DAYS ON THE NEPIGON. 



dropped him a line. Occasionally I have had 

 trout jump when the hook touched some ex* 

 ceedingly sensitive place, though strongly sus- 

 pecting I was materially abetting and encour- 

 aging the fish in so doing by assisting him 

 toward the surface ; but I have never noticed 

 that it was a record-breaking performance, 

 and could never persuade myself that I was 

 not an accessory to the crime. But I love to 

 catch him, and have for lo, these sixty years 

 or thereabouts, and still retain my boyish en- 

 thusiasm for his taking. 



The hooked trout rarely jumps. The bass 

 will do so repeatedly; though our imper- 

 fectly regulated guess machinery stretches a 

 twelve-inch leap to two or three feet. Two 

 feet is exceedingly rare. Possibly I have seen 

 a bass jump so high, but I can submit no veri- 

 fying documents. Fishing one afternoon 

 above Island Portage, and having landed a 

 couple of trout, I hooked a third one, and 

 concluding to make him come up into day- 

 light, inspect the scenery and become acquain- 

 ted, forced the fight, hurrying him along, 

 7i 



