H4 DAYS AND NIGHTS OF SALMON FISHING 



drownit as sure as deeth ! Pirn in, pirn in ! pirn 

 out, pirn out ! Gang forrat, gang forrat ! gang 

 ahint, gang ahint ! " These contradictory exclama- 

 tions I could have excused, as I believe they were 

 warranted by the sudden turns of the fish ; but the 

 fellow had absolutely the temerity to attempt to 

 take my rod from me, whereat I lashed out 

 behind, and gave him sundry kicks, as strong 

 and hearty as could be managed with my de- 

 generate shoes. 



I did shorten my line a little, however ; but the 

 water pressed against it so heavily that I could not 

 extricate it as I wished. I had now receded to the 

 shore, and gained, as I thought, the victory. Being 

 resolved to be canny, I fixed my eyes intently upon 

 the point where the line dipped into the water, under 

 which I conceived the fish to be ; but to my sur- 

 prise I caught a glimpse of my playfellow with the 

 tail of my eye, springing out of the water, and tow- 

 ing my tackle after him about twenty yards above 

 the spot where I conceived him to be. I was in a 

 perfect tremor ye gods, how I did shake ! But 

 that did not last long, as the line all of a sudden 

 vaulted into the air, and streamed abroad like the 

 lithe pennon on a ship-mast, being, at a rude guess, 

 about twenty yards minus of its pristine proportions. 

 This was all magic to me at the time magic of the 

 most distressing sort ; but in after days I saw what 

 my error was. I knew that it consisted in giving 

 out too much line at first, which would have been 

 unnecessary, had I stepped back at once on the 

 channel, kept my rod aloft, and ran down the river- 



