314 FISHING GOSSIP. 



to catch him who had in fact the worst of skill and 

 the best of luck. 



" It's no use going to the weir," we simultaneously 

 exclaimed ; " let's try for a jack." " In a year or two, 

 Harris," added I, " if all goes well, we'll try for a 

 salmon." 



" I don't see why you should not," said Harris ; 

 " the reach just above the lock used to be a famous 

 place for salmon. My family have been fishermen 

 here and at Laleham for the last hundred and thirty 

 years ; and I heard the old people say that my grand- 

 father caught a salmon weighing forty-seven pounds 

 between this and Laleham, and eight one morning 

 at a single sweep of the net below this very bridge ; 

 and if you gentlemen at Hampton continue to turn 

 them out, some of them will most likely come back 

 up the river. They would soon get through the dirty 

 water at London that is, if they can stand the gas, 

 and they would be up here in no time. The old 

 people used to calculate that a salmon would come 

 up to Chertsey from the mouth of the river in about 

 twelve hours." 



" Look out !" cried my friend, who was meanwhile 

 fishing away. " I've got him."- " What is he ? " 

 "He's not very heavy." " Pull him up, then." The 

 line came home far too easily to be agreeable to the 

 angler. " Is that all ? a little foolish one-year-old 

 jack, about as big as a small table-knife. Little goose 



