170 THE FINE ART OF FISHING 



to be landed is more than a mere detail ; it requires skill, 

 presence of mind, and, above all, coolness. Every 

 angler can remember times when the bungling use of 

 the net resulted in the loss of the "big one." Also, the 

 bungler, if the fisherman did his duty on these occa- 

 sions, should have no difficulty in recalling the particular 

 disaster in which he figured. 



In stream fishing for brook trout, however, the angler 

 is usually his own netter, and if through his haste or 

 lack of skill in handling the net, the especially large 

 one gets away, he has no one to blame but himself. 

 Landing a trout in still-water is a matter of no great 

 difficulty. The fish can be gradually played in to the 

 angler, and when he is ready to be taken out the net 

 should be immersed and the fish led over it. Sudden 

 motions should be avoided and the fish neatly meshed 

 without touching him with the rim of the net. 



Sometimes the lightest touch of the net will revive 

 a played-out fish and he is off again like a flash. In 

 view of this it is advisable before using the net to have 

 a fair amount of slack line off the reel which should be 

 held between the fingers of the rod hand so that it can 

 be released immediately. Thus prepared, a final rally 

 of the fish is not apt to result in his escape. Unless 

 the trout was originally hooked very hard after a more 

 or less protracted siege of playing, the hook often "hangs 

 by a thread" in which case if the trout is snubbed in the 

 least the hook will tear away, and frequently if any 

 slack is given it will drop out. 



Landing a trout in fast-running water is another 

 thing. Here, if the fish is a large one, the angler has 



