Washington sentinel., 1898-07-09
A. Ano,, - Trip 20 the BIaolr
Eoreat


dotted about both neighborhoods.
l presume that there is hardly a
river or piece OF water OF any ex-
tent in Europe in which some roam
ing Briton has not wetted his fly
or displayed the siren charms of
the deceptive minnow, or the sllverY
sides OF the equally attractive and
dangerous dace. Nevertheless,
there are many places within fairly
easy reach not so we'll known as
they deserve 10 be, and vet which
present every attraction to the en-
thusiastic angler, who is at the
same time Imbued with that true
love of nature " hich almost invar-
iably marks the man who has the
root of the matter in him" in con-
tradistinction to the mere pot
hunter, or him who "joys only in
slaughter" For example, the
Danube, in its long and varied
course. offers lots OF fishing oppor
tunities, and Of scenery, a variety
hard to beat anywhere; and yet
this is still practically almost a
terra tHc0gRita to English anglers.
Of the lower part of the Danube l
have not much to say. Although
well stocked with coarse fish, its
breadth and depth make it IN most
plates better suited for the profes-
sional fisherman with his nets than
tor the angler. XAr tie same time
a certain kind of angler is not by
any means a rare being in the
towns and villages on the banks Of
the rivers. Many of the lower
class IN Vienna are as fond of fish
ing as those Partisan "haneurs"
one sees lining the quays on the
Seine, and, what is more, they ap-
parently expect to catch something
which the Parisians, to all seeming,
do not. AT Paris one may see quay
after quay lined with patient men,
with long, ligh rods, but who ever
saw them catch anything bigger
than a sprat? The catching even
OF fish of this size, generally a
dirty little sewer fed Dream, is an
event in these mems lives. I once,
indeed, attracted by an unusual
commotion, found that one OF these
enthusiasts had hooked a fish Of
about Alb. weight, but how to
land him with a single strand Of
fine gut up a 20 foot wall1 OF
course the lucky individual was by
this time surrounded by an admir-
ing and gathering crowd; such an
event had not yet happened within
the memory Of the oldest fire.
quenter of the quays. Advice was
plentiful; one suggested a boat,
another boathook, till at last the
fish, losing patience, with one blow
OF his tell broke the gut, and thus
solved the difficulty.
But to return somewhat nearer
to tine scene of our operations. The
Viennese go to work in a more
rational and matter of-fact manner,
for instead of fishing from the top
OF quay thew sit on RATS in the
river with their bare legs dangling
in the water, smoking and eating
bread and cheese. Their mode OF |
fishing is kind OF ledgering, and |
they use hand lines, with fine COP |
per wire near the hook, which is
baited with cheese; they catch |
GOOD stores Of fish, chiefly barbel. |
Though happy and contented |
enough, this is not quite the sort |
oil thing to tempt the fastidious
angler. 1t is to the higher reaches
OF the stream in Bayern, Wurtem.
burg, and Baden that pleasure and |
contentment the anglers mind |
s0ould fill; here flows the stream,
by mountain, valley and forest,
clear as crystal, now flowing over
a rocky or pebbly bottom, each |
pebble visible and glistening at
depth of 7 feet or 8 feet; now rush
ing and tumbling over malt sunken
and moss grown rocks, splashing
and gurgling like true Highland |
trout stream; then deepening into
dark sullen pools, shaded by over
hanging cliffs, fit home for the sol
itarY and savage pike. That a
stream so varied in its character |
should afford a suitable habitat for |
most varieties OF river hsh is natu
raj enough, and these being for the
most part as yet uninitiated into |
the wiles Of man, are still the lusty,
bold, unsophisticated fellows ma
ture made them.
The Danube itself is preserved, |
but it is not difficult to get permis-
sion from the riparian owners, who
look upon a rod and line with great |
contempt, as a kind OF toy not to
be seriously regarded. They them
selves do not confne their opera
ton to netting; the trimmer is well |
known, and kind of water balliff !
/ met was in the habit OF spearing |
the great trout as they lay under
the bank But my most remark
able experience of foreign ideas Of |
sport l gained from German gen
tleman staying for few days at the
inn, who told me that he frequently |
shot not only pike, but trout, with
a shot gun, but also that the best |
sport of all was to explode dVna-
mite cartridge at the bottom Of the |
water, which killed the fish for |
many hundreds of feet either way,
when, said he, you can go in and
pick up as many as you please. In |
spite of my remonstrances, he act
ually walked to the nearest town
to get permission from the mayor
to repeat this outrage; but that
functionary being fortunately abb
sent, this sportsman" had to re-
turn Without it. On the last
day of our stay. returning through |