10 J 



Where the peaily w aters sleep 

 In their (jiiiet p;jols «(> deep ; 



Where the greet iy trout doth he, 

 li«ady lor th' eusuaj'ing fly : 



Who so free irom weeping son'ow, 

 And from care, as I? 



Tliut description accurately represents tlie state of affairs 

 on this particular Wednesday, for the weather was all that 

 heart could desire, the lovely Kentish valley in which I 

 fished was looking its best, and the trout rose continuously 

 for fully six hours, myriads of water-flies rising from the 

 river's bed, bursting their chrj-salis cases, and taking flight 

 in the glorious sunshine. If you would like to stroll with 

 me for a short distance, let us start together from this broad 

 shallow, which was, until recently, a mill-tail, but the mill- 

 wheel has disappeared, and left a piece of slack water on 

 the opposite bank to where we stand. Some hawthorn 

 biishes, in full bloom, overhang this quiet little pool, 

 and at least a dozen lusty trout, who make it their home, 

 are sucking in iron-blue duns, as they are lured out of the 

 river's current by the false, fair prospect of smooth water 

 beneath the bushes. Let us see if we can reduce the 

 number of that colony ; and in order to do so I must go 

 back a little distance, and wade slowly up in the water. 

 This spot will do ; and now, with an underhand cast, the 

 fly falls as lightly as a fleck of thistle down, and is imme- 

 diately snapped up by a deluded troutlet. He shoots down 

 stream like a flash of lightning, as he feels the hook, and I 

 am grateful to him for his haste, because by this move his 

 companions remain undisturbed. "With twenty yards of 

 line out, he bores away for the shelter of a friendly weed- 

 bed, but the pressure of my supple nine-foot lancewood rod 

 wins the unequal battle, and with struggling but enfeebled 

 protests, the fish presently comes wobbling safely to net ; 

 he is a nice one, a trifle over a pound, with a bloom upon 

 him like a peach, and with spots as brilliant as rubies. 

 Let us try again : " He's got it ! " you exclaim. Yes ; and 

 the rascal flings himself out of the water, dances a jig, 

 lashes round, and scares the whole colony; then he bores 

 under the stump of the bushes, and manages to get round 



