THE SALMON. 4 1 



policeman guides a lady or a cripple through the intricacies 

 of a thronging thoroughfare; and worse than an idiot would 

 be the bumptious dolt who would spurn this timely counsel. 



Furthermore: The gaffer should select the landing-place 

 in advance, if the fish is to be gaffed from the shore, as is 

 usually done, even when fishing from a boat, and wade well 

 out, say to the depth of his knees, so that by any chance the 

 fish may not flounder loose by striking the bottom in too 

 shallow water. Then the man with the rod should lead his 

 captive, as best he may, up to the gaffer, so that he can 

 strike it. Never be in a hurry; a slip of the foot on the river 

 bottom may cost another hour's hard work with the rod. 

 Put the gaff into the water as quietly as possible, and unob- 

 served of the fish, to the depth of fourteen inches or so, 

 and make the clip upward and inward, endeavoring to fix the 

 point abaft the shoulders, which is the center of gravity. If 

 hooked elsewhere, the fish gets a big leverage with head or 

 tail, and will make a ghastly rent in his body, if indeed he 

 does not flop off the hook altogether. Never strike a fish in 

 the belly. There is nothing more unsightly than a great gap- 

 ing wound, especially if the entrails protrude. A gaff should 

 not have its point reversed, or turned inward, as we find 

 them at most of the tackle-shops. The point should be 

 parallel with the shank, so that the line of draft at the point 

 may be parallel with the line of draft on the shank and gaff 

 handle. The hook need not exceed two and a half inches in 

 the width of the bend between shank and point. A four-foot 

 handle is the correct length. Jointed handles are convenient 

 to carry, but are objectionable on account of a possibility of 

 their telescoping or slipping at critical moments. 



Unquestionably, in no part of the globe are there so many 

 Salmon rivers as there are in the Dominion of Canada. There 

 are far more than a hundred in all perhaps a hundred and 

 twenty which might yield fair sport to the rod, counting only 

 those of the Atlantic coast, and not including those of the 



