266 DAYS AND NIGHTS OF SALMON FISHING 



" And whan she cam in he bowed fu' low, 

 And soon his errand he let her to know ; 

 Amazed was the laird whan the leddie said naw, 

 But wi' a laigh courtsy she turned awa. 



" Dum-foundered he was, nae sicgh did he gie, 

 He mounted his meer, he rode cannilie ; 

 But said to himsel, as he gaed through the glen, 

 ' She was daft to refuse the laird o' Cockpen ! ' 



It had been my intention to give an account of 

 the burning of the water from Melrose Bridge to 

 the Cauld Pool, and so on to Cow's Hole ; but the 

 description, if faithful, would be so similar to the 

 one already given, that it would be lamentably 

 tiresome, and I have been ultra-tedious already. 

 Besides it must be considered that I have been 

 out of my bed most part of the night ; that I 

 am to the full as sleepy as any of my readers 

 can possibly be ; and, moreover, that my back 

 is half frozen, whilst my front is scorched with the 

 firebrands. 



Farewell, then, dear brothers of the angle ; and 

 when you go forth to take your pleasure, either in 

 the mountain stream that struggles and roars 

 through the narrow pass, or in the majestic salmon 

 river that sweeps in lucid mazes through the vale, 

 may your sport be ample, and your hearts light ! 

 But should the fish prove more sagacious than your- 

 selves a circumstance, excuse me, that is by no 

 means impossible ; should they, alas but fate 

 avert it reject your hooked gifts, the course of the 

 river will always lead you to pleasant places. In 

 these we leave you to the quiet enjoyment of the 



