Feb. 2S, i§9§.J 
29. ^^Magtm estmritas et prevaleMt.''' 
The man who got this up never went fishing — or, if 
he did, he intended it for what Aitemus Ward used to 
call "sarcassum." 
30. " The exception pfOM^ the- rule." 
Therfe are rig rules ki fishing. They are all exceptions, 
31. " F ".rlnmi Sat sapipitilms. ' ' 
Don't follow the ateice. of; anybody, unless he knows 
more than j^ou do. 
32. "JToz/f sent qui mal. y pense}' 
The old tradition that this phrase arose in connection 
with somebody picking up a Woman's garter is pure fic- 
tion, it is a fisherman's motto, and means that simply 
because a man has had bad luck, and comes home at 
night with an empty creel, it is hardly proper for him, on 
that account, to kick his wife, cuff the children, stone 
the dog and throw the eat down the Well. 
33. '•''Ignorantia legk nemitiem extusaty 
If a fish gets off on a slack line, you will kave -nobody 
to blame but yourself. 
34. "Facilis est decensus averni.'" 
Freely translated, this means that it is a bad practice 
to swear at a fish that gets off. It don't hurt the fish a 
bit, and it may affect your moral standing in the remote 
future. Don't do it. 
35. "Economize on the necessaries of life rather than 
on the luxuries y 
It is easier to worry along on second-class beefsteak 
than with poor bait. 
36. "// is not possible for anybody to know emry-^ 
thing." 
Some people think they do just the same. 
37. "/« aqua, Veritas y 
I wish this was true, but it isn't. 
38. ''Veni, Vidi, Vici." 
When a fish is hooked, get him in as soon as possible. 
39. "N'on multa scd imiltum.''' 
When fishing, I prefer both. 
40. "Homo sum: humani nihil a me alienmn puto." 
The author of this old proverb lacked what Rufus 
Choate once called "felicity of expressio"n." Being asked 
one day what kind of fishing he preferred, he replied as 
above. What he meant was this: That all kinds of fish- 
ing were good — that any of them "would go" with him. 
While he expressed himself somewhat awkwardly, his 
meaning is clear. 
41. "Forsan et haec olim meminisse juvabit." 
A steady rain during your entire outing, especially 
if you ai-e living in a tent away outside of civilization, 
may be a pleasant tiling to recall about twenty-five or 
thirty years hence. 
42. "Eternal vigilance is the price of success." 
Just remember this the next time a fish steals the bait 
off your hook while you are thinking about the girl you 
left behind. 
43. "Ealsus in uno, falsus in omnibus." 
Evidently this means that a man who would lie about 
his fish score wasn't to be believed on any other subject, 
even under oath. Not a bad sort of a rule, either. 
44. " Tempora mutantur." 
The fishing is not as good as it usjed to be. Sad, isn't 
it? 
45. "Sic transit gloria mimdi." 
Freely translated, this means that when a man deeply 
in love goes fishing, he needs to look out that some 
other fellow does not run off with his best girl before he 
g'ets back. 
46. "Ab una disce omnes." 
This is a lie — a pure, unadulterated water-proof lie. 
One fish caught, and weighed,,, cannot be relied upon to 
prove the weight of the next fish which the hook will 
bring up. 
47. "Carpe diem." 
Go fishing every chance ihat offers — an excellent rule 
even yet. 
48. "P rior tempore., prior jure." 
The first man -to hook a fish has the best claim to it. 
This is not much of a proverb, but it will "go." 
^C). "Apparent rari nantes in- gurgite vasto" 
This was a verj"- awkward way of saying that the fish 
were "few and far between," and "not many of them," 
either. 
50. "Prove all things; hold fast that which is good." 
Better: Prove all things; hold fast everything which 
gets on the hook. 
51. "Noli me tangere." 
That is what the worm said to the fish; but it didn't 
stop the funeral. 
52. "The end justifies the means." 
If, at the end of a fishing trip, you haven't enough fish 
to show well in a photograph, the photographer will 
ordinarily supply you with enoU-gh stuffed and painted 
"dummies" to make a good showing. Borrow and put in 
as many of these as your conscience — if you have one — 
will stand. 
53. "Misfortunes never come singly, but in bat- 
talidns." 
i get them both ways. _ _ i 
i^OREsT anE) stream. 
54. "Mistakes trScUr-m fite heit regulated families." 
liTdSr, but that l&ct does aiot help you a particle, when 
you suddenly discover that yon. have left your favorite 
rod six miles back, al the other end of the last portage. 
Fishing on Forbidden Waters, 
Emptying into the Delaware River, up in New York 
State, is one of many noted trout streams. Starting high 
up, and miles back in the woods, amidst rocks and bogs, 
it meanders its tortuous way, gathering up the outpour- 
ings of numberless springs en route, and finally reaches 
the river a grown-up stream of some importance. 
Fresh, cool and sparkling from the woods, it crosses 
the main street of the village, under the old wooden 
bridge, and then flows through a meadow for half a mile 
just before it tumbles into the swift-flow ing waters of 
the Delaware. 
This half mile of meadow was fenced in, and Was part 
of a farm owned by a crabbed, testy old farmer, Mc- 
Shane by name, notorious throughout the county for 
his shai-p and oftentimes very questionable trading. 
Paving stones had been found in his baled hay; his 
milk sent to town had been watered; he had killed dis- 
eased cattle and sent their meat to market, and a number 
of other similar transactions had been brought home 
to his door. 
Although he had never caught a troitt in his life and 
was never known to ask a neighbor to his farm to enjoy 
an hour's trouting, it was nevertheless a source of de- 
light with him to know that he had on his land the best 
half mile of brook trout fishing, perhaps, to be found 
in the State. 
He had reason to know that there was not a man or 
boy in the village, fond of fishing, but who would make 
almost any sacrifice, were it possible to get an after- 
noon's fishing in that stretch of water. 
It did his covetous old eyes good to see the boys and 
men stop at the fence and gaze with longing eyes on 
that water, which at times was fairly alive with jumping 
trout. Fishermen would start fishing well up the stream 
and work down toward the river, only to finally come up 
against the fence, crossing the stream just when the 
fishing gave promise of being the best, and to read the 
conspicuously posted sign: "No fishing allowed. Tres- 
passers will be vigorously prosecuted. Keep off." 
The reputation of McShane for temper was not of the 
best, so much so that he was credited with a disposition 
to run one through with a hay-fork or perhaps slash 
you with his scythe, and accordingly the boys had great 
respect for that signboard— and incidentally for Mc- 
Shane as well. 
There was a tradition that in former days McShanc 
had almost killed a trespassing fisherman, and not even 
the boldest who might venture over the fence and cast 
his line into the forbidden precincts — with one eye al- 
ways on the farmyard and the other on the water — was 
brave enough to stand his ground when the lank, cow- 
hide-booted, jean-appareled, straw-hat-crested form of 
McShane loomed up in the distance, fork, spade or 
scythe in hand, shouting the stereotj^ped cry of: "Gol 
darn ye! Git off'n there quick, or I'll break every bone 
in yer body!" 
The stream, as well as the river, was fished "hard" in 
the spring, but this half mile of water was left in peace 
and quiet, as it were, a wild and natural preserve. It 
was a self-selected spot haunted by both big and little 
trout, the small fish coming from up the stream and 
hugging the shallow places, and the large fellows, great 
lusty fish of 2 and 3lbs. in weight, coming from the river 
and crowding into the pools. 
In May, when the flies were stirring, one standing at 
the fence could witness the leaping trout as they struck 
the falling flies when they touched the water. The fish 
were there in hundreds, and the surface of the water 
never seemed free from ripples made by rising fish. Dur- 
ing the night the trout undoubtedly made excursions up 
the brook and out into the river, but when daylight came 
they found their way back to their haven of refuge, 
where worms on hooks, rainbow-tinted flies, swishing 
rods and wading men were unknown. 
If the stories told from day to day by enthusiastic 
and imaginative anglers were so, as to the jumping trout 
seen in that stream, lolb. fish would have been at a 
discount. Because they were forbidden fish they seemed 
so much the larger. 
Nothing but pure cussedness and meanness seemed to 
be the motive for posting that stream. The meadow 
along the waterway was rocky and swampy almost the 
entire length, so that no possible damage could result 
from one fishing the stream, even from the banks, in 
the way of trampled crops and meadow. 
And as season after season went by, the trout in that 
sanctuary waxed lusty and strong and became numerous 
beyond count. 
One of the village boys, who had been to New York 
studying to become a lawyer, returned one spring to his 
country home a full-fledged attorney-at-law, and without 
delay secured an office over the village post-office, and 
his shingle, bright and glorious in luminous paint, was 
exposed to the gaze of the villagers. 
The many weary months he was cooped up between 
bricks and mortar in the great and noisy city, during 
which he wended his laborious way through the dry and 
dusty paths of legal lore, were not forgotten, and now 
that restraint was off and he was again among the hills 
and streams of his boyhood days, his intention was to 
enjoy them as the opportunity presented. 
He had spent many Saturdays as a boy along the 
brooks, luring the trout with worm and alder pole from 
the cool recesses of the shelving rocks and overhanging 
banks. Often had he, after a day of indifferent fishing, 
stood at the forbidden fence and watched the trout jump 
when his string was far from filled. 
His study of the law had convinced him of the power 
of speech, and he had assiduously cultivated that faculty. 
Being small of stature, he made up, therefore, in tongue 
what he lacked in physique. 
He had set his mind on fishing in that sanctum sanc- 
torum of old McShane's. If sued for trespass he would 
defend his own case, and if beaten, pay the damages — 
probably six cents. As to physical violence, he would 
rely upon his tongue to protect himself from that. 
He was out with pole and bait before daylight, and 
16^ 
started in to fish, well up the . slrearn, atid Work down 
toward the village. I.uck was fair and the sport delight- 
ful after his long enforced abstinence. As the day wore 
on he neared the forbidden ground. He planned to 
reach the spot about 6 o|clock and watch for McShaii'e 
until he went to, supper, and then start in, thinking thiiS 
to improve his chances of a longer undisturbed fish. 
Watching the farmet enteV, his house, he ci:awled 
under the fence and made for the pool on his hands And 
knees where he had seen the big fellows jump, and se- 
lect! n.g an open spot, free from rocks and bushes, so that 
when lying down he could handle his rod fairly, he cast 
his line into the sti*eam, and the fun began from the first 
cast. . ..... 
It was hard Workri ,pfio,afe- ptt.'hi's stomach, handling 
those big fellows, bijt he wafe fishing with an alder pole 
and a stout hook and line, so that the trout had it not all 
tlieir own way, as if up against a willowy 502. rod. 
Fish after fish, .fine, plunm. heavy fellows, did he. ada 
to his string, and still the war ciry of old McShanfe 
sounded not in the distance. 
Gee whiz! but the sport was great! Splash went his 
grasshopper upon the water again, and this time the line 
tugged as it never tugged before. He had the daddy^ of 
the pool, for as the fish turned in the water after taking 
the bait, his massive head and shoulders were a sight to 
see. A 5-pounder sure! He was fishing without a reel, 
and unless carefully handled the fish would tear loose 
from the hook and be ofTf. Nothing must prevent him 
saving that fish, come what might, so up he stood, 
straight upright on his feet. 
Instantly from the distant precincts of the farmhouse 
window came the well-known and old-time familiar cry 
ordering him off and consigning his body and soul 
to Shcol and all the side stations on the map. But our 
fisherman heeded not; his eyes and thoughts were on 
that fish and nowhere else. It made no difference to 
him that the sound of McShane's profanity advanced 
nearer and nearer, he must land that trout. After a few 
more sweeps of his pole he had the trout on its side 
and slowly drew it toward the bank, when stepping into 
the water and getting his fingers under its gills he drew 
the dripping beautiful fish from the water just as Mc- 
Shane, scythe in hand, came up panting, breathless and 
white with rage. 
Our fisherman was cool and not at all disturbed even 
at the hostile demonstrations of McShane, who held the 
scythe drawn back as if prepared to mow off a foot or 
two of the trespasser's legs, and as McShane drew 
breath the fisherman calmly but firmly remarked, "Be 
c-a-r-e-f-u-1, for I'm a lawyer." 
Only recently McShane had been hauled into court 
on a flagrant milk-watering transgression, and the recol- 
lection of the various things in a pecuniary way done to 
him, not only by the prosecuting lawyer, but by his 
own attornc}'- as well, flashed across his parsimonious 
mind. The lawyers had been to him as a buzz saw. 
Dropping his scythe, he exclaimed: "Be you a lawyer, 
well, I want to know!" After a little further palaver 
McShane invited the lawyer to "set you down," and then 
and there began to question him on the law of trespass, 
and assault and battery. It was the chance of McShane's 
life to get some cheap legal advice, and he embraced the 
opoortunity. 
The farmer listened to a very learned dissertation on 
the law, liberally sprinkled with Latin sentences, but 
boiled down at the last McSh'ane learned that for tres- 
pass he might secure six cents damages, and as for jab- 
bing a man through and through with a fork, or slicing 
off one's legs Avith a scythe, criminal or civil proceedings 
would result and end in either imprisonment or a matter 
of a few thousand dollars damages. It was now about 
dark and they wended their way to the barnyard, and 
our lawyer friend stepped out upon the high road on 
his way home the hapoiest fisherman in three States. 
In the memory of the oldest inhabitant no such catch 
of trout had come into the village. 
Selecting the largest fish, they were displayed on a 
block of ice in the principal shop window of the village, 
and were universally admired. 
Callers trudged up his office stairs all daj', congratu- 
lating him upon his phenomenal luck, and if asked once 
he was asked a hundred times "Where did you get 
them?" 
Within a week the lawyer made out the following bill; 
John McShane, Es.q., Dr. 
To John Countryman, Attorney at Law: 
Consultation had and advice given as to law of trespass 
and assault and battery , $25.00 
and depositing the bill in the mail duly addressed awaited 
results. And the results came good and fast in the per- 
son of the old skinflint, foaming at the mouth and be- 
side himself with rage. He stormed; he swore; he 
yelled that it was a swindle, an outrage. He bellowed 
like a jrearling bull. 
Countryman was on his own dung hill, so to speak, 
so McShane had to dance to another man's music. The 
lawyer made but one reply — that bill must be paid. 
And McShane left, threatening to run the lawyer out of 
town and do other dire and dreadful things. 
In another week the village combination of constable, 
sheriff, pound-master, etc., served the farmer with papers 
in the suit of Countryman vs. McShane, and when it 
came to trial McShane would hire no lawyer; he would 
conduct his own case. In selecting the jury Countryman 
took care to see that every juror was personally ac- 
quainted with the defendant. Of course a verdict for 
the full amount was given for the plaintiff — some of the 
jury asking the justice if there was any law against mak-^ 
ing the verdict for $ioo, at which McShane almost col- 
lapsed.. 
Nothing was left now but for McShane to haul out his 
safety-deposit-vault stocking and pay up or have a cow 
or two seized to satisfj^ the judgment. 
Outside of the fun created at the trial, Countryman 
had gotten unlimited advertising out of the case. Every 
farmer in the country for miles around had driven in 
to witness the trial. The nuniber of teams tied up 
around town made one think of fair daj^ 
Countryman sent for McShane and agreed to let up on 
him under one condition, and that was that he should 
permit free fishing on the stream in future, and Mc- 
Shane signing a paper to that effect the judgment and 
costs were waived. 
The stream at once became open fishing, and as a 
