‘CH. VII.] | HERRINGS TAKEN WITH BAIT. 97 
our nobility. In fact they were so bad that we 
had serious doubts whether it was worth while 
to attempt fishing with them at all. However, our 
spirit of enterprise prevailed over our doubts, and 
we concluded to try our luck. The first omen of 
our success was a Herring, which was caught with 
a piece of one of his putrid predecessors, almost 
as soon as we commenced fishing. I need hardly 
say that the new-comer’s appearance was hailed 
with a shout of welcome, and that, in a trice, 
bright strips from his sides were doing duty upon 
all the available hooks. 
* At length they caught two boobies and a noddy, 
And then they left off eating the dead body.” 
After this god-send we began catching fish in 
earnest, and were, in fact, as hotly engaged in 
hauling in, baiting and letting down again as could 
well be, until, remembering that, the ladies would 
be waiting dinner for us, we unwillingly wound up 
our lines, having then been fishing only about a 
couple of hours, and pulled homewards. 
It is very unusual for Herrings to be taken with 
bait, but that which first gave us our real start, 
was not the only one which we caught that day, 
no less than eight others having been, one after 
another, brought on board and converted into bait. 
H 
