The Eaton Democrat. (Eaton, Ohio) 1875-1903, 1886-04-08
HIS BAD LUCK.

A Clergyman and His Son Who
Lovedt to Fish.
The activity of q wood-mouse that
ran up and down q ~neighboring stump
was nothing compared with that of the
piscatorial clergyman as he hustled
about the camp. 1t was easy t see
that he was very busy, for big drops
of perspiration formed a ooronet
around his brow. He was in his element,
for nothing pleased him more than to
fuss and hurry around as though his life
depended upon his work. The object
of his solicitude lay on the dinner-table
before him. 1t was an immense loon
that q guide had brought down from
n Of the little ponds that lie back of
Lake Molechunkamunk, and the minis
ter wa about to skin it. He glanced
al it frequently, and more than once he
stopped to stroke down the dull white
feathers on the breast.
"lt's not every day n gets a LOOM"
he said, as he threw the end of a troll
ing line, strong and thick, over the
bough Of tree and fastened at the end a
big fish-hook that would have held a
twenty-pound dog-fsh. The dominic
had been most DESTROYS of getting a
loon, and had himself worked hard with
his rifle out on the lake. For hours he
had chased them up and down, and
many q shot he had sent after them,
but the looms had all Owed just at the
right time and lodged the shot. The
loon that lay before him had become
disabled in one of the small ponds and
fallen an easv prey to the guide. The
looms are heavy birds and do not like
to get out of the water into the air any
more than is absolute necessary. There
fore, when chased, they prefer diving,
and then invariably come up at a great
distance. No harder bird to shoot can
be found in the Northern waters. The
clergyman imbeded the fish-hook in one
of the legs Of the bird and swung him
in the air. The bo s gathered about at
respectful distances to watch the oper-
ations Of the preacher.
81 am going to take this fellows skin
home" said the minister, who was not
disturbed by his observing companions.
81 shall have my son mount it, and then
1t shall have a place in my study to re-
mind me of the Maine lakes" and he be-
gan whetting a jack-knife on an oil-stone.
The jack-knife had to do duty in place of
q scalpel. His exertions in rigging up
his apparatus had tired the minister,
and he sat down to take a bit of a smoke
from q briarwood pipe before going on
with his work.
young men, who did not live neal the
clergyman's home, and who had first
made his acquaintance on the shore of
the lake.
.'Yes," responded the minister, eve
got two. Yes; both fish, both hunt, and
both have caused me considerable trou-
bic on account of their ~propensities for
out-of-door life,' and the clergyman
gave q look that meant a good deal
more than he said.
Cant they beat you catching troutp"
hazarded the young man.
mo; oh. no. Not in a fair deal.
It's funny. though, but when we get
together we do not have much success,
or it one does the other does not. Both
have an Unsuitable desire, however, to
beat their father, and bring home
the most and the largest trout"
"No, they don't always do it; only
nce in a while," responded the clergy
man to a question. II remember an
occasion, however, up on the edge of
the Adirondacks, when / was clear laid
out by my eldest son, who had taken to
trouting just as naturally as a mink.
Even when in short dresses he used to
u away from home and go down to
the high bridge over the river near
where We lived. There he would sit on
the edge of the planking and watch the
men fishing for eels and suckers. 1t
was q wonder he did not fall off and
go down with the current, and l
can only account for it on the
ground that his guardian angel must
have kept a sharp eye on him. In fact,
the little scamp did fall into a pond
when not much bigger, and had sense
enough to crawl along the bottom and
up the bank. He had hardly been
weaned when he ran a fish-hook that /
had left around in his thumb, and it
took a doctor to dig it out. Besides he
was born when the sign is in the heart,
and that is the time when the trout will
bite best. There is a certain day when
trout will always bite, and bite like
mad. At least, so old settlers have told
me, and fishermen whose veracity have
never been challenged. Well, as he
seemed to take so naturally to water
and articles used by fishermen, 1 made
him a light rod and we started out to
try it. There was a nice little brook
not far away that wound its course
through a meadow to the big river be-
low, and started from some cold springs
in a patch of woods above. There had
just been a heavy rain, and you know
no time is SO good for brook fishing as
after a heavy rain, Just when the water
Is ON the fall. The fish run up the
brooks after rains to get the fresh bait
that is brought down. 1t was summer,
and we used grasshoppers for bait; nc
better can be found.
/ allowed him at first to catch the
grasshoppers, while I found out if the
trout were in the stream; but that ar.
rangement did not last long, and soor
/ was down on my knees after the
grasshoppers and he was working the
stream with the rod. In fishing q
brook banked with sod you must moi
approach too lear the edge of the
stream, or you will jar the bank and
startle the trout beneath. So 1 showed
him a big pool and how to approach it
Sure enough, the bait had not Lighted
on the water when a nice trout was aftel
It, The little chap struck with all hi
might, but, not starting the fish, he pu
on more power. Then, with a terrific
pull, he lifted a ten-inch trout out O
the water. The fish fairly shot VI
like a rocket, and, becoming de
tached from the hook, scared ava,
into the top of a Eastwood tree ant
came down rafting through tn,
leaves and branches. The boy wa
after it and had his head hammered t.