180 



WILD SPAIN. 



grown rocks impended darkly pools, whereon foam-flakes 

 slowly revolved, or the more rapid streams -of Eeinosa, full 

 of cataracts and tearing " races " that eat away their steep 

 gravel-banks — all these may prove blank, or a long day's 

 work be only rewarded by a few insignificant troutlets or 

 par. 



While fishing in the Eeinosa district, we were told by our 

 host that there lived some few leagues away un Ingles muy 

 aficionado — a fishing enthusiast. Thither we moved our 

 quarters : our new-made friend was one of those Anglo- 

 Saxon Crusoes whom one meets with, self-buried, for one 

 reason or another, in the recesses of wild lands, where 

 sport or solitude may be enjoyed in degrees not possible at 

 home. Eetired from a public service through an infirmity 

 begotten by the incidence of his duties, he was spending 

 the prime of life in this remote spot, satisfied with an 

 environment of Nature's purest scenes and with a modi- 

 cum of sport to reconcile' him to exile. A type of the 

 British sportsman abroad was X., keen almost to a fault, 

 little apt to measure success solely by results, a hard day's 

 work was not deemed ill-rewarded by a brace or two of 

 red-legs, or half a dozen quail, while for the chance of a 

 boar he would walk well-nigh half the night, to reach by 

 dawn the point where the retreat of some old tusker, 

 which was ravaging the peasants' crops, might perchance 

 be cut off. 



There were six or eight miles to walk on the morrow 

 ere a line was wetted — at first along a highway, 

 whence X. plunged in inertias res, that is into a rough 

 strath, horrid with shifting shingle and thorny scrub, 

 where progress was painful enough : but our companion 

 never slacked speed, and when he continued his wild 

 career, unchecked, through a brawling torrent full of 

 boulders and well-nigh waist-deep, with a current like a 

 mill-race, doubts of his sanity began to arise : or was he 

 only testing us ? Soon afterwards, providentially, we 

 reached the main stream : fair trouting water, with rather 

 too much current, the runs being almost continuous, and 

 leaving scant space of " slack." Here we set up our rods : 



