THROUGH WILD EUROPE 279 



and haul up the line. I believe they take in this 

 way a huge big-headed fish like a Cat-fish, which I 

 have seen in the well-boats which bring live fish 

 up to Budapest. 



This river, too, produces the biggest, fattest, and 

 juiciest-looking Mayflies I have ever seen. I wish 

 I could have brought some back to introduce into 

 our Trout streams. In spite of all our inquiries at 

 each stopping-place we never got any reliable in- 

 formation about the Pelicans. The fishermen we 

 questioned either professed ignorance or else con- 

 tradicted themselves and one another so hopelessly 

 that their evidence was never worth acting upon. 

 And though I was constantly on the look-out for 

 Pelicans, I never saw more than one passing glimpse 

 of some flying at a great distance off, so far away 

 in fact that even with a powerful glass I was unable 

 to say for certain that they w T ere Pelicans. The 

 size of our boat made it necessary to keep to the 

 deeper channels, and we were obliged to leave all 

 the maze of reed-beds and shallow water which lay 

 between untouched. It was quite possible to have 

 passed a dozen colonies of Pelicans unseen and un- 

 noticed ; and I feel certain that the fishermen were 

 reluctant to give information to one in the official 

 position of an Inspector of Fisheries. The prob- 

 ability is that they didn't want him to be making any 

 stay in their neighbourhood, there being a natural 



