The sun., 1908-04-05
HAUNTs or SOLITARY TROUT.
A MyItsry Of BrOOEs Told By an Ob'e0snt
Angler

III you will take the time 10 investigate
said an old time angler Who has observed
a. he hshed. you will fnd that the fun
Stomached trout In your catch Will cut
number the empty stomached ones ten
10 one.
This would seem to indicate that Il iS
the trout which has already dined we'll that
is eager for more, while the one which has
not dlned at all regards It with indifference
In other words. II IS the satiated trout that
bites and the hungry one that DOESN'T
paradoxical proposition.
And this odd circumstance h not con-
fined TO brook trout. Pickerel not only
swollen with food, but having the tails OF
fish they have since caught protruding
from their mouths because there Ia a. yet
DO room for the newly taken victims IN
the oapacious piekerel NAV. will yet vora-
ciously seize the tempting live bait OF the
fisherman, a. any angler who has hShed
much for pickerel has doubtless had fire.
quent proof.
'out Of a catch Of ninety-Hve pickerel ]
saw taken through the ice one day last
winter. only two we're what one might
call hungry. One Of these had but one
hSh in It's stomach q small yellow perch,
and the other had only two.
-The stomach Of every other pickerel
Of the catch bad perch and sunfsh jenongh
In 1t 10 max q satisfactory mea for small
family. One Of these piokerel, q big one
Weighing four pounds, besides having In
its stomach a perch that would have
weighed a pound. three smaller ones and
two big sunfish, had captured q bullhead
siI inches long. The pickerel's efforts
to send this tisb down TO join the four perch
and two sunfish had failed, for the horns
! Of the bullhead had stuck fast In the pick
erel's throat, leaving the lower part OF
its body and its tail half filing the piekerers
| mouth.
But nevertheless this big fish was hauled
out and landed on the ice because Il had
seemed to think there was still room in
side somew here for the Ave inch club the
fisherman bad baited his hook with and
therefore had proceeded 10 take Il In.
Il was a few years ago engaged in work
that took rue twice day along mountain
road In a trout brook region, once In the
morning. going, and onoe in the afternoon.
returning. On the road was q small bridge
over a spring run that came down out Of tho
thick alders on the upper side Of the road
and lost itself In a dense growth Of the
same on the other side.
stopping my horse At this bridge one
Nav morning | parted the sldep that hid
the run below the bridge, and saw that a
pool Of some depth lay in there, small and
DARK 1t suggested q trout haunt TO me At
once,
Il happened 10 have sticking in the band
OF nv hat q trout hook tied on foot or 90
Of gut. / tied the hook TO the end Of my
vhip--a flexible buggy Whip-dug fish
worm out of the soft earth al the edge Of the
road, tmpaIed il on the hook, and eteathily
nartinR the bushes, gently angled for the
trout knew must be lying IN that hidden
sThe wiRRlinE worm had scarcely touched
the surface when there was fash in the
pool and q swirl Of its dark waten. A
few seconds later good half pound trout
lay auivering on the grass at my feet.
"i s.iJ5 nly i5ip1oy ..55S ;ackle again In
the pool. but, as had expected, TO no pr--
pose My prize was the sole occupant OF
the pool.
Il went on my way with my trout. Re.
turning toward evening fiShed the pool
again, stealthiy a. before. and, as had
eSpect ed. landed another trout, and i might
have been the frat ones twin brother.
did not try for more, for experience and
observation had taught me II would for the
time be useless.
sRut I felt confident Of tomorrow. The
neIt morning al the bridge, With the same
tackle, took from the pool another trout,
and another when returned IN the evening
And every day during that trout season
and the next, from May until July, stopped