A Sportsman at Large 285 



to stand on a ledge of rock some forty yards below. I rigged up 

 my ten-foot spinning rod, and affixed to my line three feet of 

 twisted gut, to which was attached a prawn threaded on a large, 

 single hook. Three feet above this was a lead, weighing a 

 quarter of a pound. When all was ready, I coiled my line 

 and slung the weight right up into the boil of the fall, where 

 it immediately sank, and was rolled by the strong current 

 along the bottom towards me. All the while, I kept drawing in 

 line, at the same time keeping a feel on the lead. I presume that 

 the three feet of gut trace were swinging loose ; but when a 

 salmon seized the lure, I could feel the pull plainly enough. 

 Immediately I would strike hard and good. 



In this fashion hardly a day passed without my accounting 

 for a good fish or two. Tom Lambert, Teddy Maurice, and 

 even Bedford tried their hand at the game (though it was far 

 too strenuous a one for Mary to attempt). Somehow or 

 other none of them found the knack, so all their efforts proved 

 futile, though I did my best to instruct them in the art which I 

 termed " prawn punching." There came a time when I was 

 short of prawns, so, as an experiment, substituted a large-sized 

 " Jock Scot." To my surprise and delight the change of lure 

 made but little difference to my average catch, for as when 

 fishing in mid-stream with Tolle, as previously described a 

 salmon attached itself while my fly was being whirled loose 

 in the current ; thus I got many a good pull when " punching." 

 I must confess that I was constantly hung up in rocks and snags 

 at the bottom of the pool, and so lost more casts and traces than 

 I cared about. Once, when pulling loose, I drew up a tangle 

 of no less than five derelict casts, one of which was my own ; 

 the rest evidently having been lost by unfortunate anglers in 

 far-off days. 



I am now approaching one of the saddest experiences that 

 ever befell me. 



There came to reside at a "Hiis" about a mile distant 

 from Archer's a certain distinguished General and his wife. 

 With them were their daughter, a pretty, fair girl of about 

 twenty, her fiance (a young naval officer) and a dark-haired 

 flapper cousin of about fifteen. This party would often come 

 to the Foss Pool in order to watch our proceedings. 



