FISHES AND FISHING. 113 



are white, may not the fact of these being white be 

 accounted for upon the same principle ? 



A gentleman, a patient of mine, who had travelled 

 very much, informed me there was a mountain about 

 forty miles from Vienna, named the Semmering, frt)m 

 which a considerable way up there issues a stream of 

 w^ter, and the inhabitants often catch fish of the 

 trout species, by letting the water run through a net ; 

 I should be gratified by an opportunity of examiniDg 

 one of these fish. 



On bringing a trout to land which you have hooked 

 with a fly in the Test, suddenly he will be surrounded 

 by six to eight, or a dozen of the same species, who 

 rush against him. At first I was inclined to think 

 this was a type of the conduct of too many of the 

 human race, who, when a man is unfortunate, or 

 going down in the world, assist in crushing him ; but 

 after a little reflection, I am inclined to believe that 

 it was still typical of mankind, for other trout seeing 

 the fly protruding from the mouth of the one hooked, 

 endeavour to wrest his prize from him ; and so covet- 

 ous men, seeing their neighbour prosper by a specu- 

 lation, will use every endeavour to deprive him of the 

 advantage, his talents or industry have procured for 

 him. This may be, however, practically illustrated 

 in a poultry-yard, where a fowl or duck, having ob- 

 tained a large piece of food, more than he can at once 



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