A Sportsman at Large 127 



for it but to cast loose the cable. Away went our fish with 

 the whol' outfit ! Now I'm speculatin' as to what manner 

 of prehistoric monster this was what put it over us thus ? " 



" Oh," sneered one of the Englishmen, " I expect it was 

 a whale ! " 



" I guess not," answered the Yank, reflectively. " See 

 here now. We was baitin' with whales ! Get me ? " 



Then there is the vainglorious lie told for the sake of the 

 telling. 



A case in point. 



" Fishin' in British Columbia ? " said Ten. B. Pincus, 

 in answer to my query. " I should just say ! Why, when 

 I got right up to the big Fish Lake the whol' surface was a 

 dimple with risin' beauties. I soon fixed up my pole and 

 line, and began castin' full of hope ; but nary a touch did I 

 get at my ' butchers ' and ' silver doctors.' I soon became 

 wise to the fact that these fish was blowin' themselves out 

 with the jumpin' grass-bugs, what kept droppin' on the 

 water. So I got hold of one and fixed it on a Number Eight 

 hook ; but when I went to cast, the durned thing came unstuck 

 and landed clear, where it was golloped up by a big fish right 

 there, under my very nose, as it were. 



" I was just figurin' out what my next procedure would be, 

 when I cast my eye behind me and fixed it on one of them 

 Cree Indians, smiling quite pleasant like. He snapped up a 

 bug from the grass, and signed to me to sling him the hook. 

 This I did ; whereupon that redskin pulled a long hair from 

 his flowin' locks and fixed up the bug to the hook, so I could 

 cast without its becomin' detached. This worked the oracle 

 all right, all right. I sure had a four-pounder first go. Havin' 

 unfixed it, I flicked my line behind me again, and when the 

 Indian whistled, cast forward, and immediately had another 

 big fish a fightin' me ! This went on until I was knee-deep in 

 shimmerin' squirmin' steelheads. All of a sudden somethin' 

 happened. Three times I cast without any reply, when I 

 noticed there was no bug on the hook. I spun round sharp. 

 Sir, that Redskin was bald as a coot I " 



Yet another lie is when an angler is bent on pulling the 

 leg of some unsophisticated mug. 



