TROUTING ON JESSUP'S RIVER. • 507 



be seen, and to this day they have remained remarkably 

 scarce. 



This story seemed very strange to me, but one day I shot 

 a young red squirrel, the first I had killed since I came — for 

 lack of opportunity — and I found it covered by this same 

 warty disease, which had been described as causing their 

 extermination so long ago. The pustules were quite small 

 upon it, and not so thickly placed as in the time of the 

 plague, when they were as large as a pea of good size, and 

 there was not the space of a pin's head any where between 

 them ! This accounts for their not having increased more 

 rapidly — since the fact shows that the disease continues to 

 linger with them, preventing, as I suppose, their arriving at 

 maturity, in the majority of cases. 



But I have gone a good way aside from my theme to 

 narrate these curious facts, and must get back to the ' Bridge' 

 again, at which we arrived about the middle of the afternoon. 

 There we found an old field just across the bridge. It was 

 called Wilcox's Clearing, and like all such places I had seen 

 in this fine grazing region, was still well sodded down in 

 Timothy, blue grass, and clover. Our luggage having been 

 deposited in the shantee, which consisted nearly of boards 

 torn from the old house, which were leaned against the sides 

 of two forks, placed a few feet apart, we set oflF at once for 

 the Falls, a short distance above. This was merely an initial 

 trial, to obtain enough for dinner, and find the prognostics 

 of the next day's sport in feeling the manner of the fish. 



At the Falls the river is only about fifteen feet wide, 

 though its average width is from twenty-five to thirty. The 

 water tumbles over a ledge of about ten feet, at the bottom 

 of which is a fine hole, while on the surface sheets of foam 

 are whirled round and round upon the tormented eddies — for 

 the stream has considerable volume and power. 



We stepped cautiously along the ledge, Piscator ahead, and 

 holding his precious flies ready for a cast, which was most 



