104 



tluTc is a Hash in the water, and a turn of tlie wrist, fol- 

 lowed by ix rush down stream which means mischief, 

 though it does none ; and again the tiny little hook scores 

 another lusty victim — the best trout of the lot. Passing 

 on, we eventually succeed in bringing the contents of the 

 basket up to four brace. This has taken us two hours, and 

 it is now past noon, so let us go over to yonder fallen tree, 

 and do justice to the frugal lunch which a thoughtful better 

 half has stowed away in that little haversack. Hoav ex- 

 quisitely beautiful appear the spring tints in this flood of 

 sunlight ! Men who profess to entertain something akin to 

 pity, only a shade removed from contempt, for those of us 

 who find delight in angling, know nothing either of the 

 mental and physical recreation which the sport affords, or 

 the great love of nature which it engenders in those whose 

 tastes and opportunities have induced them to peep into the 

 mysteries of Dame Nature's many kingdoms. It is very 

 pleasant to sit here on this old log, sunning ourselves, and 

 feasting on the varied beauties of the landscape ; whilst, 

 soothed by a pipe, and the lullaby of the river at our feet, 

 we vie with each other in declaring this to be the most 

 delightful valley out of Paradise. 



But I am drifting doAvn with the stream of time. It is 

 the tendency of all anglers to do so ; we are a race of men 

 doubly blessed ; the memories of the past are cherished, for 

 they are full of green fields, babbling brooks and pleasant 

 reminiscences, which no other sport can yield. An angler, 

 if he be worthy of the name, must be something of a natura- 

 list, and if the mysteries of nature are to him a sealed 

 book, then he is only a mere pot hunter, past whom a 

 thousand and one subjects of minute study and keen plea- 

 sure glide unheeded and unseen. In the heat of a mid- 

 summer day, when the trout refuse to rise, the angler 

 naturalist can lie down upon the river's bank and in the 

 stream beneath him find an inexhaustible source of study 

 that will absorb him and excite his keenest delight. How 

 many of my thousands of readers for instance have ever 

 studied the habits of a water spider? Ton see the little 

 creature on the surface, and wonder at her ability to walk 



