CHAPTER II. 



THE MAHSEER. 



"By sports like these are all their cares beguiled." — 



Goldsmith. 



UF the fish to he caught in Indian waters the hest is in 

 my opinion the Mahseer, the best, I mean, as regards 

 sport, and we may as well begin with the best. Its size 

 depends much on the size of the river in which it is found, 

 as will be seen in Chapter III. 



In my own opinion, and in that of others whom I have 

 met, the Mahseer shows' more sport for its size than a 

 salmon. The essence of sport, or in other words of the 

 enjoyment of any pursuit lies, I take it, in the exhibition 

 of superiority therein, whether of skill or courage, not 

 the exhibition for others to see, but the difficult at- 

 tainment of it for our own satisfaction. It would be a 

 tame affair to be pork butcher to a village pig, but to 

 spear the "mighty boar" is quite another thing. Why? 

 Where lies the difference? Simply in the fact that 



"Youth's vigour, manhood's fire, 



"Firm hand, and eagle eye, 



"Must he possess 



"Who would aspire 



"To see the grey boar die." 



Entering more or less into all sports, even to such pea- 

 ceable pursuits as chess, whist, or billiards, there are a 



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