226 TRAVELS IN THE EIGHTIES. 



mentioned portion of rapid, but 1,000 marks (40) 

 yearly is paid to a bailiff who is intended to prevent 

 poaching. Two regular boatmen are also kept. A 

 large room is fitted up with a row of iron bedsteads, 

 and the walls support numerous rod-racks and devices 

 for drying the fishing lines after returning. Our 

 meals were brought in by the bailiff and his wife, 

 who both entered the room together, one behind the 

 other, in the most impressive and imposing manner, 

 bearing the smoking dishes of potatoes, trout, or 

 canned deer meat, both being exceedingly plain, stout 

 and short Finlanders. 



Wild strawberries were to be had in profusion, and 

 by sending to the landing-place, where children 

 usually brought baskets of this delicious fruit for sale 

 on the arrival of the steamer, we managed to get plenty. 



The two sportsmen from Helsingfors spoke Swedish, 

 like most educated people in Finland, and were ex- 

 ceedingly kind and polite, not understanding English ; 

 and as we do not speak the former language so well 

 as we would desire to do, the conversation, though 

 most voluble and long- sustained, was not understood 

 thoroughly on either side. They fished in a most 

 skilful manner, using the best English tackle. They 

 preferred fishing mostly in the rapids, and landed 

 some thirty fair- sized trout that evening, which were 

 deposited in a tank to live till they returned to 

 Helsingfors. We were less exacting on our boatman, 

 and remembering that the great trout (two of which 

 we had lately caught of 181bs. and 141bs. each) in the 



