396 Fishing Localities. CHAP. xxvi. 



attached to an outrigger ; and keeping the horses at full gallop is by far the 

 most comfortable motion for passengers. Nothing can be simpler than the 

 harness. One horse carries a saddle to support the shafts, a crupper, and a 

 padded chest strap, to which are fastened the traces ; and the other has 

 merely the chest strap. Horses are changed every six miles, and, as the 

 coachman blows his horn as soon as he gets within earshot of the changing 

 place, two fresh horses are ready by the time the cart is brought to a stand- 

 still. Two minutes effect the change, and off the cart is again at a hand 

 gallop. A fifteen-mile ride from the trunk road, where we left the cart, took 

 us to our destination, the junction of the Poonch and Jhelum, about twenty 

 miles north of the town of Jhelum. 



" The Poonch rises in the Pir Punjal, a Himalayan range to the south of 

 the Kashmir Valley, and after a course of 1 20 miles or so, falls into the 

 Jhelum. In spring time the Poonch is about the size of the Tweed at 

 Coldstream, but the pools are deeper, and the streams more rapid ; I fancy 

 they run about a mile an hour quicker than in the Tweed. We reached our 

 camp about five in the evening in high spirits, the weather looking very 

 promising, though the water was lower than we quite liked. Our tents 

 were pitched close to the junction. Our servants had all arrived, and were 

 busily preparing dinner ; so we employed our time in putting our rods 

 together (Irish rods, preferable to all other when ready, but troublesome to 

 put together), and strolled up the river to view the scene of our exploits of 

 the previous year. As fishing from a boat was more effective than wading, 

 we were made a little anxious by the non-arrival of a native boat from some 

 six miles up the river, as we had sent a man for it several days before. 



" Early to bed and early to rise was the order of the day, and next 

 morning we were both up by daylight. A. commenced fishing in a grand 

 deep pool, with a high bank on one side, and I began at the junction a 

 quarter of a mile below him. Neither of us had even a rise ; so at nine we 

 returned to breakfast, and after our meal, to our great delight, the boat 

 appeared in sight. It was a huge, cumbersome, flat-bottomed, square ended 

 machine, with two enormous oars, roughly hewn out of a tree. We had two 

 men for each oar, besides a steerer. We were soon on board and at work. 

 My third try with spoon in the pool was successful, hooking a fish of 30 Ibs. 

 or so ; but after playing him for some minutes, and just as I was about to 

 land him, a swivel broke, and he was seen no more. When I had some- 

 what recovered my equanimity, I began again with a phantom minnow, 

 about the size of a |-lb. fish ; hooked another, and had him a short time, 

 when, after a vigorous run, the rod straightened, the line slacked, and I 

 discovered the hooks drawn, an instance of how silk and cobbler's wax dry 

 up in India. No sooner had I put on another phantom than I lost it, and a 

 whole casting line, by fouling a rock. This last disaster most effectually 

 disgusted me, for our supplies of phantoms, lines, etc., though very ample, 

 could never last at my rate of expenditure. However, I persevered, and our 

 bag for the day consisted of five fish, of 35 Ibs., 29 Ibs., 17 Ibs., 7 Ibs., and 



