2 TROUT FISHING 



the patience ! " they say if asked whether 

 they go fishing now and then. Although 

 it has prohably been familiar for centuries, 

 this remark is always a fresh surprise. It 

 suggests the possibility that the same 

 worthy persons, if, after seeing a fine 

 picture, or after hearing a great poem, 

 they were asked, " Do you paint ? " or 

 " Do you ever write a poem ? " might 

 answer, " O no : I could not have the 

 patience ! " Perhaps, as most of us are 

 aware, from hearsay, that making pictures 

 and making poetry are artistic works, and 

 that all achievements in art are, if only 

 for our own sakes, to be held in rever- 

 ence, there are not many inconsiderate 

 enough to speak about pictures and 

 poetry in that way. Still, the possibility 

 of some such startling speech is worth 

 touching upon. It may coax many good 

 people into readiness to entertain the 

 proposition, which otherwise might seem 

 absurd, that angling is a craft having 

 subjectively much in common with the 

 arts of literature and painting. 



