74 FISHING FOR PLEASURE 



attempt. My brother angler is young and lis- 

 some, and can easily contort his limbs and body 

 into any needful position to carry out his pur- 

 pose, but with all his ingenuity, master trout 

 would not be taken. He disappeared in the 

 bank. 



We followed the stream for a short distance, 

 and then we descended a steep bank to a place 

 where the position on our side left us free of 

 the bank and overhanging trees behind us to 

 cast over a wide spreading stream, where trout 

 and grayling seemed inclined to rise, and doubt- 

 less would have risen freely but for causes here- 

 after suggested, and we looked for sport. Gradu- 

 ally and slowly the impression grew upon me 

 that my olfactory nerves must be unnaturally 

 quickened, or that something was wrong, and I 

 observed to my companion that surely there 

 must be some dead and putrefying animal in 

 the immediate neighbourhood. We moved fur- 

 ther down the river, but still this villainous smell 

 pursued us. What could it be? It grew worse 

 and worse as we proceeded. It was impossible 

 to leave it behind, and equally impossible to 

 live in it; we must give it up. 



The solution was that the borough authori- 

 ties, in their patriotic desire to free their beautiful 

 river from all impurities, had recently spent 

 many thousands of pounds in laying out a 

 model sewage farm covering many acres of 



