XVI 



OF FLOUNDER FISHING AS AN ART 



TO the True Purist all things are pure. We 

 are not all true purists. In every angler, 

 however, the purist lurks. In one he is pre- 

 dominant, in another he is subordinate to the 

 hunter. I confess that in me the hunter is the top 

 dog. When I see a trout, for instance, a beast 

 of prey rises within me and chokes the sportsman. 

 I want to catch, not to fish. But when I see 

 a bull-head the lust of slaughter is less fierce 

 I cannot say why and I am ready to be an artist 

 for art's sake. The fact is that I have not the 

 skill to be a purist in trout-fishing, and I know 

 that there are many anglers who are in like case. 

 The object of that which follows is to indicate 

 to these, my weaker brethren, a direction in which 

 their better natures may perhaps find room for 

 development. Let it be understood that I do 

 not address the purist of the chalk-stream. That 

 which follows is intended for those whose purity 

 is equal only to the strain attendant upon the 



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