242 METHODS OF LANDING A SALMON. 



plement, particularly if carried by an intelligent at- 

 tendant who knows how to use it. Some prefer the 

 landing-net, but one large enough to safely circum- 

 vent an eriox or a salmon is not only a cumbrous 

 implement to carry, but a clumsy piece of machinery to 

 use with a wild and sometimes only a half-spent fish.* 

 Others again, discarding the employment of either, sagely 

 recommend the angler to wind his line in, keep his 

 rod well on the bend high above his head, and then 

 cautiously stoop down and grasp the fish by the tail 

 just above the caudal fin, and quietly carry him ashore 

 and knock him on the head without more ado. But 

 should most men attempt such an exploit, 1 will con- 

 fidently wager that nine fish out of every ten will 

 cleverly elude the bungling grasp of the over-ardent 

 and nervous sportsman, and forcibly illustrate the truth 

 of the adage that " there's many a slip between the cup 

 and the lip." It is no easy matter to maintain a secure 

 hold of a slippery fish in the midst of his powerful 

 struggles for life and liberty, any more than it is to 

 swing an eight-stone pig over your left shoulder by the 

 caudal extremity, after the same has been shaved and 

 greased. 



The ordinary gaff-hook is neither more nor less than 

 a large sharp-pointed steel hook,, from two to three inches 

 across the bend, screwed into a tough wooden handle 

 about four feet long, and this is an efficient enough im- 

 plement in its way. The kind, however, I always 



* The gaff will be inadmissible during the early part of the season, 

 when kelts are in the water. 



