Ashland tidings. [volume] (Ashland, Or.) 1876-1919, 1913-11-20
(By w. H. Backus, in Sunday Ore
gonian.)


cussing the merits of various trout
streams. One of them had fished all
the best streams in Colorado, includ-
ing the famous Gunnison and Rio
Grande, and was boasting of the
large fish to be taken there. During
ten years of fishing he said he had
taken many fish over three pounds
in weight, including one of six and
another of eight pounds.
Whereupon the Oregon booster re-
piled that on the Rogue river in
southern Oregon it was quite the reg.
ular thing for an angler to take half
a dozen siX-pound trout in one af-
ternoon. And l can vouch for the
Oregon mans statement, for 1 have
been fortunate in getting some of
these big Rogue river fish. Together
with three other Portland people /
spent ten days on the Rogue recent
ly, and our entire party enjoyed fish
lnS Ol lHe nlSneSI OTueT.
I'll call one of them Texas Jack.
He is finished fly caster, and can
do things with a casting line that
imagine even a Texas cowpuncher
can't do with his rope. When his
long Thomas rod was working right,
which seemed to be all the time, he
would send his fly sailing over the
rifles in a way calculated to fool
the wisest of steelheads. No pool
was too wide, and no angle too diff
ficult. He fished everything in sight
with GOODNESS and skwill that was a
pleasure to watch.
I've read a good many tales of the
salmon fly fishing in Scotland. There
my lord, or the duke, will fish the
famous salmon runs, and they always
have with them a sort of hired man
called "the gillie." 1t seems to be
the gillie's duty to carry all the ex-
ira gear, point out to the caster the
most likely places and do all the gaf-
| fling of fish, should any such emer-
gency arise. He is sort of general
all-around handy man, and his chief
| function is to tote all the spare tackle
which his employer is sure to have.
Therefore / shall call one of our
bunch "the Gillie." Not that he was
MT a full-fledged angler and most
decidedly nobodys flunky, but he
seemed to have mania for carrying
with him everything in camp that
wasn't fastened down. l don't be-
lieve he ever went for a day on the
river without a shoulder pack con-
tanning small camp stove, a big
camera, two automatic pistols, lunch
enough for the party, three or four
pairs of extra boots and socks, and
enough odds and ends to start a
crossroads store. He isn't a very big
fellow, yet he would carry that pack
in the heat all day with a smile on
his face, and if in the evening his
load was increased by half dozen
four-pound steelheads his counte-
nance was a study in ecstasy.
I suppose should call the remain
ing member of our party Mrs. Gillie,
and let it go at that, but won't.
In most hunting tales I've read,
where the lady's name is not men
toned, it is customary to refer to her
as Diana So Diana it will be. and
If ever little woman was deserving
of the title, it was our Diana. She
would trudge all day over the hot
sand and bedrock, covering miles of
rough country, and when necessary
would take to the water without hes
itation
Texas Jack declared that she is the
gamest woman he's ever seen in the
woods, and we all agree with him.
To be sure, there were moments when
she resembled Diana but very little.
There was the time when she got in
over the tops of her waders and came
ashore with them full of water. AT
that particular moment she closely
resembled a dainty Chinese lady out
for an afternoon stroll. But this is
to be a fishing story, so I'll just
hurry along.
When it comes to catching big
trout on the artificial fly, the Rogue
river is the best stream in the state
the finest on the Pacific slope, ant
if there's a better one in all Nortf
America l wish someone would speal
up. I'd like to hear the name,
To be sure, it's no easy fishing. Tt
take steelhead trout with the fly oi
the Rogue requires long and skillfu
casting, deep wading and lots of il
and a knowledge of the habits of tn
big fish. It's hard fishing. but VIII
wants to get six and eight pound fis
without working for them? None o
our party was afraid of getting wet
and we all cast enough line to ge