Morning journal and courier., 1886-07-23
TRoUTING IN MONTANA.
A Glimpse ofthe sport i'm Fisherman,
 Paradise
From Harper's We akl,

From Harpef'S We1kly.l
 Missoula! the ''land of trout" the paradise of the disciples of Izaak Walton, with the limpid, icy-cold waters of its streams rushing down from the mountain sides, now roaring and foaming over the rocks, now gliding, smiling and sparkling, where the sunlight strikes through the green meadows, winding in and out until. with glad leap and joyous tossing of little crests of silver foam, they rush to the embrace of their big brother. the Big Root"
 The day is still young as our party, four of us seated in, rather on, 'buckb board" :" drawn by two stout bronohos, as the native horses are called, drive out through one of the gates of the military post here to try our luck in one of the little mountain streams. We'll equipped in long rubber boots and can suits we are a rough looking lot; but in this country, and indeed anywhere else, your true angler is 8 thoroughly practical person, and pays but little regard to appear ances. The broken masses of the clouds, a ray of sunlight darting through them here and there, lighting up some grassy hill top, and making the dark ravines and rocky prec- ipices of the mountains more gloomy and savage by contrast, hover over the towering crests, yelling them i'll heecy folds of mist, or softening their ragged outline with the caress of the distant gently falling Tuin, as we bowl meIrily over the prairie, passing through the rich bottom lands and gradual
 
 their sides, or dipping down into the wales between them scramble up the opposite ascent, until finally we enter a wide canon, running back into the hills, it's fat plain covered with wild flowers and waving grass, and broken through the center by the wind ing course of rippling, dancing, sparkling, merry little stream.
 We are not long in getting to work. Our tackle is quickly overhanIed, our big boots l pulled well up on our thighs, and two of us taking our way up stream, while the others l follow it down, we arrange to meet again at ! a certain hour, and start off to begin our l days sport.
 1 How quiet and calm every ything is, we l silently and with gentle casts of our lines l proceed. .on our way! How the little stream laughs up at us, coquettishly singing at us, 1 inviting us to win it's hidden fnny treasures l if we can, now rushing along over it's pebblv | bed, throwing back its eddies into some dark 1 pool under it's overhanging banks, if to l say: "Try there, and see what you can find" l again softly and silently gliding through the 1 wild rose bushes, if saddened at the | thought of surrendering some of the "speck | led beauties that make their home in it's l clear, cold waters. Slowly we move up the stream, searching each quiet nook, each swirling eddy Now and again there is a quick pull at the line a successful cast is made; the light, pliant rod bends, the reel | whirls as the line passes swiftly through the | rlnS5;tnere IS SnOrC, Snafp nRnG TOT llDefuy, and, the strong triumphing over the weak, the struggling fish is lying on the grassy bank, gasping it's short life away and, | dying, more beautiful in the silvery sheen 1 and bright spots of it's sides than when, in its turn the stronger, it rushed at it's prey in the full enjoyment of life and vigor. The air is full of the fragrance of the wild roses dipping their branches into the limpid wat CT; graceful willows bend over the banks and rustic their leaves gently in the soft breeze; thousands of wild howers-pink bitter root, modest daisies, golden sunfow- CTS and many other varieties blend their brilliant hues harmoniously, carpeting the l valley with one almost unbroken mass of color Occasionally wild bird-a plover or curlew perhaps-starts suddenly up, screaming or whistling it's protest at the presence in this solitude of all-destroying man.
 And so we wander on, landing now and then a plump trout, and stopping occasion ally to compare notes or light pipe, until, our watches and our appetites warning us that our time for the rendezvous with our friends is near at hand, we retrace our steps, finger ing, however, even yet, overpowered with the fascination of the "gentle sport" to make a l cast in some inviting pool.