103 



CHAP. III. 



" The sun went down behind the hill, 



The moor grew dim and stern, 

 And soon an utter darkness fell 

 O'er mountain, rock, and burn." 



THE party now separated, the artist being bound for 

 Blair. Tortoise and his friend struck across the hills 

 towards Bruar Lodge, from which they were about eight 

 or nine miles distant. 



' Not bad, that supposition of our friend the artist," 

 said Tortoise, " that he had hooked the great sea snake ; 

 but one does hook strange things sometimes; as for 

 instance, Mr. James Rose, a friend of Mr. Skene of 

 Rubislaw, was fishing on his property in the river Dee, it 

 was snowing very thickly, and he had on his line a large 

 fly, full four inches long, called there the black dog. In a 

 short time he hooked what he conceived to be a fine strong 

 salmon, who, however, worked as salmon never worked 

 before, dragging the fisherman down the stream at the top 

 of his speed, and making his arms quiver again ; at length, 

 to his great surprise, the animal began to give tongue, and 

 he found that he had hooked an otter by the muzzle. 

 This increased his ardour, and he dashed along, at some 

 risk, through the water, and over great blocks of stone, till 

 at length a high projecting rock impeded his progress. 

 Mr. Rose, however, was determined enough to throw 



H 4 



