Year: 1876

There is generally about six OF
them iii the bunch, with light dresses
on, and they have three poles, with
as many hooks and lines among
them.


AS soon as they get to the river
they look for good place to get down
on the RATS, and the most venture,
some one sticks her boot heels in the
bank and makes two careful steps
down; then she suddenly finds her.
self at the bottom with both hands in
the water and feeling that every.
body in this world is looking at her
and she never tells anybody how she
got there. The other girls profiting
by her example, turn around and 90
down the bank on their hands and
toes, backward.


Then they scamper over the RATS
until they find shallow place where
they can see the fish, and shout:


ooh! | see one


where"


ooh! my, so he is.'


Lets catch him.


who's got them baitsY


you lazy thing, you're sitting on
my pole


SHOW me the wretch that stole my
worms


All these exclamations are gotten
off in tone that awaken every echo
within Il mile around, and send every
fish within three acres square into
galloping Mysteries. Then the girls
by Superhuman efforts, manage to get
a worm on the hook, and throw in
with splash like the launching of q
washtub, and await the result. When
silvertin comes around and nibbl es
the bait they pull up with a jerk, that
had an unfortunate fish weig Ching less
than fifteen pounds been on the hook,
would have landed it in the neighbor-
hood of three or four miles in the
country. After a while a feeble
minded suntish contrives to get fast
ened on the hook of timid woman,
and she gives vent to her tongue:


ooh! something's got my hookv


Pull up, you little idiotv shout five
excited voices as poles and hooks are
dropped and they rush to the rescue.
The girl with the bite gives a spas
modic jerk, which sends the unfor-
tunate sunny into the air the full
length Of forty feet Of line, and he
comes down on the nearest curly
head with damp flop, that sets the
girl to clawing as though there were
bumblebees in her hair


ooh! murder! take it away. Ugh
the nasty thingI


Then they hold up their skirts and
gather about that fish rs it skips over
the logs, one all the time holding the
line in both hands, with her foot on
the pole as though she had an evil
disposed goat at the other end. They
talked over it.


How will he ever get OFF,


'Ain't it pretty?


wonder if it amt dryH


Poor little thing : let's put it
back


How will we get the hook from
it?'


Pick it up said a girl who backs
rapidly out of the circle


Good gracious: Pm afraid Of it
There, it's opening its mouth at me-


Just then the sunny wiggles off the
hook and disappears between two
logs into the water, and the girls try
for another bite.


But the sun comes down and fries
the backs of their necks, and they
get three headaches in the party, and
all get cross and scold at the fish like
so many magpies. If an unwary
club dares to show himself in the
water they poke at him with poles,
much to his disgust. Finally they
get mad all over and throw their
poles away, hunt up tho lunch basket,
climb up into the woods, where they
sit round on the grass and caterpil-
lars, and eat enough of dried beet and
rusk and boiled eggs to give Il wood
horse the nightmare; after which
they compare notes abou, the beaux
until sundown, when thoy go home
and plant envy in the hearts of all
their lady friends by telling them
what Il splendid time theY had.