Angling Sketches
By Andrew Lang
()
About this ebook
Andrew Lang
Andrew Lang (March, 31, 1844 – July 20, 1912) was a Scottish writer and literary critic who is best known as a collector of folk and fairy tales. Lang’s academic interests extended beyond the literary and he was a noted contributor to the fields of anthropology, folklore, psychical research, history, and classic scholarship, as well as the inspiration for the University of St. Andrew’s Andrew Lang Lectures. A prolific author, Lang published more than 100 works during his career, including twelve fairy books, in which he compiled folk and fairy tales from around the world. Lang’s Lilac Fairy and Red Fairy books are credited with influencing J. R. R. Tolkien, who commented on the importance of fairy stories in the modern world in his 1939 Andrew Lang Lecture “On Fairy-Stories.”
Read more from Andrew Lang
Fables and Fairy Tales: Aesop's Fables, Hans Christian Andersen's Fairy Tales, Grimm's Fairy Tales, and The Blue Fairy Book Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Complete Fairy Books of Andrew Lang Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Classic Children's Stories (Golden Deer Classics) Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5ARABIAN NIGHTS: Andrew Lang's 1001 Nights & R. L. Stevenson's New Arabian Nights Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Beauty and the Beast – All Four Versions Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Illustrated Aladdin and the Wonderful Lamp Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsArabian Nights or One Thousand and One Nights (Andrew Lang) + New Arabian Nights (R. L. Stevenson) Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Fairy Books of All Colours - Complete Series: Books 1-12 (Illustrated Edition): 400+ Tales in One Edition Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsHistory of English Literature Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Arabian Nights: One Thousand and One Nights: New Revised Edition Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsTwelve Color Fairy Books Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Story of Joan of Arc Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsFolklore and Mythology Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5King Arthur: Tales from the Round Table Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Blue Poetry Book Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsMyth, Ritual, and Religion: Volume One Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Tales of Troy and Greece Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5John Knox and the Reformation Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsChristmas Carols & Poems Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsMyth, Ritual And Religion, Vol. 2 (of 2) Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
Related to Angling Sketches
Related ebooks
Angling Sketches Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsMr. Punch with Rod and Gun: The Humours of Fishing and Shooting Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsTricks That Take Fish: The Definitive Guide to Catching Freshwater Gamefish on Bait Lures and Flies Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsRed Palmer: A Practical Treatise on Fly Fishing Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsMy Moby Dick Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Chats on Angling Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsOn Fly-Fishing the Wind River Range: Essays and What Not to Bring Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsHow to Catch a Fish Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5On Fishing Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Cruise of the Snark Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Far from Compleat Angler Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsWide and Deep: Tales and Recollections from a Master Maine Fishing Guide Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Fishing with a Worm Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsBlood & Dirt Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Optimist: A Case for the Fly Fishing Life Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Fish In The Mirror Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Pocket Guide to Fishing Knots: A Step-by-Step Guide to the Most Important Knots for Fresh and Salt Water Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsTributaries: Fly-fishing Sojourns to the Less Traveled Streams Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsBonefish Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsEco Warrior Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsBackpack Fly Fishing: A Back-to-Basics Approach Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsFireseed One: A Fireseed book, #1 Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Turtle Feathers Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Cruise of the Snark: Jack LONDON Novels Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsEloquence of the Sardine: Extraordinary Encounters Beneath the Sea Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Patch Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Police!!! Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings250 Amazing Fishing Tips: The Best Tactics and Techniques to Catch Any and All Game Fish Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDead Reckoning: Navigating a Life on the Last Frontier, Courting Tragedy on Its High Seas Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Spinning for Jacks Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
Religion & Spirituality For You
Dangerous Prayers: Because Following Jesus Was Never Meant to Be Safe Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Upon Waking: 60 Daily Reflections to Discover Ourselves and the God We Were Made For Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Screwtape Letters Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Mere Christianity Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Love Dare Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5THE EMERALD TABLETS OF THOTH THE ATLANTEAN Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Egyptian Book of the Dead: The Complete Papyrus of Ani Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5You Were Born for This: Astrology for Radical Self-Acceptance Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Buddha's Guide to Gratitude: The Life-changing Power of Everyday Mindfulness Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Unwanted: How Sexual Brokenness Reveals Our Way to Healing Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Gay Girl, Good God: The Story of Who I Was, and Who God Has Always Been Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Course In Miracles: (Original Edition) Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Four Loves Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Gospel of Mary Magdalene Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5NRSV, Cultural Backgrounds Study Bible: Bringing to Life the Ancient World of Scripture Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Be Here Now Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Apocrypha Holy Bible, Books of the Apocrypha: King James Version Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsWarrior of the Light: A Manual Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Urantia Book – New Enhanced Edition: Easy navigation with an index and multiple study aids Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5Girl, Wash Your Face: Stop Believing the Lies About Who You Are so You Can Become Who You Were Meant to Be Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5A Calendar of Wisdom: Daily Thoughts to Nourish the Soul, Written and Se Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Writing to Wake the Soul: Opening the Sacred Conversation Within Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Abolition of Man Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Beyond Belief: My Secret Life Inside Scientology and My Harrowing Escape Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Reason for God Discussion Guide: Conversations on Faith and Life Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Billion Years: My Escape From a Life in the Highest Ranks of Scientology Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Related categories
Reviews for Angling Sketches
0 ratings0 reviews
Book preview
Angling Sketches - Andrew Lang
ANGLING SKETCHES
..................
Andrew Lang
DOSSIER PRESS
Thank you for reading. In the event that you appreciate this book, please consider sharing the good word(s) by leaving a review, or connect with the author.
This book is a work of nonfiction and is intended to be factually accurate.
All rights reserved. Aside from brief quotations for media coverage and reviews, no part of this book may be reproduced or distributed in any form without the author’s permission. Thank you for supporting authors and a diverse, creative culture by purchasing this book and complying with copyright laws.
Copyright © 2016 by Andrew Lang
Interior design by Pronoun
Distribution by Pronoun
TABLE OF CONTENTS
DEDICATION
PREFACE
NOTE TO NEW EDITION
THE CONFESSIONS OF A DUFFER
A BORDER BOYHOOD
LOCH AWE: THE BOATMAN’S YARNS
THE YARN OF THE BLACK OFFICER
LOCH-FISHING: LITTLE LOCH BEG
LOCH LEVEN
THE BLOODY DOCTOR. (A BAD DAY ON CLEARBURN)
THE LADY OR THE SALMON?
A TWEEDSIDE SKETCH
THE DOUBLE ALIBI
THE COMPLETE BUNGLER: SCENE I.—HAMPSHIRE
SCENE II.—A BRIDGE
FOOTNOTES
Angling Sketches
By
Andrew Lang
Angling Sketches
Published by Dossier Press
New York City, NY
First published circa 1912
Copyright © Dossier Press, 2015
All rights reserved
Except in the United States of America, this book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade or otherwise, be lent, re-sold, hired out, or otherwise circulated without the publisher’s prior consent in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without a similar condition including this condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser.
About Dossier Press
DEDICATION
..................
TO MRS HERBERT HILLS
‘NO FISHER
BUT A WELL-WISHER
TO THE GAME.’
IN MEMORY OF PLESANT DAYS AT CORBY
PREFACE
..................
SEVERAL OF THE SKETCHES IN this volume have appeared in periodicals. The Bloody Doctor
was in Macmillan’s Magazine, The Confessions of a Duffer,
Loch Awe,
and The Lady or the Salmon?
were in the Fishing Gazette, but have been to some extent re-written. The Double Alibi
was in Longman’s Magazine. The author has to thank the Editors and Publishers for permission to reprint these papers.
The gem engraved on the cover is enlarged from a small intaglio in the collection of Mr. M. H. N. STORY-MASKELYNE, M.P. Such gems were recommended by Clemens of Alexandria to the early Christians. The figure of a man fishing will put them in mind of the Apostle.
Perhaps the Greek is using the red hackle described by Ælian in the only known Greek reference to fly-fishing.
NOTE TO NEW EDITION
..................
THE HISTORICAL VERSION OF THE Black Officer’s career, very unlike the legend in Loch Awe,
may be read in Mr. Macpherson’s Social Life in the Highlands.
THE CONFESSIONS OF A DUFFER
..................
THESE PAPERS DO NOT BOAST of great sport. They are truthful, not like the tales some fishers tell. They should appeal to many sympathies. There is no false modesty in the confidence with which I esteem myself a duffer, at fishing. Some men are born duffers; others, unlike persons of genius, become so by an infinite capacity for not taking pains. Others, again, among whom I would rank myself, combine both these elements of incompetence. Nature, that made me enthusiastically fond of fishing, gave me thumbs for fingers, short-sighted eyes, indolence, carelessness, and a temper which (usually sweet and angelic) is goaded to madness by the laws of matter and of gravitation. For example: when another man is caught up in a branch he disengages his fly; I jerk at it till something breaks. As for carelessness, in boyhood I fished, by preference, with doubtful gut and knots ill-tied; it made the risk greater, and increased the excitement if one did hook a trout. I can’t keep a fly-book. I stuff the flies into my pockets at random, or stick them into the leaves of a novel, or bestow them in the lining of my hat or the case of my rods. Never, till 1890, in all my days did I possess a landing-net. If I can drag a fish up a bank, or over the gravel, well; if not, he goes on his way rejoicing. On the Test I thought it seemly to carry a landing-net. It had a hinge, and doubled up. I put the handle through a button-hole of my coat: I saw a big fish rising, I put a dry fly over him; the idiot took it. Up stream he ran, then down stream, then he yielded to the rod and came near me. I tried to unship my landing-net from my button-hole. Vain labour! I twisted and turned the handle, it would not budge. Finally, I stooped, and attempted to ladle the trout out with the short net; but he broke the gut, and went off. A landing-net is a tedious thing to carry, so is a creel, and a creel is, to me, a superfluity. There is never anything to put in it. If I do catch a trout, I lay him under a big stone, cover him with leaves, and never find him again. I often break my top joint; so, as I never carry string, I splice it with a bit of the line, which I bite off, for I really cannot be troubled with scissors and I always lose my knife. When a phantom minnow sticks in my clothes, I snap the gut off, and put on another, so that when I reach home I look as if a shoal of fierce minnows had attacked me and hung on like leeches. When a boy, I was—once or twice—a bait-fisher, but I never carried worms in box or bag. I found them under big stones, or in the fields, wherever I had the luck. I never tie nor otherwise fasten the joints of my rod; they often slip out of the sockets and splash into the water. Mr. Hardy, however, has invented a joint-fastening which never slips. On the other hand, by letting the joint rust, you may find it difficult to take down your rod. When I see a trout rising, I always cast so as to get hung up, and I frighten him as I disengage my hook. I invariably fall in and get half-drowned when I wade, there being an insufficiency of nails in the soles of my brogues. My waders let in water, too, and when I go out to fish I usually leave either my reel, or my flies, or my rod, at home. Perhaps no other man’s average of lost flies in proportion to taken trout was ever so great as mine. I lose plenty, by striking furiously, after a series of short rises, and breaking the gut, with which the fish swims away. As to dressing a fly, one would sooner think of dressing a dinner. The result of the fly-dressing would resemble a small blacking-brush, perhaps, but nothing entomological.
Then why, a persevering reader may ask, do I fish? Well, it is stronger than myself, the love of fishing; perhaps it is an inherited instinct, without the inherited power. I may have had a fishing ancestor who bequeathed to me the passion without the art. My vocation is fixed, and I have fished to little purpose all my days. Not for salmon, an almost fabulous and yet a stupid fish, which must be moved with a rod like a weaver’s beam. The trout is more delicate and dainty—not the sea-trout, which any man, woman, or child can capture, but the yellow trout in clear water.
A few rises are almost all I ask for: to catch more than half a dozen fish does not fall to my lot twice a year. Of course, in a Sutherland loch one man is as good as another, the expert no better than the duffer. The fish will take, or they won’t. If they won’t, nobody can catch them; if they will, nobody can miss them. It is as simple as trolling a minnow from a boat in Loch Leven, probably the lowest possible form of angling. My ambition is as great as my skill is feeble; to capture big trout with the dry fly in the Test, that would content me, and nothing under that. But I can’t see the natural fly on the water; I cannot see my own fly,
I often don’t see the trout rise to me, if he is such a fool as to rise; and I can’t strike in time when I do see him. Besides, I am unteachable to tie any of the orthodox knots in the gut; it takes me half an hour to get the gut through one of these newfangled iron eyes, and, when it is through, I knot it any way. The jam
knot is a name to me, and no more. That, perhaps, is why the hooks crack off so merrily. Then, if I do spot a rising trout, and if he does not spot me as I crawl like the serpent towards him, my fly always fixes in a nettle, a haycock, a rose-bush, or whatnot, behind me. I undo it, or break it, and put up another, make a cast, and, plop,
all the line falls in with a splash that would frighten a crocodile. The fish’s big black fin goes cutting the stream above, and there is a sauve qui peut of trout in all directions.
I once did manage to make a cast correctly: the fly went over the fish’s nose; he rose; I hooked him, and he was a great silly brute of a grayling. The grayling is the deadest-hearted and the