COUPEREE POOL. 168 



the lofty hill of Ben Aigen, rent with two deep 

 clefts, their precipitous sides varied with grey 

 primaeval rocks, among which the peregrine falcon 

 still rears its young in spite of constant persecu- 

 tion, while the farther cliff of the more distant 

 corrie is covered to the very summit of the moun- 

 tain with dark firs, and the nearer slopes are 

 varied with purple heather and evergreen woods, 

 with fissures of sandrock peeping through them, 

 altogether presenting a charming contrast of 

 colours in this part of the landscape. Immediately 

 opposite were the lesser hills near Delfour, clothed 

 with larch, spruce, and beech, and only separated 

 by a wide-spreading bed of shingle from the river, 

 which, after passing through Couperee, turned to 

 the left on its way to Orton, and still farther 

 north the red cliffs overhanging its waters near 

 the Chapel pool stood out in bold relief from the 

 gloomy pine forest behind them. 



I had but little time, however, to spare for 

 admiration even of this picturesque scene. Tbe 

 back fin of the big fish WHS still fresh in my 

 memory and uppermost in my thoughts, and I 

 did not yet despair of becoming moiv intimately 

 acquainted with him. I perceived that the water 

 had fallen considerably since the morning, and had 

 become clearer and more transparent, suggesting 



