CHRISTOPHER NORTH. 17 



continuing the sport in spite of all remonstrance. At 

 last he gives in and retires. Wonderful to say, he did 

 not seem to suffer from these imprudent liberties." 



And Mrs. Gordon gives us another exquisite picture in 

 the very last days of the grand old Christopher : 



* * * " And then he gathered around him, when the 

 spring mornings brought gay jets of sunshine into the 

 little room where he lay, the relics of a youthful passion. 

 one that with him never grew old. It was an affecting 

 sight to see him busy, nay, quite absorbed with the fish- 

 ing-tackle scattered about his bed, propped up with pil- 

 lows his noble head, yet glorious with its flowing locks, 

 carefully combed by attentive hands, and falling on each 

 side of his unfaded face. How neatly he picked out 

 each elegantly dressed fly from its little bunch, drawing 

 it out with trembling hand along the white coverlet, and 

 then, replacing it in his pocket-book, he would tell ever 

 and anon of the streams he used to fish in of old, and of 

 the deeds he had performed in his childhood and youth." 



There is no angler who will not appreciate the beauty 

 of these pictures, and I do not believe any one of us, re- 

 taining his mental faculties, will fail in extremes! age to 

 recall with the keenest enjoyment of which memory is 

 capable the scenes of our happiest sport. 



Was Peter less or more than man ? Was John not of 

 like passions with ourselves ? Believe me, the old dweller 

 on Patmos, the old Bishop of Ephesus, lingering between 

 the memories of his Lord in Galilee and the longing for 

 him to come quickly yet again, saw often before his dim 

 eyes the ripple on Gennesaret, and the flashing scales of 

 the silver fish that had gladdened him many a time be- 

 fore he knew the Master. 



I have sometimes thought it more than possible that 

 the young son of Joseph and Mary knew the Galilee fish- 



B 



