The Mysterious Case of the Mysterious Case
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Once upon a time, not so long ago, in a small tattered storage shed in Phoenix, Arizona lay an old and forgotten leather case. The case had been put there some 40 years prior by the owner of a small tavern. It had been bartered for a bar tab runup by a patron with a thirst for the devil's brew. This was a common practice in small towns across the country as tavern owners would try to help their patrons deal with the trials and tribulations of everyday life. The little case soon became buried deep in the shed as other items taken as barter were heaped upon it. The shed also contained a large number of old, empty classic whiskey bottles in the shape of planes, cars, animals, birds and fish. As the years rolled by the little case sat, weathering the heat and storms of the southwest waiting for caring hands of anyone who might someday start to investigate the piles of odds and ends that had accumulated over the years. As the years marched on, mice, cats, birds and spiders befriended the little case. It lay quiet and still. Then one day the shed was approached by several people with intentions of cleaning it out and discarding the rubble that had sat for decades. As they sifted through the bottles and boxes of years gone by, they came across the little leather case and wondered what in the world it could contain. It was tattered, torn, scratched and scraped, but in surprisingly good condition for its ordeal. Opening the case, they focused on 27 pairs of sparkling eyes staring out at them. What on earth had they come across? There were rainbows of color, flashes of brilliant light, and strange shapes. Well, what you've just read is a cute little fairy tale/mystery that just happens to have a whole lot of truth to it! It did take place in Phoenix, Arizona as mentioned and all started with a native by the name of "Shorty" Brown. Shorty was born in 1900 and as his granddaughter, Patricia Brown, remembers it, her grandfather delivered ice throughout Phoenix until the 1940's. He finally opened his own bar called, "The Club Lido" and this is where our little leather case came into the picture some time in the 40's or 50's. A fishing-lure traveling salesman, thought to have been Edgar (Little Eddie) Clark, son of company founder Charles A. Clark, traded Shorty the case to pay his bar tab in full. Shorty passed along many trade items, including the little case, to his only son, Jimmy. Following in his father's footsteps Jimmy opened his own bar in 1970, "The Wild Horse West Bar". Patricia remembers the leather case being stored in the back room of the bar and kept on the top of an old refrigerator. Her cat, "Momma Kitty" would sleep upon the case and use it as a good vantage point to keep an eye on everything happening in the storage room. The family sold the bar in 1982 and the little leather case was relegated to a small storage shed on the family property along with all those whiskey bottles. Actually, the little "leather" case is not leather at all but a leatherette covered plywood construction which typifies salesmen's sample cases of the period. It measures 16 1/2" x 15" x 4". The case spent the next 18 years in that shed until its discovery in September of 2000 when it became a permanent part of a Charles A. Clark collection and entrusted to NFLCC member, Hugh A. Fisher, of Washington, D.C. At the time the case was discovered, it contained 27 MINT Clark baits. Each lure has a typewritten/plastic-coated number underneath it and is wired into the case. The following lures are in this case: Water Scout, floater (c. 1928-1949) 301, 310, 314, 315x, 320. Water Scout, Duckling (c. 1946) 501, 515x, 517 & 520. Water Scout, Duckbill (c. 1937) 610, 615x & 620. Popper Scout (c. 1945) 701, 715x & 720. Water Scout Streamliner (c. 1946) 814, 815x, 817 & 820. Darter Scout (c. 1945) 901 & 915x. Jointed Duckbill Scout (c. 1948) 1510 & 1515x. "Little Eddie" Water Scout (c. 1946) 2001, 2010, 2014 & 2015x. Also in this case are numbers for the following, but without lures: 317, 510, 514, 601, 614, 617, 724, 714, 717, 810, 914, 917, 920 & 1514. The case is designed to hold a full complement of 48 baits. Of the 21 baits missing, most will be added from my collection. A very special thank you is in order for several caring family members for without them this piece of Charles A. Clark history might have been lost forever! Mr. and Mrs. Lynn Heaps and Ms. Patricia Brown Heaps of Phoenix, Arizona are special people indeed! As of March 22, 2004, Only 2 more to go to fill the case! |
