SPORTING SKETCHES. 243 



far off, when suddenly I heard in the direction of my fly, a 

 splash, and turning quickly, saw a glittering shower of drops 

 which sent a thrill of joy to my heart. My line was hanging 

 loose and I knew that by my carelessness I had missed a big 

 fish. Gathering back my tackle I took a careful cast right over 

 the place where the mighty tail had disappeared and almost 

 instantly, there was a wild rush, a leap and with a turn of my 

 wrist he was hooked. For ten minutes I played that trout. He 

 tried to make for the rapids but I turned him. The reel gave 

 out sweet music and his silver sides gleamed in the stream. I 

 had to be careful, having no landing net and no one to help me, 

 but my tackle was good and at last he lay upon his side within 

 reach as I reeled in my line. 



Stooping down quietly, I put my hand round his vvaist and he 

 was mine. He was a fresh run sea trout and weighed 3^ Ibs. 

 The largest trout I had up to that time ever caught. I cast 

 again, and out of the same pool landed three more. The four 

 weighed 12 Ibs. Then, I returned in triumph to my wife, who 

 was reading under a bridge some distance below. I was young 

 then and now am old with " silver threads among the gold." I 

 have caught many trout since and bigger ones, but I doubt if 

 any day's fishing ever gave me such keen enjoyment as did my 

 capture of these four trout in that famous pool. 



January, 1894. 



RAZOR BACKS. 



BY A. J. P. 



It was on the evening of November 20th, 1876, we arrived at 

 our cabin. The weather intensely cold ; the moon in its first 

 quarter, was shedding a clear light through the marshes, we 

 could hear an occasional quack of the black duck ; this was too 

 mirch for my friend H . He could not withstand the tempta- 

 tion. Maxime was ordered to get the canoe out, H , well 



wrapped up, went out through the marsh into the small lake to 

 get a crack or two. From the slightly elevated ground on 



. 17 



