240 HIGHLAND SPORT 



cut the minnow from my mouth, so thinking that my last hour 

 had come, I fainted, as much from exhaustion as from fright. 



"When I came to my senses the Foe was holding me in 

 the stream by the tail, while as he covered and uncovered my 

 gills with water by pushing me gently backwards and forwards, 

 with spasmodic gasps I slowly began to revive. When I was 

 again fairly strong, to my great astonishment he pushed me 

 into the stream, where, seeking deep water with all possible 

 speed, I quickly lost sight of him. 



" Some days were here passed in recruiting from the 

 terrifying exertions of this adventure, and then, resuming the 

 downward journey, I witnessed many other fish hauled ashore 

 by both insect and minnow, the Foe often after piercing them 

 through with the cruel fork, flinging them back to the 

 water to take their chance of life ; and as but few of these 

 poor wounded ones recovered, I congratulated myself at having 

 escaped similar harsh treatment. 



" I now began to meet, day by day, great numbers of sick 

 friends ; it mattered not whether they were coming up stream 

 or going down, but almost every other one was attacked by a 

 plague, though what caused it was a mystery to us all. The 

 sickness showed itself by producing great white blotches on our 

 bodies, which by degrees spread all over us, till some amongst 

 us eventually became nearly as white as snow. A large patch 

 of this misery appeared on my back, which produced such 

 irritation, depression, and weakness that I began to fear of 

 reaching the salt water. 



" Hundreds and hundreds of other sick ones crossed my 

 path, while on the banks many Foes walked to and fro with 

 Sabbath faces, as with sharp hooks at the end of long poles 

 they pulled the plague-stricken ones out of the water, and, 

 after killing them, put their bodies in deep holes in the 

 ground. 



"While resting in the Aboyne Bridge pool a friendly fellow 

 of some thirty pounds took compassion on my youth and 



