1876] Roundstone and Castle Taylor. 263 



effect, and our fish began to jump occasionally nay, once he lay on 

 his side after one of these efforts, and we rowed up hoping to gaff him, 

 but he judiciously disappeared just in time to escape the steel. Another 

 incident was the fouling of the reel line, which had to be coiled down 

 upon the bottom boards until the reel could be persuaded to run freely 

 enough, and an anxious moment this was ; but our obliging fish was 

 probably himself glad enough to take a little rest, and remained, as if 

 asleep, close under the boat, but deep down. 



Here the narrative breaks off, which is what the line 

 also did. 



In October (again on sick leave) he made his fifth 

 expedition to Roundstone, and on leaving that favourite 

 locality, revisited, after a long interval of twelve years, his 

 old friends at Castle Taylor. Two days (October iyth and 

 1 8th) were spent amid the well-remembered scenes, and a 

 drive was taken " to see Kilmacduagh," where his exciting 

 hunt after "three brown crows " had taken place twenty-six 

 years ago. He was again on the qui mve for notes on the 

 birds of that neighbourhood (of which he had once, long 

 ago, compiled a list) ; for he was highly desirous of includ- 

 ing Ireland in his projected revision of the " Bird Cybele," 

 and had now made considerable progress in the collection 

 of information from British counties. 



But the addition of Ireland to the area added largely to 

 his difficulties; still more so, the wish to include local 

 statistics as to increase or decrease in winter. Above all, 

 the problem how to check estimates on this latter subject, 

 when doubtful of the accuracy of your informant's judgment. 

 He had not now the abundant leisure which formerly had 

 enabled him, at Bembridge, to draw as it were the measure 

 of each of his ninety-seven correspondents, and sift the grain 

 from the chaff, for purposes of an investigation arduous 

 enough, and yet much less so than his present one. How 

 good soever his health had been, it is doubtful whether 

 the embarras de richesse emanating from the "too will- 

 ing informant " would not, in this inquiry, have proved 

 quite inextricable. With ill-health superadded, it is not 

 wonderful that the investigation was never, on these lines, 

 completed. 



