HOW TO CATCH THE BLACK BASS 



31 



The more people one has in a boat, the greater the chance 

 of conversation, and therefore of argument. When a num- 

 ber fish together from a boat, one person always gets the 

 best bait or the best fishing; the others become impatient; 

 lines become entangled ; fish escape, always the largest ; 

 and, unless a good supply of provender be taken along, 

 there is great danger of a quarrel. 



Therefore I advise all those who go fishing in a boat 

 with a number of friends, and who wish to avoid trouble 

 to take along plenty of 

 meat and drink for the 

 unemployed, the unsuc- 

 cessful, and the incom- 

 petent. 



I have made it a 

 rule always to fish alone, 

 but several times have 

 been persuaded to take 

 companions along with 

 me; the last experience 

 I had, however, convinc- 

 ing me that I would 

 never attempt it again. 



A very intimate friend proposed to me one day that we 

 go fishing in Georgian Bay amongst a long fringe of rocks 

 and sunken reefs which lie between the mainland and the 

 Giant's Tomb. As the distances to be covered were great, 

 he insisted that we should take a sailing dinghy, about 

 fourteen feet in length. Fearing the consequences of fish- 

 ing from such a craft, I tried to persuade him to change 

 his mind. 



But he was obstinate on the point, and I yielded, not 

 without misgivings. 



We started from shore about ten o'clock in the morning 

 with a complete outfit: plenty of extra rope for anchoring. 



