“Damn!” he said. “I’m just as good as they are!”
He came reluctantly down-stairs to the shabby, endearing drawing-room, with its whatnot of curios—a Chinese slipper, a stag carved of black walnut, a shell from Madagascar—with its jar of dried cattails, its escritoire and gate-legged table, and a friendly old couch before the white fireplace. ”

“ Jule put in.
“Sure it will!” continued Case. “And catfish are never found at the bottom of the river. They call them catfish because they climb up on things.”
“You’re the wise little fisher boy,” laughed Alex. “A catfish couldn’t climb to the surface of the river if they had an electric elevator. They live in the mud and eat in the mud. After they get a square meal, they stretch out on a bed of silt like a cat on a sitting room floor. Now get these lines over and I’ll show you what a real catfish looks like.”
The boys took the lines into their hands and leaned over the stern. ”

“ The robins, bluebirds, cat-birds, woodpeckers, blackbirds, and others are here. This spring some of the gulls from the great lakes were fishing on the river. In Young People No. 24 Arthur L. H. wrote about his caterpillar that turned into a butterfly, and I thought he might like to hear about ours. My brother found a caterpillar that had different-colored cross-bands on it, like a Roman sash. He brought it home, and we fed it on leaves till it made a beautiful cocoon of a thin veil-like material of a pale sea-green color, with a line and a few dots of gold on it near the middle. ”

“ Their exquisite fish, oysters, crabs, and foreign fruits upon the whole bring them upon a value with us.
Their fish differ from ours, even some species. Their catfish is the only sort in which we excel; they have none that answer to our blue cat, either in size or flavor, and nothing like our mud-cat. ”

“ The Catfish.—This fish is distinguished for its many deformities, and is a great favorite with all persons who have a fancy for muddy waters. In the Mississippi they are frequently taken weighing upwards of one hundred pounds; and while they are taken in all the tributaries of that river, it has been ascertained that they decrease in size as you ascend towards the north. They are also found in the tributaries of Lake Erie. They are taken with any kind of bait; and as they are very strong the best of tackle is invariably necessary. ”

“ With a flirt of his tail and a flip of his wings the catbird was through the thicket and out on the other side like a gray flash, scolding away at the top of his voice and seeming to shout as the crow had, “There’s a man in the wood! There’s a man in the wood! Look out for him!”
The crimson and gold of the dawn had softened and diffused into diaphanous mother-of-pearl mists of early day. The June morning miracle was complete and it was high time I allowed the oven bird to come back and be assured that her nest and eggs were safe. ”

“ The birds build their nests among the cat-tails, willows, and [Pg 284] small bushes along the margin of swamps and meadows. As you approach they warn you of their disapproval in anxious tones. In a short time, however, they cease their noise and fly from point to point, lighting on the slender top of cat-tail, limb or weed, gracefully swaying backward and forward with the gentle breezes. It is thus they show their beautiful wings to the best advantage. Among the cat-tails they love to build their nest from one to three feet above the water. ”

“ Many instances have, however, been recorded of Cats catching fish. A Mr. Moody, of Sesmond, near Newcastle-upon-Tyne, had a Cat in 1829 which had been in his possession for some years, and caught fish with great assiduity, and frequently brought them home alive. Besides minnows and eels, she occasionally carried home pilchards, one of which, about six inches long, was once found in her possession; she also contrived to teach a neighbour’s Cat to fish, and the two were sometimes seen together watching [Pg 74] by a river side for their prey. ”

“ His handsome plumage enlivens the stretches of dead cat-tails, and his tuneful, liquid song delights the ear. As he sings, he spreads his blazing wing-patches and fluffs out his glossy plumage. The males come north in a body before the females arrive.
The females set to work building the nests almost at once. If the weed-growth is low in the swamp, they build them but slightly above the water; those built by females which arrive later are higher. If nests are suspended upon growing cat-tail leaves or stalks, they are sometimes overturned by the unequal growth of the vegetation. ”

“ There must be plenty of fish in the lake, both small and great."
"But how are we to get them out of it?" rejoined Catharine. "I doubt the fish will swim at their ease there, while we go hungry."
"Do not interrupt me, ma chere. Then, we see the track of deer, and the holes of the wood-chuck; we hear the cry of squirrels and chitmunks, and there are plenty of partridges, and ducks, and quails, and snipes;—of course, we have to contrive some way to kill them. Fruits there are in abundance, and plenty of nuts of different kinds. ”

“ Sharks, rays, and devil-fish, tarpon and jewfish, redfish, snappers and groupers, Spanish mackerel and kingfish, sea-trout, bonito and cavallies, and lady-fish sergeant-fish, sheepshead and drum, a host of smaller fry—spots, grunts, and porgies, and the ever-present and ubiquitous catfish—can here be jerked, and yanked and snaked, and pulled and hauled, until the unfortunate angler will lament that he was ever born—under the last but not least of the zodiacal signs. ”

“ The catbird [15] (fig. 6) , like the thrasher, is a lover of swamps and delights to make its home in a tangle of wild grapevines, greenbriers, and shrubs, where it is safe from attack and can find its favorite food in abundance. It is found throughout the United States west to the Rocky Mountains, and extends also from Washington, Idaho, and Utah northward into the provinces of Canada. It winters in the Southern States, Cuba, Mexico, and Central America. ”

“ Peace reigns as soon as the stomach is certain of being filled without a struggle. A pine-needle or even less suffices for the caterpillar’s meal; and that needle is always there, waiting to be eaten, is there in inexhaustible numbers, almost on the threshold of the home. When dinner-time arrives, we caterpillars go out, we take the air, we walk a little in procession; then, without laborious seeking, without jealous rivalries, we seat ourselves at the banquet. The table is plentifully spread and will never be bare, so large and generous is the pine ”

“ Several species or varieties of Cat-fish are found in the Ohio, namely the Blue, the White, and the Mud Cats, which differ considerably in their form and colour, as well as in their habits. The Mud Cat is the best, although it seldom attains so great a size as the rest. The Blue Cat is the coarsest, but when not exceeding from four to six pounds, it affords tolerable eating. The White Cat is preferable to the last, but not so common; and the Yellow Mud Cat is the best and rarest. ”

“ A fruit-lover is the catbird, beginning with the June berries on the banks of streams near which she often builds her nest and continuing with wild strawberries, blackberries, wild grapes and the berries of the Virginia creeper—sometimes also seen busily scooping out a big hole on the rosy side of a tempting apple in the orchard. Some observers say the catbird eats the eggs of the fly-catcher and other birds, but this must be seen to be believed. ”

“ Beneath this pleasant bower Catharine could repose, and watch her companions at their novel employment, or bathe her feet and infirm ancle in the cool streamlet that rippled in tiny wavelets over its stony bed.
If the amusement of fishing prove pleasant and exciting when pursued for pastime only, it may readily be conceived that its interest must be greatly heightened when its object is satisfying a craving degree of hunger. Among the sunny spots on the shore, innumerable swarms of the flying grasshopper or field crickets were sporting, and one of these proved an attractive bait. ”

“ Will you, kind, mild, green Caterpillar? But you must mind what you give them to eat, Caterpillar!—they cannot, of course, live on your rough food. You must give them early dew, and honey from the flowers; and you must let them fly about only a little way at first; for, of course, one can’t expect them to use their wings properly all at once. Dear me, it is a sad pity you cannot fly yourself! But I [186] have no time to look for another nurse now, so you will do your best, I hope. Dear, dear! I cannot think what made me come and lay my eggs on a cabbage-leaf! ”

“ There, they pull off their red breeches, or their long slip of Stroud cloth, and wrapping it round their arm, so as to reach to the lower part of the palm of their right hand, they dive under the rock where the large cat-fish lie to shelter themselves from the scorching beams of the sun, and to watch for prey: as soon as those fierce aquatic animals see that tempting bait, they immediately seize it with the greatest violence, in order to swallow it. ”

“ Now for the bait!
It was the month of May. Nature had brought abroad myriads of living beings; they covered the earth, glided through the water, and swarmed in the air. The catfish is a voracious creature, not at all nice in feeding, but one who, like the Vulture, contents himself with carrion when nothing better can be had. A few experiments proved to us that, of the dainties with which we tried to allure them to our hooks, they gave a decided preference, at that season, to live toads. These animals were very abundant about Henderson. ”

“ It rolls the wavelets carelessly as marbles to the shore; the red cattle redden the pool and stand in their own colour. The green caterpillar swings as he spins his thread and lengthens his cable to the tide of air, descending from the tree; before he can slip it, the white throat takes him. With a thrust, the wind hurls the swallow, or the still grander traverser of air, the swift, fifty miles faster on his way ”

“ THE CATFISH AND THE MOOSE Menomini
ONCE when the Catfish were all together in one place in the water, the Catfish chief said, “I have often seen a moose come to the edge of the water to eat grass. Let us watch for him and kill him and eat him. He always comes when the sun is a little way up in the sky.”
The Catfish agreed to attack Moose. So they went to watch. They crept everywhere in among the grass and rushes when Moose came down to the water’s edge, slowly picking at the grass. All the tribe watched to see what the Catfish chief would do. ”

“ But as it may be agreeable to some to breed the Flies themselves from the Caterpillars, I shall likewise give the best Instructions I am able for that Purpose.
In the Spring and Autumn Season you may collect great Variety of Caterpillars, by spreading a Sheet under Oak-Trees: then beating the Boughs, many Caterpillars will fall, which if taken Care of, will produce scarce and valuable Moths; you may also obtain by the same Means Caterpillars from the Black-Thorn, White-Thorn, Bramble, Chickweed, Willow, and many other Growths. ”

“ I have found it nesting in all sorts of places, from an alder bush, overhanging a lonely brook, to a scrub apple in an open field, never in deep woods, and it is only in its garden home, and in the hedging bushes of an adjoining field, that it develops its best qualities—‘lets itself out,’ so to speak. The Catbirds in the garden are so tame that they will frequently perch on the edge of the hammock in which I am sitting, and when I move they only hop away a few feet with a little flutter. ”

“ Take two large or four small white catfish that have been caught in deep water, cut off the heads, and skin and clean the bodies; cut each in three parts, put them in a pot, with a pound of lean bacon, a large onion cut up, a handful of parsley chopped small, some pepper and salt, pour in a sufficient quantity of water, and stew them till the fish are quite tender but not broken; beat the yelks of four fresh eggs, add to them a large spoonful of butter, two of flour, and half a pint of rich milk ”

“ The hair of the Wild Cat is soft and fine, and of a pale yellow colour, mixed with grey; a dusky-coloured line runs along the back, from its head to its tail; the tail is thick, and marked with bars of black and white. It is larger and stronger than the tame Cat, and its fur much longer. It inhabits the most hilly and woody parts of this island, lives in trees, and hunts for birds and small animals, such as rabbits, hares, rats, mice, moles, &c.; and it is also very destructive among poultry. The Cat seems to possess something like an additional sense, by means of its whiskers. ”

“ We baited our hooks, and dropped the lines into the lake. Miss Margie was the first to hook a fish. After a hard pull she got him to the top of the water. It was a catfish weighing twelve pounds. The Colonel and Owen were disgusted. A catfish is an exaggerated hornpout, or "bullhead." None but negroes eat them at the South.
CHAPTER XXIII.
TROLLING FOR BLACK BASS.
"The idea of fishing for catfish is absurd!" exclaimed Colonel Shepard. "It isn't a proper use to put a white man to."
"Don't fish so deep, then," suggested Cornwood. "The catfish live on the bottom." ”