ix FESTIVAL OF GREEN DRAKE 155 



though he is by no means beaten, he will 

 never reach the bridge now. And so, after 

 a minute and a half of sudden leaping and 

 short rushes, he is at last in the net, a 

 pleasant and substantial weight for the 

 willing hand. 



Two pounds is what the balance makes 

 of him, and we are pleased, for we had 

 scarcely thought him so much. He does 

 credit to the ditch, and excellently supports 

 the theory that in a country where trout are 

 at all no piece of running water should be 

 despised, for the fish loves a small stream 

 and grows fat in it. When the May-fly is 

 out on these water-meadows you may find a 

 trout feeding in the tiniest rill, almost on 

 the grass in fact, and no small fry, mind 

 you, but just such another as this is. 



Our capture has disturbed the ditch too 

 much at this point, so we will go on down to 

 the bridge that so nearly was our undoing. 

 There is a rise some yards below, and we 

 proceed very much as before, except that 

 we have now no friendly tree to cover us, 

 and must kneel afar off. The fish takes the 

 fly as well as could be, but somehow he is 

 missed. Odd, there he is rising again the 



