250 WITH THE WOODLANDERS. 



From a movement that he caught sight of just 

 beyond the stem, Billy thought he would try and 

 see what he could get there. 



He was well rewarded for his experiment, for 

 in a very short time he caught three good trout. 

 "Now," said Billy, "I shall go home: you'll 

 have some on 'em, wun't ye ? They're real good 

 uns." 



The old fellow's luck made him very chatty as 

 I walked home beside him ; his heavy bag he 

 would carry all himself. " It don't do to go by 

 the look o' things at times," he observed ; " any 

 port is a good un in a storm. All the fish in that 

 part of the river go where you see me pull these 

 out ; they gets out o' the rush o' the river, an' 

 they feeds in the brook. You keep it to yerself, 

 if ye don't care to fish." 



But I did care, for that brook taught me more 

 about natural history of one kind and another 

 than I at that time could have thought possible. 

 Billy and his piscatorial hat have vanished from 

 the scene, for the good old fisherman has gone 

 home long ago. The brook is there, so are the 

 fish in flood-time, but I am not able to go there 



