214 



RECREATION. 



fore, you will pardon me for having talked 

 plainly to you, and I beg to suggest that in 

 future when you and your friends make 

 large catches of fish, you would promote 

 your own best interests and your popu- 

 larity among the best sportsmen every- 

 where by keeping still about it. 

 Yours truly, 



# G. O. Shields. 



Bigelow replied to this bit of advice in a 

 letter so profane and so obscene as to be 

 unfit to print. Thus he shows not only his 

 bristles but his cloven hoofs. — Editor. 



AT TOWNS' MILL. 



Bloomington, Ind. 

 Editor Recreation: 



We reached our destination, a point on 

 the San Gabriel river below Georgetown, 

 Texas, about 3:30 oclock on a hot morn- 

 ing last July, and, after half an hour spent 

 in catching minnows, began the more ex- 

 citing occupation of catching bass. From 

 4 until 6 o'clock the sport was all that 

 could be desired, but after the sun crept 

 higher from the mass of rosy tinted clouds 

 at our backs the rises became less fre- 

 quent. My companion, putting aside his 

 rod, began preparing breakfast, while I, 

 in the hope of catching a whopper, kept 

 on fishing. I stood on a rock just in the 

 edge of the stream, a little below where 

 the tail race entered, and cast my minnow 

 far out into the swift water. Twice I ca,st, 

 but got no rise. A third time I cast and 

 began pulling my minnow toward the 

 shore when, just as it passed a half sur- 

 merged rock, there was a tremendous 

 splash and the line began running out in 

 a way that was appalling. Straight across 

 the stream he rushed, right for a patch of 

 lily pads, against the farther bank, and I 

 threw on the drag in the hope of stopping 

 him before he reached the mass of tan- 

 gled roots and stems toward which he was 

 going at such a headlong dash. The 

 strain told on him, for he stopped; then 

 rushed up stream, whirled, and sprang 

 clear out of the water, every fin erect and 

 the water falling in silver drops from his 

 bronze green sides. In the meantime, I 

 began to get excited. How much, I won- 

 dered, of his morning exercise would my 

 tackle stand? Half unconsciously my mind 

 reverted to a day, some years past, when 

 I innocently picked up a rope lying in 

 the tall grass, only to be dragged under 

 the fence by a calf at the other end. The 

 present sensation was somewhat similar. 



In the meantime, the fish had not been 

 idle. On the contrary, he was activity it- 

 self, was in possession of almost all my 

 line, and was apparently trying to get my 

 rod as well. I had followed him down 

 stream till the water had come above my 



waist, and with a sigh I saw my sack of 

 tobacco float around a bend far below and 

 vanish from sight. 



Gradually I began recovering my line, 

 but it was slow work, for the fish fought 

 hard for every inch he gave. Owing to 

 the fact that I had followed him over a 

 jump off, the water was almost up to my 

 arms and half the rod was submerged, 

 but I held on, for I could feel that he was 

 weakening and I knew the fight was al- 

 most over. 



Slowly I moved toward the shore and 

 the fish reluctantly followed. I was in 

 shallower water then, and could handle 

 him more easily. Back and forth he 

 rushed, now on the surface, now down to 

 the very bottom, but all the time coming 

 nearer and nearer to the landing net, 

 which my friend was holding in readiness 

 to slip under him at the first opportunity. 

 At last it came, when the fish lay an in- 

 stant on the surface of the water. A mo- 

 ment later he was in the landing net, 

 struggling, but safe. I was wet to the 

 skin, and my friend during the excitement 

 allowed the coffee to boil away and the 

 bacon to be consumed; but what did 

 minor details like those amount to? 

 Hadn't I just landed a 5-pound bass! I 

 leave it to any angler if that doesn't more 

 than pay the bill. 



W. M. Schultz. 



THIS IS DIFFERENT. 

 Mr. G. O. Shields, New York. 



Dear Sir : — Your card addressed to John 

 Dewing, asking if he recently caught 90 

 pounds. of trout, has been handed me with 

 the request that I reply. 



About 3 weeks ago, 7 of the boys of our 

 town took a team and camp outfit, and went 

 up into the Yellowstone National Park, by 

 permission of the superintendent, Capt. 

 Oscar Brown, on a fishing trip. They 

 camped at the hot spring above Uncle John 

 Yancey's, in order to get the benefit of the 

 baths, and did their fishing principally in 

 Tower Creek, below the noted falls of that 

 beautiful stream. One of the party did 

 no fishing, and some of the others not much. 

 In fact, the principal sport was enjoyed by 

 John Dewing. They were gone just 6ne 

 week, and brought back about 500 pounds 

 of as beautiful trout as I ever saw, averag- 

 ing 2 pounds to the fish. They smoked 

 about 50 pounds. Not one fish was allowed 

 to spoil, nor was one sold. Every one was 

 eaten by the party and their friends. You 

 people who do not realize how our streams 

 in this section are overstocked with trout, 

 will say hog, every letter a capital, too ; 

 but any of the United States Fish Com- 

 missions who have visited this wonderland, 

 will tell you there are actually too many 

 trout in some places for the good of the 

 fish. 



