290 



THE ANGLER'S SOUVENIR. 



out of which you may easily basket a score of trout 

 in the spring ; up a lane, the banks of which were 

 crowded so thickly with spring flowers, starwort, 

 and other snow-white flowers, deep-blue germander 

 speedwells, red ragged-robins, and wild geraniums, 

 monkshood, daisies, dandelions, and buttercups, 

 that the green of the leaves and grasses was quite 

 absorbed and lost in the brighter hues ; up and 

 up until our legs began to ache ; and at last we 

 came to the crest of the hill, in the hollow a few 

 feet below which lay the tarn, gloomy enough, but 

 weirdly beautiful. The water itself looked green 

 from the prevailing colour of the rushes and flags, 

 and the deep belt of green alders, which grew half 

 in and half out of it all round. 



"Look," I said, "there are two herons, a 

 couple of wild-ducks, with their young brood just 

 hatched, twenty or thirty coots and water-hens, 

 and some black leaves sticking up out of the water, 

 which are the things we are after." 



" What do you mean ?" asked A. 



' ' They are the back fins of carp." 



A.'s rods he had two, as I had were put to- 

 gether with remarkable quickness. I took it more 

 leisurely, and watched him searching about for a 

 place to cast his line in, with some amusement. 



" I say, how are we to get at the water 1 " he cried. 



"Wade." But this he was averse to doing. He 

 found a log of wood, and pushing it out beyond 

 the bushes, where it was very shallow, he took his 



