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have caught has been the overhanging bough of a 

 willow behind me, and I deem it fortunate that I have 

 been able to release my fly without a break. Now my 

 task becomes easier, as there are no trees behind me, 

 and it is easy to get out of sight of the fish by keeping 

 down between the main ditch of the water-meadow 

 and the high bank. Fish are almost always rising 

 in this portion of the stream ; and in the upper 

 part, where there is a much-frequented shallow, they 

 usually rise so near the opposite bank of a wide stream, 

 that I may stand upright and close to the water on 

 my own side without any risk of their seeing me. But 

 they are very shy risers just here perhaps because 

 they are a good deal fished for and the long line re- 

 quired to reach them soon sinks the fly or causes a 

 fatal drag, while the necessary slack makes it very 

 difficult to hook those fish that are persuaded to rise. 

 Two fish in the basket, and three smaller ones re- 

 turned, is my total when I reach the cart-bridge into 

 the park of Donnington Grove, and the deep hole just 

 above it, into which a weir discharges the waters of 

 an artificial lake, is the limit of my water ; but it is a 

 favourite spot, as it always holds some good fish, and 

 they generally rise well and freely. It is surrounded 

 by trees on both sides, but by cutting down the big 

 alder, which now lies horizontally along the shore and 

 forms a solid support for the two or three cartloads ol 

 old bricks and rubbish which have been shot here to 

 harden the bank, it has been made possible to reach 

 almost to the broken water of the weir, although it 

 requires care and accuracy to fish it properly. 



The weir is, as I have said, the limit of my own 

 fishing, but I have sometimes been privileged by my 



