--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I knew a young man once, he was a most…" description: "\"“I knew a young man once, he was a most conscientious fellow, and, when he took to fly-fishing, he determined never to exaggerate his hauls by more tha..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c9c/jerome-k-jerome-1155_fish_i-knew-a-young-man-once-he-was-a-most-co_3040070.jpg" --- # I knew a young man once, he was a most conscientious… ![“I knew a young man once, he was a most conscientious fellow, and, when he took to fly-fishing, he determined never to exaggerate his hauls by more than twenty-five per cent. “When I have caught forty fish,” said he, “then I will tell people that I have caught fifty, and so on. But I will not lie…” quote by Jerome K. Jerome](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c9c/jerome-k-jerome-1155_fish_i-knew-a-young-man-once-he-was-a-most-co_3040070.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c9c/jerome-k-jerome-1155_fish_i-knew-a-young-man-once-he-was-a-most-co_3040070.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c9c/jerome-k-jerome-1155_fish_i-knew-a-young-man-once-he-was-a-most-co_3040070.jpg) > ““I knew a young man once, he was a most conscientious fellow, and, when he took to fly-fishing, he determined never to exaggerate his hauls by more than twenty-five per cent. “When I have caught forty fish,” said he, “then I will tell people that I have caught fifty, and so on. But I will not lie any more than that, because it is sinful to lie.” But the twenty-five per cent. plan did not work well at all. He never was able to use it. The greatest number of fish he ever caught in one day was three, and you can’t add twenty-five per cent. to three – at least, not in fish. So he increased his percentage to thirty-three-and-a-third; but that, again, was awkward, when he had only caught one or two; so, to simplify matters, he made up his mind to just double the quantity. He stuck to this arrangement for a couple of months, and then he grew dissatisfied with it. Nobody believed him when he told them that he only doubled, and he, therefore, gained no credit that way whatever, while his moderation put him at a disadvantage among the other anglers. When he had really caught three small fish, and said he had caught six, it used to make him quite jealous to hear a man, whom he knew for a fact had only caught one, going about telling people he had landed two dozen. So, eventually, he made one final arrangement with himself, which he has religiously held to ever since, and that was to count each fish that he caught as ten, and to assume ten to begin with. For example, if he did not catch any fish at all, then he said he had caught ten fish – you could never catch less than ten fish by his system; that was the foundation of it. Then, if by any chance he really did catch one fish, he called it twenty, while two fish would count thirty, three forty, and so on. It is a simple and easily worked plan, and there has been some talk lately of its being made use of by the angling fraternity in general. Indeed, the Committee of the Thames Angler’s Association did recommend its adoption about two years ago, but some of the older members opposed it. They said they would consider the idea if the number were doubled, and each fish counted as twenty.”” [Jerome K. Jerome](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerome-k-jerome/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A man tries to justify modest catches by inflating numbers, leading to increasingly absurd exaggerations and loss of credibility. **In simple terms:** He lies about his catches, making up larger numbers each time. Key Takeaway Avoid exaggeration; be honest about results. Themes honesty pride credibility selfdeception social pressure Mood irry reflective Type aphilosophical satirical When to use this quote - personal ambition - professional reporting - social competition - ethical dilemmas Key Concepts inflation selfjustification reputation management Questions to Reflect On - What motivates people to inflate achievements? - How can honest reporting build lasting respect? A Different Perspective Exaggeration can erode trust and become self‑defeating. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Fish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fish/) ## Related quotes > [So, eventually, he made one final arrangement with himself, which he has religiously held to ever since, and that was to count each fish…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerome-k-jerome/so-eventually-he-made-one-final-arrangement-with-himself-which-he-has/) [Jerome K. Jerome](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerome-k-jerome/) > [“IN the sea, once upon a time, O my Best Beloved, there was a Whale, and he ate fishes. He ate the starfish and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudyard-kipling/in-the-sea-once-upon-a-time-o-my-best-beloved-there-was-a-whale-and/) [Rudyard Kipling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rudyard-kipling/) > [Yeah, some kids called me fish lips because I had these really full lips. 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Jerome](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerome-k-jerome/) [Explore all 267 Jerome K. Jerome quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerome-k-jerome/) ## More Fish quotes > [I was 3-years-old - to this day it is a vivid memory. My family and I were on a boat, catching fish. As one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joaquin-phoenix/i-was-3-years-old-to-this-day-it-is-a-vivid-memory-my-family-and-i/) [Joaquin Phoenix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joaquin-phoenix/) > [I love to fish. 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But I will not lie any more than that, because it is sinful to lie.” But the twenty-five per cent. plan did not work well at all. He never was able to use it. The greatest number of fish he ever caught in one day was three, and you can’t add twenty-five per cent. to three – at least, not in fish. So he increased his percentage to thirty-three-and-a-third; but that, again, was awkward, when he had only caught one or two; so, to simplify matters, he made up his mind to just double the quantity. He stuck to this arrangement for a couple of months, and then he grew dissatisfied with it. Nobody believed him when he told them that he only doubled, and he, therefore, gained no credit that way whatever, while his moderation put him at a disadvantage among the other anglers. When he had really caught three small fish, and said he had caught six, it used to make him quite jealous to hear a man, whom he knew for a fact had only caught one, going about telling people he had landed two dozen. So, eventually, he made one final arrangement with himself, which he has religiously held to ever since, and that was to count each fish that he caught as ten, and to assume ten to begin with. For example, if he did not catch any fish at all, then he said he had caught ten fish – you could never catch less than ten fish by his system; that was the foundation of it. Then, if by any chance he really did catch one fish, he called it twenty, while two fish would count thirty, three forty, and so on. It is a simple and easily worked plan, and there has been some talk lately of its being made use of by the angling fraternity in general. Indeed, the Committee of the Thames Angler’s Association did recommend its adoption about two years ago, but some of the older members opposed it. They said they would consider the idea if the number were doubled, and each fish counted as twenty.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Jerome K. Jerome" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerome-k-jerome/i-knew-a-young-man-once-he-was-a-most-conscientious-fellow-and-when/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Fish" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerome-k-jerome/i-knew-a-young-man-once-he-was-a-most-conscientious-fellow-and-when/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c9c/jerome-k-jerome-1155_fish_i-knew-a-young-man-once-he-was-a-most-co_3040070.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c9c/jerome-k-jerome-1155_fish_i-knew-a-young-man-once-he-was-a-most-co_3040070.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c9c/jerome-k-jerome-1155_fish_i-knew-a-young-man-once-he-was-a-most-co_3040070.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I knew a young man once, he was a most conscientious fellow, and, when he took to fly-fishing, he determined…” — Jerome K. 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