188 DAYS AND NIGHTS OF SALMON FISHING 



think of the rock at Craigellachie, when he found 

 to his great relief that he could ' get a pull on him.' 

 He had now comparatively easy work ; and exactly 

 twelve hours after hooking him, he cleicked him at 

 the head of Lord Fife's water : he weighed fifty-four 

 pounds, Dutch, and had the tide lice upon him." 



Thus Duncan Grant has instructed us how to 

 manage a large Salmon. Let us now see how a 

 large Salmon may manage us. 



In the year 1815, Robert Kerse hooked a clean 

 Salmon of about forty pounds in the Makerstoun 

 Water, the largest, he says, he ever encountered : 

 sair work he had with him for some hours ; till at 

 last Rob, to use his own expression, was " clean 

 dune out." He landed the fish, however, in the 

 end, and laid him on the channel ; astonished, and 

 rejoicing at his prodigious size, he called out to a 

 man on the opposite bank of the river, who had 

 been watching him for some time. 



" Hey, mon, sic a fish ! " 



He then went for a stone to fell him with ; but 

 as soon as his back was turned, the fish began to 

 wamble towards the water, and Kerse turned, and 

 jumped upon it ; over they both tumbled, and the}^ 

 line, hook, and all went into the Tweed. The fish 

 was too much for Rob, having broke the line, which 

 got twisted round his leg, and made his escape, to 

 his great disappointment and loss, for at the price 

 clean salmon were then selling, he could have got 

 five pounds for it. 



Thus you see how a large fish may manage us. 



I must tell you that the above-mentioned Robert 



