THE ANGLER'S GUIDE. 143 



Bigings how he should get the tackle neces- 

 sary to angle with. The book he had bought 

 of the old man cheap enough, and he asked 

 him if he had any tackle by him, but he said 

 he had been obliged to part with that before 

 he sold him the book. Bigings then asked 

 him what he thought it would cost to equip 

 himself, so as to be able to bring home five or 

 six good trout? The old man gave him a 

 very significant look, and shaking his head, 

 said, " It is not so easy, Mr. Bigings, to get 

 five or six good trout ; and to get the tackle 

 necessary to catch them would, I think, cost 

 more than you would like to spend. And 

 even then you could not buy the skill, if you 

 would give ever so much for it." He then 

 told him what tackle he ought to have, what 

 it would cost, the trouble it would be to 

 obtain permission to fish in a good trout 

 stream, and the times best to catch them; 

 and all these things combined made such a 

 formidable affair of trout fishing, that Bigings 

 looked rather downcast about it, and said, 

 " Oh, then I think I must give up the thought 

 of trout." Still he was determined to be an 

 angler, and to catch something ; he therefore 

 asked the old man what was the next good 



