324 THE RIVER. 



chances against you are somewhere about a 

 hundred to one." 



" It is not so with our northern rivers," 

 said the Scholar. 



u No," said the Parson. " I remember 

 the Bush has a bar of fine white sand across 

 its mouth ; I should think you might catch 

 half the fish that come into the river with 

 the snatch-hooks." 



" So you may," said the Scholar. " I 

 remember a friend of mine, who rents one 

 of those rivers, giving a man leave to fish. 

 It happened to be a bright day, and nothing 

 w 7 as to be done with the fly ; so he took his 

 station at the bar, and every fish that came 

 across it he snatched. In the evening up 

 he came to the fish-house, and, depositing 

 some twenty fish, expected great commend- 

 ation for his ingenuity. I never saw my 

 friend so angry ; he cancelled his leave, and 

 sent him off the river with a flea in his ear." 



"All I can say is, that your friend was 

 a great donkey for being angry with a 

 man who had offended through ignorance," 

 said the Parson ; " but he was right enough 

 in putting a stop to the practice, it would 

 have depopulated the river. I think, how- 



