A Defense of Fishermen 



the shade to sleep, or go in swimming, 

 or who gaze about or read a book 

 while their hooks rest baitless on the 

 bottom; but how false and unfair it 

 is to accuse regular, full-blooded fish- 

 ermen of laziness, based on such per- 

 formances as these ! And yet this is 

 absurdly done by those who cannot 

 tell a reel from a compass, and who 

 by way of familiarizing themselves 

 with their topic leave their beds at 

 eight o'clock in the morning, ride to 

 an office at ten, sit at a desk until 

 three or perhaps five, with an hour's 

 interval for a hearty luncheon, and go 

 home in the proud belief that they 

 have done an active, hard day's work. 

 Fishermen find no fault with what 

 they do in their own affairs, nor with 

 their conception of work; but they do 



