A Fish Story. 263 



They were his guides into the forests. Here a 

 mole burrowing, a toad buried alive, or the gyra- 

 tions of an insect — a wild flower — or even a blade of 

 grass, furnished varied subjects for instruction and 

 entertainment. 



They showed him the nests with young birds, 

 that the}^ had discovered, and he taught them to 

 distinguish the bird by its note — for, to his prac- 

 tised ear, the note of every Southf^rn bird was as 

 the voice of a friend. When in Europe, he is said to 

 have made a wager (figuratively) with an English 

 scientist, that in a week he could become familiar 

 wdth every bird he met with, and tell its name by 

 its note — and he did it. 



He knew, too, the names of all the finny inhab- 

 itants of the salt and fresh waters in the neighbor- 

 hood of Charleston. 



He was a successful angler, though he would often 

 say, that to wait hours for a bite, was too lazy a sport 

 for him. Yet, when the fishermen at the seaside 

 would draw in their net, he was seen watching for 

 the haul in a state of expectancy and excitement, 

 that would have delighted old Isaac Walton. 



His boys drew from him all his best fish stories, 

 and took a lively interest in every incident of a deer 

 hunt. Many of these have been preserved. 



A Fish Story. 



Dr. Bachman was on a visit to the country home 

 of a friend living near Charleston ; his host was 

 called away to the city, and he concluded to go fish- 



