-v -1 >■ •^' 



^ 



Harling and Boat-angling. 115 



In casting from the bank or bed of a river, the angler 

 can make certain of covering every foot of water within 

 his reach ; but not so the harler, unless he and his com- 

 panion on the thwart be workmen of the first class. 



Angling in combination, which boat-work affords, can 

 only be enjoyed in the same degree by oarsman and angler 

 if they both be equally good, or equally bad, at their work ; 

 and I would rather not fish than be obliged to contend 

 with the vagaries of an incompetent oarsman, while I must 

 confess that it is no treat to row for a bad angler. 



A good oarsman gets sick of working for a bad or 

 inattentive angler, just as a good dog wearies of working 

 for a bad shot. Neither man nor dog can compensate for 

 the shortcomings of his companion. 



In boat-fishing, be it casting or harling, the oarsman's 

 work is of every bit as great importance, and requires as 

 much skill, as that of the angler, and I would as soon row 

 the boat as fish — or, perhaps, I should say, hold the rod, 

 for, indeed, the oarsman is as much fishing as the man 

 who grasps the rod. 



No episode in angling gives one more pleasure than 

 when, rowing the boat, a fish takes the angler's fly at the 

 exact spot which one has previously indicated as a "smittle 

 shop." Such happy result does not happen as frequently 

 as could be desired; yet, when it does, great is the 

 reward. 



