The Milan exchange. (Milan, Gibson County, Tenn.) 1874-1978, 1876-06-29
How the Ladies Fish.

There's generally about six of them
in the bunch (says an exchange) with
light dresses on, and they have three
poles with as many hooks and lines
among them.
As soon as they get to the river they
| look for good place to get down ON
the RATS, and the most venturesome
one sticks her boot heel in the bank and
makes two careful step-downs; then
she suddenly finds herself at the bottom
with both hands in the water and feel
ing that every body in this wide world
is looking at her, and she never tells
any body how she got there. The other
girls, profting by her example, turn
around and go down the bank on their
hands and toes, backwards.
Then they scamper over the RATS
until they find a shallow place where
they can see the fish, and shout:
"Ohl l see One."
"Wherepn
There r
"0l my, so he is"
"Let's catch him."
"Who's got them baitsp"
" You lazy thing, you're sitting on
| my pole" '1',.n b. p a...
"Show me the wretch that stole my
#orm:,' .l, :.
All these EXPLANATIONS are gotten OF
in tone that awakens every echo with
in mile roand, and sends every fish
within three acres sdtiarE into gElloping
Mysteries. Then the girls by superhu-
man exertions manage to get worm
on the hook, and " throw I'M with a
splash, like the launching of a wash
tub, and swat the result. When O sill
ver-fn comes along and nibbles the
bait they pull up with jerk, that, had
an unfortunate fish weighing less than
fifteen pounds been on the hook, would
have landed it in the neighborhOod of
three OF four miles In the country. Az
ter d while feeble-minded sunHsh con-
trives to get fastened on the hook of a
timid woman, and she gives vent to her
tongue; ir.,.
"Ohi something's got my hook"
"Pull up, you little IDIOT" shout five
excited voices as poles and hooks are
dropped and they rush to the rescue.
The girl with the bite gives aspasmodic
jerk, which sends the unfortunate sunny
into the air the full length of 40 feet of
line, and he comes down on the nearest
curly head with damp flop, that sets
the girl to clawing as though there were
bumblebees In her hair.
"Ochl murder! take it away. Ugh!
the nasty thing!"
Then they hold up their skirts and
gather about that fish as it skips over
the logs, one all the time holding the
line in both hands, with her foot on the
pole as though she had an evil disposed
goat at the other end. They talk over
Chow ever will he get Off"
"Ain't it pretty?"
"Wonder if it amt dry?"
"Poor little thing; let's put it back. :"
How will we get the hook from it?"
"Pick it up" says a girl who backs
rapidly out of the circle.
Good gracious, I'm afraid of it.
There, its opening its mouth at me-"
just then the sunny wriggles off the
hook and disappears between two logs
into the water, and the girls try for
another bite.
But the sun comes down and fries the
backs of their necks, and they get three
headaches in the party, and they all get
cross and scold the fish like so many
magpies. If an unwary club dares
show himself in the water they poke at
him with poles, much to his disgust.
Finally they get mad all over and throw
their OoIeS away hunt nm the lunch
basket, climb up into the woods, where
they sit around on the grass and cater
pillars, and eat enough of dried beef
and rusk and hard-boiled eggs to give
a woodhorse the nightmare; after
which they compare notes about their
beaux until shutdown, when they go
home and plant envy in the hearts of
all their muslin delaine friends by tell
ing what "just splendid time " they
had,