66 AN ANGLER'S HOURS iv 



is deliberating whether it would not be 

 wise to put on a fresh worm, the float moves 

 a little uneasily. Then there is a pause, and 

 it looks as if the fish had left the bait. But 

 no, the float stirs again, once, twice, and then 

 begins to sail slowly off. 



The angler picks up his rod without 

 hurry, for it is wise to give a tench plenty 

 of time, and strikes gently. There is no 

 mistake about the fish now, and the rod 

 bends handsomely to the encounter. The 

 tench fights very gamely, and does all it 

 knows to bury itself in the weeds round the 

 little pool ; but the tackle is strong, and a 

 little extra strain stops it short of them at 

 each rush. The fish plays deep and with 

 great power, but there is no mad plunge 

 such as a trout would give, and at length 

 it is drawn through the channel within 

 reach of the net, and safely landed. It looks 

 very handsome in the morning light, with 

 its armour of tiny scales gleaming in dusky 

 gold, and it weighs a full two and a half 

 pounds. 



A nice fish, but not one of the big ones, 

 and so the hook is re-baited and swung out 

 again without loss of time. Then follows 



