Salmon Fishing. 139 



Ferryman : " Ayeh ! Pat." 



Pat: "What is it?" 



E. : "D'ye see that?" (holding up the coppers). 



P. : " And what is it at all ?" 



P. : " Sure its twopence the gentleman gave me for rowin' him over 

 the throw." 



P.: "Ayeh! It's yer fortune ye're makin'. And what's he got 

 there ?" nodding towards the unlucky cobbler who was once more 

 climbing the larches. 



P. : "Paix, it's a cobbler he's got, and sm'e it ought to be a chimney- 

 sweep for the dale o' climbin' he's giving him." 



Eoars of laughter followed this sally, to the great delight of the 

 parsimonious angler, who had the fullest benefit of it. 



I remember another good story. One of the men — I won't give his real 

 name, as I believe he still flourishes — was supposed to tempt the salmon, 

 when the fly was slack, by illicit means, and "shrimp" and "worm" 

 were whispered sometimes when he brought in a good fish in bad 

 weather. One day Mike Pogarthy, as we will call him, had gone up to 

 the Mullens, and crossed over at the ferry. We will say that it was 

 B-egan and his master who came along after them ; and as they came 

 up to the boat, there, on the rock, lay a cabbage leaf. 



"Ah-h-h!" said Regan. "That thief of the world, Mike, 's been up 

 to his tricks again." 



" What makes you think so ?" asked his master. 



" Paix, it's aisy. How kem a cabbage leaf there ? Sure it's what they 

 do always be carrying the worms in to kape 'em cool and frish, and there's 

 the slyme of the baste on the leaf now. Ye can see that for yerself," and he 

 pocketed the leaf. They crossed over, and were walking down to Moss 

 E/OW, when, just as they came to the Black Rock, in a hollow they found 

 Mike and his master having their lunch. Stepping up to them with a 

 flourish of his caubeen, and handing out the cabbage leaf, Regan said : 

 "Mister Michael Pogarthy, will ye allow me the pleasure to resthore 

 to ye yere fly-book, which ye left behind ye at the ferry ? " 



Shall I ever forget my first fish on the Erne ? Never ! I was in 



