76 BLANK DAYS. 



BLANK DAYS. 



" And tell of pain as well as gain 

 That waits us on the morrow." 



ERIC MACKAY. 



NEWSPAPER articles on fishing, or letters 

 from friends on holiday, almost always 

 speak of success disappointing and 

 qualified, but still, of success. Downright 

 failure, an utter blank day, is never alluded to 

 in the present tense. It may have taken place 

 last season, or even last week; but it forms no 

 subject matter for a Saturday column, or for 

 a yarn to a brother angler unable to leave town. 



And yet, in the early days of fishing, with 

 what dire persistence these blanks occur. To 

 forget about them is best. To slur them over 

 is pardonable : but, in describing angling as it 

 really is, to those who wish to learn all its 

 rites and mysteries, failures and exasperations, 

 one cannot maintain a dishonest silence. 



On certain days blanks seem preordained. The 

 total inability to hook, or even attract a fish is 

 not always the fault of the ' rod,' the fly, or 

 the cast; although if trout are rising, it is best 

 to infer that one of the three factors is at 



