164 



THE ANGLER'S SOUVENIR. 



only by the back fins of the huge carp sailing about. 

 The writer thought he would scramble out upon 

 these rails, and he proceeded to do so. As he went 

 to the shore-end of the rails, he saw many large 

 carp with their noses to the bank, in only six inches 

 of water. They were grubbing away in the mud in 

 search of food, but when he placed his bait at their 

 vary noses they took no notice of it, save to scurry 

 away with a huge wave and upheaval of mud. 



It was very ticklish work scrambling along the 

 rotten rails, but at last he gained the farthest point, 

 and there, with some two feet of water and some 

 six feet of mud below him, he balanced himself on 

 a rail an inch wide and fished for carp. Grave 

 misgivings crossed his mind as to how he should 

 land the fish when he hooked them : but he was 

 spared the risk. Great carp of ten pounds weight 

 came wallowing at his very feet, gasping and sucking 

 with their round fleshy mouths, and turning away 

 from the worm which was all but put down their 

 very throats. It was very tantalising to see such 

 big fellows utterly impervious to his blandishments, 

 and he could not forbear striking at one of them 

 with the butt-end of his rod, seriously endangering 

 thereby his seat upon the rail. Not a bite did he 

 get. He was out of the wind, and the sun blazed 

 hotly upon his back. The rail was cutting, very ; 

 and he saw that his companions were again catching 

 fish. So he crept back again and rejoined them. 



During another lull in the biting we came off our 



