The Sunday herald. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1866-1887, 1882-07-16


Alright with Trout.
The keenest burlesuue on the fish stories
Of this " degenerated day " is Charles bud.
ley Warmers inimitable sketch, entitled "a
Fight With Trout" from which we quote
Trout fishing in the Adrondacks would be
a moro attractive pastime than u is but for
the popular notion of its danger. The trout
ia n retiring and harmless animal, except
whom it is aroused and forced into combat
and then his agility, Gerceness, and vim
dictivencss become apparent. No one who
has studied the excellent pictures repre-
senting men in an open boat exposed TO the
assaults OF long, cnraged trout flying at them
through the air with open mouths ever ven
lures with his rod upon the lonely lakes OF
the forest without a certain terror, or ever
reads of the exploits of daring fishermen
without feeling of admiration for their
heroism. Most of their adventures are
thrilling, and all of them are, in narration,
more or less unjust TO the trout in fact, the
object Of them seems to be to exhibit at the
expense of the trout the shrewdness, the
skill, and the muscular power of the sports
man. My own simple story has few of these
recommendations.
1--WE had been hearing for weeks of
small lake in the heart of the virgin forest,
some ten miles from our camp, which was
alive with trout-unsophisticate hungry
trout the inlet 10 II was described as still
with them. In my imagination saw them ly
ing there in ranks and rows, each a foot long,
three tiers deep, a solid mass. The lake had
never been visited, except by stray sable
hunters in the winter, and was known as
Unknown Pond determined to explore it,
fully expecting, however, that 1t would
prove TO be a deluson, as such haunts of the
trout usually are. Con6ding my purpose TO
Luke, we secretly made our preparation and
stole away from the shanty one morning at
daybreak. Each of us carried boat, a pair
of blankets, a sack of bread, pork and maple
sugar, while | had my case ofrods, creel, and
book of flies, and Luke had an axe and the
kitchen utensils. We think nothing of loads
of this kind in the woods"
"a couple of hours before sundown we
reached the lake. If live to my dying day
| shall never forgetits appearance.
| But what chiefly attracted my attention and
amused me was the boiling of the water, the
| bubbling and breaking, as if the lake were a
vast kettle with a fire underneath. A tyro
| would have been astonshed at this common
| phenomenon; but sportsmen will at once I'M
derstand me when say that the water boiled
with the breaking trout. / began casting
and had got ont, perhaps, fifty feet of line and
| gradually increased it to one hundred. 1t is
not difficult to learn to cast, but IL is difficult
| to learn not to jerk of the flies at every
throw. Finally, in making shorter cast |
| saw a splash where the leader fell and gave
an excited jerk. The next instant ] per-
ceived the game, and did not need the un-
| feigned dam of Luke to convince me that
had snatched his felt hat from his head and
deposited it among the lilies. Discouraged
by this, we whirled about and padded over
to the inlet where little ripple was visible
in the tinted light, Instantly, upon casting
there was rush, swirl. struck, and Got
him, by Never mind what Luke said |
got him by. Out on hy,' continued that
irreverent guide; but | told him to back
| water and make for the centre of the lake.
The trout, as soon as he felt the prick of the
hook, was off like shot, and took out the
whole of the line with a rapidity that made
it smoke. Give him the butt shouted Luke.
1t is the usual remark in such an emergency.
gave him the butt and, recognizing the
fact and my spirit, the trout sank at once to
the bottom and sulked. 1t is the most
dangerous mood of trout, for you cannot
tell what he will do next. We reeled up a
little, and waited five minutes for him to re-
fleet. A tightening of the line enraged him,
and he soon developed his tactics Coming
to the surface he made straight for the boat
faster than | could reel in, and evidently
with hostile intentions
"' Look out for him cried Luke, as he
came flying in the air. evaded him by
dropping fat in the bottom of the boat, and
when picked up he was spinning across the
lake as if he had new idea; but the line
was still fast. He did not run far. | gave
him the butt again. a thing he seemed to hate
| even as gift. In a moment the evil minded
fish, lashing the water in his rage, was com
ing back again, making straight for the boa
as before Luke, who was used to these EN-
counters, having read of them in the writ
ings of travellers he had accompanied, raised
, his paddle in self-defense. The trout left til,
water about ten feet from the boat and cam,
directly at me with fiery eyes, his specklet
sides flashing like a meteor. | lodged as h,
whisked by with vicious slap of his bifur
, Gated tail and nearly upset the boat. Thu
line was, of course, slack, and the danger
was that he would entangle it about me anC
carry away leg. This was evidently hi
game, but untanged it, and only lost t
breast button or two by the swift moving
! string. Thetrout plunged into the water will
, a kissing sound and went away again with al
: the line on the reel. More butt, more indig
nation on the part of the captive. The contes
q had now been going on for half an hour, an'
| was getting exhausted. We had been bacl
and forth across the lake and around an,
! | around the lake. What feared was tn a
. l the trout would start up the inlet and wrecl
us in the bushes. But he had new fame,
and began the execution of a manmuvr
I | which | had never read of. Instead q
coming straight toward us, he took
large circle, swimming rapidly and gradu
: ally contracting his orbit reeed in AM
kept my eye on him. Round round and h
a went, narrowing the circle. began to suspeo
a the game, which was to twist my head of
! When he had reduced the radius of his circl
4 to abOut twenty-five feet he struck tire
), mendous pace through the water. 1t woul
e be false modesty in sportsman to say tina
A ! was not equal to the occasion. Instead q
n turning round with him as he expected,
stepped to the bow, braced myself, and let til
l. boat swing. Round went the fish, and roun
! we went like top. saw line of Noun
a Marcys all round the horizon; the rosy tint
], the west made a broad band of pink alon
A. the sky above the tree tops the evenin
A. star was perfect circle OF light, n hoop
r. gold in the heavens. We whrled an
N reeled, and reeled and whirled. was viii
"a ing to give the malicious beast butt and lin,
q and all, if he would only go the other way fl
If a change.
d "When came to myself Luke was gaH
ing the trout at the boat side. After we ha
"a got him in and dressed him he weighe
W three, quarters of a pound Fish Away
N lose by being got in and dressed 1t
M best Ia weigh them while they are in I'll
n water. The only really large one | ev,
g. caught got away with my leader when fir
struck him. He weighed ten pounds"
4 |
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