26 In Pursuit of the Trout 



moving fish they had come across that day. 

 It was a trout on a shrimping expedition, 

 breaking the surface of the water right in 

 under the bank, against which the wind was 

 blowing hard and clean across stream. To 

 get at the fish from the side of the river where 

 the anglers were situated looked a very diffi- 

 cult task. The old angler, nothing if not 

 unselfish, gave the rod to his friend and bade 

 him have a try, but the friend could not get 

 the fly — a big alder, fished down stream 

 with plenty of movement to deceive the 

 shrimper — to travel to the right spot. To 

 fish under one bank by the back-handed cast 

 with a cruel wind against one is a grievous 

 trial. The wind took the fly, the whole gut 

 cast, indeed, right on to the bank time after 

 time. 



Meanwhile the trout was working up 

 stream, always keeping under the bank. A 

 few minutes more and, unless he turned and 

 came down, he would be in deep water, 

 where tailing fish could not be * spotted.' 

 The old angler, being appealed to, then took 



