Thomas County cat. [volume] (Colby, Kan.) 1885-1891, 1886-07-15
rWo FEET OF TROUT.


School Director James A. Blanchard
Of Williamsport, has been up herr
gathering in trout. The other day h
came in with q peculiar, far-away lool
in his eyes. He sat down without re
moving his basket from his shoulder
or taking off his gum boots. He didn'
say a word to anybody, but seemed t
be trying to solve some point that puz
zled him by gazing into vacancy.
'sHallo! Blanch," exclaimed a friend
slapping him on the back. ''Wha
luck to-day?"
The school director withdrew his in
quiring gaze from vacancy and looked
up ut his friend.
..Luck?" said he. singular luck
I'm here, ain t /; and this is your"
He was assured he was right on both
points.
.sThen it amt Dream" said he,
'.and it amt the jim-but no matter.
I'll tell You how it was. fished al
hour and killed one trout. Fact of the
matter is, whatever the fish had been
feeding on. it wasn't yeast. They
didn't rise worth cent. But killed
one in an hour. 1t was in good condi-
ton, and haven't the least doubt that
it was all of six inches long. Well. ]
got tired and lay down by the side OF
the creek in the shade and went to
sleep. / slept half an hour or so, !
guess. and woke up in better humor.
I'm give 'em another chance, said
/. If they don't take in this gang OF
flies like crazy bait, said l. then these
Dents creek trout amt the trout l
think they are.
$50 1 ticklcd the gliding ripplcs
some more with my cunningly devised
feathers, and tossed them deity here
and there upon creamy foam fecks.
but my single trout was tossed from
side to side in the lonely depths of my
creel for some time before l got COM
panion for him. In fact, l was so long
in getting him comrade that I
imagined that he had come to life again.
and was Hopping with indignation and
disgust in the basket. BY and by,
though, landed another one. He was.
may be, little short of being half
FOUNDER, but he was as plump as q
gosling. showed him down through
the opening in the creel-lid and fishcd
on. Well, not to weary you with
long recital. managed to get three
more in another hour or so, and they
were all good ones. Then 1 couldn't
get another rise and gave up in dis
gust. l sat down on a moss-grOwn
rock.
"'Well,' said, as l wiped my brow
and held it up to the cool breeze that
came tremblingly by and coyly kissed
it. well. said l, i've fished more
than two hours, and l guess I've got
more than two feet of trout Two feet
of trout, l unused.
''Then. presently, 1 thought I'd take
a look at 'em. unfastened the lid of
the basket, opened it, and looked in.
That gaze was not one second in dura-
ton. If the lid to that basket had been
pulled down by ten horse power
spring it couldn't have gone shut quick
er than shut it, and if I had been sit
ting on ten-ton dynamite cartridge,
and it had exploded, 1 don't think I'd
have got up from that rock much soon
er than l did. Why? Because l was
There wasn't one of those
trout to be seen in the basket-not one
But they were there, and instead of
there being two feet of them there were
four feet and half of them. good meas
ure. fear am wearying you," said
the school director to his friend, and
he rose to go.
''No. no." said the friend. restrain
ing the angler, and looking at him
anxiously. There were no trout to be
seen, you say?" continued the friend. |
mo trout to be seen. but still they
we're there, and instead of aggregating
.wO feet in length had total of four |
Feet and half! Blan:h, old man."
said the friend. you're worn out. Let's
90 tamper with something"
'.No," said the school director. "I'm
III right. Those trout were there, bat
hey were nowhere to be seen. After
while recovered from my surprise,
Ind then opened the lid of the basket.
urned the trout out or the ground, and
lever offered to prevent them as they
made their way to the brook and sprang
n. They swan away and saw them
10 more. l 60 home tomorrow.
There was silence for five minutes,
Turing which the expression on the
chool directors friends face was pain
ul to see. At last the tired angler
aid. musingly:
There is no doubt but what he got
n while was sleeping in the shade ut
he brookside. No doubt at all. He
ust crawled in the hole in that basket
id while / slept. and gobbled that lone
ONE siX-inch trout of mine without a
nurmur. Then he laid low while 1
empted the four other denizens of the
'ool from their pelucid haunts, and
ust moved them away one by one, as
passed them in to him. with all their
envy glitter and matchless SAVIOR on
hem. But if any one had told me that ::
ven a four-foot-and-a-hal water snake
ed slch blissful command of impu-
ence. or such a persistent and elastic ,,
ppetite, I'd Lave set him down as ]
The school directors friend led him
emily away, and the current rumor is 6
hat they went in and tempered with
omething.-Dent's Greek (Pa.) Cor. NJ
I. Sun. Ii