Evening star., 1927-05-15


yearning that has dwelt in the breasts
of anglers from time immemorial. In
the language of the fishermen them.
selves, he said mouthful."
The supreme peace and contentment
that fill and overflow the heart OF the
man with the rod and line as he gazes
into the still depths of placid waters
or watches the swifter current swirl
and eddy around that point where his
slender thread disappears from view
or az he contemplates each floating
leaf or twig or laZiy shakes the gaudy
Sad fly from his line; or when, raising
his eyes. he catches the sky's refiec.
tion where the water and horizon
meet; these and many others are in
delible impressions upon his mind and
heart that are not capable of being
adequately portrayed with pen or
brush.
And that is the one fly in the
anglers ointment. Regardless of his
lack of altruistic motives generally,
In each man there lies the innate de.
sire to share with his fellow sensa-
tions Of great JOY or pleasure Even
the most self-centered person has this
feeling. If he cannot make his fellow
man understand the pleasure he has
enjoyed. then how can he reyel in its
more describe his emotions satisfac.
torily than he can tell of the mys.
terieS of life.
Then there Is that indescribabIe
thrill that comes to interrupt the
anglers meditation or his lazy mental
drlfting IN rhythmic harmony with
the soft lap-lap of the waters, when
the sudden and, almost always unex.
pected, tug-tug signifies the presence
or f1nny warrior tackling at his
snare
With senses alert the superior mind
or man instantly summons into play
all its latent resources to grapple with
the lowly but exceedingly wary and
cunning denfzen of the deep.
Down in the water somewhere, at
the end of the tense line, is a fish
size, shape and variety unknown
but it is fish, fighting desperately
to disgorge the prickly thing it has
gulped down in the search for food,
And the man is fighting as desperately
to prevent it. The battle of wits is
on, and nothing short of an upheaval
of nature can distract the anglers at
tention until at last his game an
tagonist is brought to the landing net.
II rN<<AANAA ASA1 save perhaps ltLc
best insight into the mental
processes of the angler, whose bent
rod, taut line and set face betoken a
fish, hooked but not yet landed, when
he asked the Indian: (Which is the
first, the greatest, the master of all
ffshes?" And the Indian. after de-
scribing the fighting qualities of the
wolf-like muskinonge; the bass, with
the red fire in its eyes, which strikes
like the thunder bird: the little trout,
with flaming shirt and cunning ex-
ceeding that of the mother fox, and
the pike. which God made always
hungry, answered thus:
Which is the lord of fishes? Who
can say? To a sucker, the king of
fishes is doubtless sucker. AS for
me, the best OF fishes Is that one,
brother, which is at the moment try
ing to spit out my hook"
Whether It was this mental attitude
typifying every ardent angler or the
more prosaic aspect of food and COM
mercial possibilities that appealed
most to the Pilgrim fathers is not a
matter of record, but 1t is recorded.
according to Samuel s. Cox, that
when the Pilgrims went to King
James for their charter, they an
nounced their desire to go to the New
fish"
Regardless of the spirit with which
our New England forefathers regard
ed fishing prospects in the New World,
1t is an accepted fact that the cod and
herring fishing off the New England
coast aided greatly in Americas early
development. These fishing waters,
extending from Massachusetts to
Labrador, have been worked continu-
ously for three centuries and still rank
as the worlds greatesh fishing
grounds.
The sport of angling is one Of all
times and all ages. Ponds have been
found in Northern Africa in which
the ancient Egyptians kept rare for
eign fish. until ready for use The
early Romans carried on a thriving
trade with distant parts of the en-
pire in the highly priced lampreys
and eels. They imported fish from as
far off as the Caspian Sea.
The piscatorial pursuit, however. is
not foreign to the District of Colum-
bia. Although distance lends enchant-
ment to any view, and there are
fishermen in the Nations Capital who
take their rods and flies to the far-off
wilds of Canada, to our own Rocky
Mountain streams, or the Northern
lakes, there are many more who find
as much sport and perhaps land as
many fish in waters a few hours dis
tant from their doors
Neither does Washington yield to
many cities of its size in the degree
of picturesqueness and scenic beauty
that lies at its doorstep. The Po-
tOmac, from washington to Great
Falls and few miles above, presents
Kaleidoscope panorama that ranges
from broad stretches of placid waters
to narrow channels of extreme turbu-
lence, while the ever-changing shore
line possesses sufficient beauty to en-
chant the most discriminating nature
lover
And while natural civic pride con-
cedes TO several Western streams su-
periority in majesty and grandeur to
our own Potomac, such places are
usually inaccessible to the residents
of cities OF any great size, and are
reached only at the expense of con-
adorable time and effort.
\ X
Pass fishing in District and near
ny waters is not what is used TO
he but 1t still furnishes good sport to
those addicts who scorn all other
members of the finny tribe. II Mary
land can he induced TO follow the lead
or the District of Columbia and Vir-
ginia in banning this fish from the
market. it is ardently believed by
most good sportsmen that few
years hence the Potomac and tribu-
tary streams will become a bass fish
erman's paradise rivaling that of
Maine and the waters of Minnesota.
Without Maryland, which persists
In regarding the bass as a food
rather than game fish. the action Of
Virginia and the District will go for
1aught, and the spunky, fighting
bass. so far az Eastern anglers are
concerned, win go the way of the
passenger pigeon. the wild turkey
and the brook troIlt