220 SALMON FISHING IN THE TWEED 



man never laughed a bit. Aweel, we turned to 

 gang hame again, and a' the way doon the walk 

 the gentleman he keepit looking at Maida, and 

 when he got to Abbotsford, he ordered his carriage 

 and gied awa'." 



" Well, that was better sport than we are likely 

 to have to-day, Tom, for the cluds are beginning 

 to rise, and the wind is getting up ; more's the 

 pity, for it was the finest morning I ever saw, and 

 now we are late, and have lost twae hours. But 

 here comes the maister and the strange gentleman 

 with him, he that does not know a fish from a 

 cow, and who was broke by ane of thae whitlings." 



The little party being now entirely assembled, 

 agreed that, as the day was beginning to alter, it was 

 a pity to disturb the water till they saw clearly how 

 it would turn out ; so the fishermen remained with 

 the boats and leisters at Craigover boat-hole ; and, 

 in the meantime, I, Harry Otter, thought I could 

 not do better than explain the operation of sunning 

 to my friend Mr. Tintern, as there was now some 

 chance of gaining his attention ; so we sat down, 

 and I commenced as follows : — 



Sunning, as I have told you, is a mode of taking 

 salmon with a spear by sunlight ; and vast numbers 

 are captured in this manner, particularly in the 

 upper part of the Tweed, where fish are more easily 

 seen than in the lower, from the comparative 

 shallowness of the water in which they lie. 1 



This sport does not begin till the river is quite 

 low and clean, and useless for the fly. To succeed 



1 The use of the leister, whether by night or day, is now illegal. 

 —Ed. 



