THE PLEASURES OF COARSE-FISHING 163 



less for the birds themselves, may pass Fortunate indeed then, if, when on 



that way and despoil his friends of their his next visit six weeks hence, he still 



cherished treasures. Gloomily he re- sees the Gleads far above their haunt, 



fleets that should this be so, yet another climbing the air sublime ; thrice lucky, 



year will pass away without adding if on ascending to the nest a second 



young kites to its calendar, for well he time, he there finds the fierce-eyed, 



knows that seldom will this bird lay savage-looking brood of the Red 



again the same year that she is robbed. Kite. 



Note. Glead is another name for the kite. J. W. B. 



XXXIII 

 THE PLEASURES OF COARSE-FISHING 



"Though the whole earth is given to the children of men none but we jolly fishers get 

 the plums and raisins of it by the rivers." CHARLES KINGSLEY. 



'nr^HERE are salmon and trout tised coarse-fishing ; and there are 



anglers who affect to scorn certain fly-fishing adepts who openly 



angling for perch, carp and roach as confess that, upon occasion, they forgo 



a pastime beneath the consideration the chance of trout for the certainty 



of the true fisherman. And yet when of roach. 



Izaak Walton spoke of fishing as " the But why should I attempt to write 



contemplative man's recreation," I an apology for the bait fisherman ? 



am sure that he was thinking of the He is in the truest sense an angler, 



angler with the baited hook and the for his methods of angling are varied, 



float, and not of the more active fly- and his prey is often more wary, coy, 



fisher, who whips the runs and glides and elusive than salmon or trout. 



as he moves along the river bank, or Roach, for example, in clear, shallow 



wades in the stream. The distinctions waters are the shyest of fish, and 



between " game " and " coarse " fish quite as difficult to stalk and lure as 



are a little arbitrary, and the fly- brown trout; while the great buff- 



fisherman's disdain of the "bottom" backed chub, which appear such stupid- 



or " bait " angler is a kind of piscatorial looking fish when lying dead on the 



snobbery. Most good fishermen from bank, are singularly alert when basking 



Walton to Frank Buckland have prac- beneath the trailing boughs of the 



