14 



HALF-HOURS IN THE GREEN LANES. 



until some over-frolicsome young fry come almosl 

 within his capacious jaws. The pike rarely attacks 

 the stronger fishes, unless he 

 sees they are sickly, or in a 

 difficulty ; and still more 

 rarely the perch, having a 

 lively recollection of the way 

 in which the latter sets up his 

 hack when assaulted ! But let 

 a roach he fastened to the end 

 of a line as a live-bait, and the 

 tyrant will then slowly swim 

 round it, terrifying it into 

 curious gyrations, and amus- 

 ing himself by seeing how 

 hopelessly helpless is the case 

 of his victim ! Little does he 

 know that close against the 

 glittering scales of his in- 

 tended prey lie concealed a 

 couple of hooks, destined to 

 take hold of his own gullet. 

 The pike never scruples to 

 take his own kind nay, you 

 cannot lay a better bait for a 

 large individual than a small 

 one. 



The young pickerel, or Jack, is even more vora- 

 cious than his fat parent. "Watch the gambols of 

 a shoal of young roach nothing is more amusing, 



