BASS AND PIKE. 381 



darkened with their shadow the face of the water. 

 With exhilarating freedom, deep I dipped my paddle, 

 pushing for the rocky end, waiting till I had crossed 

 the centre of the lake before I commenced to fish ; 

 for, as a rule, unless there should happen to be a reef, 

 seldom any fish will be taken far from the margin. 

 When alone in a canoe one line will be found as much 

 as can be conveniently attended to, for the navigation 

 of your craft requires both hands. Getting under 

 good headway, I soon had twenty-five to thirty yards 

 of line astern, with a few inches of red cloth for lure, 

 which proved so attractive that I almost immediately 

 had a break, and in a moment or two afterwards a fish 

 hooked. For two or three hours such was the sport 

 which continued with never over a few minutes' ces- 

 sation. 



As I pushed slowly along the shore I came to a 

 river previously unknown to me, and which I have 

 since learned is the only outlet from this lake. The 

 edge of this stream was fringed with a dense network 

 of weeds, and the channel had scarcely a perceptible 

 current. On breaking full in view, several dozens of 

 wild duck rose, conspicuous among whom were many 

 of the beautiful wood duck, a gem among his brilliant- 

 plumed race. The sedgy nature of the shore here 

 predicted a more than ordinary favoured retreat, 

 so, replacing the red cloth by a large Buell's spoon, 

 with some scarlet ibis feathers tied along the 

 shanks of the hooks, I tried my fortune, and such 

 was my success that before I ceased, the bottom of 

 my canoe had a goodly show of noble bass and*pike 

 so many, that I was satisfied to select three or four 

 for present use and hide the others, with my birch- 



