THE WAYS OF A TROUT 191 



head of the pool, and if the first little fish is so foolish as to 

 come back while they are there, one of them will lunge 

 savagely at him, and he will have to scurry for his life. 

 If the second-sized fish are first attracted by the flies float- 

 ing into the pool, they will abscond as swiftly as the little 

 one when the lord of the pool makes up his mind to come 

 out. As usual in nature, it is well understood who is master, 

 and we never see among trout anything like a stand-up fight 

 among equals. Good holts descend from owner to owner, 



A HAMPSHIRE MILL-RACE 



like heirlooms ; if the trout in occupation of some comfort- 

 able eddy or hollow in the lee-side of a rock is caught, next 

 day his place is often taken by his next junior. What trout 

 like in summer is a station just outside the full rush of the 

 stream, but in sight of the current which brings down the 

 food. When they are not out feeding, they lie in their 

 holts with their attention more or less alertly fixed on events 

 outside. They do not dash out to the middle of the feeding- 

 ground to seize the smaller fish which eat when they are 

 reposing; but, on the other hand, the smaller fish do not 

 tempt them by passing too close to the mouth of their dens. 

 Trout have no eyelids, and it is disputed whether they 



