100 AN ANGLER'S YEAR 



it ; but you have not come out to catch small ones, so 

 raise the rod, and the bait flies over him. Withdraw it 

 gently and let it go down again. The grandfather of the 

 flock, seeing the young ones busy, is on the alert, so 

 steer your hook in his direction, and as soon as he opens 

 his mouth, strike, or he will have felt the lead and spat 

 the hook out minus the bait. You hook him and a rare 

 struggle begins, which, perhaps from ill-luck, or shall we 

 say want of skill on the part of the novice, ends in a 

 break or the hook coming away, and the old stager 

 returns to his place a sadder and wiser fish. From this 

 moment the best of the sport is over in this spot. 

 Occasionally, a medium fish may take your bait, but 

 frequently it will touch a fish's nose and he will refuse 

 it. Far better seek a new spot. This may be found a 

 little further on by some camp-shedding under a tree. 

 Crouch in the shadow and let your bait work, if possible, 

 on the edge of that nice eddy behind the stump at the 

 commencement of the shedding. A good fish turns at 

 your bait, and you get him ; then one or two more. 

 Finally you are running your bait perhaps a little closer 

 to the stump, when a dark form dashes at it : a pluck, 

 whizz, and something or other is out in the river tearing 

 down stream like a racehorse. Out and after him, and 

 get him out as gently as possible ; a good trout has 

 taken your bait, and you want, if possible, to get him 

 ashore and remove the hook as soon as practicable ; 

 then return him gently to the water and remember to 

 say nothing about it. The latter is good advice, whether 

 you return the fish or not ; for, although good eating, 

 there is but little honour in a bait-caught trout ; and 

 catching trout with bait will not tend to ingratiate the 

 angler with the owner of the fishing. 



But once again sport has slackened, so we move on to 

 the lower end of the lock, where the canal enters the 

 river. Here the water is practically still, so we take 

 off our large shot and pinch on in its place a very small 

 one, and look about for fish. There they are ; a magni- 

 ficent shoal is swimming slowly about in the slack 

 water, 3ft. in depth, on a nice gravelly bottom ; some of 



