The Red Cloud chief., 1921-07-28

let us be good spOrts"-which Is to say, let us
be spCrtsmen and live up to u sportsmans ideals!
And what is a sportsman? 1t Is easy to say this:
The sportsman Is the gentleman Of the out-of-
doors. But that does not comprehensively de-
fine the sportsman because 1t Is still more diff
cult to define the gentleman.
Anyway, whatever else he may be, the sports
man is the man who plays fair-with nature. with
Wild animal life, with his companions, with him
self. He never wantOnly defaces the fair face Of
nature. He never pollutes stream or lake. He
never cuts down a tree that he does not need.
He burles or burns his camp rubbish. He cleans
up his camping place. And he is very sure that he
sets no forest fire.
The sportsman plays fair with wild animal life.
He will not hunt out of season. He will not kill
a female deer or elk. He will not shoot a bird
except when hying. In angling he uses light
tackle to give the fish n fair chance. He will
use the fly rather than the worm for trout. He
will put back the small trOut-and handle 1t with
a wet hand. He will use the single hook rather
than the gang hooks. He never takes from for
est, field, lake and stream more than he can use.
And always he obeys the local game laws.
The sportsman is a delight in camp and on the
trail. He takes pride In keeping up his end, In
doing his full share efficiently, willingly and
cheerfully. In emergencies he Is a volunteer.
He helps the tenderfoOt. Poor luck cannot rufie
his temper or spoil his outing. He gets fun out
of trouble and can take a joke on himself. He
is a good loser; he grins and bears 1t when defeat
Is his. lie Is q GOOD W1nner-Wnlcn Is harder
and wears his laurels mOdestly.
And the sportsman plays fair with himself,
which is perhaps the hardest thing Of all. He
Is not too proud to learn from his betters. If he
catches fish with a silver SPOON" he owns up
to 1t. He does not blame his own mistakes on
others or on his tackle. He does not exhibit his
musky trophy and tell Of his skill while all the
while his inner self Is saying: "You know per-
fectly well the guide rugged your rod and tackle,
padded you to the place, showed you the exact
spot to cast, told you how to handle the fish,
netted It and landed It," In short, possibly the
browning ideal Of true craftsmanship is inde-
pendent achievement In sport or woodcraft.
49,
Speaking Of muskellunge, please recall those
Immortal lines in Sir Izaak Walton's 'Compleat
Angler:
I'VE may say of angling, as DR.. Boteler said
of strawberries, Doubtless God could have made
a better berry. but doubtless God never did, and
so. If 1 might be Judge, God never did make a
more calm, quiet. innocent recreation than
angling"
Possibly DR.. Boteler was right about straw
berries. And probably Sir Izaak was right about
the innocence of angling, in spite Of "fsh yarns
which do most amazingly smack Of rank perjury.
But when the model and pattern of nll good
anglers doth speak of angling rs calm" and
quiet" here Is one disciple who rises up to say
that Sir Izaak is no "Compleat Angler'-and II
this be treason, make the most Of it'll
For he rises to inquire: How can anyone use
the words 'calm' and quiet in connection with
a thirty-pound muskyf And how can any angler
be "compleat'' who has not been fast to this "tiger
of the inland seas"2
Calm Quietl oh, would that Sir Izaak were
back on earth. This Is what would happen to
him. He'd be taken to a certain lake and given
a handmade s~plit-bamboo casting rod, with null
tiplying reel, braided silk line and spoon hook
with pork rind. Along toward evening he'd be
rowed past a certain rushy point where the pick
erel weed and lilies grow, and there is deep
water on either side. And with good luck Sir
Izaak would thereupon and himself fast to a