Anyway, lately when I've been thinking of the Presidential election, I'm reminded of President Grover Cleveland. He was an avid angler & wrote often in The Saturday Evening Post about his fishing adventures. Many other past presidents were fly anglers, but perhaps none of them loved the sport more than President Cleveland. He was a colorful man & many who knew him passed on anecdotes & stories about him. Of course, I find the fishing stories to be my favorites. One of my favorites was published in The Saturday Evening Post on November 29, 1902:
"Along the upper Potomac, between Great Falls & Harper's Ferry, Grover Cleveland, when he was president, found great delight in fishing. Among the canal men & fishermen of the vicinity many interesting incidents of the eminent visitor's outings are repeated.
At the place on the Potomac known as Point of Rocks the president was fishing one day & with democratic simplicity chatting with some boatmen. One of the latter remarked that people in that vicinity were very glad to see the President enjoying himself.
"Yes," said the President, "there are two ideal states of happiness in the world, & one of them is to fish & catch something," & he pointed to his string of bass.
"What's the other happy state?" ventured one of his auditors.
"The other great felicity," replied the President, pointing to one of the members of his party, who had been casting his line diligently & with great enjoyment but without other visible results, "is to fish & not catch anything."
Obviously, President Cleveland was a real wise-acre.
Tomorrow's election is an important one, so no matter which way you lean politically, be sure to get out there & vote. So many have given so much so that we can have the right to vote. Please don't take it for granted. Take part in our great democracy. As they say in Chicago, vote early & often!!!