354 Wild Life in a Southern County. 
looking over the brink, the roach may be seen swim- 
ming in the deeper part, and where it shallows up 
stream is a perch waiting for what. may come down. 
Where the water runs slowly on account of a little 
bay, there, in semi-darkness under the banks on the 
mud, are a few tench. 
There are several jacks not far off; but, though 
they prey on the roach, it is noticeable that, unless 
driven by some one passing by, they rarely go into 
these deep holes. The jack lies in shallower water 
and keeps close to the shore under shelter of the flags, 
or concealed behind the weeds. It is as if he under- 
stood that every now and then the shoal of roach will 
pass round the curve—going from one pool to the 
other—when they have to swim through the shallower 
water, Sometimes a solitary fish will shift quarters 
like this, and must go by the jack lying in ambush. 
At the top of the tongue of land (which is planted 
with withy) another brook joins the first: this brook 
is very deep, and all but stagnant. In the quiet 
back-water here—close to and yet out of the swifter 
stream—is another haunt of the jack. 
Tf alarmed, he does not swim straight up or down 
the centre of the current, but darts half-a-dozen yards 
in a slanting direction across the stream and hides 
under another floating weed. Then, if started afresh, 
he makes another zig-zag, and conceals himself once 
more. At first he remains till you could touch him, 
if you tried, with a long stick ; but at every remove 
