To Mountain Tarn 



and lovely, the experiment may defeat itself. 

 The new life would be conquered by the old, the 

 bond by the free ; or would cross to other lakes 

 and thin out in the distance. Loch Leven might 

 serve, in which case we should have the interest- 

 ing double experiment of fish and fowl being 

 brought up in the nursery. Fish are bound in 

 by the shores, fowl may move about. In so far 

 the new experiment might differ from the old. 

 But some disturbance must follow from each new 

 centre, some lessening of the virility of wild life 

 for each tame contingent. And it were well to 

 let these winged Bohemians severely alone. 



As trout are the poor man's fish, so wild-fowl 

 are his feather. The two carry the cycle of sport 

 round the year. He lays down his rod to take 

 up the gun. When the one are out of season 

 the other are in. When the trout are showing 

 the pale fringe round the anal fin and pressing 

 toward the redd, the wild -fowl are casting the 

 bridal plumage, the young are already on the 

 wing. A true and good sportsman of the old 

 school, writing more than half a century ago, 

 talks of May as the month for wild-fowl shoot- 

 ing. He was in the neighbourhood of the breed- 

 ing-rocks, and no doubt found plenty. That was 

 before a close time was thought of. No one now 

 would think of shooting in May. A May fish 

 and a November fowl, that is the modern order. 



On any burn one may surprise a wild duck. 

 243 



