Wichita eagle., 1889-10-30
ANGLERS GUIDES.
indians Are Said to Excel the White Man
on Salmon Rivers.

indians Are Said to Excel the White Man
on Salmon Rivers.
Some are stupid, some are lazy, some are
wilful, and some are SO full of conceit as to
render them unbearable. Others are oblig-
ing, industrious and thoroughly posted in
every department of their craft They are
expert anglers, good cooks, perfect masters OF
paddle or oar, and thoroughly acquainted
with every rod Of forest and every foot Of
water within the territory where they under
take to pilot their patrons. When one is
fortunate enough to secure such guides he is
sure to have the best sport and the highest
pleasure attainable. A carry of a mile or
two doesn't deter them from revealing what
may be hoped for by making it. Because
the current is stiff or the rapids formidable
they don't try to evade their ascent by lying
about them. Nor do they wait to be forced
to gather fresh boughs and plenty of them to
make your couch soft and fragrant. When
the evenings are chilly and roaring fire is
necessary for warmth and comfort, they
don't want to be reminded Of the fact With
such guides your tent is always tidy, your
larder is always protected, and your cooking
utensils and tin plate are always clean.
They can fry trout or broil salmon to
perfection; their baked pork and beans would
satisfy the most exacting denizen of the hub;
their pancakes are always light and artistic
ally Drowned; their coffee is never spoiled by
overlooking, and they are never so happy as
when assured that they are rendering salts
factory and acceptable service.
While good guides are to be coveted on all
waters, they are Indispensable on salmon riv-
ers, where the canoes are light, the currents
heavy and the rapids formidable. As a rule,
Indians are the most expert and safest canoe
men, whether handling paddle or pole
l have frequently had one Indian and one
white man in my canoe, but the Indian was
always given precedence, not by my wish
alone, but with the assent and concurrence
of his white colaborer as we'll They are not
only more expert but more cautious than
white men, and on the toughest waters l soon
learned that it was always safe to go wher-
ever my Indian pilot was willing to take me-
only once deemed him too timid and or
dered him to push straight through a rapid
around which he wished to carry.
He obeyed, with no other protest than
cultural "Ughl Get wetr' And so we did,
for it was nip and tuck" whether we went
over the rapids or went under them 1 never
afterward asked him to take me where he was
not willing to go.
But handling a canoe is not the most diff
cult office Of guide on salmon waters There
are ten good canoe men where there is one
good gaffer. To looker-on it seems easy
enough to gait twenty or thirty pound fish,
but to do so from canoe, in swift water and
while the fish is in full life and constant mo-
ton, or even when drawn near the shore. is
about as difficult a piece of work as is con-
nected with the art. A miss is as Notifying
to the gaffer as it is provoking to the angler.
But misses are common and often fatal In
such cases, If the angler has any ''swear
words" in his vocabulary they are pretty sure
10 be ventilated.
had killed great many salmon before I
ventured to gaff one, and while was about
it l wished hadn't undertaken the job Such
scooting and lodging, such dashing and flop
ping, such striking and missing was never be-
fore seen in salmon waters. But succeeded,
thanks, not to my own skill, but to the sanity
patience and marvellous manipulations of the
judge who hooked the fish
While few guides are perfect in every phase
of service, one is seldom met with who cannot
be made useful If he is only willing the rest
will follow. With willing guide all things
are possible, if his employer is endowed with
the essential gifts of patience and god tenn
and Stream