154 DAYS STOLEN FOR SPORT 



held out the longest, but he was finished off at last 

 by a tussle with a conger that almost equalled the 

 doings of the skate and, as the fisher was handi- 

 capped by the tide running at its topmost speed 

 and the extra weight of lead on his line, for a time 

 it was even betting how the fight would end. 

 After the fish had drawn through the sore fingers 

 fathoms of line, encouragement came from some 

 of his brothers with : "Go it, Phil, never say die," 

 while others of them had by this time become 

 indifferent to such petty matters. I, too, cared 

 little now, for my sympathies and attention were 

 with the youngsters who were in distress of another 

 kind. I wanted the anchor up, and was truly glad 

 when at last I was called to see the lengthy, 

 wriggling mouster, that was close alongside, en- 

 sconced in phosphorescence, and to wonder how 

 it would be got on board. It was got in safely, 

 and the victor of the long tussle often tells, with 

 as much modesty as he can, of his fight with an 

 eighty -seven -pound conger when the Channel 

 waves ran high. 



How glad I was when we were free to haul at 

 the anchor ; and haul and haul we did, until it 

 became evident we had not the strength to move 

 it from its hold. "We must wait until the tide 

 eases " was the verdict of the captain. Another 

 son gave in before I realised that the anchor was 

 in no way necessary to our sailing and that its cost 

 was paltry in such need as ours. 



Sport may be so nearly allied to hard work and 

 so near being minus of any necessity for skill that 

 one or two experiences are sufficient to satisfy. 

 A friend of mine who has travelled the world all 



