254 THE TROUT ARE RISING 



This frog, whose wooing was thus for ever 

 finished, was looking generally pale, and ready 

 for digestion by the trout, but its form was still 

 complete. One man to whom this little incident 

 was related said he could never fancy trout if 

 frogs were their food. As against this, it is 

 contended in some quarters that even frogs them- 

 selves are a delicacy ; in fact, when certain 

 Transvaal delegates to the South African Nation 

 Convention were established at Belmont, Ronde- 

 bosch, near Capetown, early in 1909, and were 

 treated in the course of dinner one evening to 

 a dish described as " snow-chicken," eulogy of the 

 dainty was pronounced. Secrets of the Convention 

 must of course not be given away : nevertheless, 

 if the author of that delightful South African book, 

 "Jock of the Bushveld" (Sir Percy FitzPatrick), 

 should write personal reminiscences in lighter 

 vein, it may be that he will include a little narra- 

 tive about (a) certain artless instructions to a 

 chef; () their execution, in entire simplicity ; 



(c] the appearance at dinner of " snow-chicken " ; 



(d] its main constituents. 



It is generally held that in a South African 

 river, in the competition between trout and scalies 

 for a living, the trout has the best of it. Large 

 numbers of scalies, however, are found in this 

 part of the Mooi, and they made their debut for 

 the season under notice on August I4th. Earlier 

 in the year, when it was frosty weather, hundreds 

 of dead scalies were found floating about in the 

 Mooi, in the Rosetta Station district. No evidence 



