FISHING 



75 



the bank, and watch the dirty, yellow flood 

 mounting higher and ever higher up the 

 stems of the willows, that at a normal pitch 

 of water were feet above the surface. But, 

 one morning the river had fallen a foot or 

 so, and, although really far too high for 

 good fishing, promised some sport. 



The correct Tracadie fly has a green or 

 orange body, natural red hackle, a dark mal- 

 lard wing, silver twisl, and is tied on a No. 

 i O'Shaughnessy hook. A six-foot, single, 

 leader of fine salmon gut, and a ten foot, 

 ten ounce rod complete the ideal outfit. A 

 light rod on the Tracadie is of little use; 1 

 made one five ounce rod look like a cork 

 screw in a single morning's fishing. The 

 river is peculiar, being narrow, between cut 

 banks, very swift, and you must nearly al- 



This time all went well. The water in 

 the South Branch was just deep enough to 

 float my little Milicete canoe, bought on the 

 St. John river, and the weather was perfect. 

 As to the fish, every pool was full of them, 

 and whenever I cast in a likely place, two 

 or three trout would make a dash at the fly. 



When, next day, we pushed off my rods 

 were in their cases, and I did not wet a 

 fly again, though we passed for miles through 

 countless pools, and could see the great trout 

 leisurely fanning their way up stream, or 

 hanging, poised in the current, on the look- 

 out for just such tempting fare as I had to 

 offer. 



Tn time we came to the first settler's 

 clearing by the lagoon, at the very head of 

 the tide, and as I wished to replace a broken 



The most "sporty" trout waters I have ever fished. 



ways kill your fish on the rod, and reel him 

 in straight against the heavy current. Any 

 fisherman knows what that means with a 

 four pound trout in grand fighting trim at 

 the end of your line, and no trout fight harder 

 than these Tracadie fish just out of salt 

 water. 



My first try gave me three large trout, with- 

 out moving from the opening in the bushes 

 which we had made for camp use. That 

 afternoon I took fifteen more, and the next 

 day I broke camp as my time was up. We 

 salted the fish, and Connors told me when 

 we met the next year, that they had gone 

 well with his excellent potatoes and had 

 been highly appreciated by the family. 



I now knew something about the Tracadie, 

 and in the July following I was igain at the 

 Forks, in camp and ready for fis ling. 



paddle we went ashore. A toothless old hag 

 came out of the hovel to meet us, and on 

 hearing our wants soon produced a paddle, 

 for which she asked no less than twenty- 

 five cents. My reckless generosity was such 

 that I actually handed her the sum asked and 

 reached for the paddle. But the deal was 

 not over by any means, for the good dame 

 after biting the silver, examined it carefully, 

 and then throwing it to the ground, seized 

 the paddle, uttering meanwhile some very 

 recherche French oaths. 



Connors by this time was rolling on the 

 ground in an uncontrollable fit of laughter. 

 I could not quite see the joke at first, but 

 finally grasped that the date on the quarter 

 was not the same as the one the lady recog- 

 nized as genuine ; hence her very proper sus- 

 picion of the exchange, 



