“Is there a dam below here, Buck?”
“Yes, thar's a dam about a half-mile down the river.”
I was disgusted. No wonder there were no bass in that pool.
“Why didn't you tell me that before?”
“You never axed me,” said Buck placidly.
I began winding in my line.
“Ain't no bottom to that pool,” said Buck.
Now I never saw any rural community where there was not a bottomless pool, and I suddenly determined to shake one tradition in at least one community. So I took an extra fish-line, tied a stone to it, and climbed into a canoe, Buck watching me, but not asking a word.
“Get in, Buck.”
Silently he got in and I pushed off—to the centre.