The Contented Angler 1 1 



apparently, fished the same places and 

 with the same detail. And so it was 

 with my early black-bass fishing. 



There are very few tyros who return 

 with empty creels who do not explain 

 their poor success by denouncing the 

 water, but the honest beginner is not 

 afraid to admit that his inexperience, and 

 not the lack of game, was the real cause 

 of his failure to creel. 



And the angler does not exaggerate his 

 catch, because the slaughter in the chase 

 is, to him, the meanest part. It is the 

 scoffer who braggingly falsifies his record, 

 and in doing so makes the world dispute 

 the angler's honest story. 



Truly, "the contented heart makes the 

 cheerful journey." 



*' The real enjoyment of camping and tramping in 

 the woods lies in a return to primitive conditions of 

 lodging, dress, and food, in as total an escape as may 

 be from the requirements of civilization. And it re- 

 mains to be explained why this is enjoyed most by those 

 who are most highly civilized." CHARLES DUDLEY 

 WARNER. 



