The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1884-07-24
Plain F'lsnlng.

Plain Flsnlng.
"Well, sir" said old Peter. as he came
out on the porch with his pipe, $50 you
come here to 60 tishin' ?"
'Nes, | answered. II understood that
there was good fishing hereabouts, and
at any rate | should like to spend few
days among these hills and mountains"
"Well," said Peter, "there's trout in
some of our streams. though not so many
as there used to be, and there's hills
plenty, and mountains too, if you choose
to walk fur enough. They're a good
deal furder off than they look. What
did you bring with you to fish with ?"
Nothing at ALL" answered 81 was
told in the town that you were a great
fisherman, and that you could let me
have all the tackle | would need"
Upon my word" said old Peter, rest
ing his pipe-hand on his knee and look
ing steadfastly at me, you're the queer
est fisherman I've seed yet. Nigh every
year some two or three Cf 'em stop here
in the tishin' season, and there never
was & man who didn't tring his tinted
pole, and his reels, and his lines, and his
hooks, and his dry good flies, and his
whiskey flask with long strap to it.
Now, if YOU want all these things,
haven't got en-"
Whatever you use yourself will suit
me- answered
"All right then,' said he. ''I'll do the
best can for you in the mornin' But
It's plain enough to me that you're not a
game fisherman or you wouldn't come
here without your tools.'
To this remark made answer 10 the
effect that, though | was very ford Of
fishing, my pleasure in it did not depend
upon the possession of all the appliances
OF professional sport.
'Perhaps you think" said the old man.
from the way spoke, that don't be-
lieve them fellers with the tinted poles
can ketch fish, but that amt So That
old story about the little boy with the
pinhook who ketched all the fish. while
the gentleman with the modern improve
ments, who stood alongside of him, KEEP
THROWN out his beautiful flies and never
got nothin', is a pure lie. The fancy
chaps who must have ev'rvthn' list so
centrally gifts fish. But for all that,
don't like their way of tishin', and take
no stock in it myself I've been tishin',
on and OFT, ever since | was little boy,
and I've caught nigh ev'ry kind there is,
from the big iewtis and cavalyoes down
South, to the trout and minnies round
about here. But when | catch a fish.
the first thing | do is to try to get him on
the hook, and the next thing is to get
him out o the water .iist as soon as kin.
don't put in no time worryin' hm.
"lhere's only two animals in the world
that likes to worry smaller creeturs a
good while afore they kill EN-; one is the
cat, and the other is what they call the
game fisherman. This kind of a feller
never goes after no fish that don't mind
beln ketched. He goes fur them kind
that loves their home in the water and
hates to leave it, and he makes it Just as
hard fur EN- as he kin. What the game
fisher likes is the smallest kind of a hook.
the thlnneSt line, and fish that it takes
a good while to weaken. The longer the
weak k'nin' business kin be spun out, the
more sport. The idea is to let the fish
think there's chance for him to cit
away That's jist like the cat with her
mouse. She lets the little creetur hop
off, but the minnit he gifts fur enough
away, she jabs on him with her claws.
and then if there's any game left in him
she lets him try it agen. OF course the
game fisher could have a strong line and
stout pole and git his fish in a good
sight quicker, if he wanted to, but that
wouldn't be sport. He couldn't give him
the butt and spin him out, and reel him
in, and let him jump and run till his
pluck is clean worn out. Now | likes to
git my fish ashore with all the pluck in
'em. 1t makes 'em taste better. And
as fur fun, III be bound Eve had list as
much of that, and more too, than most
Of these fellers who are so dreadful
anxious to have everythin' jist right. and
think they can't 90 tishin till they've
spent enough money to buy a suit of Sun
day clothes. As a gen'ral rule they're
solemn lot, and work pretty hard at
their fun. When | work | want to be
paid for it, and when | go in fur fun
want to take it easy and comfortable.
A'Do you know, if things 60 on as
they're goln' on now, that therc'll come a
time when it won't De considered high
toned sport to shoot a bird slambang
dead. The game gunners will pop 'em
with little harpoons, with long threads
tied to EN-, and the feller that can tire
out his bird, and haul him in with the
longest and thinnest piece of spool cotton,
will be the crackest sportsman"
At this point remarked to my com
panion that perhaps he was little hard
on the game fishermen.
"Well," said old Peter with a smile on
his corrugated visage, 81 reckon I'd have
to do lots Of talkin' before Id get even
with 'em fur the way they give me the
butt for my style of fshin'. What say
behind their backs, say to their faces
| seed one of these fellers once with a
| fish on his hook, that he was running up
and down the stream like chased chick
en-. why don't you pull him in? says
|. And break my rod and line says
he. why don't you have a stronger
| line an pole? 2 says |. There wouldn't
be no science in that says he. If it's
science you want to show Off, says l.,
| you ought to fish for mud eels There's
more game in 'em than there is in any
| other fish round here, and as they're
mighty lively ont of water you might
play one of 'em fur half an hour after you
| got him on shore, an it would take all
your science to keep him from reeln' up
| his end o. the line faster than you could
yourn.'
"Now l wouldn't say so much agen
these fellers," said old Peter. as he arose
and put his empty pipe on little shelf
under the porch roof, ''if it wasn't for one
thing, and that is that they think their
kind of tshin is the only kind worth con-
siderin. The way they look down upon
plain, christian tshin is enough to rile a
hitchin' post. don't want to say moth
in agen no mans ways of attendin' to
his own affairs, whether its kitchen
gardenin', or whether its fishin', if he
says nothin' agen my way but when
he looks down on me, and grins me, |
want to haul myself up and grin him if |
| kin. And in this case, kin. l s'pose
the house-cat and the cat-fisher (by
| which | don't mean the man who fishes
for cat tish) was both made as they is,
and they can't help it; but that don't
give 'em no right to put on airs before
other bein's who gifts their meat with a
square kill. Goodnight. And sence
| I've talked so much about it, I've a mind
to go fishin' with you to morrow myself"
! Frank R. Stockton, in the July Manhat-
| tan.