MARCH 97 



There was just a narrow strip of dark water under the 

 cliff on the opposite bank ; upon the rest of the current 

 the rays beat pitilessly, turning the water to golden 

 brown and revealing the stones on the bottom. It was 

 well, methought, that dinner did not depend upon what 

 I might get out of this place ! 



The result is responsible for many hours in later years 

 spent in fruitless perseverance under adverse auspices. 

 The little silver-bodied, double-hooked fly had not taken 

 half a dozen voyages across the stream when there was 

 a splashing rise, the line tightened with a snap, and I 

 was racing down the shingle after a fish which seemed 

 to be mad. It never rested a moment; the connection 

 between us had not endured more than two or three 

 minutes when the creature chose to rush into the shallows 

 at my feet. The rod straightened the line fell slack 

 off ! I thought. But no : before the fish could regain the 

 main current, Sandy dashed into the water, made a firm 

 stroke with the gaff, and returned ashore dragging a 

 22-lb. salmon, clean from the sea, with the tide-lice on 

 it. The hook was fast in the anal fin, and every fisher- 

 man will understand how little control one has over a 

 salmon hooked in that region. 



Sandy was not always communicative; but when the 

 spirit moved him, his narrative was graphic. I remarked 

 to him one day that it was curious that the Luce, which 

 looked like an ideal trout stream, should produce nothing 

 but fingerlings. 



' Ay, but there 's big troots in the water,' said he, ' if a 

 body had the skeel o' catchin' them.' 



' What makes you think that, Sandy ? ' 



'Oh, I'm no' thinkin'; I ken it fine.' Then, after a 

 G 



