HVILESTED, 1901 129 



looked down upon the rushing river just above an 

 iron bridge more useful than picturesque. The small 

 rowan bushes on its crest were full of the nests of 

 fieldfares, but by August the young birds had flown. 

 Five salmon pools were visible from the seat over- 

 looking the river ; and the stream just below the 

 house could be fished from either side without a boat, 

 and nearly always held both salmon and sea-trout. It 

 was necessary, however, to have a boat at hand and in 

 readiness, for if a fish ran down stream he was sure 

 to get through the bridge and break you, unless you 

 could follow him and shoot the rapids. It was very 

 seldom that after starting down stream they faced 

 the heavy current and ran back again ; but on one 

 occasion a very big fish played Mrs. Lort Phillips this 

 trick, going down through one arch, and turning sharp 

 back through the next, with the inevitable result that 

 the cast was cut against the pier, as it was quite im- 

 possible to force the boat up again against the rapids. 

 I never myself caught anything bigger than 

 grilse in this upper bridge pool, but I lost what I 

 imagine to have been a very heavy fish there on the 

 afternoon of the last day of the season on the occasion 

 of my second visit. It was especially disappointing, 

 because I had killed forty-nine fish that year, and 

 was making a great effort to make up the number 

 to fifty. I had flogged every inch of the lower 

 water in vain, and returning crestfallen to the house 

 went down the steps and up to the top of the stream 

 for a last effort. Half-way down the pool something 

 took my Jock Scott deep down in the water, and ran 

 out about ten yards of line with a heavy boring strain. 

 There he stopped in deep water not twenty yards 



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