THAT FIRST DAY WITH THE TROUT 
AFTER MANY MONTHS CF PATIENT WAITING AND NO LITTLE PREPARA- 
TION THE OPENING DAY OF THE SEASON AT LAST COMES ’ROUND AGAIN 
By EDWIN T. WHIFFIN 
T O the ordinary angler in the United 
States one fish stands supreme in 
his affection, the object of his first 
and greatest love — the brook trout. 
For most of us the sport of salmon- 
fishing with the fly is a thing forbid- 
: den. To seek the gamy ouananiche in 
its native habitat, where, according to 
reports of the favored, it is at its prime 
among the swift-rushing waters of the 
! north, is equally out of the question. 
The black bass is gamy, but plebeian in 
i hue. The pickerel, well, the pickerel will 
do when nothing better is obtainable. 
But none of the fishes mentioned 
above has the charm and physical beauty 
of the speckled trout. Whether in the 
pan or oven, or over the open camp fire, 
j the other species lack the delicate gv‘S- 
tatory appeal of our early love. When 
you have caught a trout you have an 
object pleasant to the sight and agreeable 
to the taste. 
Salmon and ouananiche, cousins to the 
subject of our sketch, show their royal 
j relationship by their choice of habitat — 
i only the clear, pure, cold-rushing waters 
of mountain and wilderness streams. But 
bass and pickerel are more democratic 
in their tastes and will flourish in the 
dirty pond or the filthy canal. W'hen 
developed amid such surroundings their 
flesh can hardly be ranked as an esculent 
tit-bit. 
In difficulty of access, then, the trout 
stands midway between the too-difficult 
salmon and the too-easy bass and pick- 
I erel. In waters suitable for the speckled 
I trout, or even too warm for its prefer- 
' ence, the brown and the rainbow trout 
will flourish to advantage and, in every 
respect save the sentimental one, will 
satisfy the fly fisherman. 
These three varieties of trout have a 
perennial appeal, like the charm of the 
outdoor season. During the long winter 
months, when conditions forbid fishing 
excursions afield, one may regard on the 
wall of his den trophies of his prowess 
in photo or mount and in fancy picture 
them to himself as he fights all his bat- 
^ 
M r. WHIFFIN zvill be remem- 
bered as the author of the 
illuminating articles on the Cecropia 
Moth and Cultivating Silkworm-gut 
at Home, zvhich appeared in Forest 
AND Stream and attracted so much 
interest among anglers. 
In the present article he treats in 
a practical way the z'icissitudes that 
confront the early trout fisherman . — 
[Editors.] 
tics o'er again. He may get out his 
tackle as the end of winter approaches 
and go over every item of it with the 
fanatical care of the devotee. 
The rod may need rewinding in places, 
guides or ferrules need replacing or re- 
setting, the whole may need two coats of 
> 
Landing a big one 
thin varnish to cover up exposed places 
and make all weather-proof. Files must 
be gone over and new ones tied or 
purchased. Leaders should be carefully 
looked to, soaked and tested, weak places 
eliminated, and new traces tied or pur- 
chased. The line, which should have 
been removed from the reel last fall and 
uound on a drum, should be carefully 
gone over, te.sted, polished with paraftiii 
pndle, and thoroughly wiped. The reel 
itself should be cleaned, oiled and put in 
commission again. 
For early bait-fishing, almost the onlv 
])ractical form of angling for trout iii 
the cool -\pril days, small hooks of fine- 
wire should be obtained. If the fishing 
is to be done in swift water, split shot or 
other varieties of sinkers will be re- 
quired. 
the opening day of the season it 
is well to be on the spot carlv. or 
some other bird will get the carlv — trout. 
Probably you will fish with bait since, 
frankly, trout do not rise well to the flv 
till later, when the early hatch of natural 
insects begins. Yet bear in mind that 
insects appear early in the spring sun- 
shine and are always appreciated by the 
fish after its long winter fast. Some 
dun or gray artificials, to be sunk two 
feet if necessary, will often prove taking 
lures. Personally I dislike to catcli 
trout, especially in much-fished waters, 
on bait of any description. It doesn't 
seem quite sportsmanlike. My preferred 
method of getting trout is u])-strcam 
uith the dry-fly. But 1 do not quarrel 
with my brother who uses the sunken 
imitation of the natural insect. From 
observation of captive specimens I know 
that trout often take insects at or near 
the bottom. The method of fishing with 
the deeply-sunken fly is one that does not 
offend my piscatorial taste. 
T recall on one occasion, when fi.shiiig 
a deep jiool and neither floating flv nor 
sunken fly near the surface had any al- 
lurement. T succeeded in cajoling five 
nine-inch trout into my basket by letting 
