The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1898-06-26
THE FIRST FISH.
Experience of the Boy Who Went
Fishing Alone.
Chicago Post.


Chicago Post.
The next morning dawned clear and still,
and before any one else about the place had
stirred the boy was up and digging fish.
be er r9 r e ec 20 fH consd
cred an affectation. He thought it was
well enough for the school teacher to use
that word, because she never went fishing.
But for boys or men to say "angleworms"
" hen they meant "1ishworms was trying
to be "smarty." And as for the people
stead of 'crick," they were stuck UP"
that was all So he dug his fshworms up,
drawing several reluctant squirmers out
from their hiding places by steady pulls,
and put them in tin can,
The meadow was thick with heavy green
grass that glistened at that hour with dew,
and the suns early rays Sparkled on the
emerald tips where the dewdrops glistened.
A meadow lark, swinging on a willow by
the brook that ran through one side of the
field, whistled sweetly yet mournfully as the
boy climbed the rail fence. In the grass,
a little way from the path leading to the
having a general jubilee, their yellow and
black plumage harlequiading among the
emerald business of the meadow. How they
feet happiness. They would fiutter up from
the ground and, singing as they raised, drop
down in few yards gurgling as though
their Threats were trimming over with
spring.
AS Chan" passed over the little bridge
that spanned the brook he saw a crawfsh
dart under a broad, fiat stone close to the
edge of the bank. He set his can of fish
worms down and, rolling up his trousers,
waded cautiously into the brook. Impending
the stone with a quick movement OF his left
hard he drove his right hand swiftly under
the rock and secured the agile craWfish but
not without nip from his ''pinchers," as
Chan called his claws. The boy had often
seen his uncle use crawfish in fishing for
black bass, and he though he might try just
once for a bass after he had caught a sill
Ver-SideS" or a SunfiSh.
The brook widened out as it neared the
creek and patch of marshy ground skirted
its outlet into the waters of the larger
stream. Here the cat-tailS stood, tall and
slender, and the red-wnged blackbirds
swung and whistied melodiously from the
reeds. wood duck, gorgeous in its brill
liancy of plumage, rose from still pool and
flew lightly over the trees and several tur-
ties, disturbed by the boys appearance, slid
Solemnly into the water. A chattering, goS-
sipy kingfsher, who had been sitting silent
on an overhanging limb, curved away with
saucy, inquiring. remonstrance as Chan
climbed the rails and lit farther down the
creek to renew his medtations.
The boy passed the "bully-hole" where
harvest time. and, turning a bend in the
"crick,' he saw spot where his uncle had
sometimes caught splendid bass. He had in
tended going further down, to place where
the "silver-sides" and "goggle-eyes'' were in
the habit of sojourning, but the bend in the
'crick" fascinated him. He resolved to put
on his crawfish and try cast in the deep
hole under the overhanging bank on the
opposite side of the creek.
He took the crawfsh out of his pocket
after unpinning the part of the pocket that
prevented the escape of the bait, and ran
the hook through the lower part of the
crawish's tail. This gave the crawfish
plenty of leeway to glide about when he
reached the bottom, and was after the man
ner in which his uncle had always fastened
such bait to the hook. "Chan" waded into
the Shallower water of the creek on his
side, and threw the crawfish far out above
the deep hole, and as the moving current
caught the squirming lure it twisted it down
toto 10 -f-rlsA
beneath the shadows of the overhanging
bank There was very luxury of sending
out this first bait with his own tackle that
made the boy thrill with delight
Hardly a minute elapsed when a mighty
tug and rush almost made the boy shout
with excitement, but as the line started
ly back toward the downstream current
and struck" steadily, strongly and with
effect The bass was hooked. But the bat
tie was only fairly on now. With a 1.-the
curve of his cleaning sides he rose free
from the waters of the creek and shook
tiercely at the hook in his jaws, striving
to dislodge the barb. But the boy, remem-
bering his uncles warning proverb Of mo
slack line" kept a steady pressure on the
line and the fish fell to the creek with the
hook still firmly imbedded in his mouth.
run down stream and another jump
failed to give him his freedom and he then
made dash for fallen tree, which lay in
the water near the upstream bank; Had
he reached there he might have tangled the
line somewhere around a sunken branch
taken a bit of slack and broken loose. But
Chan realized quickly that this was a
critical period of the struggle, and almost
risked the breaking of the bamboo pole in
his successful effort to keep the fish away
from the prone tree. Steady pressure and
constant told on the bass, and he gave
up that attempt and made dive for the
bottom of the deep hole. Here. again. steady
pressure kept him from suiking too LONG
and he came to the top tired.
Chan" towed his fish gently into the shall
low water, and as the bass was drawn up
high on the sand he made a few last fiops
but they were unavailing The boy had
handled his first fish like a veteran, uncon-
SciouSly following the example of his uncle
as he met the rushes and leaps of the vigor-
Gus small mouth" But what words can
picture the almost overwhelming sense OF
triumph that filled the boys heart as he
lifted the bass up. marveled al him, gloated
over him, dreamed the battle over and over
again. and said to himself "Golly, amt he
a beauty!
And the lesser triumps of manhood, tar
nished inevitably with more or less heart
burning, never brought the leapng gladness
of that capture of the first black bass.