June 22, 1901.] 
•FOREST 'A-ND • STREAM? 
488 
Some Boyhood Memories.* 
X.--"UncIe Jim's Reel." 
When a boy, I lived 00 a farm in Kentucky niear Silver 
River. ■ 
This stream was beautiful at all seasons, but in the 
spring when the fish began to bite — or were supposed to — 
my home was an earthly paradise. 
At that season I w-ould not have changed phices with a 
circus rider, an Indian fighter or even a pirate. 
Days spent on that clear, cold, bank-shaded stream Were 
days to enjoy and remember. 
My mother's yoimgest brother lived in Frankfort, and 
often made us short visits. He seemed greatly to enjoy 
the change from town to the country, and also the good, 
wholesome country fare, but most of all the freslily caught 
fish that I nearly always had for him in season. 
He finally came to share my enthusiasm, and said he 
would come down some day and go fishing with me, and 
show me how to catch fish. There was probably never a 
man living, that fished at all, who did not think that he 
could catch more fish, and larger ones, than any boy. Just 
because boys use a sapling for a rod, any kind of string 
that is strong for a line, spit on the bait and jerk the 
fish right out on the bank, when hooked, they say w-e 
don't know how to fish. "You are not scientific," is what 
Uncle Jim used to say. "Just wait until I come to take 
that fish with you, and I will show you the scientific way." 
One Friday afternoon on my return from school I found 
that Uncle Jim had come, and the next day being my 
holiday, I was to have the promised lesson in scientific 
fishing. 
We were up at daybreak next morning, a beautiful day, 
and by the time breakfast was ready I had a can of angle- 
worms dug and my tackle all rigged up. When we 
reached the river I found that Uncle Jim had provided 
himself with more tackle for one day's fishing than Mr. 
Moss, our storekeeper, had for his entire stock in trade. 
Many of the things he had brought I could see no earthly 
good in, and the profusion of hooks, lines, floats, leads, 
etc., looked to me like very foolish and wasteful extrav- 
agance, but the beautiful pole, that came apart in sec- 
tions about as long as a walking-cane, and had bright 
metal tips, ferrules and trimmings, commended itself to me 
and won my sincerest admiration and praise. 
But the most useless and impracticable article in all his 
A'aried outfit, to my notion, was his reel — the first one I 
had ever seen — and his explanation of its use only served 
to strengthen me in this belief. That you should unwind 
and let out a whole lot of good line for a fish that was 
too big to pull in, to run off with, was to me the most 
foolish idea of all, and my uncle's theory, that the fish 
would become tired out w-hen it had run to the end of 
the line, and you could pull it back, was one that my 
judgment did not approve at all, and I very frankly told 
him so. 
Then he proceeded to give me a long talk on "scientific 
fishing," entering into details and explanations, that did 
not prevent me from jerking out two nice white perch and 
one goggle-eye in an unscientific manner entirely satis- 
factory to me, while he was talking about and getting 
ready to illustrate the art of catching fish. The fish bit 
freely, and my luck was even better than usual, and by 
the time Uncle Jim was ready to begin, I had caught nine 
nice ones. He would not use my bait, but had caught a 
minnow on a very small hook that he had, and by a long 
sweep and swing of the rod wa:s casting his hook, baited 
with the minnow, nearly to the middle of the river. It 
was certainly very interesting to see him, with easy, grace- 
ful swings, cast 'way out in the deep water; — ten times 
the length of his pole— where I knew there tnust be 
some big fellows, but casting out and winding in ^yas all 
he did. while every few miiiutes, with a vigorous jerk, I 
landed a fish high and dry. 
But then, as he very truly said, '"A fish that will swallow 
this minnow of mine will be worth a dozen such as you 
are catching." 
Nevertheless I was making sure of mine, and after more 
than an hour of hard work he was no nearer to success 
than when he began. I had just urged him to shorten 
itp his line, put on a worm for bait and catch some fish by 
my unscientific jnethod, when something struck his bait. 
The large float gave a dip half under, trembled a mo- 
ment, and then began to slowly disappear under the water, 
as though the fish taking it was too large and dignified to 
move quickly. In a moment I was all excitement, and 
dropping mv pole. I dashed up to Uncle Jim, shouting. 
"Pull ! Pnfl him in ! Pull with all your miglit." He 
promptly told me to keep quiet and stand back. Waiting 
for the "line to tighten, he made a quick backward sweep 
with arm and wrist, and whatever it was, was hooked 
firm and fast. I immediately made up my mind that it 
was a big fish— the very b'ggest in the river — and was as 
wildly excited as a boy could well get. With my whole 
heart I washed I could get hold of my uncle's rod and try 
conclusions with tlie monster, feeling sure that it was 
strength and not science that was now needed. But 
though Uncle Jim's eyes fairly snapped, he made an effort 
to appear cool and collected — it was not scientific to get 
excited. 
It was easy to see that the thing he had hooked did not 
know, nor care, anything about science, for after remain- 
ing quiet for a few seconds, it made two or three lunges 
like a wild btill, that made the line sing, and then down 
;he river it went at a steady gait, that seemed to say. "I'm 
off; you call come or not, as you please." 
Uncle tried again and again to check his catch, pulling 
back as hard as he dared, but the strain on the line w-as 
so great he had to let it go, paying out .the line from oi¥ 
the reel so fast that it fairly buzzed. 
Finally the line was all out and Uncle Jim started on 
a run down the stream, keeping near the water's edge, 
winding in line whenever he could get any slack and 
trying by frequent ptills to tire his catch, which was 
steadily sailing down the stream, keeping about in the 
middle. "Bring the landing net,'' he shouted to me, and 
I ran back to where he had left it, rejoicmg that he had 
explained its use to me. Dashing down the river bank I 
soon overtook him, and found' that he had run dowm 
opposite his catch and was walking rapidly along, winding 
in his line. 
"Strange he don't turn," said my Uncle; "they nearly 
always run up stream when hooked." 
"But he is a big fellow, sure," and I plainly saw that, 
my uncle was showing some very unscientific symptoms of 
excitement. 
"Pull him in ! Pull him in so I can reach him with llic 
net." I shouted, making dashes into the water's edge. 
"Can't do it until I tire hini outj he is too big," .said 
he. On down the river wc went, running wildly over 
rocks, logs and brush, sometimes on flat banks and some- 
times on steep, rough ones for a little way as fast as wc 
could run, and then for a few moments more slowly, I 
sliouting as loudly as I could -every few moments some 
request, or suggestion, to my uncle, for I was not a 
scientific fisherman and did get excited. 
Finally on a steep, narrow bank I managed to get the 
landing net between my legs, and fell headlong, with such 
force as to throw me heels over head down the bank, and 
against my scientific relative's legs, as he balanced him- 
self on a narrow, steep ledge, and dropping his pole he 
went head first into the river like a big frog, arms and 
legs flying. The water was deep and he disappeared en- 
tirely from sight. Before he had come to the surface I 
had caught up the pole and was holding it as he had been 
doing, letting the line run out. Ordinarily, under such 
circumstances, I should have felt solicitous for his safety 
and have hastened to render him assistance, but the big 
fish was my only thought now. 
Swimming to the bank and scrambling out of the water, 
bare headed and dripping, he snatched his pole without a 
word, and I picked up the net, and away we went after 
our fish. 
It was fearfully hot, and we had run almost half a 
mile, which over the rough and obstructed river bank 
was equal to several times that distance on level. But at 
last the whale — as I had about begun to believe him to 
be — ^began to show signs of exhaustion. He did not spurt 
so lively, and freqttently sulked, affording an opportunity 
to recoA'cr line, without running after him, and I began 
to look around to see if we were near a road, feeling sure 
that it would take a wagon to haul him home. But I was 
meeting the diffictflty of transportation altogether too 
soon, for a moment thereafter the line ran against a snag 
almost in the tniddle of the river, and do what he would 
my uncle could not release it. 
The line was running out at a right angle round the 
snag, as the catch ran down the stream, but we could not 
follow on and wind it in, and of course it would all be 
out in a few moments and the fish would break away. 
Big boy that I was, my eyes filled with tears of disap- 
pointment, as I realized that in a few moments our 
magnificent prize would surely escape. 
"It will never do to let such a fish get away," cried 
Uncle Jim, and thrusting his pole into my hands, he threw 
off his coat and boots and plunged into the river. Almost 
breathless with anxiety, fearing he would not reach it in 
time, I watched him swimming swiftly out to the snag, 
while the line on the reel grew less and less. But at last, 
just as it was tightening up on the last bit of slack, and 
after I had waded out into the river as far as I could 
keep my footing to ease the strain, Uncle Jim reached 
out and caught the log with one hand, and with the other 
quickly lifted the line and dropped it into the water 
below the log, giving me a chance to run down the bank 
a short distance and relieve the strain. And now I felt 
that witli a man of such resources as my scientific Uncle 
was proving himself to be, we were sure to win. 
I had run but a little way when he overtook me, all out 
of breath and without his boots, running like a pro- 
fessional sprinter, although the rocks must have caused 
his tender feet much pain. 
He was a gritty fisherman even if he was a little too 
scientific, was my mental criticism, as I ran back to 
recover the net that I had laid down upon taking charge 
of the pole, and I felt sure that we would soon need 
it noAV. 
When I overtook my uncle, and got a good look at 
him, I immediately concluded that if he was to enjoy 
that fish we would have to catch it soon, for he looked 
• as though he had about reached the limit of human en- 
durance. From his general appearance he might have 
been a prisoner to the Indians and run the gauntlet. 
He was standing on a low point that extended out into 
the river some distance, with his pole pointing up stream 
and into the bank — having run down below the fish — and 
was slowly but surely guiding it into the pocket formed 
by this point, btit he was a grewsonte sight. One leg of 
his pants Avas torn almost entirely off ; his toes on the right 
foot were all bloody where he had knocked them against a 
stone; his suspenders were broken and hanging doAvn : 
one shirt sleeve was torn from shoulder to elbow, and a 
long mark of blood was down one side of his face from 
a cut iti the temple he had received by coming violently 
in contact with the broken limb of a dead tree. 
Although I was really frightened about him, the fish 
w-as my first care, and when he called me to come quietly 
with the net I did so, feeling that we were now surely 
about to be fully repaid for all of our trouble. "Easy. 
Louie," said he, as I rushed in to the water's edge. "Don't 
go in yet ; he is near, but not in reach." Then came five 
minutes' agon}- of suspense. I could hear my heart 
throbs. • 
For a moment the line would come in slowly, then with 
a sluggish motion be drawn back ; then in a little more, 
then back again, we winning a few inches every time. 
"We will get him, Louie; he is tired out," whispered mj^ 
uncle, "and wdiat a monster he nmst be," he added. It 
occurred to me then that if tiring out meant defeat, the 
fish about had us. 
But in he came, slowly but surely, closer and closer, and 
finalb^ I could see the water getting muddy where it 
shoaled, and I begged uncle to let me dash in and scoop 
him up \yith the net. 
"No," said he ; "now is the critical time ; a wrong move 
now and we lose our magnificent prize and all our labor. 
Be patient and folloAV carefully all of my directions." 
I kncAV then that my uncle was not seriously hurt, as he 
Avas .still scientific. 
A little nearer and a little nearer, and now I could 
plainly see the float on the line, and felt almost sure that 
I couid make out the dim outline of a monster of a fish. 
I Avas glad the net was big and strong. 
"NoAV get ready," said uncle at last, in a Ioav tone, 
"and Avhen I give the word, you can jump in and plant 
the net about 3 feet beyond Avhere my hook it, and come 
with a rush, and I willj)ull in as hard as I can on the 
line, and I thm.k," he said Avith a chuckle, "1 will show 
you a fish that will surprise you." And he did. 
Working him in a litth: closer, uncle wound in his 
line Avith great care, until it was all in but the tight 3 or 4 
feet running straight out in the Avater, then bracing him- 
self, he nodded to me, and in I went. 
Landing, with a jmnp, just beyond where I judged the 
fish to be. 1 clapped doAvn the landing net, and with a 
desperate effort rolled atid tumbled, Avhile Uncle Jim 
shouted atul hauled clear up on the bank our prize, and 
the next moment we stood looking down on the biggest, 
dirtiest old rusty snapping turtle I had ever seen in all 
my life. The great, ugly, slimy thing was as large as the 
bottom of a tub. and his head nearlv as large as my tAvo 
fists. 
JMy disappointment Avas indeed terrible, for my expecta- 
tions had lieen great, and I cotild either have laughed or 
cried; but one glance at Uncle Jim con\'inced me that it 
was no matter of choice — crying Avas the only safe thing 
for me then. He Avas the maddest man I ever saAV. 
After looking at the hideous old reptile for a fcAV mo- 
ments, he silenthr mrned aAvay, and searching around 
selected a large stone — so large that he could barely carry 
it— and this be brought and dashed down on the turtle's 
head Avith such force that it literally beheaded it. 
It occurred to me that it Avas done quite "scientifically," 
but I did not feel that facetiousness Avould be appreciated 
just then, so kept the thought to myself. 
Uncle Jim then Avound up his line" and sat down on \he 
Avater's edge to Avash the blood from his wounded foot, 
while I went back after his boots and coat. Then we 
slowly limped our way back along the rough way we had 
ocmc. Uncle Jim first, I in the rear, and not a Avord 
was said. 
When Ave returned to Avhere I had left my pole and 
fish, fresh troubles awaited me. Somebody, or some- 
thing, had carried otf my pole and line, and a hog rooting 
along the bank had released my fish, Avhich the current had 
carried off, and then my cup Avas filled to overfloAving, and 
I lifted up my voice and kept. 
But my consolation came quickly, for Uncle Jim, open- 
ing" his tackle box, took therefrom a handful of hooks, 
lines, leads and floats, and these, Avith the beautiful jointed 
rod. he handed me, saying, "For you, Louie, and you 
need not say anything at the house about our luck this 
morning." Lewis Hopkins. 
Ex-President Harrison as a Sports- 
man* 
In the death of our beloved ex-President, Benjamin 
Harrison, the fraternity of true sportsmen lost one of its 
most distinguished members. The AA^orld kncAv him as an 
orator, an intrepid soldier, an efficient ruler, an a.stute 
statesman, an exemplary citizen and a God-fearing man. 
A few intimate, lifelong friends, hoAvever, kncAV him as a 
sportsman in the fullest sense of the term. When a mere 
lad his love for the rod and gun manifested itself. The 
riA'ers floAving close by his old home at North Bend, O., 
were well stocked Avith fish in that day, and in their 
season wildfoAvl Averc plenteous. The Avoods were veri- 
tably ali\'e Avith squirrels, Avild pigeons and partridges, and 
in the pursuit of such game young Harrison l>ecame an 
expert shot, particularly Avith the rifle. General Lcav 
Wallace, in his "Life of Benjamin Harrison," is authority 
for the statement that "Very frequently he [Harrison] 
assisted the 'negro Avho served the household in the capac- 
ity of cook, carried wood and Avater for him and helped 
him Avash the dishes, that he might the better secure his 
company in a bout at fishing or hunting." This fondness 
for fishing and hunting became a passion with him in later 
life, and it Avas very rareh^ that a shooting season went 
by without hi.s indulging in a fcAV days' sport Avith the 
ducks, the prairie chickens, the jacksnipe or the quail. 
Jacksnipe, prairie chicken and quail shooting afforded 
him more real enjoyment than any other kind of shooting, 
as pleasant Aveather is to be had during the shooting season 
of these birds — a thing seldom met Avith during the duck- 
ing season. He Avas, hoAvever, in his younger days an 
enthusiastic duck hunter, and his love for the sport fre- 
quently carried him out- into Illinois, Avhere a few days 
Avere spent over the decoys on the Illinois River and neig'h- 
boring Avaters,. or up into the prolific Kankakee marshes in 
ncjrthern Indiana. A fcAv years after he had left the 
White House he made a trip to California, and while there 
Avas a member of a duck shooting party. The guides of 
the expedition to this day delight in telling of the time 
\\ hen they Avent shooting Avith an ex-President Avho Avore 
long rubber boots, an ordinary corduroy shootihg suit and 
a slouch hat. During the later years of his life he con- 
fined himself to quail shooting almost exclusively, as he 
considered it indiscreet for a man of his years to expose 
himself to the inclemencies of the weather that one is 
forced to eitcounter when ducks are the objects of pursuit. 
General Harrison was alAA'ays an admirer, in fact a 
loAcr. of a good bird dog. and he Avas never Avithout a 
thoroughly trained, Avell-bred pointer dog, and on all 
bunting excursions was exceedingly solicitous for the 
welfare of bis dog. He ahvays took particular pains to 
sec that his dog received. the best of care. 
Wheiv in the field, his garments Avere ahvays of un- 
ostentatious cut and pattern. A corduroy coat and vest, 
AA'ith knickerbockers of the same material, canvas leggings. 
Avaterproof lumting shoes and a slouch hat of soft felt 
made up his apparel. It has been said that Avhen thus 
harnessed for the field he Avas not the most prepossessing 
being on earth. OAving. no doubt, to his shortness of 
stature and great abdominal development. 
He Avas never a connoisseur of fine firearms, but ahvaj's 
kept scA-eral good, substantial, serA iceable guns about him. 
In his Avill he made disposition of tAvo shotguns, a Lefever 
and a Daly, and one rifle, the last forming a part of the 
equipment of his summer place in the Adirondacks. 
Quail shooting Avas unquestionably his faA-orite sport, as 
year after year foimd him climbing fences, plodding 
through the nmd. brushing aside corn stalks and penetrat- 
ing dense thickets in quest of America's most intelligent, 
ntost cunning game bird. Quail shooting is delightfully 
fascinating, intoxieatingly so, and any one Avho has ever 
been fortunate enough to get a taste of it invariably wants 
to drink a little deeper every season. This was true of 
General Harrison, and just three months before his death 
he, "with a party of friends, with whom he had hunted 
