48 GRAYLING FISHING ON THE ITCH EN 



chloridine. My heartiest thanks are due to that 

 good friend. Several doses during the night at 

 last threw me into a sleep, from which I did not 

 awake till twelve next day. My carriage had long 

 since disappeared. I was due in London at one, 

 and now there was no train from Salisbury till 

 five o'clock, and no conveyance of any kind to 

 carry me to Salisbury ! In the nick of time, when 

 I had despaired of getting off that day, our good 

 friends of yesterday, hearing somehow of my 

 trouble, drove up and found me a place in a trap, 

 and we caught the train for London. 



I am afraid I have dwelt too much on my 

 personal disasters. Notwithstanding these, I am 

 not the less grateful to my good friend for afford- 

 ing me the opportunity, recluse as I am usually, 

 of seeing so much of life in so short a space of 

 time. From subsequent experience among the 

 deceitful grayling, I now regard my evening's catch 

 of one brace as a marvel of success. 



GRAYLING FISHING ON THE ITCHEN 



Three weeks later I ventured to run down to 

 the Itchen for a few days. When I have been 

 trout fishing there, a constant cause of complaint 

 has been that the river swarmed with grayling, 

 and grayling only could we catch when we wanted 

 only trout. Now I find the river low, as I might 

 have expected after the long drought, the deep 

 holes stagnant and apparently lifeless, cut and 



