by Tony Orman
An American writer Ted Trueblood was a boyhood hero of mine in the fishing and hunting world. I avidly read his articles in the US “Field and Stream”. He was a superb writer, unpretentious, practical and with a warm style. From 1941 to 1982, he was an editor and writer for the American “Field and Stream” magazine. He became fishing editor of Field & Stream in 1941 and moved to New York City. In 1947, Ted moved back to Idaho in order to “fish, hunt, and write about it.” His articles were full of sound, practical advice – no airs, no pretensions, no ego, no Latin mumbo-jumbo, gobbledegook writing – just down to earth stuff.
Ted was an ardent conservationist, not afflicted with indifference like so many – too many – are today.
Ted’s conservation work was honored with several awards, including a 1975 Conservation Service Award from the US Department of the Interior and the 1975 Outdoorsman of the Year award from the Outdoor Writers of America.
Sadly painful, terminal bone cancer led Ted Trueblood to kill himself at the age of 69 on September 12, 1982 and he died of a gunshot wound to the head.
Yes Ted had his priorities right when he fished and hunted and he gave gentle advice to readers on how to do so in his delightful “Rule of Tomorrow”
It went like this:- “Never say I’ll go tomorrow.
When you get a chance to go fishing, go.
If you wait until tomorrow, tomorrow will drag into next week and next week and next week will drag into next month and next month into next year and some day it will be too late.”
