138 THE TROUT ARE RISING 



of austerity. But I think he must have smiled, 

 just a little, remembering the lordly way in which 

 I had promised an immediate disbursement of ten 

 shillings. 



The sea-trout still went on showing ! 



I said : " Look here, as man to man, I will 

 meet you anywhere you like in the morning and 

 hand you the ten shillings without fail, and I am 

 sorry indeed to give you all this trouble." It 

 was too much to expect of frail human nature to 

 go straight back to the hotel for the ten shillings 

 when sea-trout were showing ! 



" Right," said he. An appointment was made, 

 and as he went away he left his blessing, " Good 

 luck to your fishing." 



And so I fished on. At the appointed hour 

 next morning we met, and the licence was duly 

 taken out. 



I asked one water-bailiff whether he had ex- 

 perienced much night poaching. He said that 

 little was attempted where he had worked. One 

 dark night, however, he discovered some men, 

 evidently bent on netting or otherwise poaching 

 the trout. He got to within a short distance of 

 one of them, who was holding a stick, and who 

 said threateningly, " Don't you come near me ! " 

 to which the bailiff replied : " I want to have a 

 few words with you." (It was a wonder that out 

 of habit he did not say : " Will you kindly show 

 me your licence ? ") The poacher darted off in 

 the thick wood, and made good his escape. 

 There are districts, however, where bailiffs have 



