138 OBSERVATIONS ON A SALMON RIVER 



I am, by the way, convinced that more fish 

 are lost by over-tender handling than by 

 more vigorous methods. 



One day in 1885 I was applying my prin- 

 ciples to a very stout fish, keeping him near 

 the canoe in the clear water, and checking 

 him whenever he tried to take soundings. 

 After he had made one or two strong drives 

 and been met with an equally strong applica- 

 tion of the butt, he suddenly yielded to the 

 pressure, shot up to the surface within two 

 or three feet of us, threw himself high out 

 of the water, and landed almost in Noel's 

 arms between the thwarts of the canoe. He 

 would certainly have jumped overboard 

 again had not Noel driven the gaff firmly 

 into his side. 



All this happened on a Saturday. On 

 Sundays there used to be a great gathering 

 of the boatmen at Woodman's Farm. On 

 the following Monday I asked Noel whether 

 he had said anything to his friends about our 

 fish. He replied that he had told Mr. 

 Woodman all about it. " What," I asked, 



