A FISH-DRIVE. 155 



voice, and prolonging the sound until he strained his 

 throat nearly to cracking. 



At the bow of every house-boat stood an English- 

 man with a casting-net over his shoulder, and such 

 as could not get the firm footing of these heavy craft 

 betook themselves to those of the dug-outs which 

 looked most stable. 



There was really no necessity for them to commence 

 operations at this stage of the proceedings, for, as I 

 have said, the present object of the casting was only 

 to scare the fish from the deeper pools, where they 

 might not be affected by the glitter of the revolving 

 palm-leaves on the drag- line and the surface splashing 

 of the poles. Of course some fish might by chance be 

 caught, but it would only be a few that might be 

 trying to break back up-stream. The Englishmen's 

 initial display was not edifying, for even those who 

 could give the net some little spread when standing 

 on dry land found it a very different thing on the un- 

 stable support of a dug-out. However, no one thought 

 of the figure he was cutting, for every one was simply 

 " at play." The whole party, from their point of view, 

 was a schoolboy's game, and they entered into it just 

 as they would enter into any other game that was 

 going on, without caring whether they were good at it 

 or not, so long as there was fun to be got out of it. 



When one considers that these men were with one 

 exception Government officials, and remembers the 

 extent to which their race owes its position to its 

 prestige, this schoolboy frolic without loss of dignity 

 cannot but be striking. Not a single one of them 

 could throw a net even moderately well, and the 



