THE PICKEREL. 



BY W. DAVID TOMLIN. 



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HEN sunny youth or lovely girlhood takes to fishing; 

 when woman, "spurred with a vaulting ambition," de- 

 sires even to eclipse her husband when the soul that 

 looks out of the windows is growing dim ! when the grinders 

 cease because they are few; when the ambitions of earth wane, 

 and the days slip almost unconsciously by, and of the loves 

 of former years that remain the love of boyhood; the 

 strong love of a strong manhood; the declining love of well- 

 spent life the desire comes once again to go-a-fishing 

 and the slippered feet are once again guided gently to a boat 

 and made comfortable, and and to fishing the old sire goes. 



All the memories of boyhood's days return again, and the 

 cunning of his hand comes to him once more; he recounts 

 incidents of many years fishing lore, but it is of Pickerel fish- 

 ing. 



To the boy just beginning his piscatorial career, the Pickerel 

 is the fish of all fish. The "Beauty that draws us with a 

 single hair," does not at first attempt to inveigle the wary 

 trout; but the Pickerel is fair game and many a bout does 

 fair womanhood have with reticulatus before she attempts 

 to fling a line for either Bass or Trout. 



But what is a pickerel? 



"English as she's spoken," says Pickerel or Jack is a young 

 Pike- This idea was fostered by some transplanted Anglo- 



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