A TWEEDSIDE SKETCH 139 



fish, but did not hook it, and he landed a small 

 one, five minutes after we started, and we only 

 had one other rise all the rest of the day. Pro- 

 bably it was not dark and windy enough, but who 

 can explain the caprices of salmon ? The only 

 certain thing is, that carelessness always brings 

 misfortune ; that if your tackle is weak fish will 

 hook themselves on days, and in parts of the water, 

 where you expected nothing, and then will go 

 away with your fly and your casting-lines. 

 Fortune never forgives. He who is lazy, and 

 takes no trouble because he expects no fish, will 

 always be meeting heart-breaking adventures. 

 One should never make a hopeless or careless 

 cast ; bad luck lies in wait for that kind of per- 

 formance. These are the experiences that embitter 

 a man, as they embittered Dean Swift, who, old 

 and ill, neglected and in Irish exile, still felt the 

 pang of losing a great trout when he was a boy. 

 What pleasure is there in landscape and tradition 

 when such accidents befall you ? 



The sun upon the Weirdlaw hill, 

 In Ettrick's vale is sinking sweet. 



