196 MEN 1 HAVE FISHED WITH. 



tell the girls that I'm not dancing this winter." That I 

 loved such a cheerful companion is not strange; any 

 sportsman would have taken him to his heart, for if there 

 is a disagreeable quality in a man it will show itself in 

 camp. If he is cranky, cross or grumbly it will come out 

 in time, and if he is a hog who will take the choice corner 

 of the tent every time, or the best fish in pan, it is soon 

 known, and right here let me say I have met many such 

 men who seemed to think that no one was wet and cold 

 but themselves, nobody tired and hungry except their 

 own carcasses; one trip with them is always enough. 

 They are the fellows who will shoot across you at your 

 birds, throw out their lines alongside yours if they see 

 you have a nibble, and in many ways, beside bragging of 

 their personal prowess, make themselves disagreeable. 

 You've all met "em and dropped 'em. I will tell you 

 more about Henry later. 



We drifted down Swift Sloo,and poled and paddled to 

 the landing, made the boat fast, and marched through the 

 partly deserted villages of Lafayette and Van Buren 

 to picturesque Potosi. Mr. Kaltenbach, who had been 

 postmaster for some twenty years then and who recently 

 died in office, the oldest postmaster known to the ser- 

 vice, hailed us with: "Hello, boys! Did you get so 

 many fish that you couldn't carry 'em?" But Henry 

 told him that several wagons were on the way with our 

 catch. John Nicholas and Bill Patterson wanted to 

 know if we forgot to spit on our bait, but they got no' 

 reply. We had enjoyed the trip that is, Henry and I 

 did it was not certain about Frank, and it was useless 

 to try to explain it to people who measure your fun by 

 the amount of game brought back a most false meas- 

 ure, and one that should come under the supervision of 

 the State "sealer of weights and measures." 



