alone, leaving my bathing party to refresh themselves.
I reached the tent a little after four p .m .
after more than ten hours' continual walking in the
burning sun. I felt almost red hot, but my bath
and clean linen being ready, thanks to the careful
preparation of my wife, I was quickly refreshed, and
sat down with a lion's appetite to good curry and
rice, and a cup of black Coffee.
“ September 25.—Having nothing to eat, I took
my fishing-rod and strolled down to the river, and
chose . from my aquarium a fish of about half a
pound for a live bait ; I dropped this in ' the river
about twenty yards beyond thè mouth of the Till,
and allowed it to swim naturally down the stream
so as to pass across the Till junction, and descend
the deep channel between the rocks. For about ten
minutes I had no run ; I had twice tried the' same
water without success, nothing would admire my
charming bait; when just as it had reached the
favourite turning-point at the extremity of a rock,
away dashed the line, with the tremendous rush
that follows the attack of a heavy fish. Trusting
to the soundness of my' tackle, I struck hard and
fixed my new acquaintance thoroughly, but off he
dashed down the stream for about fifty yards at
one rush, making for a narrow channel between
two rocks, through which the stream ran like a mill-
race. Should he pass this channel, I knew he would
cut the line across the rock ; therefore, giving him
the butt, I held him by main force, and by the
great swirl in the water I saw that I was bringing
him to the surface; but just as I expected to see
him, my float having already appeared, away he
darted in another direction, taking sixty or seventy
yards of line without a check. I at once observed
that he must pass a shallow sandbank favourable
for landing a heavy fish, I therefore checked him
as he reached this spot, and I followed him down
the bank, reeling up line as I ran parallel with his
course. Now came the tug of war ! I knew my
hooks were good and the line sound, therefore I
was determined not to let him escape beyond the
favourable ground; and I put a strain upon him,
that after much struggling brought to the surface
a great shovel-head, followed by a pair of broad
silvery sides, as I led him gradually into shallow
water. Bacheet now cleverly secured him by the
gills, and dragged him in triumph to the shore.
This was a splendid bayard, at least forty pounds’
weight.
“ I laid my prize upon some green reeds, and
covered it carefully with the same cool material. I
then replaced my bait by a lively fish, and once
more tried the river. In a very short time I had
another run, and landed a small fish of about nine
pounds of the same species. Not wishing to catch
fish of that size, I put on a large bait, and threw
it about forty yards into the river, well up the
stream, and allowed the float to sweep the water
in a half circle, thus taking the chance of different