AMERICAN TROUT FISHING 

 read two articles by scientific persons recently which go to show that 

 unless one works hard out of doors until he is tired he cannot be healthy, 

 but if much fatigued he is poisoned by his own " toxins " (whatever 

 those may be), and cannot be rid of these until he rests. We are here 

 placed between the devil and the deep sea, of being unhealthy upon the one 

 hand, or poisoned upon the other. The only sure remedy is to go a-fishing, 

 as this is rest, recreation and exercise all in one. The tournament rod 

 of eleven feet and ten and a half to eleven and three-quarter ounces, 

 built for long-distance casting, may be all right for Goliath of Gath; 

 but the average man will be more comfortable without a weapon 

 of this description. Competition is all right in tournament casting with 

 fly and bait, but I do not care for competition in catching fish, I wish to 

 feel at peace with all the world, amiable, good-natured, to potter about if 

 I feel disposed, studying the flies and fish, if there are any of these on or in 

 the water. It is a great comfort to kill two or three big trout in a short 

 time and be relieved of that first anxiety to catch fish. Then one feels 

 at liberty to do as he pleases. You will note that on those dour days when 

 the fish absolutely decline to feed and minnows are the only prey in sight, 

 the angler fights and fishes, he is determined that the fish shall rise, they 

 must eat his flies. All the obstinacy of his nature is aroused and his temper 

 is vile. A couple of good fish early in the day would have sweetened all 

 this, and he would have been content with small results. With eight or 

 ten pounds in the creel you go home early. With an empty basket you 

 stay out late. By the way, I wish that it was customary always to give the 

 take in pounds (or ounces). Numbers give no conception of the sport 

 enjoyed. If a man tells you that he killed forty trout, without giving the 

 weight, what does it mean ? He may have been up a tributary brook yank- 

 ing out tiny trout from four to six inches long. In restocking, the fry and 

 fingerlings are placed in these spring-fed burns for protection and food. 

 When of suitable size they are supposed to drop down into the main stream 

 or river. 



It is quite an advantage to the wandering angler to be able to busk a 

 fly reasonably well. A small stock of materials for small and large flies, 

 dry and wet, is easily carried, with a good supply of first-rate eyed hooks. 

 Badly tempered hooks are a delusion and ill -shaped ones a snare, not to 

 the fish, but to the angler. It is a recreation to dress flies when one cannot 

 fish, most interesting to follow the colours of the insects on the water, 

 and often profitable to copy a local pattern that is favoured by the trout. 



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