But
The Tent Soon Became Stifling, And It Occurred To Me That It Was
Foolish To Shut Myself Up So I Could Not See Whatever Might Come Until
It Was Right Upon Me, So Putting My Pistol In My Pocket And Hiding The
Other, I Opened The Tent And Went Out.
The first thing I saw was a
fishing pole with line and fly, and that I took, and the next was the
first sergeant watching me.
I knew then that Faye had told him to take
care of me.
I went over to tell him that I was going for a fish, and then on down
to the beautiful river, whose waters are green and very much the color
of the Niagara River. I cast the fly over on the water, and instantly
a large fish came up, took the fly, and went down again so easily and
gracefully that he scarcely made a ripple on the water until he felt
the pull of the line. That was when I forgot everything connected with
camp - Faye, horse thieves, and Indians! I had no reel, of course, and
getting the big fish out of the water was a problem, for I was
standing on a rather high and steep bank. It jumped and jerked in a
way that made me afraid I might be pulled down instead of my pulling
the fish up, so I began to draw him in, and then up, hand over hand,
not daring to breathe while he was suspended in the air. It called for
every bit of my strength, as the shiny thing was so heavy. But I got
him; and his length was just twice the width of my handkerchief - a
splendid salmon trout. I laid it back of a rock in the shade, and went
on down the stream, casting my one fly, and very soon I caught another
trout of precisely the same size as the first, and which I landed the
same way, too. I put it by the rock with the other.
I kept on down the river, whipping it with my lucky fly every few
steps, but I caught no more fish, neither did I get a rise, but I did
not mind that, for I had the two beauties, and I was having a grand
time too. I had caught both large fish without assistance and with a
common willow pole. All that serenity was upset, however, when I heard
my name called with such a roar that I came near jumping over the bank
to save myself from whatever was after me, but the "What are you doing
so far from camp?" came just in time to stop me.
It was Faye, of course, and he was cross because I had gone so far
alone, and had, in a way, disregarded his instructions - had done as I
pleased after he had left me alone. I wanted to go to Junot's,
therefore was not one bit sorry that I had frightened him, and said
not a word to his sputtering about the danger from Indians and horse
thieves as we started back to camp.
Enter page number
PreviousNext
Page 136 of 213
Words from 70203 to 70729
of 110651