THE STAG-HOUNDS THE CHA8E. 39 



the hounds was heard, and two more deer came crashing 

 across the isthmus where we were stationed. The foremost 

 one went down before the doctor's unerring rifle and cool 

 aim, while the other ran the gauntlet of the three other 

 rifles, horribly frightened, but unharmed, away. The hounds 

 were called off, and with our game in one of the boats, 

 we rowed back around the promontory, and passed on 

 towards the Saranac River, which connects by a tortuous 

 course of five miles, the Lower Saranac with Round Lake. 



Midway between these two lakes, is a fall, or rather 

 rapids, down which the river descends some ten feet in 

 five or six rods through a narrow cocky channel, around 

 which the boats had to be carried. While this was being 

 done, Smith and Spalding adjusted their rods, eager to 

 make up in catching trout what they failed to achieve in the 

 matter of venison. And they succeeded. In twenty minutes 

 they had fifteen beautiful fish, none weighing less than half 

 a pound, safely deposited on the broad flat rock at the head 

 of the rapids. " One throw more," said Smith, " and I've 

 done ;" and he cast his fly across the still water just above 

 the fall. Quick as thought it was taken by a two-pound 

 trout. Landing nets and gaff had been sent forward with 

 the baggage, and without these it was an exciting and 

 delicate thing to land that fish. The game was, to prevent 

 him dashing away down the rapids, or diving beneath the 

 shelving rock above, the sharp edge of which would have 

 severed the line like a knife. Skillfully and beautifully 

 Smith played him for a quarter of an hour, until at last the 



