116 DAYS STOLEN FOR SPORT 



You cannot make a century from a miss in balk, 

 neither can you cast, strike, and kill a pike perfectly, 

 without much practice, so I was safe in venturing 

 the remark : " You have done a little fishing before 



to-day, Mr B ." He smiled and, in doing so, 



lit up a countenance that encouraged me to ask him 

 if it would hurt much to call me " Geen." 



He laughed again and complied with my request 

 by saying : "I say, Geen, old fellow, put me on 

 another bait," and artfully added : " I wish I could 

 fix them on as you do." 



I soon gave in to his fascinating ways and we 

 became friends, friends that have gaffed and netted 

 each other's fish in many waters. In the broadest 

 portion of a river where a stately mansion looks 

 down on the fisher's doings we, together with the 

 artist, have spun them out, and lower down, where 

 the river narrows and you can peep into depths so 

 great that veritable monsters would have room to 

 roam some distance up, down or across, and yet be 

 hidden from sight, we have taken many a fine fish. 

 The finest tackle is needed where trout and grayling 

 are so plentiful that the pike grow fat and lazy. 



My float went round one of these deep holes 

 perseveringly without the desired result, but the 

 keeper's : " I know there's a big un there, sir," 

 caused me to stay on and try a paternoster amongst 

 the rushes where very probably the fish was hidden. 

 I must have dropped the lead upon him at my first 

 attempt as the rushes opened and a muddy swirl 

 came up that told he had moved ; so I changed 

 my method back to float and snap and dropped the 

 bait very carefully into the eddying current which 

 took the float away until near the tail where the 



