ix FESTIVAL OF GREEN DRAKE 157 



depths. There are eight good feet of water 

 here in the deepest part, and though the 

 pool is but fifteen yards or so in length and 

 eight in breadth there seems to be an in- 

 exhaustible supply of fish in it. It is not 

 long since a pike of eight pounds was caught 

 here, and there is always a shoal of fine 

 roach, a few perch, and one or two big 

 grayling all these besides the trout. Last 

 year I was watching an angler fishing here, 

 casting his May-fly right under the bridge 

 from below, more in hope than in expecta- 

 tion of a rise. He had just turned round to 

 say something of no importance, when I saw 

 an enormous trout rise up steadily and absorb 

 his fly. I informed him of the circumstance, 

 but it was too late, and the five-pounder is, 

 I hope, still there, unless the otter has slain 

 him. 



There is a legendary otter who has his 

 home somewhere under the bridge, but he 

 moves in secrecy, and does his fell deeds 

 under fitting cover of darkness. The keeper 

 claims to have seen him once out of range 

 but the only trustworthy evidence of his 

 existence is the occasional discovery of one 

 of our best trout on the bank with the pound 



