150 The Carnatic Carp. CHAP. xi. 



along the steep bank edge, where the water is at all deep, you will 

 notice quiet eddies, formed by the opposing forces of the stream and 

 the backwater.* Fish there, especially when they are under overhang- 

 ing trees or near reeds, always presuming that the water looks at least 

 2 feet deep. Kuti, the boatman, thoroughly understands, without your 

 telling him, that he must keep the boat so far out from shore that 

 at your longest throw at right angles to the shore you can just drop 

 your tail fly within about a foot of the shore; commence throwing 

 therefore, and he will soon see and gauge the length of your throw, and 

 will let the boat go drifting quietly down the stream, but slightly staying 

 its way, and keeping you exactly facing the shore, so that you can 

 throw with ease, and draw your fly towards you, just as slowly as 

 suffices to keep the line taut while it floats down the stream. And so 

 you keep on trying fresh water every throw. If you fancy a place tell 

 him, and he will paddle against the stream just enough to keep you 

 stationary. If you rise a fish tell him at once, that he may keep you 

 within reach of the fish while you throw over it again immediately. 

 Do not wait and give the fish time for forgetfulness as you might with a 

 salmon or trout, but throw at once, because you cannot depend on its 

 remaining in the same place for any length of time. It may remain, 

 and probably will, but it may roam, for it is not its habit to lie like a 

 salmon or trout behind a stone at the bottom, but to roam about more 

 or less in a swim. Fast in one at last ! Hurrah ! Back away, Kuti. 

 Back into mid stream. Never mind whether the fish takes out line or 

 not, back away hard all. There, now, you have deep water and 

 plenty of elbow room, free of snags below and boughs above, and, 

 what is of more importance still to your sport, you have drawn your 

 fish away from his fellows, and are killing him in a place by himself, 

 for this fish commonly swims in shoals like a dace, and it is better to 

 disturb the rest of the shoal as little as possible. It is quite possible 

 that you may not have disturbed the rest of the shoal at all, for it is 

 quite possible that the fish you have, left the shoal, and followed your 

 fly some little way before he made up his mind to take it, and you 

 hooked him. At any rate we will hope for the best and do all we 

 know. " Tis not in mortals to command success, but we'll do more, 

 Sempronius, we'll deserve it." 



The wisdom of killing a fish by itself, is amusingly recognized in 

 * This backwater is explained in a footnote in Chapter XVIII. 



