hat, I knew, was strong. I
would have played the fish until he was tired, and I could pull him out
without risk to the pole, but I did not know exactly how the process
of "playing" was conducted. I was very much excited. Sometimes I gave a
jerk and a pull, and then the fish would give a jerk and a pull.

Directly I heard some one running toward me, and then I heard Euphemia
cry out:

"Give him the butt! Give him the butt!"

"Give him what?" I exclaimed, without having time even to look up at
her.

"The butt! the butt!" she cried, almost breathlessly. "I know that's
right! I read how Edward Everett Hale did it in the Adirondacks."

"No, it wasn't Hale at all," said I, as I jumped about the bank; "it was
Mr. Murray."

"Well, it was one of those fishing ministers, and I know that it caught
the fish."

"I know, I know. I read it, but I don't know how to do it."

"Perhaps you ought to punch him with it," said she.

"No! no!" I hurriedly replied, "I can't do anything like that. I'm going
to try to just pull him out lengthwise. You take hold of the pole and go
in shore as far as you can and I'll try and get hold of the line."

Euphemia did as I bade her, and drew the line in so that I could reach
it. As soon as I had a firm hold of it, I pulled in, regardless of
consequences, and hauled ashore an enormous cat-fish.

"Hurrah!" I shouted, "here is a prize."

Euphemia dropped the pole, and ran to me.

"What a horrid beast!" she exclaimed. "Throw it in again."

"Not at all!" said I. "This is a splendid fish, if I can ever get him
off the hook. Don't come near him! If he sticks that back-fin into you,
it will poison you."

"Then I should think it would poison us to eat him," said she.

"No; it's only his fin."

"I've eaten cat-fish, but I never saw one like that," she said. "Look at
its horrible mouth! And it has whiskers like a cat!"

"Oh! you never saw one with its head on," I said. "What I want to do is
to get this hook out."

I had caught cat-fish before, but never one so large as this, and I was
actually afraid to take hold of it, knowing, as I did, that you must be
very careful how you clutch a fish of the kind. I finally concluded to
carry it home as it was, and then I could decapitate it, and take out
the hook at my leisure. So back to camp we went, Euphemia picking up the
little fish as we passed, for she did not think it right to catch fish
and not eat them. They made her hands smell, it is true; b