A TWENTY-FIVE POUNDER 211 



my guide to row towards him. The pause on the 

 fish's part was a brief one. The slack caused by the 

 movement of the boat stimulated his activities, and 

 he dashed off again, not crying halt until a distance 

 of one hundred yards was covered. The rush brought 

 him to the surface, where he rolled over like a porpoise, 

 showing a fine broad side and a huge tail. The water 

 divided before him with a hiss, and a white-flaked 

 surface marked the place where he floundered. 



" After him ! " I cried to the Indian. A salmon 

 like that, if he has a mind, can empty a reel. Sharp 

 as the line could be recovered, I wound it in. A fish 

 that breaks the water after a long run is generally 

 tamed for a few moments, and every angler knows 

 how to take advantage of the pause. When next 

 he began to move, only about a length of a dozen 

 yards separated us. He headed up-stream, and 

 doggedly resisted, keeping pace with the steady 

 strokes of the oar. I had met that kind of fish 

 before ; it is the usual policy of the springer " to 

 take it aisy justto rest himself after racent exertions." 

 The counter policy is to make the resting stage as 

 hard as possible ; I bent the rod in pursuance of it. 



" How long is this going to last } " I wondered. 

 I had not to wait long for the answer. He was only 

 sitting out a dance, and was at it again " like the 

 divil," as my Irish gillie would say. Twenty minutes 

 elapsed before there was any change in the tune. 

 Once more he turned down-stream, as if he was 



