692 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY, Vol. XVIII. 



mentioned small grey mullet abound in the estuaries, and to their own sorrow 

 form the chief item on the daily bill of fare of such fish as the bamin and the 

 nair. It is advisable when intending a day's fishing, therefore, to send on a 

 man ahead with orders to engage for the day a local fisherman, who with his 

 net will soon capture a sufficient supply of bait. A fairly powerful rod is 

 required, but it must not be too heavy, since in fishing from a bridge' — which, 

 by the way, is a far pleasanter method than fishing from a boat — when one 

 stands under the full blaze of the sun, the more exertion one can spare oneself 

 the better. A good 14ft. greenheart, used with a short spinning top, making 

 the rod about 12ft. long, is an excellent weapon. On it should be a good reel 

 holding some 150 yards of stout salmon line, a strong pliable wire trace, and a 

 spinner for natural bait. As the bait is fairly heavy — a small mullet of about 

 3 in. is a good length — and as one fishes from a bridge with a clear field of 

 action all round, it is surprising what long casts can be made. 



To pass now from theory to practice. One April morning, when the sun's 

 rays are just topping the blue mountains of the Wynaad, N. and I settle to our 

 twelve-mile drive in a jutka — this latter the cart of the country, a species of 

 small bandbox, with two rats of ponies. On the roof sits N.'s orderly, holding 

 on to the tiffin basket with grim determination, my orderly having already 

 preceded us the night before, with strict injunctions to have a goodly store of 

 small grey mullet awaiting us. Our destination reached, the tackle is unpacked 

 and leisurely put together. At present there is no hurry ; the estuary flows 

 placidly to the sea, its surface unbroken, save for the light caress of a passing 

 zephyr, a zephyr later on freshening into one of those steady breezes from the 

 sea which by a merciful dispensation of Providence usually rise during the 

 midday hours of the hot weather, thereby tempering pleasantly the sun's rays, 

 which otherwise would be uncomfortably warm. Barely have our rods been 

 fitted together, and even as the open jaws of the crocodile spinner gape ready 

 for the small mullet (which Ahmed, the fisherman, is deftly flicking on the head), 

 when there comes a plunge out in mid-stream. Then as eager eyes scan the 

 ruffled surface the fish, a bamin of about 8 lb. leaps again — a glorious flash of 

 silvery spray. N. is ready first, and out swings his bait in a long cast ; but the 

 bamin has shifted his position, and now leaps again further out in the stream. 

 For a space all is still, then two more fish leap in quick succession, and we 

 start spinning in earnest. At my fourth cast, as the bait touches the water a 

 fish seems to leap towards it, and, heart in mouth, I wait the sudden tightening 

 of the line. But he has evidently come short, as nothing happens. 



A few more casts, and then as my spinner nears the arch of the bridge a 

 gleam of silver shows for an instant, and before I have time to " throw in " the 

 check of my Silex reel the line is tearing off swift and silent. A movement of 

 the thumb, however, and the voice of the reel rises in that long-drawn-out 

 scream so dear to the angler's heart, and the fish soon begins to feel the strain. 

 Luckily he has elected to run out from the bridge, but I know well that it is 

 only a matter of minutes before, his wild rush ended, he will make a dash back 



