PREFACE 



The object of this book is to inform anglers 

 about every kind of fresh -water and especially 

 marine fish — "much in little." Those fish not 

 angled for are left out, and scientific names and 

 descriptions are not considered. Of the thou- 

 sands of fish in American waters, I have selected 

 only those best known for gameness and economic 

 value, so that the veriest tyro can be informed about 

 angling methods and any equipment he should need 

 without trouble, time, and expense in searching 

 other works. First and last, I have tried to make 

 an all-round pocket guide — an encyclopaedia of 

 facts — the easiest and best ways, how to catch, 

 where to go, and how to get the best sport. 



To avoid monotonous repetition, the writer 

 deemed it wise to plan the book under sub-divided 

 headings and to combine the various fish in groups 

 and collate the methods of taking them so that 

 they can be seen at a glance. Complete infor- 

 mation concerning each fish is not, therefore, con- 

 fined to a single chapter, but occurs under various 

 headings, as shown in the Contents, page xi. 



The writer has, all his life, been much at- 

 tached to the sport of angling, and circumstances 

 vii 



