AN EASTER OUTING (AND INNING}. 29 



towards him he would dart out and make believe to 

 catch them, but I am sure he was only joking, he knew 

 quite well what they were made of, his bright quick 

 little eye could easily see through these ' ' barbed be- 

 trayers," as Canon Scott-Holland calls them. 



I might have mentioned before that we were three 

 in our party, the third being a young disciple of the 

 Major's, who managed to get his flies on the water in 

 very good style, but in a manner quite original, and 

 contrary to accepted methods ; nevertheless, he got 

 many a good rise, and lost many a good fish, whether 

 trout or grayling, for he was not an adept at landing 

 his fish, and, besides, he had no net. Notwithstanding 

 all these disadvantages, to him belongs the honour of 

 having hooked and landed the biggest trout that was 

 caught on this expedition. 



Easter Monday a brilliant, genial, lovely day we 

 sallied forth in the morning as usual, and we did our 

 usual execution amongst the grayling, but trout would 

 not be lured. I may remark here that nearly all our 

 fish whether trout or grayling were caught before one 

 o'clock. Not a rise could we get in the afternoon or 

 evening. 



This was our last day, we had to return to town in 

 the evening, and, alas, that I should have to record 

 it, or rather, I should rejoice that I am alive to tell the 

 tale, for on this morning the "Amateur Angler " came 

 to grief. 



I saw a rise, the only one I had seen that morning, 

 within six inches of the opposite bank and under a 

 small bush. It was a long cast, my fly hooked itself 

 on to a twig of the bush, just above the trout, and 



