EASTER FLY FISHING ON THE ITCHEN 5 



the right sort for pike fishing. Suppose we have a 

 go at them." "All right," said I, but I had no pike 

 tackle or pike rod, or, for the matter of that, know- 

 ledge how to use them if they had been in my 

 possession. I did, indeed, make one attempt to 

 cast from the Nottingham reel, and a nice fizzle I 

 made of it. It looks uncommonly easy in the hands 

 of the Major. 



The Major was but ill provided, but he had a 

 good stiff pike rod and an artificial bait or two. 

 We started, I carrying a walking stick. The Red 

 Phantom soon began to attract attention ; the first 

 that came was a small jack, and he quickly came 

 to grief then another, and, at length, spinning up 

 quietly under the bank on which we stood, dash 

 comes out what seemed to me a monster, but, of 

 course, a mere babe, when thought of in connection 

 with Mr. Jardine's 37-pounders. He struggled with 

 all the vigour and power of a fellow quite aware 

 that for him it is either death or victory. He came 

 in to bank at last ; but our small net was no good, 

 we couldn't get even his head into it, so I lifted him 

 out bodily on to grass. "Ten pounds," cried I. 

 " Seven pounds," said the Major. 



" Shall I take him home and weigh him ? " says 

 our bright boy. Off he went, and presently came 

 back with the report that he only weighed 6 Ibs. 

 And so we piked on with more or less success till 

 we came down to our aquatic mansion, which is 

 at the limit of our tether ; there is a profound, if 

 not bottomless depth of water ; there our big trout 



