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 LIBRARY 
 
 ANNEX 
 
 2 
 
ALBERT R. MANN 
 LIBRARY 
 
 New York State Colleges 
 
 OF 
 
 Agriculture and Home Economics 
 
 AT 
 
 Cornell University 
 
 THE GIFT OF 
 
 WILLARD A. KIGGINS, JR. 
 
 in memory of his father 
 
SH 439.H49T879 '""">' '-'''"^'' 
 
 My life as an angler. 
 
 3 1924 003 6T9 354" 
 
The original of tiiis book is in 
 tine Cornell University Library. 
 
 There are no known copyright restrictions in 
 the United States on the use of the text. 
 
 http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924003619354 
 
MY LIFE AS AN ANGLER. 
 
PRINTED BY STANLEY PEYTON AND COMPANY 
 AT THE GOSPEL OAK PRESS. 
 
^sjLi.r^tyiJ. 
 
 // // 
 
 /^•^" QK^Y^^/'2-7 
 
MY LIFE AS AN ANGLER 
 
 BV 
 
 WILLIAM HENDERSON, 
 
 Author of ' The Folk-Lore of the Northern Counties of England 
 and the Borders.' 
 
 ' I've thrawn the flee thae sixty year, 
 
 Ay, sixty year an' mair, 
 An' monie a speckled troutie kill'd 
 
 Wi' heckle, heuk an' hair ; 
 An' now I'm auld an' feeble grown. 
 
 My locks are like the snaw ; 
 But I'll gang again to Coquet-side 
 
 An' take a fareweel thraw.' 
 
 R. ROXBY. 
 
 WITH WOODBURY PORTRAIT AND SIXTY-SEVEN WOODCUTS ENGRAVED 
 
 BY EDMUND EVANS, FROM DRAWINGS BY C. BURLISON, A. W. 
 
 COOPER, E. HASTINGS, H. L. ROLFE, AND OTHER ARTISTS. 
 
 THE HEAD AND TAIL PIECES DESIGNED BY MRS. WILLIAM HENDERSON. 
 
 LONDON : 
 
 W. SATCHELL, PEYTON & CO., 
 12, TAVISTOCK STREET, COVENT GARDEN, W.C. 
 
 1879. 
 
DEDICATION. 
 
 The following pages are affectionately dedicated to my dear 
 children. 
 
 I am now sixty-one years of age, and am still attached as 
 ardently as ever to the noble sport of angling for salmon and 
 trout. In manhood as in youth, it has often happened that I 
 have been unable to leave home at the periods which my 
 judgment pointed out as the most promising for sport. During 
 these times of disappointment I have never failed to seek what 
 comfort I could in reading books on angling, pisciculture and 
 kindred subjects, and frequently I have succeeded in trans- 
 porting my mind to the streams I knew and loved so well. At 
 moments such as these, when Pepperhaugh on Coquet, or 
 Coupland on Glen, seemed again to smile upon me, regretful 
 feelings would rise in my mind with regard to the past, with a 
 craving to read the record of my wanderings for half a century 
 by broad river and rippling streams — to recall some scenes of 
 special interest in which with companions, many of them dead 
 or far away, I have enjoyed the fly-fishing of May, or the more 
 productive worm-fishing of June. 
 
 Though the thoughtlessness of youth and the manifold 
 occupations of maturer age have prevented me from keeping a 
 regular journal of my many and varied wanderings, yet I am 
 not wholly without memoranda of days given to the gentle 
 art — days which do not appear to have been noted down for 
 the excellence of the sport obtained but by mere caprice, and 
 which detail average rather than exceptionally successful 
 angling. 
 
vi Dedication. 
 
 It is with regret that I feel myself unable to relate many a 
 tale of mirth and frolic in which I bore a part. I could neither 
 do justice to them in the recital, nor place them in chronologi- 
 cal order. I must content myself with doing little more than 
 copy such memoranda as my old writing-case contains, and 
 chronicle faithfully such incidents as memory has preserved. 
 And this I do in the hope that my dear children will feel an 
 interest in the stories of the past, and especially that my sons 
 may gain from them some instruction in the art of angling. 
 
 William Henderson. 
 Florence : Christmas '1874. 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 The following pages were written merely for the perusal of 
 my children, in order to bring before them, as clearly and 
 faithfully as possible, a picture of their father's life as an 
 angler. When I became aware that many of my personal 
 friends were also desirous to possess a record in which so many 
 of their deeds with rod and line were inscribed together with 
 my own, I yielded to a wish so flattering to myself, and the 
 little work was printed for private circulation among them. 
 The reception which it has met with from the many distin- 
 guished anglers whom I am proud to call my friends has been 
 most gratifying, and I am accordingly emboldened to take a 
 further step, and send it forth into the wide field of angling 
 literature, there to abide the criticisms of the general public. 
 
 During four years I steadily refused to take such a course, 
 feeling persuaded that an autobiography of this character, 
 which detailed so many particulars relating to other persons, 
 was more fitly restricted to a limited circle of readers. After 
 however I had received eighty letters begging for its publi- 
 cation, together with a vast number of verbal requests, I 
 yielded, in the hope that no one whose name is mentioned in 
 its pages will be in the smallest degree wounded, and that the 
 general reader will deal gently with the numerous deficiencies 
 to which no one can be so keenly alive as the author. 
 
 AsHFORD Court, Ludlow, 
 May, 1879. 
 
CONTENTS, 
 
 CHAPTER I, 
 
 PAGE 
 
 An Infantine Escapade — Condign Punishment — My Grandfather — My 
 Father — My First Play — The Mimic Theatre — The Kemble Family 
 — Listen at Durham — The Porter Family . . . I 
 
 CHAPTER n. 
 
 Miss Nipsey — First Attempts — My First Fishing Rod — Night-lines — 
 
 La Touche — Poor Tom . . . . . .11 
 
 CHAPTER in. 
 
 My First Trout — Gudgeon Fishing — The Windlestone Fish-ponds — 
 Hunted by Weasels — Origin of Worm-fishing Up-stream — Fly- 
 fishing in the Wear — An Extemporised Fly — Dace and Roach 
 Fishing — Skirmish on the Banks of the Wear — The Giant Kite — 
 Adventure with a Snake — A Novel Dinner Dress — Fishing in the 
 Bedburn ........ 
 
 17 
 
Contents. 
 
 CHAPTER rv. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 First Visit to Coquet — (Weldon Bridge) — Rothbury — The Angler caught 
 — ^Juvenile Surgery . . . . . . -31 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 Charlie Ebdy's Workshop — Charlie in Search of the Drowned — 
 At a Fire — Acting Ocuhst — With the Bull Trout — His Lessons in 
 Angling — Visit to Weldon Bridge — The Dilettante Angler — The 
 Kingfisher's Nest — The Otter a Wood-cutter — Ben the Tame Otter 
 — Charlie no Pugilist — Flood of a.d. 1824 in the Wear — Angling at 
 night ....... .36 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 A Start for the Highlands — A Good Day's Sport — Mr. Culley's Evening 
 Scramble — Highland Lochs and Streams — A Plucky Shepherd Boy 
 — A Second Highland Tour — Ducking in the Lochy — Meeting with 
 the Hon. Mr. Cranstoun — A Night in a Highland Cottage — AU 
 Alone on the Top of a Rock — Mr. Johnston and the Bull — The 
 Open-hearted Sea Captain — Tale of Second Sight . . -55 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 Charlie and Piggy — List of Sport in the Coquet — The ' Red-tailed-un 
 — Excursion to Driffield — Colonel Childers and Mr. Musters — The 
 Shothaugh Dog and his Allies . . . . -72 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 Border Streams — Storm on the Glen-^' The Broom's in the Basket' — 
 Characteristics of the Glen — My First Pike — The Gipsy Bride and 
 Groom — Golden Days for Anglers — Strictures on Modern Sport . 80 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 Worm-fishing in the Tweed — Rob n' the Trows — Rob and the Noble- 
 man — ' Swallow-smolts ' — The Red Trout of the Eden — Eels at the 
 Waterfall of Newton Don — The Gamekeeper and my Card— Fishing 
 in the Whiteadder— In the Till— Eels Feeding on Insects— The 
 Angler Hooked— Bait of the Flying Lob— Collie Dogs in Kirk . 88 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 St. Boswell' s and Dryburgh)— Adam Johnston— Salmon-fishing— John 
 Younger— Verses to Nannie— Struggle with an Eel— Captain *— 
 His Tales of Old Times ■ • • . . 100 
 
Contents. 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 The Coquet — Casting up Stream — A Night at the Black Bull— Salmon 
 Roe — Hospitality at Mindrum Mill— The Blind Water-Rat — The 
 Cheviot Shepherd and the Wise-Man — Charlie Ebdy at Mertoun 
 Water — Captain * and his -Son — ^The Mertoun and Rutherford 
 Waters^Fishing in the Wharfe — ^Effect of my Wading Boots on the 
 Landlady's Nerves — Reminiscence of my First Shot — ^Adventure 
 with a Boar . . . . . . ..Ill 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 Formation of the Sprouston Club — The Johnston Family — Sprouston 
 Dub and Bob Kerss — The Durham Ranger and the Big Fish — 
 Capture of Puppy Dog — Mr. Bond's Success in July — The Pointers 
 and our Rod ........ 127 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 Varied Fishing in the Edenmouth Water — Escape from a Frightful 
 Carriage Accident — Dr. Raine's Munificence — Fishing Trip to the 
 Whiteadder — Nocturnal Adventures — Accidents on the way to Chirn- 
 side — The Sprouston Harvest Fields — The Parson among the Reaper 
 Maidens . . . . • • • .137 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 The Big Fish — The ' William Henderson,' ' Greenwell,' and ' Wilkinson ' 
 Flies— The Water Hen's Nest— Memoranda of Mr. T. P. Teale's 
 Fishing — James Wright the Tackle-maker — Fishing at Etall . 147 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 The Wise Economy of X.— His Discomfiture— Fishing at Rutherford— 
 My Hook in Sandie's Lug — The Otter and the Salmon — Lord John 
 Scott and the Otter— Mr. Langhorne's Capture of a Pike— The 
 Angler's Luncheon — Reynard on the Wall — Mr. Langhome and 
 Mr. Swire on the Tweed— Fishing in the Wark Water . 155 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 Fishing in the Glen— Weasels and Eels— ' Greenwell's Glory'— June 
 Fishing with Mr. J. H. Forster — Admiral Cator — The Breamish and 
 the Till— Friendship Tested— The Wee Wee Fish— Spearing Salmon 
 — Worm-fishing for Salmon . . • • ■ .172 
 
Contents. 
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 Notes of Fishing in February, 1856 — In March — Dead Salmon Utilised — 
 Fishing with Messrs. Cundill and Evans — With Major Maunsell — 
 The Wild Cattle of Chillingham Park— Lord Ossulston— ' Ye are 
 Waur than a Net ' — October Fishing with Mr. C. Bramwell — The 
 Angler's Carnival ...... 183 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 Fishing in Makerstoun — At Sprouston Dub — With Mr. Bramwell — In 
 the Cale — The Eel and Trout — Legends of Linton — Last Use of 
 Salmon Roe — Fishing at Sprouston in Wild Weather — In the Ewart 
 Water — Scenery around the Tributaries of the College and the Glen 200 
 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 Floods at Sprouston — The Swallow-smolt and Trout — Fishing in the 
 Glen — in the College — A Young Angler Disappointed — Death of 
 Mr. Johnston — Thomas Scott's Dexterity — A Day Lost — Comparison 
 between Wark Water and Sprouston Dub — Dr. Holden and the 
 'Strange Irregular Beast ' — Results of Fishing in Sprouston Dub . 210 
 
 CHAPTER XX. 
 
 Fishing in Birgham Dub — A Too Eager Spectator — Fishing with Mr. 
 Bigge and Mr. Cundill — Capture of a Salmon with Fine Trout Tackle 
 — ^A Similar Feat by Mr. Culley — New Brooms Sweep Too Clean — 
 Fishing with Mr. Lewis— With Dr. Holden— With Mr. P. S. Wilkin- 
 son — Notes by the Latter on the Fishing Season of a.d. 1862 . 222 
 
 CHAPTER XXI. 
 
 Juvenile Anglers — Fishing with Mr. Brinton — ' Daft Jock ' — Fishing with 
 my Son — Mr. Greenwell's Successful Experiment — Advance of Years 
 brings fewer fish— Piscator and Careless on Fishing Up-stream 
 with Worm .... ... 236 
 
 CHAPTER. XXII. 
 
 Last Interview with Mr. Brown, of Longformacus— Mr. William Green- 
 well's Best Day— A Remarkable Day in the Butterwash— Mr. Bond's 
 Great Day in Sprouston Dub— Death of Mrs. Johnston— Contest 
 respecting Lumley Lock— Association for the Preservation of the 
 River Wear— A Noteworthy Day in the Wear— Migration of Eels- 
 Captain Henderson at Sprouston Dub and Old Bewick — May by the 
 Glen — Final Adventure with a Bull . . . 2i;o 
 
Contents. 
 
 CHAPTER XXIII. 
 
 Inspection of the Wear by Her Majesty's Salmon Fishing Commissioners 
 — Mr. Frank Buckland's Link with the Past — My own — Remarkable 
 Capture of a Salmon in the Butterwash — Mr. P. S. Wilkinson's Notes 
 of the Spring and Autumn Fishing of A.D. 1873 — The Mysterious 
 Anglers — Mr. George Crawhall and Hobble — Old Timbertoes — The 
 Blind Fisherman of St Boswell's — Fishing of Major Beckwith — Of Dr. 
 Fawcett — Mr. Culley and Ganningan ..... 261 
 
 CHAPTER XXIV. 
 
 Treves — The last Stuart — My French Guide and his Collection of Worms 
 — Fishing in the Kyll — Wildbad — Fishing In the Enz — ^A Word 
 respecting Rafts — Engelberg — Attempts to Fish in the Neighbouring 
 Streams — A Ducking — Lucerne — The Devil's Bridge — Beauty of the 
 Trout in Swiss Streams — ^An Awkward Scramble — Night Fishing in 
 the Black Forest — Conclusion and Farewells . . 302 
 
 APPENDICES. . . ■ 3°3 
 
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. 
 
 ASHESTIEL BRIDGE . IX 
 
 THE boatman's COTTAGE I 
 
 YE WHITE STRAW, YE BLACK STICK. 10 
 
 THE miller's wall . . II 
 
 THE KITCHEN DOOR. . l6 
 
 THE miller's hat AND STAFF . l6 
 
 SOLITUDE . . . .17 
 
 VIEW ON THE BROWNEY . . l8 
 
 STANDING ALONE . 31 
 
 BRINKBURN 33 
 
 RUSHES IN BLOOM . .35 
 
 QUIET WATER ... 36 
 
 WELDON BRIDGE . 41 
 
 THE THRUM MILL ... .48 
 
 A FLOOD . . -54 
 
 RESTING ON THE BRIDGE . . 55 
 
 LOCH HOURN . 65 
 
 A HIGHLAND VIEW 6? 
 
 THE RIVERSIDE . . 7 1 
 
 THE FISHERMAN'S INN 72 
 
 SUNDERLAND BRIDGE . 74 
 
 THE HOME OF THE MINNOW 79 
 
 WHERE THE BIG TROUT LIE 
 
 80 
 
 WAITING FOR THE CHILDREN'S SUPPER . . 8? 
 
 BIRTHPLACE OF THE MAYFLY . . 88 
 
 NEWTON DON WATERFALL • • 91 
 
 LANDED AND BASKETED ... ■ • 99 
 
 THE STONE BRIDGE 
 AN ACCIDENT ON THE MAIN LINE 
 WHERE THE LITTLE TROUT PLAY 
 A MAY MORNING . 
 
 100 
 102 
 IIO 
 III 
 
xvi Illustrations. 
 
 HARE CRAIG POOL . ..... 121 
 
 MIDSUMMER . . ..... 127 
 
 NOT MUCH USE . . . . 1 36 
 
 A TROUT STREAM 1 37 
 
 SEDGY BANKS FOR WATER BIRDS . . I46 
 
 I COME TO THE WINDOW . . I47 
 
 THE VILLAGE WELL IS5 
 
 THE EDGE OF THE MEADOW . I7 1 
 
 OVERFLOWING THE BANKS .... 1 72 
 
 THE WATERFALL . ... 182 
 
 A FISHING VILLAGE ... . 183 
 
 TANKERVILLE ARMS, WOOLER . . I87 
 
 A fisherman's treasure . . . 199 
 
 OVER THE ROCKS .... . 200 
 
 THE TRYSTING BRIDGE ... ... 209 
 
 THE BRIDGE ON THE BROOK . 210 
 
 COUPLAND CASTLE 
 
 TWISEL MILL 
 
 A TANGLE . 
 
 THE HAUNT OF THE MINNOW 
 
 WARKWORTH CASTLE 
 
 TILLSIDE . 
 
 SHELTER FOR YOUNG FISH 
 
 THE CITY WALL 
 
 NORHAM CASTLE 
 
 WORK DONE 
 
 A SUMMER NOON . 
 
 HOME AT LAST 
 
 IMPALED . 
 
 212 
 
 SPROUSTON DUB . gig 
 
 WAITING FOR THE DAWN 221 
 
 A GLIMPSE OF DURHAM 222 
 
 DAWN OF A FISHING DAY 
 
 STILLNESS 
 
 235 
 235 
 241 
 249 
 
 250 
 256 
 
 260 
 261 
 267 
 276 
 297 
 302 
 303 
 
MY LIFE AS AN ANGLER. 
 
 ' Every family is a history in itself, and even a poem to those who know 
 how to search its pages.' — Alphonse Lamartine. 
 
 F all the signs of the zodiac un- 
 doubtedly ' the fish with glittering 
 tails ' ruled my horoscope. The streams and rivulets of 
 my native county, which then flowed pure and unpolluted, 
 moulded my baby thoughts, and, like a young duck, I was 
 hardly out of the shell before I took to the water. 
 
 Within the first year of my life my family came to reside in 
 an old house at Durham, known as Shakelock Hall, and 
 standing on the banks of the river Wear. I have often been 
 told how every summer morning, when the nursery maid had 
 awakened me from my slumbers, I watched her movements 
 with a careful eye, ready if she absented herself from the 
 nursery but for a moment, to creep downstairs in my little 
 
 B 
 
Infantine Escapade. 
 
 night-dress, dash through the garden, and gain the water 
 side. Here was a never-failing source of joy — here lay the 
 fairyland of my infancy. To catch the sticks and straws 
 which floated down the stream, combine and balance them, 
 and set them oiF again in a contest of speed, constituted my 
 earliest delight. Several severe colds, and one sharp attack 
 of inflammation, however, led my parents to take active 
 measures for the cure of this hydropathic mania. A stranger 
 was engaged to watch my movements and arrest them, while 
 an old trusty servant of the family was placed in the back- 
 ground as my guardian angel. As I stood on the river's 
 brink, intent on the contest for precedence between ' the white 
 straw ' and ' the black stick,' not dreaming of approaching 
 evil, plump I was plunged by an unseen hand into the 
 stream, and left floundering in what to me was deep water. 
 After a few moments, however, which seemed to me an age, I 
 was rescued as prearranged, by my hidden friend. He caught 
 me up, soothed me and bore me off to the paternal roof. 
 
 Forgetting that my own disobedience was the cause of 
 the catastrophe, I complained bitterly of the naughty wicked 
 man who had thrown me into the river, and declared that 
 if good John Ditchburn had not come up just then I should 
 certainly have been drowned. The measure was indeed a 
 rough and ready one, such as parents of the present day 
 would scarcely resort to with a little child, but I imagine 
 it was not so considered in the last generation. It is related 
 in my wife's family that the late Rev. John Skinner, vicar 
 of Camerton, the lifelong friend of her grandfather, coming 
 one day upon his five-year-old son in forbidden ground on 
 the margin of a pond, stole up quietly behind the culprit, 
 seized him by the legs, dipped him head foremost in the 
 water, laid him on the bank and strode away, leaving the 
 poor child to recover from the shock as best he could. 
 
My Grandfather. 
 
 Before proceeding with the history of the little truant by 
 the river side, let me say a few words respecting his family. 
 
 The first record of my father's ancestors is as follows. 
 About two centuries ago a younger son of the family, deeming 
 his portion too scant for living with comfort in his native 
 county of Fife, emigrated to the western part of Durham and 
 engaged in farming. Generations passed, till my grandfather 
 was the representative, and I believe the only one, of the 
 emigrant. How well I remember him ; a hale old man, 
 upwards of eighty years of age, testy in temper and over- 
 bearing to all except my grandmother, whose marvellous 
 gentleness never failed to soften the domestic autocrat. He 
 had several sons, and thinking no occupation comparable to 
 farming, he destined no fewer than four to follow in his own 
 steps. Unfortunately for my father's happiness he was one of 
 the devoted four, and a farmer he was to be, though his talents 
 and turn of mind pointed in a different direction. The lad's 
 studious habits and great intelligence had early gained him the 
 affection of his schoolmaster, who did all in his power to 
 rescue his favourite pupil from an occupation he abhorred, but 
 in vain. This schoolmaster, let me observe, was one of the 
 self-taught mathematicians who about that time cropped up in 
 the county of Durham, men who without the advantage of a 
 college education attained to a high standard of mathematical 
 knowledge. Some of them obtained high positions elsewhere ; 
 others less ambitious earned their bread by teaching the 
 smaller schools of the neighbourhood, while they propounded 
 or answered those knotty mathematical problems which formed 
 at that time the great staple of the famous Kendal Diary. My 
 father's schoolmaster was a cripple, but a really able man, and 
 such was his affection for his pupil that on his being withdrawn 
 from school he volunteered to carry on ■ the lad's education in 
 the evening. There was but one way by which this could be 
 
My Father. 
 
 effected. The lad took his mother into his confidence, and for 
 many weeks she contrived without her husband's knowledge to 
 allow my father to let himself down from his bedroom window 
 at night and run two miles across the country to the house of 
 his kind preceptor. 
 
 This remarkable love of learning, with an especial drawing 
 to the study of mathematics, to the English classics and all 
 literature connected with the drama, continued during my 
 father's whole life and availed to cheer the long hours of pain 
 and weariness, which, while still in the prime of life, it became 
 his lot to endure. 
 
 Circumstances led him in early youth to the city of Durham, 
 and there he met my mother. He possessed health, energy, 
 talents, and an unblemished character, and is said to have been 
 more than good-looking, and exceedingly attractive in manner. 
 No wonder that she who, even in later life, was remarkable for 
 singular beauty and great abilities should in the freshness of 
 her early charms have attracted one so qualified to appreciate 
 her. Rarely indeed did two persons meet so evidently made 
 for each other. If ever there was a perfect fusion of two spirits 
 in one, it was in the case of my father and mother. But, alas ! 
 the happiness of their married life was too great to be of long 
 continuance. After a few brief years my father was attacked 
 by a severe and lingering illness, caused by remaining in wet 
 clothes after a long wild drive in an open carriage across the 
 "Whitby moors. From that time to his death, at the early age 
 of forty-two, he was a constant though uncomplaining sufferer, 
 dependent on my mother's sweet and gentle tendance, his only 
 other recreations being a drive in his carriage by my mother's 
 side, accompanied by myself on my little pony, and occasionally 
 a visit to the theatre. 
 
 A taste for the drama was deeply implanted in both my 
 parents ; no wonder it was early developed in their child. 
 
My First Play. 
 
 Among the most charming of the 'Essays of Elia' stands 
 ' My First Play,' and had I the pen of Charles Lamb, I, too 
 would record what I felt on my admission to this palace of 
 pleasure. I will, however, only relate the attendant circum- 
 stances, which were curious enough. I had heard of the 
 theatre till I longed, oh, how eagerly to visit it, and before I 
 was five years old I determined that, come what would, I, too, 
 would see a play. Accordingly one evening I stole from the 
 nursery in my little tartan frock and white pinafore, with bare 
 head and arms, and ran through the streets as swiftly as I 
 could. When I reached the portals of my ' paradise of daintie 
 devises,' a little knot of women were just entering. With a 
 sudden inspiration I grasped the dress of one whose face looked 
 kind and whose drapery was ample, and sheltering myself in 
 its folds I passed the ticket collector and soon was seated in the 
 foremost part of the pit. My childish appearance and flaxen 
 locks attracted the attention of my neighbours. They per- 
 ceived me to be without protectors and were questioning what 
 to do with me, when the curtain rose and every eye was fixed 
 upon the stage. Soon my loud and eager plaudits drew the 
 attention of both audience and actors. It was all enchantment 
 to me and a dream of Elysium. Every feeling was absorbed 
 in vision, when a lady said abruptly to my mother, who with 
 my father was in the boxes, ' Don't you think, Mrs. Henderson, 
 that that little boy in the pit is very like your William .? ' 
 Alas for the shock that followed ! I was carried off at once, 
 loudly protesting that I wanted to stay and see what would 
 happen next. 
 
 A few years later I was ambitious enough to take a bold step 
 and set about the construction of a mimic theatre myself, with 
 the aid of a schoolfellow, George Andrews, a boy of singular 
 ingenuity, whose passion for the drama was equal to my own. 
 One long winter evening after another was given up to our 
 
The Mimic Theatre. 
 
 new work, and before two years had expired we were able to 
 exhibit to our wondering companions a mimic theatre, perfect 
 in every detail and capable of exhibiting at least a dozen melo- 
 dramas. Robbers in caves lighted by torches, Hamlet and all 
 his surroundings, Baillie Nicol Jarvie with his red-hot poker, 
 and many another scene ; above all a sea fight, ending in the 
 blowing up of both vessels, such were our favourite exhibitions. 
 This theatre is still in existence. It has frequently been 
 shown to my children, and probably in years to come will 
 enter into the happy hours of the next generation. 
 
 At a later period of my life these family tastes led to a warm 
 friendship between my mother and Mrs. Stephen Kemble, 
 when as a widow she resided at the Grove, a pretty place not 
 far from our residence at Bellasis. Her husband, though less 
 celebrated than his brother and sister, was an admirable actor. 
 He was a tall large man, and his vast bulk enabled him to 
 play the part of FalstafF without any padding, so as to satisfy 
 the requirements even of the present century, which persists 
 in taking literally all Prince Hal's humorous exaggerations 
 and the merry knight's jokes at himself. Stephen Kemble 
 went from Durham to London by request to act FalstafF before 
 George IV., and a very clever prologue was written, asserting 
 his dimensions to be all his own, and stating that a waggon 
 had been necessary to drag him to London. He was a man of 
 singularly bright and cheerful disposition ; fond of society, 
 and never happier than when, seated at his dinner table with 
 three friends of kindred spirits, he led the conversation with a 
 charm of manner and fund of ready information rarely to be 
 met with. 
 
 In those days conversational powers were held in far higher 
 estimation than at present. Wit and brilliancy of speech were 
 essential to good standing in society ; now, like pebbles in the 
 bed of a brook, people are so rounded by conventionalities that 
 
Stephen Kemble. 
 
 it is hard to tell where talent lies. So long as a man comports 
 himself quietly and commits no solecism in language or 
 manners, he is spoken of as a gentlemanlike person ; he may 
 be a fool, but that seems comparatively of small consequence. 
 
 The charming little dinners of which I have spoken, with 
 the rubber of whist that followed them, were, I grieve to say, 
 a source of discord between our modern FalstafF and his 
 spouse, his native generosity and love of society inducing him 
 to indulge in them more frequently than was altogether war- 
 ranted by his means. The need of exercising a strict control in 
 these matters developed an economical habit, which became a 
 leading feature in the lady's character. Thus on Mr. Kemble's 
 death she actually wrote to his friend Mr. Leybourne, begging 
 him as a kindness to purchase of her certain pairs of shoes 
 belonging to her late husband, adding that they were very little 
 worn, and that she knew no other gentleman with a foot 
 sufficiently large to fill them. 
 
 It is right to add that in later days, when her income was 
 certain and all anxiety respecting pecuniary embarrassments 
 at an end, a great change took place, and I can testify that few 
 of my early acquaintances were more hospitable or spread a 
 more bounteous table to their friends than this pleasant and 
 companionable old lady. My mother was her constant guest. 
 In her later days, when the cares of a family no longer weighed 
 upon her mind, she was often missing at the evening meal, and 
 I knew at once where to go in search of her. She was sure to 
 be at the Grove, most likely discussing with Mrs. Kemble, the 
 great actors of their early days. I used to sit down and listen, 
 and thus I learned to know Garrick, Macklin, the Kembles and 
 Mrs. Siddons, Kean, Macready and others. Would that I could 
 write down the many incidents which charmed me then. 
 
 One little anecdote respecting Liston dwells in my memory. 
 He first appeared at the theatres of Sunderland, Durham, and 
 
Liston at Durham. 
 
 other northern towns, and his talents for comedy were at once 
 appreciated, hut with a strange perversity he declared that his 
 true forte was deep tragedy, and to that and that alone would 
 he devote himself in future. The manager, Mr. Cawdell, 
 however had no belief in Liston's tragic vein, and much per- 
 plexed he was in consequence. He did all he could to set the 
 actor right, but to no purpose, and at last an unwilling consent 
 was given for his appearance on the Durham boards in the 
 character of Richard III. The house was crowded, for Liston 
 was a sort of lion, and much curiosity was felt about his 
 present performance. For some time the piece proceeded 
 tolerably, the audience being predisposed in his favour, but 
 when the death scene at Bosworth field came before them, the 
 postures of the dying Richard were so extraordinary and 
 unnatural that the gods in the gallery, generally pretty good 
 judges, cried out with one voice, ' That won't do, Liston, die 
 over again, die over again ! ' On hearing these exclamations 
 the natural instincts of the man overcame all other consider- 
 ations. He rose slowly from the ground as if he were waking 
 from a trance, gazed for some time at the audience, fixing his 
 large stolid eyes as if in a stupid stare, while his wonderfully 
 mobile countenance worked and twitched as none but Liston's 
 could, then frantically throwing arms and legs about he flung 
 himself again upon the ground and died a second time. 
 
 The thunders of applause which followed this travesty were 
 long and loud, and from that day Liston was more popular 
 than ever in Durham. But such a scene plainly would not 
 bear repetition, and when next morning, in the green room, 
 Mr. Cawdell gravely informed him that he could never again 
 be trusted to play tragedy, the culprit ruefully made answer, 
 ' Indeed sir, after last night's work I shall never trust myself in 
 it again ; ' to which resolution he very wisely adhered. 
 
 I have always felt a keen interest in my mother's girlish 
 
Jane Porter. 
 
 friendship for Jane Porter, whom I myself remember when a 
 child. I recollect the 'arrival of a note from the Waterloo 
 Hotel with a request that it should be delivered immediately 
 to my mother. The note was from the authoress in question, 
 conveying an affectionate request that the friend of her early 
 days would come and pass a few hours with her at the hotel 
 while she was resting on her way to London. It appeared that 
 the lady was returning from Scotland, where she had been 
 collecting materials for her well-known work, ' The Scottish 
 Chiefs,' and she was glad to pause for a short time in the home 
 of her childhood. For Miss Porter, her sister Anna Maria, 
 and their brother Robert had been brought up at Durham, 
 and were such near neighbours of my mother, herself an only 
 child, that they were constant companions, occupied together 
 in pursuits which have not failed to leave their mark in 
 history. I have often heard my mother describe the following 
 scene. 
 
 The little party was collected in a low room with long case- 
 ment windows looking into Bow Lane, then as now the 
 quietest and most ancient-looking part of the city. Miss 
 Porter and my mother were engaged in needlework ; Robert, 
 stretched on the floor, was busy painting battle scenes on 
 tissue paper ; while Anna Maria, with a timid glance at her 
 sister, drew from her pocket a manuscript which she was to 
 read aloud according to promise. It was the first part of that 
 charming volume afterwards known as 'Artless Tales,' cer- 
 tainly a remarkable production for a girl of (I believe) only 
 fourteen years of age. The listeners were loud in their praises, 
 till at last Miss Porter rose with an air worthy of Mrs. Siddons, 
 a manner which clung to her through life. ' Anna,' she said 
 ' you have written well.' There was a pause for some moments, 
 'When I write,' she added, 'I shall write history,' and she 
 swept out of the room with the air of a duchess. The 
 
10 
 
 The Porter Family. 
 
 reading of this, the first ' Artless Tale,' decided the future of 
 the elder sister ; from that day she applied herself to literature, 
 in which she has left a not unhonoured name. 
 
 But the boy on the ground was perhaps the most remarkable 
 member of this gifted family, and in his present employment 
 lay the germ of a happy creation of his later days. He was a 
 self-taught painter, and his practical mind developed the idea 
 of exhibiting historical scenes in panorama. On the floor 
 beside him stood a tea chest, from which two ends had been 
 removed. Across one of these openings a sheet of tissue 
 paper was stretched, on which a grand battle-piece was de- 
 picted, while behind clustered an array of candles, the cost of 
 which was defrayed by a tax levied on the sight-seers. In this 
 old tea chest and candles we see the origin of Sir Robert Ker 
 Porter's panorama of world-wide fame, which made him a 
 knight in England and assisted in winning him high rank and 
 a rich bride at the Court of St. Petersburgh. Art first raised 
 him to eminence, though subsequently he was not less distin- 
 guished in diplomacy, in war, and in literature. 
 
CHAPTER II. 
 
 ' The child is father of the man.' — WORDSWORTH. 
 
 lET me resume my own early history. At five 
 years of age I was sent to a school kept by an 
 austere little lady named by her pupils Miss 
 Nipsey, under whom I enjoyed a varied style of tuition with 
 many a young companion of either sex. The hours devoted 
 to study were brief, and during the summer months no sooner 
 were we let loose from school than the race began. He was a 
 hero who first gained the gravel bed which dams back the 
 water from the Bishop's corn-mill. ' Methinks I see the miller 
 yet ; ' with what awe did we regard him. Most sedulous were 
 we to pay him fitting respect ; for by his permission alone did 
 we dare to ransack the crevices of the stakes for loaches or 
 young eels. The gravel bed had its peculiar attraction. From 
 the ponds immediately beneath the stakes we constructed long 
 canals through it, and driving the minnows which frequented 
 the ponds into these, we made grand captures — captures which 
 we looked upon with as much complacency as we now bestow 
 on a fortunate day among the salmon of Sprouston Dub. 
 
 Our water-bucket with its collection of minnows, loaches, 
 and eels, varied by an occasional stickleback or miller's thumb, 
 was borne in triumph to an old stone trough which stood in 
 
12 Young Anglers. 
 
 the back garden of my father's house. Here the unhappy 
 prisoners we packed as tightly as the sufferers in the Black 
 Hole of Calcutta, yet great was our astonishment and dismay 
 when we found that, despite all the bread crumbs and worms 
 we crowded in for food, the creatures would die,, and that a 
 fresh supply was needed every evening to fill up the room of 
 the slain. Many and curious were the experiments which the 
 juvenile band of naturalists tried in that old trough. There 
 we tested the popular belief respecting the transformation of 
 horsehair into young eels. We saw an evidence of the hidden 
 life within, in the tendency of the hair to twist and turn when 
 first placed in the water, the quiescence that followed appearing 
 to us no good ground for impugning the great fact that the 
 hair had moved. On that we took our stand, and attributed 
 the subsequent failure of the experiment to a thousand and 
 one causes adduced in turn by every boy. 
 
 The acquisition of his first fishing-rod is always an era in an 
 angler's life, and well do I remember the circumstances which 
 led to my possessing one. Prowling along the river bank in 
 search of minnows I came upon two boys apparently possess- 
 ing a joint interest in a fishing-rod which was projected over a 
 willow bush. Youth is a period of freemasonry, and I was 
 soon on good terms with the strangers, who proudly exhibited 
 the result of their sport — three small eels strung upon a willow 
 twig. How often did we take them down, carefully measure 
 and re-measure, wash and re-wash them, flap their tails when 
 they showed signs of returning life, and discuss the important 
 question as to whether they were members of the silver or 
 the golden eel families ! It was not in human nature to wit- 
 ness such joys unmoved, and soon I was bold enough to request 
 ' from my mother the sum of eighteenpence, for which I pro- 
 fessed myself ready to pawn my weekly stipend of threepence. 
 Behold me now the proud possessor of a ' two piece rod,' 
 
My First Fishing Rod. 13 
 
 glowing with bright vermilHon and rich in a brass ferule ! 
 Thus armed, every evening found me at some spot where eels 
 were said to abound, while on rainy days I made it a rule to 
 angle beneath the bridge, for I firmly believed the assertion of 
 an ironical friend that eels in bad weather sought the shelter 
 of the arches to keep themselves out of the wet ! 
 
 Many and varied were the triumphs I now achieved, but I 
 am obliged to confess that certain practices of a somewhat 
 questionable character were at this time resorted to by us 
 juvenile anglers. It became the fashion among us to set night 
 lines. Wonderful tales were in circulation of enormous eels 
 thus caught by the renowned Charlie Ebdy, nor were they 
 altogether untrue. More than once was I permitted to see the 
 result of his night's investment, and a bucket filled with eels, 
 some weighing from two to three pounds, was a sight to fire 
 the energies of a boy not more than nine or ten years of age. 
 I cannot say that my success in this branch of the art corres- 
 ponded to the pains bestowed on it. Clear as it seemed to our 
 young minds that six hooks during the night must have more 
 effect than one by day, some mischance was always impairing 
 the results. Every morning in summer I would steal to the 
 river side, looking stealthily round to see whether any un- 
 friendly eye watched my proceedings, and if the coast seemed 
 clear the line was drawn in. Alas ! the proceeds were seldom 
 more than one or two small eels, the other hooks being com- 
 monly broken and the line twisted so as to show some giant 
 had been caught but had proved more than a match for me. 
 
 My fishing at this period was, however, marked by some 
 incidents of a character never to be forgotten. Among my 
 dear mother's pets was a poodle, whose talents made him 
 indeed a remarkable dog. La Touche was by birth and 
 breeding a Russian, his long hair hung in a hundred graceful 
 ringlets ; he was as white as snow, and had not his tail been 
 
14 La Touche. 
 
 cruelly shortened of its fair proportions, he might have been 
 deemed in every respect a dandy-dog. His early life had been 
 passed in camps ; he had been present, perchance had bled, at 
 glorious Waterloo ; no wonder that he was the little pet of the 
 house. His charms are set forth in these lines by a youthful 
 member of the family : 
 
 Who's he with soft and curly hair, 
 White as if bleached by mountain air 
 With skin so delicate and fair ? 
 
 Old Touche. 
 
 With ears so long and mouth so -wide, 
 And legs so bow-like when astride, 
 A tail on which a mouse might ride ? 
 
 Old Touche. 
 
 Who begs so well, and dances too, 
 Nay, brandy drinks and ne'er gets fou, 
 Who smokes cigars ? (yes, that is true ), 
 Old Touche. 
 
 Who through a hoop so nimbly jumps, 
 Nay, will do an3fthing for thumps. 
 Whose only malady's the dumps ? 
 
 Old Touche. 
 
 Who in a passion often flies, 
 
 When strangers take him by surprise. 
 
 And when he's hurt so loudly cries ? 
 
 Old Touche. 
 
 Who when he's told will really die 
 And piteous lay with close-shut eye .' 
 He to whom now, we bid good-bye. 
 
 Old Touche. 
 
 Touche was my constant companion in setting or with- 
 drawing these night lines. While my baits were limited to 
 lob worms all went well, but in an evil hour I succeeded in 
 coaxing the cook to give me some scraps of meat for the 
 purpose. These were soon placed upon the hooks, and on a 
 
La Totiche. 15 
 
 dark night I bent my way to the foot of the Hielands, the dog 
 trotting contentedly by my side. The line with all its 
 attractions was stretched upon the sandbank, and I was pre- 
 paring to pitch it into the water, when it was wrenched out 
 of my hand, and a howl, oh what a howl of agony, told the 
 horrid fact. Dear old Touche had hooked himself as fast as 
 ardent lover could desire to be hooked to a pretty maid ! 
 
 He was for some time too frightened to .allow me to 
 approach him, but at last he submitted, and murmuring the 
 softest words I led him homewards. On reaching the garden- 
 gate I paused, realising all the horrors of the situation. How 
 was I to face my mother with a large fishhook in the throat of 
 her pet ? Whatever La Touche may have been enduring, I 
 think my distress more than equalled his. 
 
 I stood for some time undecided what to do while many a 
 tear fell on the long curls of Touche. At last a bright idea 
 struck me, and I hurried to the cottage of John Ditchburn 
 with my sad tale. John possessed strong nerves, and was ever 
 fertile in resources. A stout stick was quickly placed between 
 the sufferer's jaws, and ere a minute had passed the hook was 
 disengaged by my friend's firm hand from its cruel hold. My 
 thanks were profuse, and John being a model of discretion, no 
 sound of the tragedy reached the domestic circle. My blushes, 
 however, nearly betrayed me when, at breakfast the next 
 morning, my mother remarked, ' Poor La Touche seems to eat 
 his buttered toast with difficulty.' 
 
 The fates seemed about this time bent on torturing me. 
 Determined never again to use baits which might tempt La 
 Touche to danger, I collected a batch of minnows, baited my 
 night lines and hung them upon a nail outside the house at 
 some distance from the ground. As we were seated snugly at 
 tea that evening, the maid rushed into the room shrieking, 
 ' O, ma'am, Tom's gone mad.' Out we rushed into the garden 
 
1 6 Tain's Walk on the Pantiles. 
 
 and beheld a sight worthy of Cruikshank's pencil. The fet 
 cook, loudly calling for help, was holding on by one end of a 
 night line, while the torn cat, who had swallowed down a 
 minnow with its sharp enclosure, was promenading along the 
 ridge of the house roof, with his tail and every hair of his back 
 as erect as a maypole. ' Pussy ! poor Pussy ! ' said my mother. 
 ' Wow ! ' said Tom, and took another turn on the pantiles. 
 Off I ran to find my friend John, who was always near when 
 wanted. This proved, however, a more serious affair than the 
 last, for as John clambered along the ridge and approached the 
 eat, Tom treated him as an enemy, spit at him, and indeed 
 clawed him shamefully. Still John, as a gallant squire, had 
 his spurs to win, and maids fair and fat were looking on, so 
 despite all struggles the capture was effected. On the surgical 
 operation which followed I need not enlarge, suffice to say 
 that Tom walked about for some time with a bandage round 
 his neck, and warned by these disasters I gave up all use of 
 night lines, increasing years allowing me soon to aspire to the 
 capture of the most game fish that swims, the angler's best 
 sport, the trout. 
 
CHAPTER III. 
 
 ' Anglers elated with unusual spoil.' — ^WORDSWORTH. 
 
 7 Y First Trout. — Oh, joy of joys ! how can 
 I describe the glory so long aspired after ? The circumstances 
 were simply these. As I approached my tenth year, I became 
 more and more devoted to my fishing-rod, and with a little 
 knot of friends as enthusiastic as myself, I used to pass every 
 hour unclaimed by our schoolmaster in spinning hair-lines, 
 making tackle and bobbing for eels. When a half-holiday 
 permitted so long an excursion, off we sped to the then 
 beautiful Browney, where, with rods poised over convenient 
 bushes we passed the time in making huts to defend ourselves 
 from the rain and wind, and in leap-frog and other games of 
 the season. In those days, be it observed, every month had 
 its special game, many of them requiring implements to be 
 fashioned beforehand. Much youthful ingenuity was developed 
 in their manufacture. We were early trained to make what- 
 ever we needed, and the things acquired by the labour of our 
 hands were prized and valued accordingly. I look with regret 
 upon the changes time has effected in this matter. Now boys 
 play at nothing but cricket and football ; they purchase their 
 
My First Trout. 
 
 bats, their wickets, and their balls. My comrades and I had 
 at least a score of different games, and as many implements. 
 The training was excellent. Is the change an improvement 1 
 I doubt it. 
 
 But to return to my first trout. On one of our holiday 
 afternoons the little party of friends repaired to the Browney 
 near Langley Bridge, and there, in the long Dub by the 
 side of the Brancepeth Road, we propped our rods side 
 by side and began a game at leap-frog, whep the cry arose, 
 ' There's a bite at Henderson's ? ' A rush to the river, an 
 anxious pause, a gentle uplifting of the rod, a loud scream 
 
 VIEW ON THE BROWNEY. 
 
 of wonder and backwards I ran, far into the dusty road, 
 dragging a trout whose weight was at least a pound. The 
 war-whoops and dances of a party of Indians could hardly 
 have exceeded the excitement to which we gave way. There 
 was cheer upon cheer, yell upon yell, and many a thump 
 descended on my back in token of sympathy. There was no 
 more fishing that afternoon. Back we marched at once to the 
 old city, bearing our prize suspended by the gills Upon a hazel 
 stick and looking out for the admiring gaze of the passers-by. 
 
Windlestone Fish Ponds. 1 9 
 
 The Iron Duke, when Waterloo had been fought and won, was 
 not more proud than we. 
 
 When the summer evenings became long, a fresh attraction 
 appeared at the Browney. We discovered that the stream a 
 little above Stone Bridge was haunted by a shoal of gudgeon. 
 We had already learnt to refer to that text-book for young 
 votaries of the rod and line, Izaak Walton's 'Complete 
 Angler ; ' so following his directions we deputed one of our 
 party to puddle the water some fifty yards above, while with 
 small worms the rest fished below for the pretty and silvery 
 though greedy claimants. Our success was generally equal to 
 our expectations, and after several visits few were left behind 
 to tell the tale of slaughter. 
 
 An unexpected treat was given me soon afterwards by the 
 steward of the late Sir Robert Eden, who, with that kindness 
 which the old often delight to show to boys, made me welcome 
 to a few days' fishing for tench in the Windlestone Fish-ponds. 
 See me mounted on my thoroughbred pony, ' Pretty Fanny,' 
 her chesnut coat glistening in the sunlight ; swift of pace and 
 sure of foot, my willing bearer to many a fishing trip, of all 
 ponies the brightest and the best. Anxious to make the most 
 of my opportunity, I took two rods, a large creel and a 
 stocking foot well filled with lobs, for in those days a peculiar 
 virtue was held to reside in the feet of old stockings as recep- 
 tacles for worms. 
 
 The ponds were four or five in number, following the course 
 of a short valley, and were healthily fed by a small stream. 
 My great trouble at the outset was from the water weeds, 
 which extended for several yards beyond the margin of the 
 ponds, but, young as I was, determination made me equal to 
 the occasion. Placing a heavy leaden sinker -a few inches from 
 the hook, I succeeded in casting the bait beyond the weeds, 
 and then waited patiently for a bite. This soon came, and 
 c 2 
 
20 Hunted by Weasels. 
 
 after losing a couple of fish through entanglement among the 
 weeds, I learned to drag them over their surface so rapidly as 
 to ensure the safe landing of my booty. The first day pro- 
 duced a dozen tench, each from one to two pounds in weight. 
 I placed them as taken among wet weeds in the creel, and 
 cantered home with my burden in happy mood. On my 
 arrival I spread out the ' day's take ' upon the kitchen table, 
 and found to my astonishment that the whole were living. 
 ' Quick, Mary, quick ! ' I exclaimed, ' a footbath and some river 
 water ! ' A few minutes later all were plunging merrily in 
 their own element, and the next day they were carefully 
 conveyed to a fish-pond near ShinclifFe, but I do not know 
 what became of them afterwards. 
 
 About this time, while rambling in the picturesque lane 
 leading from Merrington to Windlestone with two other boys, 
 an adventure occurred sufficiently startling to little fellows 
 from nine to ten years old. We were busily engaged in pick- 
 ing wild strawberries which clustered in the hedgerows, 
 when we ^aw at about a hundred yards' distance a pack of at 
 least twenty weasels running from hedge to hedge and 
 evidently scenting our footsteps. It flashed upon us that we 
 were being hunted, so springing over the nearest hedge we 
 ran across a pasture field and standing upon the farther bank 
 looked back towards our assailants. To our dismay we saw 
 the whole pack with noses to the ground steadily tracking our 
 course. The word was given ' Run, run ! ' and off we scam- 
 pered across another field to take up our position on another 
 hedge. Still the pursuit was going on, and the creatures were 
 evidently gaining upon us, so with a wild shout we fled to the 
 village, which happily for us was not far off. I have frequently 
 heard of persons being attacked by weasels, but was never 
 hunted by them on any other occasion. 
 
 In January 1825, having lost my father on the previous 
 
Pishing at Wition-le-Weal' . 21 
 
 sixth of August, I was, when eleven and a half years of age, 
 sent to the school at Witton-le-Wear. In the middle of the 
 following March, on the afternoon of a bitterly cold day, I 
 started with two other boys to try our fortune in the river just 
 below the village. So severe was the weather that the biting 
 wind and hail were too much even for us. Our blood seemed 
 frozen in our veins. Propping up our rods as dexterously as 
 we could, we began to gather up all the furze and broom 
 within our reach, place our faggots upright and secure them 
 with large boulder stones. With a warm fire in front of our 
 ' bield,' and a bottle of ginger pop, we were as happy as kings. 
 More than a dozen trout were captured by our three rods in 
 the course of as many hours. I record this to show how 
 numerous fish were in those days compared with the present. 
 Then a good angler fishing in the neighbourhood of Witton- 
 le-Wear could always rely on a creel of from ten to twenty 
 pounds weight. Now, alas ! between lead mines and sewerage 
 every tributary is destroyed as breeding space, while the main 
 stream flows on its milky turbid course, unpleasing to the eye, 
 unwholesome to drink, and carrying death alike to ephemera 
 and -to fish. 
 
 Let me here record a statement often made by Charlie 
 Ebdy,* whose name will occur in the following pages again 
 and again, a statement which I believe to be perfectly true. 
 
 * The fact that Charlie Ebdy and myself were the pioneers of worm fishing 
 up-stream in clear water in the several Border rivers, receives strong addi- 
 tional proof from the excellent books on Angling published by Mr. Thomas 
 Stoddart. Turning to his second edition of ' The Scottish Angler,' issued in 
 1836, it will be observed that the descriptions of fishing for trout with worm 
 are very meagre, and that he writes ' In angling with the worm IT IS OF 
 LITTLE CONSEQUENCE WHETHER YOU DO SO MOVING UP OR DOWN THE 
 STREAM, provided when adopting the latter plan you employ a short line, for 
 with a long one it is impossible to hook the trout aptly unless you stand 
 below them.' In the interval between that date and 1847 Mr. Stoddart's 
 views seem to have undergone a total change, for in ' The Angler's Com- 
 panion,' published in the latter year he devotes several pages to the subject, 
 
22 Worm Fishing Up-Stream. 
 
 He declared that worm fishing up-stream, in clear water, was 
 as a high branch of the piscatorial art first practised by the 
 Witton-le-Wear school boys, from whom Charlie himself 
 learned it about 1826. The earliest really successful angler in 
 this way of whom I ever heard, was Mr. John Chaytor, son of 
 Sir William Chaytor, first Baronet of Witton Castle, and he 
 informs me that he learnt it from his uncle's gamekeeper, 
 Dick Pattison, who again brought it from Northumberland, 
 but from what particular district is unknown. 
 
 Mr. Chaytor, after practising the art in many Yorkshire 
 streams, did thus fish in the Wear, near Witton-le-Wear, in 
 the year 1823 and subsequently, and it is easy to understand 
 how a style of fishing so profitable, and at that time so unusual, 
 should be narrowly watched, and ere long adopted by many. 
 It is certain, however, that during my early visits with Charlie 
 to the Coquet, Glen, Till, Tweed and Whiteadder, commencing 
 in 1 83 1 and spreading over several weeks in each year, we 
 never met with or heard of any one who fished with worm up 
 stream, and hence our wonderful success, in the months of 
 June and July, caused us to be closely observed by some who 
 were desirous to find out our secret, and denounced by others 
 as in fact no better than cunning poachers. 
 
 I am not prepared to assert that no really good anglers with 
 worm existed previous to Dick Pattison's arrival from Nor- 
 thumberland, but certain it is that, if such there were, the 
 
 giving to the public, I. believe for the first time, a really good description of 
 this fine branch of ' the gentle art.' He speaks thus in this manual of 
 angling. ' All able worm fishers invariably cast the line up the stream, taking 
 their stand below where the trout are presumed to lie, and never allowing the 
 bait as it is canied down by the current to pass beneath them.' 
 
 In order quite to understand the value of this evidence as to the time when 
 up-stream worm fishing was introduced on the Border, it must be remembered 
 that Mr. Stoddart lived at Kelso and spent his time chiefly in angling. Indeed 
 so extensive was his acquaintance with anglers and their doings, that the art 
 could not possibly have been practised on the Border rivers previous to 1836, 
 without his knowledge. 
 
An Improvised Fly. 23 
 
 number must have been extremely small. Dick fished in this 
 way as early as 1820, and all my researches fail to establish an 
 evidence of any one else doing so at an earlier date. At the 
 present time there is not a border river which has not 
 numerous worm fishers so expert as to call forth the praise of 
 every really good judge of the matter. 
 
 My first lessons in this style of fishing were taken at Witton- 
 le-Wear in the spring of 1825. It was unfortunate that this 
 admirable school for angling should so soon be closed to me. 
 Before, however, the spring had far advanced, I was struck 
 down by a sharp attack of inflammation and removed to my 
 home. A delicacy of the chest which ensued prevented my 
 return to school, and for several years afterwards my fishings 
 were chiefly confined to the neighbourhood of Durham. 
 
 It was not long, however, ere I was adventurous enough to 
 enter the lists as a fly-fisher. Near my home stood the 
 Bishop's corn mill, and at the foot of the tail-race, where it 
 joined the river, was a strong stream. In this large trout might 
 frequently be seen feeding, not unwatched by eager curious 
 eyes. Once when I was fishing at this spot with my school- 
 fellow, John Henry Forster, a large fish went off with his only 
 fly, a black Palmer. The loss seemed irreparable, but the 
 young angler was instinctively a sportsman. Drawing from 
 his pocket book a piece of cobbler's wax, he stuck it round a 
 hook, and covering it neatly with black fur stolen from his hat, 
 he again essayed his skill. His quickness was soon rewarded ; 
 a rapid rise and a severe struggle ended in the capture of a 
 lovely trout of i^- lbs. Here was an instance of youthful 
 fertility of resource such as we seldom see among the boys 
 of this too easy-made age. 
 
 The Wear was at this time well stored with dace and roach 
 which though now considered worthless for the table, afford 
 young anglers good sport. The former have now become as 
 
24 Use of a Kid Glove. 
 
 scarce as trout, the water-flies on which they feed no longer 
 existing in sufficient quantities, but roach of large size still 
 shelter in the deep pools. Not further back than the year 
 1870, while walking on the bank near the Prebend's Bridge, I 
 came suddenly upon a shoal of at least three hundred. They 
 lay closely packed within a few inches of the surface, and 
 seemed in size from i to 2 lbs. each. Roach are, however, very 
 difficult to capture, and the art is but little practised in the 
 Wear. On one occasion only was I successful. Fishing with 
 fly for trout and dace in the favourite stream running beneath 
 the dam at Keepyer Mill, I encountered a man who was trying 
 for roach with gentles, and who caught several. This fired 
 my ambition, and not possessing a store of gentles I tried my 
 luck with an imitation, shaped from an old white kid glove. 
 This I placed on a small hook and cast like a fly but with little 
 motion. The result was beyond my anticipations. I soon 
 captured six large roach, but though I often returned to try 
 the same stream, I rarely took even one. How to account for 
 this isolated case of success I know not. 
 
 Adjoining the Bishop's corn mill and near to the dam is a 
 large gravel bed, and on the opposite side of the stream a 
 corresponding one. These gravel beds were the scene of inany 
 fierce conflicts in my boyish days. It was the ordinary amuse- 
 ment of a number of the dwellers on the St. Nicholas' side of 
 the river to assemble on the southern bed for various sports. 
 No sooner were they seen there than the tocsin was sounded 
 in St. Margaret's, and down rushed a little army eager for the 
 combat which was certain to ensue. Reinforcements crowded 
 in on both sides, and many a summer's evening witnessed 
 fights such as now would be deemed a scandal, but which were 
 seldom interfered with then. The weapons were stones, as 
 large as could be cast with tolerable precision across the stream 
 which divided the combatants. Fierce volleys were discharged 
 
Mimic Fights. 25 
 
 for two or three hours, and many a young citizen had to with- 
 draw maimed or bruised, only to return the next evening 
 eager for revenge. 
 
 All ranks mingled in the melee ; there was no respect of 
 persons ; the butcher's boy assaulted the youthful gentleman, 
 and was for the time his equal. From these firays I never 
 absented myself. First to arrive, and last to quit the field, my 
 blood still warms at the remembrance of gallant charges when 
 laden with as many stones as we could carry we rushed through 
 the river and forced our foes to take refuge in the streets of 
 St. Margaret's. Is it not true that history repeats itself .' If 
 in the nineteenth century St. Nicholas fought with St. Mar- 
 garet, it was but an echo of the combats between Bishop 
 William of St. Barbara and the usurper Cumin who in the 
 twelfth century fought a more deadly fray on precisely the 
 same ground. Our mimic fights were fierce, as well might be, 
 among us children of the north ; those between the rival 
 bishops were terrible in their ferocity. It is recorded that 
 Cumin not unfrequently suspended his prisoners across ropes 
 with heavy weights attached to the neck and the feet, or 
 plunged them again and again in the half-frozen river. That 
 such cruelties could be perpetrated by men claiming to be 
 bishops of the Church, and that, in spite of all, the Church 
 should live and flourish, is surely proof of her inherent 
 vitality. 
 
 At this time I was about eleven years of age, a period when 
 boys of ardent temperament carve out a variety of amusements 
 for themselves. With me the cry never was ' What shall I 
 do .' ' but ' Have I time to do this or that ? ' Among my 
 many pleasures was that of kite flying, and Fortune here 
 befriended me in an extraordinary way. Two boys who had 
 been born and brought up on the Gold Coast of Africa came 
 to England, and were placed at the school in Durham which I 
 
26 The Sexagon Kite. 
 
 attended. They were very intelligent fellows, slightly older 
 than myself, and I soon formed a fast friendship with them. 
 Coming from a far-off country they brought over many new 
 games, but what at once made them leaders in the playground 
 was their talent for devising kites of strange shapes, and making 
 them ascend far higher than those formed on the ordinary 
 English conventional model. Among the savage tribes who 
 surrounded their early home were some enthusiastic kite flyers, 
 whose pupils my new friends had been, and ere long they 
 generated a school enthusiasm which covered the neighbouring 
 hill-side with clusters of boys each bent on flying his kite 
 higher than his neighbours. Young as I was, ambition had 
 already marked me for her own, and I privately constructed a 
 monster kite of the oblong sexagon form, measuring five feet 
 by three feet six inches. This was done by placing two laths 
 in St. Andrew's cross-fashion and then re-crossing them by one 
 that was shorter. The tail of the kite was thrice as long as 
 that in ordinary use, and to make it steady, tufts of grass were 
 placed every three feet. Indeed the weight of grass thus 
 employed would, to the uninitiated, have passed belief I need 
 only add that the cord used for restraining this monster of the 
 sky was nine ply of the strongest flax, and capable of bearing 
 a great strain. 
 
 So prepared, with an eager and admiring train, I started for 
 the Bellasis fields, and there raised my kite. The ordinary run- 
 ning was not necessary ; as we stood still it rose gracefully and 
 steadily till its broad shield became a scarcely distinguishable 
 speck. Fortune has permitted me many a moment of triumph 
 during the course of my life, but I remember none more 
 complete than when I stood in the centre of a group of boys 
 and was hailed as the hero who had actually sent a kite so high 
 that it could be seen ' out of sight ' ; such being in truth the 
 Hibernian form in which my comrades description was 
 couched. 
 
Pussy Aloft. 27 
 
 Often after this day were our ' afternoon flyings ' varied by 
 the additional delight of sending a cat or a puppy into the air 
 at the tail of a kite. A basket lined with flannel and with a 
 coverlet of the same material made a charming couch for my 
 mother's favourite tabby on the occasion. Let not this be 
 deemed an act of cruelty on my part. Pussy was thought to 
 be highly honoured by the privilege of mounting in the air, 
 and as she showed no reluctance to enter the basket and was 
 sure to be sound asleep when she descended to earth again, the 
 only regret among the boys was that they were too heavy to 
 take pussy's place. 
 
 Years passed on, and often in manhood's pride did I take 
 delight in showing to the young ones of another generation 
 the powers of my monster kite. About twelve years ago, in 
 the pleasant hour which succeeds the removal of the dinner 
 cloth, and no too-curious servant is in attendance, I was con- 
 versing with my dear old friend the Rev. Temple Chevallier, 
 Professor of Mathematics and Astronomy in Durham Univer- 
 sity, when we suddenly came upon the subject of kites. Both 
 of us were on fire in a moment ; we had each discovered the 
 boyish passion of the other, and tale on tale of defeat and 
 victory followed, till we agreed that the respective merits of 
 our kites should be decided in a grand contest in presence of 
 our respective juvenile descendants and their youthful fi-iends. 
 A week later some sensation was caused in the Collegiate 
 Close and the streets of the ancient city when two carriages 
 passed through them laden with children clustering around 
 two silver bearded veterans, whose merry laugh showed them 
 to be still boys in heart. At the back of the vehicles hung 
 the kites, gleaming conspicuously in blue and vermilion, and 
 many a fair hand waved us a kindly greeting as we merrily 
 went on our way. The scene of the contest was fixed at Esh, 
 the country residence of my friend, six miles from the city. 
 
28 The Veteran Kite-Flyers. 
 
 There we repaired, and soon the aged rivals were standing on 
 the hill side, each supported by his little flock of young ones, 
 while the frequent suggestion of ' Papa, don't you think this ? ' 
 or ' Would not that be best ? ' betrayed their anxiety. The 
 signal given, some vague flutterings ensued, then up rose both 
 the kites, the Professor's painted as a soldier with a cap and 
 nodding plume, my sexagon aglow with many colours, cleaving 
 the sky with a steady flight which gave warrant of the result. 
 The victory was mine ; yet after all my triumph was in very 
 deed the triumph of the savage Ashantee over the highly- 
 trained intellectual mind of the University Professor. No 
 wonder that the New Zealander is expected by and bye to 
 stand upon the ruins of London Bridge. 
 
 Opposite to the lower end of the southern gravel bed near 
 the Bishop's corn mill, a course of stepping stones crossed the 
 river, and on these I frequently stood and cast my flies, for 
 many a fish fed near. One summer evening while thus 
 engaged I had an extraordinary rise accompanied by a severe 
 pull, but there the matter ended. Looking down steadily I 
 saw that a snake about fifteen inches long, while crossing the 
 river, had snapped at my fly. The creature pursued its 
 onward course, and found shelter in a hole on the opposite 
 bank. This is the only case of the kind that I have ever 
 witnessed. 
 
 Seventeen is, or used to be, a somewhat awkward age for 
 young men, and I believe I had my full share of its encumber- 
 ing shyness. Yet when invited to spend a few days with an 
 old lady and her three daughters who were lodging at Mid- 
 dleton-one-Row, I acquiesced, for did not rumour tell of 
 excellent dace fishing to be had in the river hard by ? I 
 arrived early in the morning, introduced myself to my friends 
 and sped to the river. Time passed only too rapidly in the 
 excellent sport I found there, till in the excitement of securing 
 
A Novel Dinner Dress. 29 
 
 a large chub, my foot slipped and I dropped into five feet of 
 water. There was nothing to be done but to return to the 
 lodgings wet through, and what was my distress on finding 
 that my portmanteau had not arrived. My kind hostess came 
 to my room, and knowing the chronic delicacy of my chest, 
 she was eager I should change my clothes. But what was I to 
 put on ? There was only one representative of the sterner sex 
 in the house — the footman. But he had two suits of clothes — 
 I must accept the loan of one, the best would be at my service. 
 A battle ensued, but I began to feel cold and miserable in my 
 wet things, so at last I yielded. Behold me then in a blue 
 coat and waistcoat with huge gilt buttons, a white neck-tie 
 such as Beau Brummell tied with infinite grace beneath his 
 chin, crimson plush breeches and white stockings. Oh, how 
 I execrated my poor spindle shanks encased in white cotton ! 
 It seemed to nie that I had never seen my legs before, and as 
 I looked at them I hated them. Then the crimson above, 
 how glaring it looked in my eyes ! I hastily took the silk 
 pocket handkerchief which had been given me and tied it 
 round my waist apron fashion, in hopes of softening the 
 crimson andwhite. 
 
 But the worst was to come. My hostess had shrunk from 
 telling me that friends were coming to dine with her that day, 
 and when I descended somewhat late, my unusual toilette 
 having taken unusual time, I found sixteen or eighteen persons 
 seated round the dinner table. Lord Chesterfield himself 
 could not have withstood such an apparition unmoved ; kind 
 and courteous as were my hostess and her guests, they could 
 not restrain themselves as I entered the dining room, and 
 smiles soon passed into roars of laughter. I believe this was the 
 very best thing for me that could have happened, for I caught 
 the infection^and laughed with the loudest. Many a joke was 
 made at my expense, but I entered warmly into the fun. All 
 
30 The Bedburn. 
 
 my shyness had vanished, and my recollections of this evening 
 are among the pleasantest I cherish. 
 
 I was now able to make excursions of some length, and by 
 the aid of ' Pretty Fanny ' to visit the more distant tributaries 
 of the Wear. Thus I made heavier creels, while I acquired a 
 peculiar affection for the beautiful scenery commonly found by 
 the side of running water. One of my favourite haunts was 
 the Bedburn, a little below the Grove, now the residence of 
 H. E. Surtees, Esq. Mounted on Fanny, and with one com- 
 panion also on horseback, we generally started at five o'clock in 
 the morning, and after a ride of about fifteen miles contrived to 
 arrive at the village of Hamsterley in good time for breakfast. 
 And what a breakfast ! How the ham, eggs, and tea dis- 
 appeared after such appetising exercise ! Then we sped to the 
 Bedburn, and fishing carefully up stream seldom failed to fill 
 our baskets. Once indeed our efforts failed in a way we could 
 not account for ; the fish would not take. Puzzled as we then 
 were, we saw the state of the case when later in the day 
 hundreds of lampreys floated on the surface of the water in an 
 almost torpid state. We had fallen on a day when the stream 
 was poisoned by a lead mine — ' hush,' and every fish was sick 
 at stomach and at heart. 
 
 We usually shortened the journey to Hamsterley a mile by 
 riding through the Bishop's park, and on one occasion only 
 was leave refused us. A change of portress made good the 
 adage that ' new brooms sweep clean.' Civilly as we preferred 
 our request to the new lodge-keeper it was disregarded. She 
 took a good look at us and turned away, saying, ' My Lord has 
 given particular instructions against receiving basket men.' 
 Our unlucky creels, it appeared, had reduced us in her eyes to 
 the rank of cadgers ! 
 
CHAPTER IV. 
 
 ' The Coquet for ever ! The Coquet for aye ! 
 The Coquet, the king o' the stream an' the brae ! 
 Frae his high mountain throne to his bed in the sea, 
 Oh where shall we find such a river as he ? ' — R. ROXBY. 
 
 ■ HEN I reached my eighteenth year I 
 disdained to be cramped within the 
 bounds of Weardale. I, like young Norval, 
 
 Had heard of battles, and I longed 
 To follow to the field some warlike lord. 
 
 At that time Coquetdale, made famous by Robert Roxby's 
 imperishable 'Garland' was the point of attraction to every 
 angler. These poems, written in the Northumbrian dialect, 
 possess a truth and pathos which come home at least to every 
 Northern reader, and while Izaak Walton's ' Angler ' made a 
 convert of as apparently hopeless a subject as Washington 
 Irving, so the ' Garland ' excited many an admirer to cast a fly 
 in the streams so beloved by the aged poet and so vividly 
 described by him. The date of my first visit to them was fixed 
 by a letter which I received on April 6, 1831, from my com- 
 panion, W. B., dated from Rothbury, where he was visiting 
 friends and trying his 'prentice hand upon the numerous trout 
 of that picturesque neighbourhood. Its bard has truly said — 
 
 There's wale o' trouts in Coquet. 
 W. B. spoke of taking three dozen in an afternoon's fishing as 
 a slight affair. This so fired another friend and myself that on 
 the following Monday we took our places on the roof of the 
 early morning coach, and were set down by ten o'clock at the 
 
32 First View of the Coquet. 
 
 village of Fenton where the Coquet flows through a varied 
 richly-cultivated country, well stocked with timber. How 
 lovely it all appeared in our eyes ! Our visit was timed in 
 exact accordance with the aspirations of the poet when he 
 taxed his fancy to describe a day best suited to the angler : — 
 
 O let it be in April tide 
 
 But one of April's best, 
 
 A mornin' that seems made o' May 
 
 In dews an' sunshine drest ; 
 
 Frae off the crags o' Simonside 
 
 Let the fresh breezes blaw, 
 
 And let auld Cheviot's sides be green 
 
 Albeit his head be snaw. 
 
 In an upper room of Mrs. Hine's hotel at Fenton we enjoyed 
 a true north-country breakfast, watching all the time from the 
 window the numerous fish which were in like manner par- 
 taking of their morning meal. Then despatching our carpet, 
 bags by the carrier to Weldon Bridge, we started to -walk 
 there, fishing by the way such pools and streams as seemed to 
 us most promising. The results were nothing extraordinary, 
 but compared with our past doings they satisfied us and im- 
 pelled us to look forward eagerly to the morrow. For were 
 we not young ? and were not hope and fancy all our own. 
 
 And the morrow did not disappoint us. We had the advan- 
 tage of an ale-coloured water, no small matter to beginners, 
 and we counted by evening several dozen small trout, mingled 
 with silver-coated smolts, for in those days the laws which 
 protected these were set aside very coolly by anglers. 
 
 The next morning we took a trap and soon found ourselves 
 at the beautifully situated village of Rothbury, with its old 
 stone bridge and noble parish church embosomed in rich wood ; 
 a lovely picture, but my eyes turned instinctively to the high 
 hills above, crested with rocks and dotted with flocks of goats 
 amid the golden whin bushes and the feathery bracken. Never 
 
Rctrilnitiou. 
 
 33 
 
 amid the golden whin bushes and the feathery bracken. Never 
 before had I been surrounded by scenery so wild and romantic, 
 and I date from this visit that taste for the picturesque in 
 nature which for many years has brightened my wanderings in 
 various lands. Our breakfast, though ample, was speedily 
 despatched, and W. B. and I betook ourselves to the river- 
 side, about a mile below the village. Here I was doomed to 
 
 LIRI.N'kiJUKiN. 
 
 experience in my own proper person what old Touche and 
 poor Tom suffered from my early negligence. A gravel bed 
 was selected as the spot most appropriate for donning our 
 tackle ; my friend took the lead and was ready first ; the 
 ' feed ' had just come on. A score of blue duns were floating 
 
 D 
 
34 -^n Embryo Surgeon. 
 
 on the water, while round his head went my friend's line, and 
 a sharp sting within my nostril made me scream aloud. Not 
 seeing his cast fall as intended the rod made another circle, 
 but the instinct of self-preservation enabled me to grasp the 
 line and save myself from the dreadful wrench that would 
 have followed. 
 
 What was to be done ? On examination the hook was found 
 deeply embedded in my unfortunate nostril. I was on the 
 point of running off to Rothbury in search of help, when my 
 friend, with a gravity more becoming his profession (for he 
 was an embryo surgeon) than his years, undertook the case 
 himself. ' Lie down upon the ground,' he said with a tone of 
 authority. ' Shut your eyes.' I obeyed. Another sharp 
 sting, and the offending hook was extracted and lying in my 
 hand. Many were my thanks and warm my admiration of 
 the operator's skill. ' Don't mention it,' he said ; ' I never 
 had a lancet in my hand before, but as I got my first case of 
 instruments last week it seemed a good opportunity for trying 
 them.' 
 
 For three days we fished from ii a.m. to 4 p.m., on each 
 occasion, nearly filling our creels. The flies were the blue dun, 
 golden plover, and red hackle, and I may here observe that 
 during my experience of several years I found these the most 
 killing flies on the Coquet. On the following Monday I 
 returned to Durham, having spent a happy and not unsuc- 
 cessful week by the then most famous Border stream. As an 
 angling river none has been more bepraised in verse, as may 
 be seen in the charming lyrics of Robert Roxby : 
 
 I will sing of the Coquet, the dearest of themes, 
 The haunt of the fisher, the first of a' streams ; 
 There's nane like the Coquet in a' the king's land 
 From the white cliffs of Dover to North Britain's strand. 
 
The Coquet for Aye. 
 
 35 
 
 The Coquet for ever ! the Coquet for aye ! 
 The Woodhall and Weldon, and Felton so gay ; 
 And Brinkburn and Linden, wi' a' their sweet pride 
 For they add to the beauties of dear Coquetside. 
 Then blessings be on him, and lang may he glide. 
 The fisherman's home and the fisherman's pride, 
 From Harden's green hill to old Warkworth sae gray, 
 The Coquet for ever ! the Coquet for aye ! 
 
 D 2 
 
CHAPTER V. 
 
 ' Peace to thy spirit, master mine ! 
 Who in my hour of youth's sunshine 
 All mysteries of rod and line 
 
 Interpretedst to me. 
 Well didst thou play the teacher's part, 
 And had I Goldsmith's graphic art 
 Thy watchful eye, thy kindly heart 
 Should not forgotten be.' 
 
 HE name of Charles Ebdy has already appeared 
 in these pages. Let me now formally introduce to my readers 
 a man who to a certain little world was the greatest hero in 
 the city of Durham, as his workshop was a Paradise of delights. 
 Charlie was by trade a ropemaker, but the introduction of 
 machinery made his labour sadly unprofitable, and he was 
 compelled to resort to a thousand and one devices to earn a 
 maintenance for himself and his numerous family. 
 
 Happily for them he was a man of varied talents, ingenuity 
 and spirit. His shop (charming place !) contained a squirrel 
 revolving in an elaborate cage made by himself; a fleet of 
 boats of various designs, also of his own construction, for 
 letting out to boys and young men at the moderate charge of 
 one penny an hour ; a parrot that indulged in the raciest 
 slang ; a bullfinch that piped Jock o' Hazledean ; a tame snake 
 
iLver Ready, 37 
 
 which took its morning drink from a saucer, and a pointer 
 always surrounded by puppies. Were cricket or football in 
 season, straightway might be seen in Charlie's shop a fresh 
 stock of the proper implements for sale. When 
 
 Summer's beams began to dart 
 And winter's blasts were dead, 
 
 a handsome row of fishing rods sprang up as if by magic, 
 while the maker sat at his desk knocking off hackled fiies by 
 the dozen. He had no faith in fiies with wings. 
 
 Was there a report that some maiden crazed by care or 
 crossed in hopeless love had sought a refuge from woe in the 
 cold bosom of some sedgy pool, Charlie was sure to be seen 
 at once in search of the body with a large white-bread loaf 
 loaded with mercury, as firmly convinced that this would lead 
 to discovery as is the Indian when he floats a chip of cedar 
 wood near the place where his friend was drowned, in full 
 confidence that it will stop and turn round above the exact 
 spot where the body rests. Was a house on fire ? Then amid 
 clouds of smoke Charlie was to be seen on the roof. There 
 amid flame and smoke and the cheers of the crowd, he un- 
 erringly directed the hose against the raging element. Like 
 the valiant Higginbottom 
 
 Still o'er his head, while fate he braved, 
 The whizzing waterpipe he waved. 
 
 Such was Charlie Ebdy as known to school-boys ; and when 
 I add that as an angler he stood on the highest pinnacle of 
 fame, it will appear but natural that after my first taste of the 
 delight of fishing at Coquetside I should seek conference with 
 him, and having told my adventures, seal a compact that when 
 next the thorn put forth its buds, we should don our creels and 
 be off to the stream of streams together. Charlie was now 
 about forty years of age, spare in form and sinewy and active 
 as a deer, rather above the middle height, with a brown 
 
38 A Friend in Need. 
 
 freckled face, the prominent feature of which was too much 
 of a hook for beauty. His activity was such that no exercise, 
 however severe, made him slacken his pace, and so fertile was 
 he in expedients, that diffieulties only elicited some novel 
 scheme for overcoming them. If a large fish on being hooked, 
 sank, trusting to its weight, to the bottom of the pool and 
 sulked, Charlie would shout ' Stone him,' and throw such a 
 volley as startled it at once into renewed action. If a cast of 
 flies attached itself to a branch provokingly high, Charlie 
 never failed to fling stones with such unerring aim that the 
 branch was cut and the cast released ; or if a rod was broken, 
 it was re-spliced and made as good as ever by his nimble 
 fingers in a very few minutes. In short, to have Charlie at 
 hand was an insurance against all catastrophes. 
 
 He had, I regret to say, small respect for the medical faculty, 
 and he made no secret of his contempt for ' the doctor's 
 orders.' I once saw him enter a whitesmith's shop, where the 
 chief workman was standing aside with his eye bandaged over, 
 evidently in great pain. On enquiry it appeared that two 
 days previously, while chipping a piece of iron, the sufferer 
 had allowed a small portion to enter beneath the eyelid. With 
 Charlie a difficulty was merely a thing to be grappled with, so 
 just saying ' I'll soon do for that,' away he sped, and returned 
 in half an hour with a powerful magnet which he had borrowed 
 from a friend. ' Now down on the ground,' said Charlie, with 
 a voice of authority, and such was the general confidence in 
 his powers that he was at once obeyed. Directing one of the 
 workmen to unclose the eye as far as possible he applied the 
 magnet, on which the offending atom promptly responded, and 
 was drawn out of the eye. Having satisfied himself that there 
 was no more behind, Charlie commenced one of those exciting 
 dances with which he generally wound up his triumphs, 
 saying, with infinite scorn, ' Them doctors are all humbugs — 
 they're not worth a button, not they.' 
 
A Trtie Lover of Nature. 39 
 
 The many hours my old friend passed out of doors in the 
 country were not wasted upon him. He was a close observer 
 of nature ; a flight of birds, a hornet's nest, the otter gliding 
 by — all these and a score of other incidents as they passed 
 before him evoked some anecdote illustrating their natural 
 history. Like the old man of Wordsworth's sonnet, he had 
 
 An ample sovereignty of eye and ear. 
 The play of cloud and sunshine on the landscape, the bloom 
 of the heather on the brae, the wild flowers of spring, were all 
 noted by him. He loved them all. 
 
 Charlie was a remarkably moderate and temperate man 
 both in eating and drinking. We seldom got him to take 
 more than one glass of beer or two of wine. Ardent and 
 excitable as he was, especially in fishing matters, he did not 
 indulge in the habit, then too common, of swearing. Indeed 
 I never heard him swear but once, and then he was under such 
 strong excitement as to be really unconscious of the offence. 
 
 April had arrived. Robert Roxby's invitation had been 
 
 given — 
 
 The snaws are gane frae haugh an' hill, 
 
 An Coquet's streams rin merrily, 
 And many a troutie we will kill, 
 
 If thou will gang an' fish wi' me. 
 
 Mr. P. W. Forster, Charlie, and I were fishing about a mile 
 below Felton, Charlie planting himself in a thick thorn bush 
 which allowed him to command a pool rippled by a strong 
 breeze. He was soon successful, and hooked a large bull-trout 
 which showed strong play. As Charlie was fishing at the time 
 with small trout flies, the event was unexpected and the 
 contest necessarily severe. Great was our astonishment at 
 seeing him spring up and down in the bush as though he were 
 
 demented, shouting all the time, ' A salmon ! a salmon d 
 
 d- d a skegger ! a skegger ! d d d ,' while 
 
 my friend and I indulged in peals of laughter. After all, sad 
 
40 Charlie's Theory. 
 
 to tell, the fish broke away, and when we answered the fisher- 
 man's call for help we found him held fast in the bush by a 
 score of sharp thorns. Poor Charlie ! some time passed ere 
 we could extract a smile from him. 
 
 Poor Charlie ! I owe him a great deal. Perhaps his greatest 
 value lay in this, that as he always fished his best, he formed a 
 standard by which every hour of the day I could estimate my 
 own progress. To an angler for trout this is important. 
 Should he when alone find the fish not inclined to take, he 
 may doubt whether the fault rests with himself or no ; but 
 when gauged by such an accomplished sportsman as my old 
 companion, he can readily satisfy himself as to his own well 
 doing or otherwise. 
 
 Amcng the earliest of his lessons was this, that I should 
 always note, not only the kind of fly on which the fish were 
 feeding, but also the side of the river on which they were 
 chiefly gathered. Sometimes he would point out that the 
 wind being gentle the flies merely dropped from the bushes, 
 and were quietly borne down the stream by their side ; while 
 on other occasions he would remark that the wind had blown 
 the flies from one side of the river to the other, and that at the 
 latter was the only chance of sport ; and in these views I never 
 knew him to be wrong. He had also a theory that it was well 
 when beginning angling at, say 8 a.m., to try first the quiet, 
 easy flowing water at the foot of the streams, and then as the 
 morning advanced fish the upper portions more carefully, till 
 at mid-day the top of the stream should be fished. After a 
 rest of an hour or more, the afternoon was to be devoted to the 
 shallow dubs. This theory, based on careful observation, was 
 peculiarly his own, and long practice has led me to conclude 
 that here, too, my Mentor was right. 
 
 Charlie's temperament was a hopeful one. He used to 
 maintain that at some time or other of every day the fish were 
 
Fishing Up Stream. 
 
 41 
 
 certain to feed, and that however bad the morning's sport 
 might prove, there was sure to be a lucky hour before sunset. 
 In this he was seldom wrong, and it was his wonderful quick- 
 ness of action during this lucky hour while the fish were 
 feeding that enabled him so pften rapidly to convert a light 
 creel into a heavy one. 
 
 If the fish were taking slowly, Charlie used not to exert 
 himself much, and then my sport was generally as good as his, 
 but when ' the lucky hour ' came, in spite of all I could do, he 
 
 WELDON BRIDGE. 
 
 never failed to take two fish for my one, thus showing himself 
 an accomplished master of the art. At this time we fished 
 with spliced rods made by Charlie, thirteen feet in length, 
 very light, and peculiarly adapted for casting frequently, with 
 one hand, up stream. Mr. Stewart has written an excellent 
 book on the advantages of fishing with fly up stream ; but 
 many years before Mr. Stewart told his tale, Charlie had 
 trained his pupils in this then novel system. Of late years I 
 
42 A Braw Angler. 
 
 have fished a good deal with two-handed rods in the Tweed, 
 and so have lost the light handling of my early days, but I am 
 sure that the heaviest baskets I have ever made with fly have 
 been when, under Charlie's guidance, I steadily fished up 
 stream, acting in accordance with his favourite assertion, ' that 
 a fish always lies with his head up stream, and has no eyes in 
 his tail.' Dear old Charlie, thou wast a pleasant companion to 
 me by many a running brook ! Never had angler a more 
 willing ally, and tears have been shed over the graves of men 
 who deserved them less than did this friend of my early days. 
 What a charming drive was that when, with Charlie by my 
 side and mounted on the top of the Highflyer coach, we trotted 
 at the rate of ten miles an hour to Weldon Bridge, ' famed 
 Weldon to anglers the dearest.' We had heard the fisher's 
 call— 
 
 The thorn is in the bud, 
 
 The palm is in the blossom, 
 The primrose in the shade 
 
 Unfolds her dewy bosom. 
 Sweet Coquet's purling clear, 
 And summer music making, 
 The trout has left its lair, 
 Then waken, fishers waken ! 
 
 The lav'rock's in the sky, 
 
 And on the heath the plover, 
 The bee upon the thyme, 
 
 The jwallow skimming over. 
 The farmer walks the field, 
 
 The seed he's casting steady, 
 The breeze is blowing west, 
 
 Be ready, fishers, ready ! 
 
 Our hearts were stirred, and we answered the call right 
 gladly. 
 
 It was Monday in the Easter week of 1832 ; the sun shone 
 brightly, and our hearts revelled in the varied delights of 
 nature. The honeysuckle with its early leaves, the 'rathe 
 primrose ' and the budding thorn told that spring had come 
 
My First Salmon. 43 
 
 at last, though the lingering snow on Simon side showed how 
 narrowly we had escaped from the cold grasp of winter. On 
 arriving at the inn we quickly graithed our fishing gear and 
 commenced operations in the stream which flowed in front of 
 it. Our day's work fully satisfied us, cormorants as we were, 
 when, towards the close of the afternoon, at the top of the 
 Cauld Pool, we came upon a gentleman exquisitely got up in 
 choice angling attire, and ardently flogging the stream with a 
 brand new salmon rod. Civilly greeting him after the manner 
 of true anglers, we found that his sport had been all but ' nil,' 
 and on seeing our take he laid down his rod upon the bank 
 and followed us. I begged leave to try a few casts with his 
 rod ; it was pleasantly granted, and thus I made my first essay 
 in salmon-fishing. Never before had I held a salmon rod, but 
 practice in trout-fishing enabled me after a few casts to throw 
 a tolerably clean line. A good breeze was blowing up stream 
 which favoured the proper hang of the fly, and after a quarter 
 of an hour's thrashing, the line tightened and a large fish 
 plunged on the surface of the stream. Ten minutes of firm 
 but gentle play, and I drew it safely up to a convenient gravel 
 bed. The joy was too great for me. Leaving my fish to fling 
 himself about at pleasure, I threw myself on a sandbank and 
 must own that I kicked up my legs in a style more energetic 
 than becoming, while Charlie was almost equally excited, and 
 Mr. Hood showed more sympathy on the occasion than could 
 have been expected from one who had so patiently tried his 
 own hand and failed. 
 
 My prize was a bull trout of six pounds weight, a fish which 
 affords good sport to the angler, though for the table far 
 inferior to the true salmo salar. To me, however, it was a 
 noble salmon. Oh ! how grateful I felt for its kind sacrifice ! 
 never was more gracious fish. 
 
 Inspirited by the event Charlie next took the rod, and ere 
 
44 ^ Goodly Array of Tools. 
 
 long another fish, twin brother to mine, lay gasping on the 
 bank. Proud and satisfied we wended our way back, and 
 having dined we drew round a cheerful wood fire and with 
 tales of past sport and happy speculations as to the future, 
 all spent a pleasant evening. We found our companion 
 agreeable, but utterly ignorant of everything relating to fishing. 
 Fired by the accounts he had read of angling in Coquetdale, 
 he deemed he had but to equip himself, go and do. Resorting 
 to a Fleet Street tackle maker, he had become the proud owner 
 of tackle sufficient for the capture of a ton of fish. There 
 were three or four rods with reels to suit, as many pocket- 
 books containing every conceivable lure, and boxes of flies, 
 black beetles, moths, ladybirds, and spiders, as perfect a collec- 
 tion of insects as entomologist could desire. Great was the 
 astonishment of their possessor on beholding our simple tackle, 
 and so modest was he in his ignorance that we gladly invited 
 him to go with us on the following day. He came, and it was 
 with pleasure that I learnt two years later of his having 
 profited by Charlie's lessons and become an excellent trout 
 fisher. 
 
 The next morning brought a cold wind from the east, but, 
 nothing daunted, we began our fishing where we had left off 
 on the previous day. I have frequently found that on these 
 hard cold days of early spring the fish seem divided in their 
 attention between a small black gnat and a large March brown. 
 It was so on this occasion. As a rule large flies are best in 
 cold weather, but I have frequently found the black gnat to be 
 an exception. In the morning we did little in the streams, but 
 the afternoon's fishing was in shallow pools, with many large 
 boulders rising above the surface. Casting a long line among 
 these we drew many a good fish to bank, and altogether 
 Charlie and I made a capital day's work. 
 
 While at luncheon we observed a kingfisher fly from among 
 
Kingfisher's Nest. 45 
 
 the fibrous roots of an old tree which overhung the water ; 
 quick as thought Charlie dashed through the stream to the 
 opposite side, then scrambling upward thrust his hand into a 
 hole, and plucking from it the nest of the poor bird re-crossed 
 the river and showed his prize in triumph. In vain did I try- 
 to persuade him of the cruelty and unwisdom of the act. 
 Charlie was a collector of curious things, and here he certainly 
 had a prize to add to his museum. The nest was entirely 
 made of fish bones, chiefly the larger ones of the trout, while 
 the lining on which the young brood were to rest was com- 
 posed of the small bones of minnows and such-like fish. In 
 shape it was oval, roofed as a protection from the weather, 
 while an opening in the side formed the only mode of ingress ; 
 its conformation being in fact precisely that which I have seen 
 in the nests of hornets as they hung suspended upon thorn 
 bushes. It is to be hoped that the Act recently passed by 
 Parliament for the better protection of our wild birds, will, by 
 checking the rapacity of collectors and destructionists, conduce 
 to that end. I can bear witness to the seriously reduced 
 number of kingfishers and other choice birds since the time of 
 which I am writing. 
 
 One day, when seated on the south bank of the river with 
 Charlie as my companion, an incident occurred which raised 
 some speculation in my mind as to the habits of the fisher- 
 men's great competitor, the otter. It was one of the most 
 picturesque spots on the Coquet. A few yards above us were 
 two islands, side by side, which divided the water into three 
 portions, locally named the ' Split Streams,' and deemed 
 especially good for worm fishing. Indeed it was in one^ of 
 these that Charlie captured the largest trout I ever heard of in 
 the river ; it weighed nearly five pounds, and the struggle was 
 for years afterwards the subject of conversation. Seated under 
 the shadow of a large tree we were enjoying our luncheon, 
 
46 The Otter. 
 
 when a sharp crackling noise attracted our attention. Looking 
 to an overhanging tree which dipped its branches into the 
 middle of the pool about thirty yards from our seat, we 
 observed a large otter holding on by a branch between his teeth, 
 and twisting it about so sharply that at last he succeeded in 
 severing it from the tree. He then swam straight to his hole, 
 which was beneath its root, and both otter and branch dis- 
 appeared. After about five minutes the animal came out 
 again and swam to his old position beneath the tree. Here he 
 seized a second branch, which soon yielded to his powerful 
 jaws, and he was- making off with it to his hole when the spirit 
 of mischief getting the better of Charlie he jumped up and 
 hurled a stone. The otter dived, left the branch to float down 
 the stream, and did not appear again. But what could he have 
 wanted with these branches ? If they were to be used as 
 bedding for his young litter, surely it would have been but 
 hard lying. 
 
 The facility with which the otter may be domesticated forms 
 the staple of many an old poacher's narrations, and various 
 instances are related in which the otter, dog and cat, have 
 formed a happy family by the angler's fireside. We brothers 
 of the angle are too apt merely to regard the otter as a rival 
 and enemy ; yet this water dog (divi-gy, as he is called in 
 Wales), with the intelligence, strength and fearlessness of the 
 hound or spaniel, has, when carefully trained and kindly 
 treated, the warm affection and loyalty of that animal. Such 
 an instance I all but witnessed. Charlie Ebdy had frequently 
 told me that one of his delights when in Coquetdale was to 
 visit Rothbury and there watch the clever practice of a tame 
 otter which had been captured when no bigger than a rat by 
 two men of the name of Aymsley, father and son, and Humble, 
 a shoemaker with whom the younger Aymsley was serving his 
 time as apprentice. To young Mark Aymsley the otter fi-om 
 
Ben of Rothbury. 47 
 
 the first attached itself, acknowledging his whistle by a peculiar 
 sound out of the side of its mouth, and answering to the name 
 of Ben. Charlie was present more than once, when in the 
 warm summer evenings this youthful son of Crispin went out 
 with his furry friend along the banks of the Coquet. On 
 arriving at a suitable spot, generally where the water was 
 shallow and rippling, the lad would call Ben and point to the 
 water. The attentive otter would at once dive beneath the 
 surface and begin turning over the stones with rapidity. He 
 was sure before long to seize a small trout or an eel and bring 
 it in his mouth to his master's feet, speedily returning to the 
 water to continue his labours. In this way he would proceed 
 till five or six fish were lying on the ground, when symptoms 
 of sulkiness would begin to appear, which passed away at once 
 on his master's giving him a fish for his own eating. Then, 
 as if re-invigorated, he would go on with his work till he con- 
 sidered the time had arrived for a second reward. This otter 
 was at once the pride and pleasure of the village, and many a 
 substantial tip did Mark Aymsley receive from gentlemen who 
 came from far and near to witness the performance of Ben. 
 Little did the shoemaker's apprentice know while teaching his 
 favourite that, according to Albertus Magnus, otters were thus 
 trained in Europe centuries ago ; or that, as witnessed by 
 Bishop Heber, the fisherman in many an Indian river tethers 
 them along the banks of the stream till he needs assistance in 
 his labours. 
 
 Mark Aymsley is now an aged man, though he still struggles 
 to pursue his calling as a shoemaker. It is one of his greatest 
 pleasures to talk about the friend of his early days. He says 
 the otter was more his than anybody else's. He used to feed 
 it ; it always slept in his bed at night — actually lying round 
 his neck and fawning on him. He took it out every day when 
 he went to fish, though it was sometimes rather a troublesome 
 
48 
 
 Mark, Ben and Peachem. 
 
 companion, for when Mark hooked a fish, the otter, on seeing 
 the trout, would jump into the water, dive and seize it, without 
 caring how he interfered with the line. The otter was a 
 capital fisher himself, and besides working under his master 
 he occasionally went off on his own account to the Coquet, 
 when of course he eat all he caught. The ' Thrum ' deep pool 
 was a favourite spot for his diving. 
 
 Humble had a dog called Peachem, a sort of half-bred otter 
 hound, with whom Ben was on the very best terms, in fact 
 
 THE THRUM MILL. 
 
 they lived together in the shop, the dog acting as the otter's 
 protector if he ever required one. But the otter was more 
 than a match for any ordinary dog, as many a strange one 
 would find to his cost. The village dogs never touched him — 
 he was free of the whole place and ran about when and where 
 he liked. 
 
 One day Mark took out Ben and Peachem by the river side, 
 and at a deep pool threw a stone across the stream. Peachem 
 
The Otter's Peculiarities. 49 
 
 jumped in, and as he was swimming across as fast as he could, 
 when Ben dived and came up when both were at a little 
 distance from the other side. Ben caught Peachem playfully 
 by the neck and got upon his back while he was still swimming. 
 
 During his wanderings Ben once strayed into the Half 
 Moon Inn, then kept by Mr. and Mrs. Maxwell, where his 
 keen scent soon enabled him to discover a jar of potted trout 
 which he began to devour eagerly. The sharpness of his teeth 
 was so well known that nobody in the house dared to touch 
 the intruder. The servant girl was sent off for Mark to come 
 directly, as Ben was eating up all the fish. Mark set out 
 saying, ' Aw mend a bad job out, hinny.' Instead of calling 
 out ' Ben,' he came up behind the creature and seized him by 
 the neck. In a moment the otter's sharp teeth met in his 
 master's hand, but as soon as he perceived whom he had bitten, 
 he lay down on his back and whined piteously. 
 
 Only once besides did the otter bite Mark. The lad had 
 gone early to bed, and the otter, on his way to join him, was 
 creeping over his feet, when Mark thought to play him a joke 
 by kicking him off the bed. On this, Ben not entering into 
 the fiin or not knowing what was moving beneath the bed 
 clothes, gave Mark's foot a not very gentle nip, through 
 blankets and all. 
 
 Excited by such stories as these, Charlie and I took our 
 way from Weldon Bridge to Rothbury, hoping to see Ben 
 and his curious ways. We went straight to Humble's shop, 
 where Charlie was hailed as an old acquaintance ; but, alas ! 
 for the disappointment that awaited us there. Poor Ben was 
 no more ! He had always been very fond of hunting about 
 the gutters in search of frogs or vermin, and during the warm 
 summer days would then betake himself to the well strand, 
 where there was always a gushing stream of cool spring water. 
 One day, while he was enjoying himself there, some ducks 
 
 E 
 
so Two Required to Make a Fight. 
 
 happened to come up, and seeing the otter, began to run off, 
 flapping their wings. The owner of the ducks seeing this, 
 imagined Ben was pursuing them, and hit the poor beast a 
 severe blow on the head with a stick. He lived on for a few 
 weeks and then died suddenly in a sort of fit, much to the 
 sorrow of all the neighbourhood, but especially of his faithful 
 friend Mark. 
 
 Charlie's courage was of an incomprehensible character ; in 
 contests with nature he was universally acknowledged a bold 
 and daring leader, but when the struggle was as of man 
 against man truth compels me to admit him somewhat of a 
 coward. Our fishing often took us to Elyhaugh, where were 
 several good streams, and on one occasion we there met a 
 
 Mr. F of Newcastle, who was fishing downwards with the 
 
 natural minnow. Mr. F and I at once entered on the 
 
 subject of our respective sport, and I found that he was chiefly 
 a minnow-fisher. He carried in his creel the result of two 
 days' fishing ; there were about a dozen trout varying from half 
 a pound to a pound and a half each ; he had not one small fish 
 among them. While I was admiring them, Charlie, to my 
 surprise remained at some distance oflT, and he only came 
 forward on my distinctly calling him to come and see the 
 splendid lot of fish. Giving a sulky nod, for it seems there 
 was an ancient feud between the two fishers, he looked into 
 the creel and observed drily, ' Ah ! night lines, night lines ! ' 
 
 Mr. F stepped forward and menacingly exclaimed, 'What's 
 
 that you say ? ' ' Night lines,' was Charlie's prompt reply. 
 
 In a moment F 's coat was off, and squaring up to his 
 
 antagonist with raised fists he said, ' Now, you liar, come on 
 and I'll knock you into next week.' Of course I expected a 
 regular stand up fight, but Charlie's courage like that of Bob 
 Acres oozed out of his fingers' end. He backed and backed 
 till, gaining the shelter of a stout tree, he ensconced himself 
 
Great Flood in the Wear. 51 
 
 behind its bole, from which shelter he contented himself with 
 peeping out and still crying ' Night lines ! ' 
 
 F tried to draw him out by dodging round the tree, but 
 
 Charlie was far too nimble for him. At last in despair F 
 
 put on his coat, shouldered his creel and exclaiming, ' Ough, 
 you dirty coward ! ' walked off in high dudgeon. Charlie did 
 not deem it necessary to refer to this indisposition to pugilism, 
 neither did I ; but he again declared positively that the fish 
 had been taken with night lines, for he had noticed in a 
 moment that the mouth of every trout was fixed as widely open 
 as possible. ' Now,' said my Mentor, ' that is only the case 
 when fish are taken with night lines and die slowly with the 
 water running through their gills ; when caught fairly with 
 fly, worm, or minnow, the mouth does not remain rigidly 
 open.' I submit the question to my brother anglers. 
 
 It is difficult to conceive such cowardice as that I have nar- 
 rated proceeding from the man who in any contest with fire or 
 water always led the way boldly, and by way of antidote to 
 my last tale I give the following. 
 
 On Sunday evening, October 16, 1824, occurred the greatest 
 flood known in the river Wear, since the year 1771, and by far 
 the highest during my lifetime. Many houses in the lower 
 parts of Durham were inundated, the fires under the retorts at 
 the gas works were extinguished, and the town consequently 
 left in darkness. I remember the dense crowds that collected 
 on the different bridges and the coming and going as they 
 were alternately swayed by curiosity and by dread lest the 
 bridges should be swept away. Evening had set in, and it was 
 already becoming dark when word was brougl\t in that Mark 
 Hopper was upon the top of a haystack near to the Nab's End, 
 surrounded by water, and that his cries for help might be 
 distinctly heard. At once the shout was raised, ' Run for 
 Charlie Ebdy,' and in an incredibly short space of time a cart 
 E 2 
 
52 The Calf on the Haystack. 
 
 bearing a boat was seen coming down Old Elvet surrounded 
 by numbers of men bearing lanterns, and screaming out their 
 advice and opinions as to the best course of action. Proudly 
 walked Charlie in the procession ; all deferred to him, and he 
 did not fail to rise to the occasion. 
 
 When they reached the ' Holy Drift;,' the boat was launched, 
 and Charlie accompanied by two young men as dauntless as 
 himself, Harry Griffith and Ralph Dixon, started across the 
 perturbed and swollen stream amid the loud cheers of the 
 excited crowd. So deep was the water that the highest hedges 
 were covered, but the little boat held on its course till, guided 
 by the light of their lamp, they made out the haystack, where 
 sat poor Mark with his arms round a calf whose rescue had 
 nearly cost his own life. 
 
 The boat was of small size, and great was the indignation 
 of the rowers when Mark insisted that the companion of his 
 danger should be his fellow passenger. ' Tak care o' the calf, 
 lads,' cried Mark, lowering it into the boat. 'Come down 
 yourself, you old fool, and let the calf be blowed,' cried Charlie. 
 'Tak care o' the puir calf and aw'l be all reet,' persisted 
 Mark ; so to keep the peace the animal was stowed away as 
 ballast and before long the whole party were safely landed at 
 the foot of the ' Parson's Field.' But Charlie and his com- 
 rades longed for further deeds of daring, and reshipping their 
 oars they rowed towards the further end of the racecourse. 
 All the fences were under water, and passing over them they 
 entered the narrow part of the river where now stands the 
 Bath Bridge. The force of the stream here was terrific, but 
 skill and a watchful Providence brought them in safety to the 
 back of the Waterloo Hotel, where they rowed into the stable 
 yard to receive the congratulations of their fi-iends. 
 
 All was now thought to be ended, but not so ; Charlie 
 declared his intention of conducting his boat beneath the 
 
Worm Fishing in the Dark. 53 
 
 bridge to his workshop, half a mile lower down the river. 
 The madness of the proposal struck horror through his 
 hearers ; but our hero was determined, and placing a lantern 
 in the boat's bow he boldly struck out into the raging 
 torrent. His wonderful nerve and skill guided the boat to the 
 centre of one of the arches, and he passed beneath in safety, 
 though it was believed that there was not more than a space 
 of three feet between the crown of the arch and the roaring 
 water. 
 
 The height of this celebrated flood is yet marked upon the 
 wall of the University Museum. 
 
 One evening in June, when seated by the fireside of the inn 
 at Weldon Bridge, Charlie and I fell into a discussion on 
 night-fishing with worm for trout in warm weather, and we 
 agreed that it would be well to give it a trial and ascertain 
 how far our views were correct. ' Well then,' said I, ' no time 
 like the present,' but Charlie was too comfortable and too 
 sleepy to respond to my summons. So preparing my rod and 
 line oflF I started to a stream half a mile down the river. The 
 night was very dark, and I found my way with difficulty. 
 Arriving at the intended spot I waded across a somewhat deep 
 stream to reach one still deeper near to the furtljer bank. 
 Standing in the water I placed a lively lob on the hook and 
 cast my line up stream ; the worm had scarcely touched the 
 water when I felt a tug and succeeded in drawing a large trout 
 towards me. Having basketed this I threw again with the 
 same result, and now astonishment awaited me. There was not 
 a breath of wind — the water was flowing gently and caused but 
 little sound, when all at once my ears were assailed by such a 
 tumult of fish spattering and splashing as I had never before 
 heard ; the river seemed alive with large fish. My heart beat, 
 for there seemed something uncanny in the affair ; still I per- 
 severed and succeeded in securing four more fish. Suddenly all 
 
S4 
 
 Worm Fishing in the Dark. 
 
 was still ; not a fish was heard to move, and not another bite 
 was to be had. I could neither see nor hear anything to 
 account for the sudden change, so home I started, proud of my 
 prize of six fish considerably larger than any we had taken in 
 the river by daylight. The unpleasantness of angling with 
 worms in the dark is so great that I have never tried the 
 experiment again, but of its success there can be no doubt. 
 
3.^^14^ 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 ' When with his lively ray the potent sun 
 Has pierced the streams and roused the finny race, 
 Then, issuing cheerful, to thy sport repair ; 
 Chief should the western breezes curling play. 
 And light o'er ether bear the shadowy clouds. 
 High to their fount, this day, amid their hills 
 And woodlands warbling round trace up the brooks ; 
 The next, pursue their rocky-channell'd maze, 
 Down to the river, in whose ample wave 
 Their little Naiads love to sport at large. 
 Just in the dubious point, where with the pool 
 Is mixed the trembling stream, or where it boils 
 Around the stone, or, from the hollow'd bank 
 Reverted, plays in undulating flow, 
 There throw, nice-judging, the delusive fly ; 
 And as you lead it round in artful curve, 
 With eye attentive mark the springing game. 
 Straight as above the surface of the flood 
 They wanton rise, or urged by hunger leap. 
 Then fix, with gentle twitch, the barbed hook : 
 Some lightly tossing to the grassy bank, 
 And to the shelving shore slow-dragging some. 
 With various hand proportion'd to their force.' — J, THOMSON. 
 
 The time had now arrived when my ambition as an angler, 
 together with my love for wild scenery, prompted me to 
 
S6 A Good Day's Sport. 
 
 wander further afield. In the summer of 1833 I gladly 
 acceded to the suggestion of Mr. James C. Johnston and his 
 brother Alexander, that we three should take a walking tour 
 through the western Highlands of Scotland. Early in July I 
 joined my friends in Glasgow, and we eagerly filled our pocket 
 books with all that was requisite for the capture of sea trout, a 
 description of fish with which I had not yet had the good 
 fortune to meet. Clad in black and white checked suits and 
 wearing the Johnny-Pea hats then in vogue, knapsack on 
 shoulder, and in our hands rods fourteen feet in length, we 
 deemed ourselves equal to all chances and took our passage in 
 a steamer to the mouth of the Clyde. Here we paid a visit to 
 a relative of Mr. Johnston's and had some excellent fishing in 
 a small stream near to her estate. On one occasion we were 
 tempted by the excellence of the sport to wander so far along 
 this stream that at nightfall we found ourselves in the dark, 
 with heavy loads on our shoulders and a steep mountain 
 range between us and our home. It was long before we gained 
 the pass, and even then the rugged wildness of the way 
 made our progress slow and laborious. Midnight found us 
 toiling on though yfeary and faint, when at last we were 
 gladdened by hearing the voices of the servants who had been 
 sent out with lanterns to guide us back. And soon we were 
 seated by a bright fire with a good supper set before us, our 
 kind hostess entering heartily into the tale of our wanderings. 
 Our fish were not counted till the next morning, when mine 
 proved to be 188 trout, while each of my friends had about 
 the same number — a good capture certainly for less than seven 
 hours' work. 
 
 Such a return journey will sometimes fall to the lot of the 
 angler after a day's sport, and he may as well be prepared for 
 it. My friend Mr. M. T. Culley has been good enough to 
 place in my hands the record of one which still lives in his 
 
Mr. Culley's Scramble. 57 
 
 memory, and by his kind permission I am glad to give it in 
 his own words. 
 
 'The most awful scramble after a day's fishing which I 
 remember occurred in the late autumn many years ago. I was 
 then living at Kirk Newton, where the pretty streams of 
 College and Bowmont unite to form the river Glen. I had 
 gone with a young friend, a London medical student, for a 
 long day's fishing up the College. It being late in the season, 
 whitling were more the object of our pursuit than trout, but 
 these were scarce and shy, so we got rapidly over the ground. - 
 The scenery too was beautiful, for though summer green was 
 gone the autumn tints of every shade of brown contrasted well 
 with the fi-owning rocks and crags which studded the hill 
 sides. So we were lured on, nor did we stop on reaching 
 Southern Knowe where the junction of Fleehope and Lamsdon 
 Burns forms the little brawling College. We proceeded up 
 the last named brook, climbing its precipitous rocks till it 
 began to grow dark, and then we remembered that we had 
 some six or seven miles to walk home. So we shouldered our 
 creels took down our rods, and set out at a brisk pace to 
 return. The little gorge we were descending was very narrow 
 and precipitous, and as we approached the point where it 
 opened on the valley of the College, the grandeur of the scene 
 was such as I cannot forget. In front rose a huge black hill 
 covered with what are locally called "glidders," i.e. large 
 masses of loose and broken stones ; and though it actually 
 stood on the farther side of the College valley it seemed in the 
 evening gloom fairly to bar up the narrow opening before us, 
 and its aspect was truly awe-inspiring. 
 
 ' Once arrived at the turning into the vale (for narrow as it 
 looked it really was a valley in comparison with the gorge we 
 had left) we did pretty well for a time, but soon it became 
 pitchy dark. The path is not over-easy to find in the daytime, 
 
S8 The Valley of the College. 
 
 and at night jio one unacquainted with the locality could 
 possibly follow it. I did know it pretty well, but with the 
 darkness came an awfiil storm of wind and rain. Painfully 
 did we scramble on. Both of us were young, lithe, and active, 
 the only difference being that I was a practised mountaineer 
 while my companion had spent most of his time in and about 
 London, so that a scramble through a wilderness in darkness, 
 rain and wind was something quite new to him. Nevertheless 
 he bore up bravely and followed me. All at once we (slid 
 came to the edge of a sudden declivity. I knew of it, and-J 
 down. My friend walked straight on into the dark at the same 
 rapid pace as before, and lo ! crash he went to the bottom, 
 falling through mid air in what position I know not, for 
 nothing was visible, breaking his rod (the reel was already 
 broken) and bruising his bones sorely. 
 
 ' Meanwhile the rain drove furiously in our faces, the wind 
 howled and screeched, and scarcely were the tops of the lofty 
 hills on either side of us visible against the sky. A steep and 
 rugged ascent brought us to a narrow track lying between the 
 steep bank that overhung the valley on the one hand and the 
 mountain on the other. Here great care was needed. Had I 
 not known almost every inch of the way, some serious accident 
 must have happened. It was most difficult to keep to the 
 track and we floundered on through bogs and over stones with 
 no small labour. My companion began to grumble a little. 
 " Why," I said, " you are not half a chap ! " It was cruel, but 
 with imperturbable good humour he replied, " If to be half a 
 chap means to like being wet to the skin, dragged through 
 bogs, nearly blown away, and bumped almost to pieces among 
 rocks, then I freely confess that I am no such thing." What 
 could I say ? In truth the situation was getting past a joke. 
 Next came a deep descent into a dark ravine ; then a steep 
 climb up the opposite side, and we arrived at a little swampy 
 
The Wills-o' -the- Wisp of Newton Tor. 59 
 
 plateau lying between the foot of the lofty Newton Tor and 
 the cliff above the river. 
 
 ' But hold ! What is this ? A little to our right there 
 appeared suddenly through the thick darkness two long 
 slender forms of life-like figures, slowly waving to and fro. A 
 sudden and overpowering sense of awe came over us both, for 
 it was a most unexpected apparition. The place was so lonely, 
 and it was such a night ! the very night for spirits to wander. 
 We stood and gazed, but the long wavering flames did not 
 approach. The only conclusion we could come to was that 
 they were Wills-o'-the-Wisp, but I never heard of such being 
 seen in that place before or since. When our first surprise, 
 not to say alarm, passed off, we scrambled on again, and in 
 another half hour we arrived, wet through, worn out, and 
 desperately hungry, at the comfortable vicarage of Kirk 
 Newton ; but never have we forgotten that weird and startling 
 apparition on Newton Tor.' 
 
 To return to my own narration. Leaving the hospitable 
 house in which we had been so kindly received, my friends 
 and I fished a river, whose name I do not remember, and so 
 walked forward to the side of Loch Fine where, taking boat, 
 we crossed in a storm of wind and rain to Inverary. A few 
 hours passed away at this ancient centre of the Campbells' 
 power, and then we pressed onwards, fishing the neighbouring 
 river with fair success and arrived at the small inn at Clady on 
 Friday evening. Saturday was spent in fishing a little river 
 which there joined Loch Awe ; the rains had made it in 
 excellent order, and our creels were proportionally heavy. 
 
 Greatly did we enjoy our quiet two days' sojourn at this 
 little inn. It is probable that we should now deem the accom- 
 modation of the roughest, but in those days luxuries were not 
 expected at inns, and we were at the- age when a hard bed and 
 a rough meal suflficed. All along the west coast of Scotland 
 
66 A Plucky Shepherd Boy. 
 
 almost every loch and river were at this time free to the 
 angler, who thus secured sport which made him indifferent to 
 any petty discomforts of board and lodging. 
 
 Hiring a boat, we crossed Loch Awe and entered upon the 
 river which issues firom it. The Awe, now so carefully pre- 
 served by rich lessees, was then an open river, but we were too 
 young as salmon-anglers and too unacquainted with its pools 
 and streams to have any success. Our chief gain was a lovely 
 walk to the inn at the river mouth, which we reached as the 
 shades of evening were falling. While fishing this river, a 
 shepherd lad of about fifteen years of age was pointed out to us 
 as the hero of an uncommon adventure. He was fishing for 
 salmon late on the previous evening, and at dusk he hooked 
 ' a monster.' Stoutly he stuck to his work, and only rested 
 when it had become quite dark and the fish sunk to the bottom 
 of the pool and sulked. No one was near him, no one to 
 advise or help, so the lad, "being weary, propped his rod upright 
 against a rock, lay down upon the ground, coiled a few turns 
 of the line round his finger, and with another part of it across 
 his mouth slept soundly till the sun rose and the fish began to 
 move. The precautions he had taken at once awoke the 
 young fisherman, and the struggle recommenced. At seven 
 o'clock he was found at the river side with a beautiful fi-esh- 
 run salmon weighing upwards of 20 flbs. 
 
 From the Awe we fished our way by Loch Etive and the 
 beautiful vale of Glencoe to Fort William. It was difficult to 
 obtain animal food at the cottages in which we frequently had 
 to pass the night, but some tea from our knapsack, abundance 
 of fresh-caught trout, oat cake and sweet butter were sufficient 
 for our wants. Youth naturally has simple tastes, and it were 
 well if we carried these tastes on into our mature age. 
 Dyspepsia would be heard of less, and life would be longer. 
 
 At Fort William we took a steamer for Glasgow, passing 
 
A Second Highland Tour. 6i 
 
 through the Kyles of Bute during a lovely moonlight night. 
 Here I first beheld the beautifiil phenomenon of the sea, when 
 gently agitated, appearing like a sheet of gold. It is not a 
 common one in our British seas, but I have since seen it on a 
 grander scale in the Mediterranean. 
 
 The success of our tour induced us to plan another which 
 should take us into still wilder scenery, and we arranged that 
 the same party, with the addition of a Highland servant, 
 should start for a walking expedition in July 1834, making 
 Fort William our starting point. The inconvenience of 
 travelling in a country where the language commonly spoken 
 was to us unknown, led us to take a Gaelic servant, and we 
 found great comfort in the additional clothing he was able to 
 carry for us. 
 
 Our first day's fishing was in the river Lochy, which was 
 then swollen and discoloured by recent rains ; under these 
 circumstances it was only possible to fish with worm. We 
 caught a few common trout, and about half-a-dozen fish 
 resembling bull trout, coarse looking, but making excellent 
 running. They were from 2 to 4 lbsT~-weight each. The 
 second day's sport was better ; we 'fished about four miles 
 above Fort William ; it still rained, but the water was not so 
 dark in colour. I took forty-eight fish called finnocks (a small 
 kind of sea trout weighing nearly half-a-pound each), alto- 
 gether a heavy basket, and when my friends opened out their 
 creels at the hotel and showed similar spoils, it was indeed a 
 goodly sight to see. 
 
 On this occasion my greed of sport nearly cost me my life. 
 The day was rainy, and I was encumbered with a deep water- 
 proof cape and a heavy creel. Thus handicapped I waded 
 far into the water, fishing slowly downwards. The stream was 
 not more than two feet deep, which had been the average for 
 about fifty yards, when a single step plunged me into deep 
 
62 A Ducking in the Lochy. 
 
 water up to the neck, and the force of the stream acting on 
 the waterproof cape carried me downward. With a feeling of 
 despair I struck out immediately, and after a severe struggle 
 which exhausted my strength I at last regained a firm footing. 
 Cautiously tracking the course of the sand-bank I once more 
 joined my alarmed companions. Deep wading in unknown 
 rivers, especially when they are discoloured, is most dangerous, 
 and the angler cannot take this lesson to heart too early in his 
 career. On the third day we took a boat and rowed up Loch 
 Shiel into Glen Finnan, a silent solitary spot, bounded by 
 lofty rugged mountains. Here Prince Charles Edward first 
 raised his standard in 174S) the Marquis of TuUibardine 
 unfurling it before the gallant though it may be reckless host. 
 The spot is marked by a monument erected to the memory of 
 those who fought and bled in the insurrection ; and tasteless 
 as it is in form and execution, we could not look upon it in 
 that lonely wilderness without deep emotion. 
 
 Again trudging forward we skirted the margin of a long 
 loch, which we durst not pause to fish, because we had many 
 miles to travel ere we could reach the little inn where we were 
 to sleep. There was no beaten track, and we had to depend 
 entirely upon a small pocket map for guidance. About two 
 o'clock we called a halt, for we were weary and hungry, and 
 we attacked our sandwiches with a hearty goodwill. Mean- 
 while a gentleman of about our own age, accompanied by dogs 
 and gamekeeper, joined us. The surroundings were such that 
 no formality of introduction was required, so we sat down 
 together and joining our stores made a hearty luncheon. A 
 glass of pure water tempered with 'mountain dew' accom- 
 panied the sportsman's great solace — his pipe. What so 
 soothing in rain or fair weather, heat or cold ? or what con- 
 versation may compare with the charm of the §ilence which 
 prevails while the grateful fume rises from the bowl 1 Our 
 
Visit to the Hon. Mr. Cranstoun. 63 
 
 companion told us that he was going to sleep at the same little 
 inn for which we were bound, and with a cordial wish that he 
 might meet us in the evening he resumed his gun while we 
 prepared to fish down a pretty little river that led us to our 
 destination. This river was remarkable for the vast number 
 of old oaks which formed its bed, worn almost smooth by the 
 torrents of centuries. The oaks were undecayed and were 
 quite black, evidently remains of the vast forests which in 
 primeval ages covered the country. On reaching the inn door 
 we found our companion of the morning, who told us he was 
 going a few miles across the hills to spend the evening with a 
 friend, but promised, in taking leave, to join us on the follow- 
 ing morning. We only learnt after his departure that he was 
 the Hon. Mr. Cranstoun, whose family owned large estates in 
 the district. His kindness in thus giving up to us the rooms 
 he had engaged for himself, and which turned out to be the 
 only ones available for visitors, bespoke him to be the courteous 
 gentleman he really was. 
 
 He rejoined us early the next morning, and fished with us 
 down the river to Arasaig, when he invited us to the castle. 
 There we passed the next day as Mr. Cranstoun's guests in 
 company with two young Oxonians, enjoying the return to 
 civilized society and the liberal hospitality of our host. On 
 the following morning he had his own boat manned, and 
 sailed with us to Loch Nevish, where landing us at the' mouth 
 of the river he bade us good-bye, regretting his inability to 
 accompany us through the remainder of our tour. That 
 evening we had some good sea trout fishing, and then sought 
 shelter in the neatest shepherd's cottage we could find in a 
 somewhat wretched -looking village. The people were friendly 
 enough. A supper of fresh trout, potatoes, and tea was quickly 
 disposed of, and we lay down in our clothes upon a bed of 
 freshly cut heather covered with a blanket. We lay down, but 
 
64 All Alone on the Rock. 
 
 not to sleep, for the smoke was stifling, there being no vent 
 for it except a small opening in the roof. At sunrise the 
 smoke having disappeared, we were able to look about us, and 
 I found that a series of rafters immediately above our heads 
 formed the roosting place of a score or so of fowls. This 
 discovery made us instantly spring from our couch, while it 
 necessitated ablutions more than ordinary. 
 
 We were glad to make an early start across a mountain to 
 Loch Hourn, by the side of which we had to travel, till at 
 its farthest end we found an inn in which to rest for the night. 
 My friends lingered behind to fish the river at Invereskie, 
 while I pressed forward, it being understood that we were to 
 join company again by the side of the loch. The day was 
 warm, and on reaching the sheet of water during the afternoon 
 I felt so fatigued that I decided to walk slowly onwards and 
 thus shorten the distance I had to travel. But I made a 
 mistake. My friends coming afterwards, found the track which 
 had been named to us, passing round certain rocks, but I 
 unfortunately overlooked it and continued my course by the 
 edge of the loch. 
 
 It was a lovely evening, the sun shining brightly, when at 
 about six o'clock my progress was intercepted by a precipi- 
 tous rock which stretched far into the water. With some 
 labour and really no little danger I climbed to the top of this 
 rock, thinking that afterwards my progress would be easy. 
 Judge of my dismay, when after a few yards of smooth grass 
 which gradually sloped down to the loch, I came to a rocky 
 precipice down which it was impossible to clamber. I returned 
 in haste to the point to which I had ascended, but after two 
 or three essays my courage failed me ; the descent was too 
 much for my nerves. What was to be done ? a precipice on 
 either side, insurmountable rocks behind, and the deep wide- 
 spread lake in front. I sat down and pondered in my mind 
 
si 
 D 
 
 K 
 
 ' *.,*' 
 
 
A Rescue. 65 
 
 what was to be done, what travellers in the like straits had 
 done, till a kind Providence soothed me to sleep and I lay 
 wrapped in peaceful slumber till midnight. When I awoke a 
 bright moon was shining overhead, not a breath of wind was 
 stirring, all nature was still, and I sat and watched the loch 
 glistening in the splendour of moonlight. 
 
 An hour passed in quiet, oh ! how profound, and again I 
 asked myself, how is this to end ? I was cold and depressed in 
 spirits, and involuntarily turned my eyes to the lake as the 
 only quarter whence deliverance could come. Listening and 
 looking intently, I could not help imagining that a sound as of 
 oars did steal across the water. I started up and listened, but 
 all seemed still again. Then the voices of singers stole across 
 the water, died away, and again there was deep silence. At 
 length I heard both the splash of oars and the singing dis- 
 tinctly, and had soon after, the inexpressible joy of seeing in 
 the far-off glimmer of the moon something like a boat. I 
 shouted loudly, and tying a handkerchief to the top of my 
 fishing rod waved it to and fro, but it seemed as if all would 
 be in vain ; the boat continued its course for some time 
 without any response being made to my signal. At last, 
 however, the oars ceased to pull, and a shout of enquiry was 
 raised. My response was energetic and prompt ; the boat 
 gradually drew towards the rock, and I soon had the joy of 
 stepping on board, where I met with a hearty welcome. My 
 tale told, the rowers kindly changed their course so as to land 
 me near my intended resting place. With many thanks I 
 bade my rescuers farewell, and at about two in the morning 
 rejoined my friends, who had been extremely uneasy at my 
 non-appearance. 
 
 Next day we began to fish our way by many a stream to 
 Loch Quoich, but before arriving there an adventure occurred 
 which may be thought worth recounting. During the after- 
 
66 Mr. Johnston and the Bull. 
 
 noon, tired with our sport, Mr. Alexander Johnston, our servant, 
 and myself, rested upon an elevated rock by the side of a 
 charming pool in which from time to time many a fish was to 
 be seen. Mr. James C. Johnston had crossed the river and 
 reached the opposite bank, where lay a flat grassy peninsula, 
 some two or three hundred yards in width. In the background 
 was a sloping hillside on which a herd of cattle grazed in quiet 
 content. With an improvised spud our companion was 
 searching for worms, when, either moved by anger at the 
 invasion of his domain, or by ambition to exhibit his prowess 
 before the ladies of his harem, the lord of the herd began to 
 move stealthily towards the intruder. Presently the beast 
 quickened his pace, and with a bellow worthy of so lordly a 
 bull, rushed forward. The sound startled my friend, who at 
 once saw his danger and rushed towards the river. The bank 
 was some seven or eight feet high, but there was little time to 
 weigh circumstances, and with a bold leap he landed in the 
 pool, there about three feet deep. On came the bull, his tail 
 erect, roaring and lashing himself into additional fury ; with 
 repeated plunges of his horns into the earth he gained the 
 bank and paused. A leap of such depth into the water was 
 not to his taste, and for a few moments prudence prevailed. 
 But soon the evil spirit of pride, seldom far off from either 
 man or beast, came into play. Some nine and thirty Cows 
 appeared upon the scene, and promenading backwards and 
 forwards with their thirty-nine tails erect, stimulated their 
 leader to deeds of daring. This appeal to his gallantry was 
 too much ; with another bellow he leapt into the pool and 
 made straight for my unhappy friend, who being no swimmer 
 could only back and back into deeper and yet deeper water, 
 till it ran gurgling into his mouth. All this time the bull was 
 nearing his prey with glaring eye and waving tail, till the two 
 stood face to face, the water up to the nostrils of each, and 
 not three feet of space between them. 
 
Empty Purses. 67 
 
 Ludicrous as the affair had been in its earlier stages it now 
 became serious, so our servant who was the only swimmer of 
 the party, arming himself with a thick stake, jumped into the 
 water and swam to the scene of action. Stealthily he came 
 behind the enraged brute, and seizing his tail firmly with one 
 hand, so belaboured his sides with the bludgeon that the bull 
 gave in, and after some vain attempts to horn his tormentor 
 plunged down the stream and regained the shore by a more 
 easy ascent. Here was an awkward position for a would-be 
 hero ! The thirty-nine cows awaited him with tails erect and 
 warlike mien ; but — oh, marvellous influence of the stronger 
 sex ! — no sooner did they perceive that their master's mood 
 had changed, and that his tail was drooping, than they joined 
 in pathetic sympathy, and the entire forty were soon to be 
 seen ascending the neighbouring hill at a funereal pace, 
 bearing their now humble and depending tails. Pale and 
 breathless our friend was led to the shore, where we received 
 with compunction his well-merited reproaches. I must confess 
 that they were far milder than our neglect of him deserved, 
 we having nothing to say in excuse except that the fun was too 
 good to be spoiled. 
 
 While we were at Loch Quoich it chanced that we made 
 some financial researches, and came suddenly to the under- 
 standing that our joint purse only amounted to fifteen shillings 
 and sixpence, and that we were strangers far from home. 
 What was to be done ? For three days we pursued our 
 journey on foot, walking from sunrise to sunset, and late on 
 the third evening reached Fort William, footsore, hungry, 
 tired and penniless. We went to an hotel, hoping we should 
 be able to pay our bill somehow, though the how was not then 
 very clear. Next morning I went on board a steamboat, and 
 offering my gold watch to the captain, asked him to give the 
 party a passage to the Clyde. With the frankest generosity 
 F 2 
 
68 The Open-hearted Sea- Captain. 
 
 he thrust his hand into his pocket, and drawing from it a 
 handful of sovereigns said, ' I see how it is, you are short of 
 money, take what you need, and you can repay me at the end 
 of the voyage.' Thanking him for his kindness I took two 
 sovereigns to pay our hotel bill, and we all embarked for 
 Glasgow, where in. good time we landed after a most enjoyable 
 tour of four weeks. 
 
 After a lapse of forty-two years I chanced, during a journey 
 in the south of England, to mention this kind action of the 
 captain's to a fellow traveller, Colonel Campbell, of Fossil, who 
 immediately identified him as Captain Turner of Fort William, 
 and very glad I am to know the name of the man who showed 
 such open-handed kindness to three young strangers. 
 
 Before returning to England I joined some of my acquain- 
 tances who were visiting at the house of a mutual friend, and 
 there an incident occurred so weird and so remarkable, that 
 the impression it made can never be erased from my mind. 
 Never before had I come into contact with second sight, that 
 strange and mysterious gift bestowed upon certain of the 
 dwellers in the Highlands and islands of Scotland. And here 
 let me say that Dr. Johnson, born as he was in an unbelieving 
 age, had too much thoughtful reverence to treat with scepticism 
 the tales of second sight which came under his notice during 
 his journey to the Hebrides. Sir Walter Scott also writes : ' If 
 force of evidence could authorise us to believe facts inconsistent 
 with the general laws of nature, enough might be produced in 
 favour of the existence of the second sight ; ' and while Dr. Neale 
 asserts that no traveller in the islands of Scotland who had 
 really taken pains to enquire into the matter ever denied it, 
 he further points out how second sight corresponds with our 
 preconceived notions of prophecy. ' The faculty is limited ; 
 the man who possesses it can only tell of the future when he 
 has the vision upon him ; at other times he is but like the rest 
 
The Highland Widow. 69 
 
 of men.'* Let me now tell my tale as told in my work on 
 ' The Folk Lore of the Northern Counties of England and 
 the Borders.' 
 
 ' Our kind hostess was the widow of a Highland chief, and 
 was descended from a family long celebrated for possessing a 
 more than usual portion of second sight. She firmly believed 
 that the prophetic mantle had fallen upon her, but her dispo- 
 sition was lively and cheerful, and being still young she had a 
 decided preference for the society of young people. Her 
 residence was situated on the slope of a steep hill, about half a 
 mile from the side of a beautiful lake which it overlooked. 
 The lake was at this point a mile at least in breadth, and on its 
 opposite shore stood a small farmhouse with a few enclosed 
 fields around it. The lake was several miles long, and had its 
 egress into a river, which in winter, or when swollen by the 
 heavy rains which are common in hilly countries, was of con- 
 siderable size. The only means of crossing this river was by 
 a stone bridge about half a mile from the end of the lake. 
 When I have added that in the garden of our friend was an 
 enclosure which had for centuries been the burying place of her 
 husband's clan, and in which his remains were laid, I shall 
 have given every particular necessary for the elucidation of 
 the rest of the tale. 
 
 'A month quickly passed among the rivers and lakes of 
 Scotland, and we found ourselves at the widow's hospitable 
 residence. Our welcome there was kind, but before an hour 
 had passed we could not help noticing that a gloom hung over 
 the party lately so merry. The conversation was evidently 
 forced.^ The younger ladies looked anxious and distressed, 
 their hostess sad, almost stern, as they sat apart, speaking 
 little, and evidently wrapped in thought. Something unusual 
 had plainly occurred, and we eagerly sought an evening walk 
 * Communications with the Unseen World, Night 4. 
 
yo The Vision. 
 
 with some of the younger ladies, that we might learn what 
 had so completely transformed our hitherto cheerful hostess. 
 
 ' The tale we were told was, in brief, as follows. About a 
 
 week previously, Mrs. F (as we will designate the widow) 
 
 had appeared at the breakfast table deadly pale and with 
 bloodshot eyes. She was reluctant to speak, and would not 
 allow that anything was the matter, till towards evening a 
 flood of tears relieved her, and she owned that she was dis- 
 tressed by a dream of the night before, so remarkable and so 
 vivid that she felt convinced it would be realised. She 
 described it thus : — 
 
 ' Looking from the windows of her house, she had seen a 
 long funeral procession come up the opposite side of the lake, 
 from the direction of the river-bridge. When they reached 
 the small farmhouse the horses were taken out of the carriages 
 and turned into an enclosure to graze ; the coffin was brought 
 down to the lake-side, and placed in one of the boats, while 
 the funeral party crossed in the large ferry-boat, commonly 
 used for conveying cattle. On reaching the shore in front of 
 Mrs. F 's house, the procession again formed, and pro- 
 ceeded to the graveyard, where the funeral took place, the 
 earth was heaped on the grave, and the mourners departed. 
 Without calling at the house they recrossed the lake, harnessed 
 their animals, and disappeared by the same road by which they 
 had come. 
 
 ' On hearing this narration the young people had ridiculed 
 the notion of attending to the fancies of a dream, and by their 
 bright and cheerful conversation had succeeded at last in 
 
 restoring Mrs. F to something like cheerfulness. But 
 
 towards evening on the following day a horseman rode up to 
 the door and delivered a note from the undertaker of an 
 adjacent town. This note announced that Mrs. F 's mother- 
 in-law had died suddenly at her residence, twenty miles off. 
 
The Ftilfilmcnt. 71 
 
 and requested that a grave should be prepared for her in the 
 family burying-ground. On enquiry the messenger stated 
 that the old lady had died at an hour coincident with the 
 remarkable dream of her daughter-in-law, after a very slight 
 indisposition, of which, in consequence of a family disagree- 
 ment, Mrs. F had not heard. 
 
 ' The whole party was struck with awe. The widow quietly 
 observed, " You see it is true," and retired to her own room 
 for the rest of the day. On the fifth day the funeral took 
 place, actually fulfilling, contrary to all likelihood, every cir- 
 cumstance connected with the dream. The old lady had died 
 at her own residence, the road from which ran by the same side 
 
 of the river and lake as Mrs. F 's house ; it was therefore 
 
 most improbable that the funeral procession should cross the 
 lake. But all was to be accomplished. On the night preceding 
 the burial a dreadful thunderstorm swept away the stone 
 bridge which spanned one of the mountain streams that flowed 
 
 into the lake about a mile from Mrs. F 's house. The 
 
 result was that the funeral party were unable to proceed by 
 the road. They could not ford the stream, now a raging 
 torrent, so they retraced their steps, and crossing the river, 
 continued their journey on the opposite side of the lake. The 
 lady of the house saw all from her windows — the horses 
 turned loose to graze, the boats occupied exactly as foretold to 
 her, the funeral completed, the last sod heaped on the grave, and 
 the party turning away without even calling at the house of the 
 nearest connection of the deceased. For the second time she 
 saw it all ; but with what feelings who shall dare to say ? ' 
 
CHAPTER VII. 
 
 ' When genial Spring a living warmth bestows, 
 And o'er the year her verdant mantle throws, 
 No swelling inundation hides the grounds, 
 But crystal currents glide within their bounds ; 
 The finny brood their wonted haunts forsake, 
 Float in the sun, and skim along the lake. 
 With frequent leap they range the shallow streams, 
 Their silver coats reflect the dazzling beams. 
 Now let the fisherman his toils prepare, 
 And arm himself with every watery snare ; 
 His hooks, his lines, peruse with careful eye. 
 Increase his tackle, and his rods retje.' — JOHN Gay. 
 
 During several years I accomplished a visit with Chai-lie Ebdy 
 to Weldon Bridge every Easter, but still there were long 
 intervals in the angling seasons to be disposed of ; so to keep 
 our hands in practice we occasionally took a day's fishing in 
 the Wear or the Browney. 
 
Charlie and Piggy. 73 
 
 It was on a lovely morning in the merry month of May, 
 that we walked to Sunderland Bridge and commenced our 
 day's work in the Wear. Adopting our usual plan, we began 
 fishing up stream with worm, but it proved to be too early 
 in the season, and on our reaching Pagebank about one o'clock, 
 I had only basketed twelve trout, and Charlie a few more. 
 We accordingly put on our fly tackle, and returned fishing 
 down stream. The result was the best day's sport that I ever 
 had in the Wear ; four dozen fell to my share, and upwards of 
 five to Charlie's. When we arrived at Sunderland Bridge, 
 Charlie again put on the worm and tried the beautiful stream 
 which flows immediately below ; it was, however, too late in 
 the day, and he had no success. 
 
 Thoroughly tired out we went into the little inn to recruit 
 ourselves with a glass of beer and a crust of bread. Scarcely 
 had we paid the reckoning ere we were startled by a crash and 
 a wild grunt, and rushing to the door we found a half-grown 
 pig making off with Charlie's rod. It had been placed at the 
 inn door with a tempting worm still on the hook, and this had 
 proved poor piggy's bane ; Charlie quickly seized his rod, and 
 then a most laughable contest began. Unwilling to break 
 either rod or line, Charlie continued the chase, playing his 
 game, with gentle hand. Piggy took the bridge, and dodged 
 several times to rid himself of the line which held him. To 
 make matters worse, ' a cur of low degree,' excited by the 
 contest, flew at Piggy's legs, on which the poor brute, sore 
 bestead and evidently in excellent racing condition, gallantly 
 breasted the steep bank which leads to Ferryhill. Away went 
 Charlie, the pig and the cur, till finding the run too severe for 
 him, Charlie caved in, and with a dexterous turn of his wrist 
 snapped the line, leaving poor Piggy and the cur in full gallop 
 towards Darlington. Putting on an easy appearance of uncon- 
 cern, Charlie and I walked past the inn and onwards towards 
 
The Red-tailed 'tm^ 75 
 
 the first afternoon I found that the trout bit this so hard that 
 there was nothing left but the dubbing, and about the eighth 
 of an inch of bright red silk which had been accidentally 
 used in the tying. 
 
 I pointed this out to Charlie, who said, ' Never mind, the 
 fish are taking it as well as if all the feathers were on. Throw 
 away, there is no time to be lost.' I went on accordingly, and 
 did find marvellous sport. That evening we sat in council on 
 this singular fly, and it was decided that Charlie should rise 
 early and dress half a dozen ' blue duns ' with the ordinary 
 feathers, but adding thereto pendant tails of bright red silk. 
 Our second and third days proceeded as satisfactorily as the 
 first. The 'red-tailed 'un,' as Charlie dubbed his creation, 
 killed the bulk of the fish, and a total of 575 for three rods in 
 three days attest its high merits. Naturally, in our succeeding 
 visits to Coquet, our blue duns bore red tails in bold defiance 
 
 of entomology. 
 
 The next month brought with it an invitation from Mr. 
 James C. Johnston to meet him at Driffield, in East Yorkshire, 
 and there try our fortune in the celebrated beck which runs 
 near it. The time chosen was that in which the flight of 
 ' golden drakes ' (most beautiful of river flies) was thick upon 
 the streams, and consequently on our reaching the Bell Inn 
 we found many anglers assembled to take advantage of the 
 season so favourable for sport. By the payment of a guinea 
 each we secured tickets which gave us two days' fishing. Early 
 on the following morning we walked about two miles down the 
 river and then commenced fishing up stream. We tried every 
 fly which we considered likely to ensnare, and many a golden 
 drake was cast upon the water, but all without success. The 
 water was clear, the sun shone brightly, and as if to spite us 
 the air was absolutely still. Chagrined by defeat we resorted 
 to our own peculiar style, and taking some small worms and 
 
76 Colonel Childers and Mr. Musters. 
 
 the finest tackle we crept beneath the bushes, and casting ' far 
 off and fine' succeeded better. We left off early in the 
 afternoon ; still my take was eight fish, varying from one to 
 one and a half pounds each, while my friend's creel showed 
 nearly the same results. In the evening the waiter at the inn 
 ventured to ask whether we had had any sport, to which we 
 replied in the affirmative, telling him to look in our creels 
 beneath the sideboard. With a face in which the utmost 
 astonishment was figured, he enquired whether we had really 
 caught all that he saw, and on being assured of this he begged 
 permission to show the creels to two gentlemen who were 
 in another room. Leave was granted, and he soon returned 
 with two cards bearing the names of ' Colonel Childers ' and 
 ' Mr. John Musters,' and a kind message asking us to join them 
 at their wine. We found them very agreeable, and soon were 
 deep in talk upon the various modes of angling, many a 
 question being asked about our system of fishing in clear water 
 with worm, of which they had never heard. 
 
 On the following morning Colonel Childers, under my 
 guidance, took his first lesson in worm fishing. It was not 
 wasted on him, for he was by instinct a sportsman, and having 
 taken three fine trout, he left me with many expressions of 
 thanks. The day was again hot, but there was a little breeze 
 blowing up stream. Favoured by this we took the afternoon's 
 fishing in the shallow dubs, where the water was indeed seldom 
 six inches deep. Our success was decided, my capture being 
 sixteen trout, weighing 20 lbs. A curious adventure befell my 
 companion. Observing a small tributary flowing through a 
 mill a short distance from the river, we made trial of it, but 
 my friend was attracted by a large pool immediately below the 
 mill, where a score of ducks were swimming in evident enjoy- 
 ment. After making several unsuccessful throws with fly, the 
 spirit of mischief came over him, and crying out, ' Here goes 
 
A Trout amofig the Ducks. 77 
 
 for a duck ! ' he cast his line into the very middle of the brood. 
 With no small alarm, he felt the line tighten and saw the ducks 
 spattering in every direction, leaving him, he never doubted, to 
 fight it out with one of them who had dived under water. Several 
 minutes passed and still the supposed duck remained below the 
 surface, pulling and tugging as if it were mad. At length a 
 noble trout sprang out of the water, and the truth was revealed. 
 Putting forth all his skill, the amazed angler, after a severe 
 contest of half an hour, succeeded in landing the largest fish 
 we had yet taken. It was carried straight into the mill, and 
 when weighed proved to be 3| lbs. It was strange to find so 
 large a fish in such a shallow pool ; still stranger to hook it in 
 the middle of a brood of ducks. Our success in these two 
 days' fishing was such as to create a feeling of alarm among 
 the members of the Driffield Angling Club. The art of worm 
 fishing was not understood among them, and the result of 
 their deliberations when next they met was a declaration that 
 such sport would ruin the river, and a resolution prohibiting 
 all worm fishing in their beck for ever. 
 
 I cannot close my narrative of this short campaign without 
 some reference to the two gentlemen with whom on its first 
 day we had the pleasure of becoming acquainted. The names 
 of both may be considered historical. Colonel Childers had 
 been for many years a leader in the sporting world, and an 
 authority whose opinion was considered decisive in almost 
 every description of sport. Mr. Musters goes down to posterity 
 with a reflected light. As the husband of the beautiful and 
 gifted Mary Chaworth, his name appears in the biographies of 
 Lord Byron. She was the first and purest of the poet's many 
 loves ; that his early aifection for her met with a cold response 
 was probably his greatest misfortune, and he has himself 
 recorded his deliberate persuasion that the disappointment 
 exercised a deep and lasting influence on his subsequent career. 
 
78 The Shothaugk Dog. 
 
 Had Lord Byron been so happy as to win Mary Chaworth, his 
 genius might have expanded in poetry wherein religion and 
 morality would have been the rule and not the exception. 
 
 The month of June found us once more on the banks of the 
 Coquet. We made our head-quarters at the village of Felton, 
 whose romantic situation, beneath the steep banks on the south 
 side of the river, always charmed me. The season was so far 
 advanced that fly-fishing was useless, and as the water was low 
 and clear our only resource was the worm. We usually walked 
 two miles up the right bank of the river before commencing, 
 and thus passed close by the ruins of an old tower, named, I 
 believe, Shothaugh. Adjoining the tower were a farmhouse 
 and yard, and in the yard was chained a large dog whose wild 
 rage as we walked by him showed his savage disposition. 
 One morning we observed that he was worse than ever, and 
 were not sorry on our return in the evening to find him absent 
 from his kennel. But our satisfaction was short-lived. Scarcely 
 had we proceeded a hundred yards when the brute, with loud 
 barking and glaring eyes, dashed after us. Charlie, ever 
 prompt in action, cried out, ' Catch up some stones and stand 
 back to back, or he will worry us.' Rapidly arming ourselves 
 and stooping down as if to pick up more stones, we awaited the 
 attack ; the dog evidently weighed the position in his mind, 
 for after circling round us two or three times he drew off and 
 returned to the farmyard. 
 
 Heartily congratulating ourselves on the animal's retreat we 
 pressed onwards, and had just got over a hill which shut out 
 the tower from our view, when we heard a chorus of ' Yelp, 
 yelp, yelp ! ' To our ears it was neither a ' musical discord ' 
 nor ' sweet thunder.' ' Good heavens ! cried Charlie, ' we are 
 hunted ; more stones, and stand Arm, or we are dead men.' 
 With hands and pockets laden with stones we again stood back 
 to back, and looked anxiously to the ridge of the hill to see 
 
His Second Charge Withstood. 
 
 79 
 
 what enemies we had to encounter. Ere two minutes had 
 passed, our former antogonist came rushing on with four other 
 dogs, all open-mouthed and barking furiously. As before they 
 began by circling round us, gradually drawing nearer and 
 nearer. Now appeared the value of Charlie's wonderful pre- 
 cision of aim. Selecting the leader of the pack, he hurled a 
 large stone which struck the brute on the head and rolled him 
 over, while at the same instant I succeeded in hitting a collie 
 severely on the side. On this the whole pack receded to some 
 distance, and after circling sullenly round us two or three 
 times they disappeared slowly over the hill, and we were left 
 at liberty to pursue our way. 
 
 After such an experience how can I hesitate to believe that 
 the dog who first attacked us did in some way communicate 
 his thoughts to the other four, and that the brute creation 
 have some mode of interchanging feelings and perceptions of 
 the nature of which we are at present ignorant ? 
 

 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 ' I care not, I, to fish in seas, 
 Fresh rivers best my mind do please, 
 Whose sweet calm course I contemplate, 
 And seek in life to imitate.' — IZAAK WALTON. 
 
 The year 1837 marked a great change in my fishing arrange- 
 ments. Hitherto, with the exception of my two Highland 
 tours, my sport had been chiefly confined to the Wear and the 
 Coquet ; now it was to include the Glen with its picturesque 
 Bell of Yeavering ; the Tweed, dear to the angler as to the 
 poet ; the Till, so deadly, for all it flows so still ; the Bowmont 
 slowly stealing through its peaceful vale ; the Eden, tumbling 
 
Storm on ike Glen. 
 
 from the rocks of Newton Don, spot beloved alike by fishermen 
 and lovers true ; the Breamish, scene of ah ! how many 
 happy hours enshrined in my memory ; the Gale, flowing 
 beneath the Dragon's Lair, and the Whiteadder, which from 
 its long trailing in snake-like coils first gained its loathsome 
 name. 
 
 Within three years I visited all these streams, and the choice 
 of locality for each campaign was generally decided by the 
 caprice of the moment. In the middle of June, 1837, Charlie 
 Ebdy and I found ourselves once more at Weldon Bridge. 
 Although this is the best time in the year for the true worm- 
 fisher, circumstances were against us. There had been a long 
 drought, and the fine weather had brought more than the 
 usual number of anglers to the Coquet. Their presence, and 
 the foul state of the water disgusted Charlie, and he proposed 
 that we should try the river Glen, where it was said excellent 
 sport was to be had. Accordingly, the next morning, we took 
 our seats on the Highflyer coach, and soon after noon were set 
 down at the well-known Black Bull Inn at Wooler. It was 
 not our wont to lose even an hour when fishing was in 
 question, so we started at once for Akeld Bridge where we 
 intended to begin work. The afternoon was sultry, black 
 ominous-looking clouds were banked high upon the horizon, 
 and we were still half-a-mile from our destination, when the 
 storm broke over our heads. Flash followed flash with start- 
 ling rapidity, while the continued roar of thunder almost 
 deafened us. Then came a deluge of rain such as I suppose 
 people mean to denote when they talk of its raining ' dogs and 
 cats.' We found the hedge under which we had taken shelter 
 a mere sieve, and bolting through the down-pouring torrent 
 we sought a refuge in the cart-sheds of Akeld farm. For 
 upwards of an hour the storm continued ; then it suddenly 
 ceased. The sun shone out brightly, the birds began their 
 G 
 
The Broom's in the Basket. 
 
 even-song, and all nature, though dropping with water, 
 smiled sweetly, reminding me of the passion of a little child 
 who begins with screams, passes into tears, then turning to its 
 mother with a smile quickly forgets its grief in the sunshine 
 of returning happiness. 
 
 Immediately above Akeld Bridge we put on our tackle and 
 surveyed the lovely stream before us. New as was the scene, 
 we understood at a glance that the river, though as yet but 
 slightly discoloured, had already risen a few inches and was 
 still rising. All this was in our favour ; the long drought had 
 obliged the trout to feed chiefly on the caddis which rest 
 among the gravel, and instinct told them that this increase of 
 water would bring down a vast and varied store of food, which 
 soon proved to be the case. The water was, as it were, alive 
 with fish. At every cast of the line the worm was greedily 
 seized by the larger fish, to whom at feeding time the smaller 
 fry must needs give place. Never did I behold a colony of 
 fish so eager for self-destruction. It was about five o'clock 
 when we commenced, and by half-past eight when we reached 
 the Fox-hole's pool, our baskets were full and would hold no 
 more. We had each of us from eighteen to twenty pounds 
 weight of trout. 
 
 On this occasion Charlie first instituted a regulation to 
 which we strictly adhered ever after. As we walked home he 
 noticed that my basket was so full that the fish kept falling 
 out of the mouth at the top. On this he cut a couple of 
 branches of broom, and thrusting in one across the mouth of 
 each basket declared that henceforward there should be a race 
 between us in fishing, and that the signal of victory should be 
 the first placing of the broom twig in the mouth of the basket. 
 Many and many a struggle followed between us, and proud 
 indeed was I when in happy hour I was the first to cry ' The 
 broom's in the basket ! ' Fully to realise this feeling an angler 
 
Characteristics of the Glen. 83 
 
 must be young, and competing with such a master of the art 
 as Charlie certainly was. 
 
 I have since those days fished many rivers, and have had 
 ample opportunities for comparing them with the Glen. There 
 are some in which heavier baskets may occasionally be made. 
 The Tweed and the Till furnish larger fish ; the College may 
 offer greater numbers, but take them all for all there is no 
 Border river which to my mind supplies such good and certain 
 sport as the Glen. No other presents water so varied with 
 pool and stream, none in which these varieties so rapidly 
 succeed each other. Whether the day be bright or cloudy, the 
 air still or alive with a brisk breeze that curls the dubs, the 
 angler always has a chance which only needs care and judg- 
 ment on his part to ensure success. 
 
 In those days I was young and active, while Charlie was in 
 the prime of manhood ; still on looking back I am surprised 
 at the amount of exercise we took daily. Every morning we 
 started early from Wooler, and seldom ceased fishing till we 
 had reached the point at which the Bowmont and College 
 uniting form the Glen. We usually began to retrace our steps 
 about five o'clock, and a walk of six miles brought us home 
 after being on foot eleven or twelve hours of each day. After 
 fishing to the junction, we frequently tried the deep pools 
 which terminate the course of the Bowmont and are known 
 by the name of the Pike-holes. 
 
 One afternoon Charlie proposed that we should change our 
 tackle, and try our luck among the pike which were said to 
 dwell there. To be sure our light trout rods were not very fit 
 for the work, but we seldom stood on such trifles, so taking a 
 brace of small trout as baits we began. It was my first essay 
 in trolling, and I found that a light thirteen-foot trout rod 
 made erratic casting. Charlie was not long however in 
 hooking a fish so large, that the excitement incident to him on 
 G 2 
 
84 My First Pike 
 
 such occasions possessed him violently. 'A salmon ! a salmon ! ' 
 shouted he as he began his extraordinary antics, dancing and 
 whooping as if he were demented. It was not till after a very 
 severe run of more than half an hour that the fish was landed, 
 and then it proved no salmon but a magnificent pike of 9 lbs. 
 weight ; a triumph for Charlie certainly, and being a change 
 in our ordinary sport a peculiarly gratifying one. 
 
 It was now my turn for a piece of luck. Casting my line by 
 the side of a hazel bush I distinctly saw a jack, of about 3 ibs. 
 weight, rush along the surface of the pool and seize the bait. 
 A short struggle ensued, and he got away. This was repeated 
 three times by the fish ; each time he seized the bait, was 
 dragged a few yards and then gave it up. At last I changed 
 my tactics, and on his taking the bait for the fourth time I 
 remained passive, and allowing him a minute to swallow the 
 trout drew him to bank. This was my first pike. Since then 
 I have had few opportunities of fishing for pike, and indeed 
 have seldom made use of those which did come in my way, 
 the sport not possessing much attraction for me. 
 
 During this trip I witnessed a scene which deeply moved my 
 sympathies. We were returning from our day's fishing, and 
 had reached a spot midway between Yeavering and Akeld 
 where a dip in the road and a small plantation form a natural 
 bield from the strong west winds so common in the valley. 
 The night was excessively cold, the rain drifting furiously 
 before the wind, when we observed two figures, a young man 
 and a girl, quietly seated side by side upon the grass. Before 
 them smouldered the remains of a wood fire ; the blaze had 
 died out, and against the red ashes each had placed a stone on 
 which their bare feet rested. Their only protection was the 
 ordinary shepherd's plaid. On our addressing them the girl 
 raised her head and showed a face whose rare beauty revealed 
 her ancient race. She was evidently a gipsy of about seven- 
 
The Gipsy Bride and Groom. 8$ 
 
 teen years of age, while her companion might have numbered 
 pethaps twenty. They told us that they intended to spend 
 the night there, and we passed on our way commiserating 
 their poverty with all its privations. From the landlord of 
 the inn we learut that the young couple had been married that 
 morning, and that true to gipsy traditions they would not 
 brook a roof over their heads. Strange that a practice so con- 
 sonant with the ancient home of their race in the glowing 
 East, should retain its hold upon the children born centuries 
 afterwards amid surroundings so completely changed. 
 
 The times of which I have been writing were halcyon days 
 for the angler as compared with the present. There were then 
 few stretches of water closed to the man who pursued his sport 
 fairly with rod and line. The liberality of owners of river 
 property was so general that in all our fishings in the Tweed, 
 Till, and Eden, over a space of at least six or eight years, we 
 were never questioned except once at Nenthorn, of which 
 more anon. The Duke of Roxburgh was now no longer a 
 minor, and though himself a keen and excellent angler for 
 salmon, he allowed a wide liberty to others. To his great 
 credit be it said that he continues this to the present time. 
 More than one attempt has been made by stern preservers to 
 induce him to shut up his waters from trout anglers, but 
 without effect, and he has his reward in the gratitude and love 
 of the many. The system of closely preserving our rivers for 
 the pleasure of the wealthy few has become of late years so 
 prevalent, that, combined with the strictness of the game laws, 
 to which there is a growing animosity, it must hereafter bring 
 down a severe retribution. 
 
 Formerly, when game was but moderately preserved, when 
 the birds fell through the labour and skill of the sportsman, 
 when the true working of the dogs in the stubbles was the 
 reward striven for, and when at the close of the day the 
 
86 Modern Sport. 
 
 neighbouring farmer's wife was gratified by an addition to her 
 larder ; then indeed was the rural sport of the English 
 gentleman worthy of the high eulogium passed upon it by the 
 late Sir Robert Peel. But now every artificial device is resorted 
 to, that our fields and plantations may be unnaturally thronged 
 with game, and that a party of gentlemen placed in line duly 
 attended by a score of beaters may blaze away by the hour as 
 if they were defending the earthworks of Strasburg or Sedan. 
 The rearing and fattening of game simply that my Lord This 
 and Sir — That may afterwards record in some sporting journal 
 how for some hours they averaged a bird killed every minute, 
 is to reduce gentlemen to the mere rank of butchers ; and the 
 subsequent sending of a waggon load of game to the poulterer's 
 for sale is a fitting conclusion to the transaction. Such whole- 
 sale slaughter naturally alienates the sympathy of those who 
 would otherwise gladly yield the first chance of true sport to 
 the landowner and his friends. Neither is this wholesale 
 butchery without its dangers to others than its intended 
 victims. Numerous accidents occur to the beaters who are 
 employed in its service. I know one case in which a lad was 
 twice shot while thus engaged. The first time he bled pro- 
 fusely, but was able to walk home ; on the second occasion the 
 charge entered the body so deeply that he had to be carried 
 home on a window-shutter. When after a long illness his 
 master again called for his attendance, we cannot be surprised 
 that the poor fellow declined, saying, ' Please Sir, aw've had 
 enough on it.' 
 
 Happily there are many honourable exceptions to what 
 seems now the rule in England as to sport. I can bear 
 witness that not a few landlords still remain, who, taking 
 for themselves and their friends such fishing as they can 
 enjoy, grant leave to many a stranger to share their pleasure, 
 and recognise the legitimate claims of the farmer's son, and 
 
Genuine English Landlords. 87 
 
 also of the labourer who is wont to find in his evening's 
 fishing a solace after the day's labour and a dainty supper for 
 his wife and family. Such landlords are the backbone of old 
 England ; long may they live to set a bright example to all 
 around. 
 
 -#«%r-=- 
 
CHAPTER IX. 
 
 ' Our northern borders boast of Tweed's fair flood." 
 
 Michael Drayton. 
 
 N the summer of the year 1838 
 we made our home at the Cross 
 Keys Hotel, Kelso, then kept by 
 the kindly-hearted Adam Yule, 
 and took our June fishing on the Tweed and the charming 
 little river Eden, which flows into it about three miles below 
 the town. Our usual plan was to commence fishing a little 
 above Floors, and -end the day at Rutherford Cauld. This 
 stretch of water afforded many fine streams well suited for our 
 purpose, and the scenery adjoining the Makerstoun waters is 
 among the most picturesque which borders the river. We 
 seldom failed to fill our baskets, and our peculiar style of worm 
 fishing, then little known on Tweedside, enabled us to take 
 trout of the largest, size, so large, indeed, that instead of 
 sending them home we took pride in having them kippered 
 and hung in long lines from the kitchen ceiling of the hotel. 
 One afternoon, after a successful day in the Floors water, we 
 reached the rocky Trows at Makerstoun, and there I paid 
 
Rob o' the Trows. 89 
 
 my accustomed visit to the old fisherman best known as ' Rob 
 o' the Trows.' He lived very near the river, but his cottage 
 was so closely embowered in trees,- that it might easily have 
 been passed by on the banks unseen. When I returned to 
 the waterside I found Charlie standing as if transfixed. 
 Attracted by the dark pools and streams which here swirl 
 fiercely among the rocks, the fancy had taken him to try his 
 art in a deep hole really very unlikely to yield any results. 
 No trout rewarded his venture, but' he had actually succeeded 
 in hooking a fine grilse, the first sight of which so unnerved 
 the susceptible Charlie that he allowed it quietly to sink to the 
 bottom of the hole with the bait in its mouth. Having satisfied 
 himself that the hook was safely lodged, he earnestly entreated 
 Rob's assistance, and to the rescue Rob came, bearing a 
 pronged spear with a shaft full twenty feet long. Being of 
 Herculean stature and proportions, he only needed a flowing 
 beard to represent Neptune with his trident. Laying himself 
 down upon the rock and placing his eye close to the water, he 
 satisfied himself of the position of the fish; then gently 
 lowering the spear till within three feet of it he struck vigor- 
 ously, and the trembling vibration of the shaft told us that the 
 stroke had gone home. A minute later he laid upon the rock 
 a grilse of about six pounds weight, and gravely drawing out a 
 ponderous flask he proffered us each a dram. 
 
 Rob never killed a fish without taking a dram. It was a 
 solemn performance with him, a kind of thank offering. The 
 mention of this custom of my old friend reminds me of a tale 
 respecting him often told at the Tweedside. There was a 
 certain noble lord who frequently fished there for salmon, but 
 who had acquired an ill name from his many selfish acts. This 
 nobleman had arranged to have a day's fishing with Rob's 
 assistance in the Makerstoun waters. Early in the morning 
 he reached the secluded cottage and was courteously received 
 
90 Rob and the Nobleman. 
 
 by the fisherman, whose innate gentleness of disposition made 
 him always courteous alike to peer and peasant. Selecting the 
 most likely pool he began fishing, and before long his lordship 
 killed a noble salmon. ' Aha Rob,' said he, ' that's worthy of 
 a dram ! ' and straightway carried out the notion. Rob stood 
 quietly by, expecting an invitation to share jn the treat — but 
 no, his hopes were doomed to disappointment. Rob was far 
 too much of a gentleman to attribute the omission to any- 
 thing but forgetfulness, and without any demur he re-entered 
 the boat and began rowing. Another fish, and again his lord- 
 ship exclaimed, ' Aha Rob, that's worth another dram ! ' 
 'That it is, my lord,' responded Rob, feeling sure that he 
 should be remembered this time. But the flask was again 
 pocketed after the nobleman had taken his solitary refresh- 
 ment, and Rob took up the oars wondering what such 
 behaviour could mean ; the like had never befallen him before, 
 the whole thing was unaccountable. Another fish was caught, 
 another dram swallowed by his lordship, and the bottle was 
 carefully placed in his pocket. Rob was thunderstruck. He 
 had his own notions of honourable conduct, and they were not 
 in harmony with what he saw practised. So he quietly rowed 
 to the bank, stepped ashore, and chained the boat to a tree. 
 His lordship's surprise burst forth in the words, ' What the 
 devil are you doing that for?' to which Rob made reply, 
 ' Aw's just thinking that if ye drink by yersel, ye may e'en fash 
 by yersel.' So saying, he shouldered his oars and marched 
 home, leaving the astonished peer to his too frequent resource 
 — a fit of swearing. 
 
 Charlie and I were well acquainted with Rob, and we always 
 met with a kindly welcome from this fine old man. During 
 our fishings in the Tweed it was our fortune to take several of 
 the large trout there known as swallow-smolts, from their 
 living in great part upon the young fry of salmon. Rob's 
 
Tlic River Eden. 
 
 91 
 
 belief, like that of many local authorities, was that they form 
 a distinct species, but I cannot agree in this view ; I attribute 
 their course unshapely appearance to the cannibalism in which 
 they constantly indulge. 
 
 The river Eden was a great favourite with us. Being only 
 a few feet in width, it is easily commanded from side to side. 
 The banks are for the most part perpendicular, so that we 
 constantly had to wade up stream. It is thickly studded with 
 large boulder stones, behind which the fish rest, and it 
 
 NEWTON DON WATERFALL. 
 
 generally runs from two to four feet in depth. I am thus 
 particular in describing the features of the Eden, because it 
 differs from the generality of Border streams. Indeed it more 
 resembles the streams of the Black Forest in Germany, except 
 that the latter run more rapidly. Two or three miles above 
 the junction of the Eden with the Tweed is the beautiful 
 waterfall of Newton Don, perhaps some sixty feet in height. 
 This forms an impassable barrier to the ascent of salmon or 
 
92 A Proffered Card. 
 
 trout, and to this obstruction may probably be attributed the 
 phenomenon of the short, well-shaped, red-coloured trout 
 being confined to the upper stretches of the river. These red 
 trout are quite different in appearance from the Tweed variety 
 which may be found below the waterfall, and are a more game 
 fish upon the angler's line. 
 
 The waterfall of Newton Don has always possessed a great 
 interest for me, and more than once have I passed an hour in 
 watching the annual ascent of this rocky barrier by vast multi- 
 tudes of small eels, who, bred in the brackish tidal waters of 
 the Tweed, are incited by instinct to gain the upper pools of 
 the Eden and its tributaries. These eels were generally about 
 four inches in length, and their determined efforts to ascend, 
 by wriggling and clinging to the wet moss, were most remark- 
 able. Until I had myself witnessed their struggles, it never 
 occurred to me that such an ascent was possible. 
 
 A considerable portion of one side of the river belongs to 
 the Duke of Roxburgh, and knowing that this side was free to 
 all anglers we frequently availed ourselves of the privilege and 
 generally made good baskets, for in those days the trout were 
 numerous and of a good size. On one occasion I had fished 
 past Nenthorn House and was seated on the bank enjoying my 
 luncheon, when a man with the appearance of a gamekeeper 
 came up to me and said, 'Sir,. I want your card.' The temp- 
 tation to a joke suddenly possessed me, and saying, ' Certainly, 
 if you wish it,' I handed him the only card I possessed, that 
 bearing my name. The perplexity that came over the man's 
 face was amusing. He turned the bit of cardboard this way 
 and that, but could evidently make nothing of it, so bidding 
 him good morning I pursued my fishing. On returning past 
 Nenthorn in the evening, the same man came towards me at 
 full speed in a towering passion and holding out my card 
 exclaimed, ' What did you mean by giving me that thing ? ' 
 
The River Till. 93 
 
 My response was ready. I said quietly, 'I gave it because 
 you asked for my card.' ' Aye, but that is not a fishing card ! ' 
 ' Certainly not,' I said, ' but you asked for my card. Next 
 time you will remember to ask a gentleman for his fishing 
 card and not for his own.' So bidding him good evening I 
 walked on, amused at the man's simplicity and a little doubtful 
 respecting the morality of the course by which I had filled my 
 basket. I must freely confess that I have no doubt about it 
 now, and that conscience gives the verdict against me. 
 
 During the month of May 1839, Charlie Ebdy and I spent 
 ten days in fishing the Whiteadder, our quarters being at 
 Elmford Cottage. The fishing was with fly, and the sport 
 decidedly good. Sometimes we fished the river Dye, which 
 joins the Whiteadder a little above Elmford, but I do not 
 remember anything taking place of suflScient importance to be 
 recorded. 
 
 We had heard many tales of the large fish that were cap- 
 tured in the Till, and we determined that our next efforts 
 should be in this river, yet unvisited by us. The stretch of 
 water to which we confined ourselves was from Heaton Mill to 
 the pretty village of Etall. I believe this to be the best part 
 of the Till for large fish and the most suitable for the angler, 
 with its pleasing variety of dubs and streams. Our fishings in 
 this river were always in the month of July, when the waving 
 moss, which is one of its chief features, was most fully 
 developed. The Till is a deep running river, so much so as to 
 make wading dangerous at all times, but especially when the 
 water is discoloured. Many a time did we take an unforseen 
 step and plunge far above our wading boots, and often when 
 attempting to cross from side to side we were compelled to 
 retrace our course. The old Border rhyme sets forth plainly 
 the dangerous character of the Till. 
 
94 Eels on Water-plants. 
 
 ' Says Tweed to Till, 
 What gars ye rin sae still ? ' 
 ' Sae still as I rin, and sae fast as ye gae. 
 Where ye drown ae man, a'll drown twae." 
 
 Next, after the quick flowing streams, our chief success 
 was in the narrow spaces between the beds of long waving 
 moss. The worms for this river should be large lobs, as the 
 depth of the water allows such to be' best seen by the trout. 
 We used rods fourteen feet and a half in length. With these, 
 casting long lines upwards, we caused the worms to travel 
 down the narrow nicks where the water was free from moss. 
 The trout sheltered beneath the edges of the moss rushed out 
 greedily, and every day numbers were taken in these contracted 
 runs. On one occasion Mr. J. H. Forster made the most 
 remarkable basket I have ever known. He had fished through- 
 out the day apart from Charlie and myself, who on the con- 
 trary were never separated. At five o'clock when we wound 
 up our tackle Mr. Forster's basket showed but seven fish, but 
 of these one was 3^^ Bbs., one 2| lbs., one 2\ lbs., and four i^ fb. 
 each, while Charlie and myself with baskets each outweighing 
 his, had neither of us taken a fish of more than i^ ft). On 
 comparing notes it appeared that Mr. Forster had walked 
 ahead and fished only the roughest parts of the strong streams, 
 while Charlie and I had contented ourselves with the quieter 
 water. The experience of this remarkable day's sport was not 
 lost upon us, but bore fruit in our after fishings. 
 
 It was upon a bright hot day that we crossed the river, 
 seeking the shade of a wood to guard us from the sun while 
 at luncheon. The point we chose for crossing was a flat shelving 
 rock which stretched almost from side to side of the river, and 
 over which^the water flowed at a depth of from one to two 
 feet. As we waded across we saw a vast number of large eels, 
 apparently diverting themselves in the shallow flowing water. 
 
The Angler Hooked. 95 
 
 They glided away as we approached, but without much 
 appearance of fear. On stepping ashore we were surprised by 
 seeing at least a score of eels of the same size dropping from 
 some tall green plants resembling water rushes, plunging into 
 the river and there rejoining their companions. Our curiosity 
 was aroused by this strange sight, and we examined the plants 
 which were about five feet high, some in the shallow water, 
 some upon the bank. We found the upper part of their stems 
 covered thickly with insects of a bright emerald green colour 
 which we concluded were an attraction to the eels. Then we 
 chose a sheltered spot near, and sat down to eat our luncheon 
 and to watch. Before long we saw one eel put his head out of 
 the water, then a second, and soon the whole crowd struggled to 
 the shore, each straining to be the first to ascend the stems and 
 luxuriate on the coveted treat. It was a curious sight to see 
 so many eels out of their own element twisting and circling 
 round the plants till they reached the upper part, then setting 
 vigorously to work till the plant was completely cleared of 
 insects, on which they dropped to the ground, only to 
 ascend another stem and gobble up the insects as before. 
 Strangely enough all this took place under the scorching rays 
 of the sun, but it seemed as if the momentary plunge in the 
 water between the several courses was sufficient to appetise the 
 feasters and invigorate them for further efforts. I have never 
 again seen such a sight, and have only once heard of it. Mr. 
 William Greenwell informs me that he saw eels thus feeding 
 on the banks of the Till below Etall, probably at the same 
 place. 
 
 In my early pages I have made confession of the sufferings 
 caused to the brute creation through my careless placing of 
 temptation in their way. During this excursion the tables 
 were turned upon me so effectually that memory yet recalls 
 the scene with its painful associations. When fishing in the 
 
96 Old Wrongs Avenged. 
 
 Till, and while I was standing in the middle of a deep rapid 
 running stream casting upwards with worm, I hooked a trout 
 of about a pound weight. The rain was falling fast, and my 
 hands were so benumbed with cold, that in attempting to 
 extract the hook from its mouth the point stuck firm in the 
 middle finger of my left hand. This was annoying, but worse 
 was to follow ; the fish dropped into the water, and then I 
 found that the line had passed beneath its gill cover, and so 
 the angler's practice was reversed. I stood, with my left hand 
 extended down the river, while the fish, aided by the running 
 water, tugged and tugged at my poor fingers. Hamlet counted 
 it ' sport to have the engineer hoist with his own petard,' and 
 Sir Harry Lee made the sentiment his own, but sure I am it 
 is no sport for the angler to be caught by his own hook. My 
 right hand was occupied in holding the rod, and my fingers 
 were so numb that there was nothing to be done but to walk 
 to the shore while my finger played the fish, or rather the fish 
 played me. 
 
 On gaining the bank I managed to break the line, and then 
 looked ruefully at the poor finger with a large worm hook 
 firmly embedded in it. As I looked it swelled and throbbed, 
 and taking my knife from my pocket I attempted a gash or 
 two, but the knife was blunt- and I desisted. My companion 
 and Charlie came upon the scene and declared the hook must 
 be cut out, prophesying all manner of evil consequences if this 
 was not done at once. I overheard them discussing the 
 advisability of throwing me down upon the grass and perform- 
 ing the operation there and then. I was not going to submit 
 to this. Faintness came over me, and I begged them to leave 
 me alone for a few minutes. When they went away I put on 
 another line and captured almost immediately the largest fish 
 of the day. Flushed by this success I determined to take my 
 own affair into my own hands, and sitting down resolutely 
 
Anghng '■Real Hard Work.' 97 
 
 attempted to force the hook through the finger. First straining 
 back the point, I made it circle round the bone, and then with 
 repeated urgings succeeded at last in forcing it through the 
 opposite side of the finger. Great was my joy in showing the 
 results to my companions ; and like a child who keeps its first 
 tooth carefully wrapped up in a piece of paper, I placed this 
 cruel hook in a safe corner of my pocket-book where it was 
 enshrined for many years with other relics, sacred to an angler 
 but ' caviare to the general.' And I always acknowledged 
 that on this day I met my Nemesis, and that the several 
 wrongs of La Touche, of Pussy and Piggy were in my own 
 person avenged. 
 
 It is commonly said that angling is but an idle way of 
 passing the time, and that while hunting and shooting by the 
 exertion they entail tend to strengthen the frame, angling con- 
 tributes but little to the physical improvement of the man. 
 Let anyone holding such opinions take a day's angling in a 
 river that has a rocky bed, or that is filled with large slippery 
 boulder-stones, among which it is difficult to preserve a footing ; 
 let him, encumbered with heavy wading boots, stem the wild 
 rushing waters for several hours ; let him carry twenty pounds 
 of trout on his back under a broiling sun ; let him in addition 
 walk some distance to and from the river, and I venture to say 
 that he will change his mind. It was upon the afternoon of a 
 blazing hot day that, weary with walking in heavy boots, I 
 crept along by the side of the Till, working my way through 
 the rank vegetation which frequently clothes its banks, and 
 which reached in this part nearly up to my waist. My rod 
 rested idly upon my arm with some twenty feet of line 
 depending from it, and at the end the usual lob. The line 
 was dragging along the surface of a dub, so still that no 
 current was perceptible, when a wrench nearly plucked the 
 rod from my hand. Turrring to see how this could have 
 
 H 
 
Bait of the Flying Lob. 
 
 happened, I observed a large circling eddy upon the surface 
 of the dub, but I thought the hook must have caught against 
 some submerged branch, and continued walking for about ten 
 yards. The line was still pendent, and I observed that every 
 two or three yards the swing of the rod caused the worm to 
 spring as many feet out of the water. Another wrench, and 
 another circling eddy ! Here was a puzzle worth investigating, 
 so placing the rod on my arm as before I walked forward, but 
 watched carefully to see what would follow. Contrary to all 
 experience, a noble trout actually sprang into the air and 
 caught the worm when it was a couple of feet above the water. 
 I instantly struck and firmly hooked it, and it proved to be a 
 fine fish weighing nearly i^lbs. 
 
 Now we know that salmon do many startling things. They 
 are readily tenipted by huge gaudy flies which have no parallel 
 in nature, and in cold weather they greedily seize minnows, 
 though no minnow is ever found in their stomachs. As I 
 have related, blue-dun flies ornamented with red tails have 
 proved more attractive to trout than when the imitation was 
 closer to nature, but this is the first and only occasion on which 
 I have known a trout spring at a lob dancing in the air. Are 
 we to suppose that the lob was taken for a variety of the flying 
 serpent ! or that there are lunatics among fish as there cer- 
 tainly are among men 1 
 
 About this time I made more than one excursion to the 
 Whiteadder, generally with Charlie Ebdy as my companion. 
 On one of these occasions we fished about five miles above 
 Elmford, and succeeded in making heavy baskets. While we 
 were considering which would be the shortest route to our 
 home at Dunse, a stranger advised us to leave the valley and 
 cross the hills which lay on our right hand. The sun was just 
 sinking below the horizon, and the long shadows which 
 stretched themselves before us gave warning to press on with 
 all our remaining energy. 
 
Collie-dogs in Kirk. 99 
 
 After an hour's walking we entered on a dreary moor, across 
 which a dusty road trailed its snake-like way. We still pressed 
 on and came at last to a gentle slope on whose side stood a 
 building of that severe and simple form in which a Puritan 
 would have loved to worship. It was, however, so diminutive 
 that I doubted whether it could have been built for Divine 
 worship, and a shepherd coming in sight with his tired flock 
 I said to him, ' Pray is that a kirk ? It looks very small.' 
 'Aye, aye, but it's no sae small, there's aboon thirty collies 
 there ilka sabbath.' The presence of so many collie-dogs, 
 each implying a master, was to my shepherd the gauge whereby 
 to calculate the number of worshippers, and at the time of 
 which I write it was in the hill country a pretty correct 
 test. To a member of the Church of England there is 
 something inexpressibly painful in the irreverence with which 
 the lower orders in Scotland treat the House of God. I 
 have seen people enter with their hats upon their heads, 
 laughing, talking and spitting, seen them kick the collie-dog 
 and make him take his accustomed place under the bench, and 
 then seat themselves. Things are better now in the towns 
 of Scotland, -and to some extent, I believe in the country 
 districts. 
 
 H 2 
 
CHAPTER X. 
 
 ' Along the silver streams of Tweed 
 'Tis blithe the mimic fly to lead, 
 When to the hook the salmon springs 
 And the line whistles through the rings ; 
 The boiling eddy see him try 
 Then dashing from the current high, 
 Till watchful eye and cautious hand 
 Have led his wasted strength to land.' 
 
 Sir Walter Scott 
 
 'DURING the autumn of the year 1839 
 an engagement called me to Edin- 
 burgh, and while there I arranged to 
 to spend a day at St. Boswell's. The 
 beautiful scenery around Dryburgh 
 attracted me, and I wished to ascertain whether it were pos- 
 sible for me to obtain any salmon-fishing, my only acquaintance 
 as yet with the king of fishes being with that one skegger 
 which I captured in the Coquet. The coach set me down at 
 the Buccleugh Arms early in the afternoon, and I walked at 
 once to the braehead. There I beheld a view which was 
 irresistibly attractive to me. Immediately before my eyes on 
 a richly-wooded peninsula, two-thirds of which was girdled by 
 the winding Tweed, stood in deep repose all that is left to us 
 
Dryhurgh Abbey. loi 
 
 of Dryburgh Abbey, showing plainly by the lightness and airy 
 grace of its columns and arches that French architects were 
 employed in its erection. A noble bank of trees rose in the 
 background, and farther off, at the distance of about two miles, 
 the Eildon Hills, so dear to Sir Walter Scott, with the three 
 picturesque peaks cleft in a single night by the restless spirit 
 for whom his great ancestor Sir Michael was compelled to find 
 employment. To the west hung the remnant of the chain- 
 bridge which the hurricane of January 7, 1839, had shivered 
 in pieces as though it had been a child's toy. Turning to the 
 river my eyes rested at once on many a pool and fast-rushing 
 stream in which my angling instincts predicted future triumphs. 
 
 At once I sought out Adam Johnston, who was then tacksman 
 of the Dryburgh as well as of part of the Bemerside fishings. 
 I found him a man of quiet manners, modest and desirous to 
 please — a character which applies to almost all the professional 
 fishermen I have known on the Tweed. One weakness cer- 
 tainly was common to many of them. When the ' lay ' of a 
 clean salmon was known, in season or out of season, they were 
 excited by it, and a little poaching was pretty sure to follow. 
 They seemed unable to resist it ; it was their fate. 
 
 In making my arrangements with Adam it surprised me to 
 find his terms so exceedingly moderate. A day's fishing, 
 including boatman and use of boat, was then only 5s. At the 
 present time a rent of ;^200 a year and all attendant expenses 
 are paid for the water which I was then free to roam over at 
 will. This will show how great a change has been produced 
 in the value of Tweed-fishings by the competition of gentlemen 
 eager for this noble sport. 
 
 1840. — ^In the first week of March I entered upon my new 
 career as an angler for salmon. Long practised as I was in 
 fishing for trout the conventional modes of casting and playing 
 the fly came easily to me, and so far as I could judge I was 
 
102 
 
 Salmon Fishing in the Tweed. 
 
 soon as successful as my brother anglers. The fish taken were 
 generally from 8 to 15 lbs. in weight; all were kelts, and 
 doubtless had been much heavier when they came from the 
 sea the autumn before. The destruction of kelts in the early 
 spring, previous to the Act of 1857 which made it penal, was 
 most lamentable ; thousands of large fish were slaughtered 
 every week, and sold to the dealers in the Midland counties at 
 i|d. per pound. Every form of ingenuity was put in practice 
 to capture these unwholesome fish, and yet, had they been 
 
 spared, and permitted to revisit the sea, they would not only 
 have increased several pounds each in weight, but would pro- 
 bably have realised 2s. per pound. So much for the greed 
 and blindness of man, and for the stupendous ignorance of our 
 Legislature ! 
 
 It happened one afternoon that Adam was unable to accom- 
 pany me, and that I was left to my own devices. Donning a 
 pair of heavy boots I waded into the Burnfoot pool which runs 
 beside the great Scaur at Boswell's, and soon took two fish. 
 
John Younger. 103 
 
 each of about 10 lbs weight. Fishing on to the next stream I 
 hooked the largest salmon I had yet seen. Novice as I was he 
 required all my skill, but after a long and severe run I was 
 successful, and he lay upon the bank, a kepper of 2\\ lbs. This 
 was the largest fish that fell to my rod in the Dryburgh water 
 — indeed at that time such captures were rare ; now, thanks 
 to improved legislation, fish of double the weight are taken 
 every season. 
 
 Wherever anglers resort in any number there is sure to be 
 some rendezvous which all frequent to learn the successes of 
 each day, where angling gossip of every kind circulates freely. 
 St. Boswell's was happy in this respect. At the workshop of 
 old John Younger you were sure to meet every morning and 
 evening the angling sti'ength of the district, while there was 
 a charm about the old man which was perfectly irresistible. 
 A keen angler from his boyhood, he threw himself heartily 
 into each detail of the day's adventures, and often had a word 
 of advice or encouragement for those who were willing to 
 receive it. John had a good deal of literary ability too. He 
 wrote an admirable article on salmon-fishing which was pub- 
 lished in ' Blackwood's Magazine,' and was considered at the 
 time quite a text-book for reference. He was also the author 
 of several lyrical poems, whose simplicity and purity I have 
 always admired. And when Prince Albert offered three prizes 
 for the best essays on the temporal advantages of the Sabbath 
 to the labouring classes, John received the second prize. Yet 
 his essay was written under great disadvantages. John was a 
 singularly modest and diffident man, and it was only under the 
 strong pressure of his friends that he became a competitor. 
 So much time was consumed in removing his scruples that 
 only forty-eight hours were left in which to write the essay ! 
 When tidings arrived of its success the little village was stirred 
 to its very centre ; bonfires blazed and bells rang ; but alas ! 
 
104 John Younger's Talents. 
 
 the author was a poor man, without one decent suit of clothes 
 fit to appear in Exeter Hall, and he must have stayed at home 
 had not a kind neighbour supplied his wants. 
 
 John Younger's published writings, as well as his numerous 
 correspondence, all emanated from his workshop. Whenever 
 an idea fired his imagination, down went the ploughman's shoe 
 which he was cobbling, and a sheet of paper spread upon the 
 lapstone announced to visitors that John was ' rapt, inspired.' 
 Many an evening have I spent with this remarkable man, 
 listening to his compositions and sipping a glass of toddy with 
 him. His reading and information were extensive even for 
 a Scotchman ; there were few of our British poets with 
 whose works he was not well acquainted, and his views on 
 men and manners were racy and original. He was a great 
 politician, and, I am sorry to say, an advanced Radical. At 
 the great county meeting of Selkirkshire, on occasion of the 
 passing of the Reform Bill, John Younger was selected to 
 return thanks for the enfranchisement of the small property- 
 holders, and he did so in a really able speech which won him 
 general admiration. 
 
 John was remarkable not only for his varied talents, but for 
 his exceeding gentleness and consideration for others. He 
 never flinched from putting forth his views plainly, but the 
 way in which he did so might have read a lesson to many a 
 man of higher station. Never did he forget, as is too com- 
 monly the case, that truth itself need not and should not be 
 uttered in an oiFensive manner. 
 
 The following poem is a fair example of John Younger's 
 style, but I am told that many others whose beauty and pathos 
 are yet more remarkable are scattered among his friends. 
 Some few of them which I have been able to collect are given 
 in an appendix. 
 
Verses to Nafinie. 105 
 
 To -Nannie. 
 
 It's now full twa an' forty year, 
 Sin nestling in wi' Nannie, 
 As weel my part, I held her dear, 
 Sae faithfu' young an' bonnie. 
 Her tocher was a trifle sma' 
 A hard-earned weel-saved pennie, 
 But 0' tocher could I think ava, 
 When in my arms my Nannie ? 
 
 Nae artfu' wiles, plied e'er so fain, 
 
 Could move the mind o' Nannie ; 
 
 Had courtiers wooed 'twould been in vain 
 
 Her heart was held by Johnnie. 
 
 O' cares we've had the world's fu' share 
 
 Thro' stormy days an' sunny ; 
 
 My part has been the less to bear, 
 
 I've had sic' help o' Nannie. 
 
 A welding heat 0' strong young love 
 
 Will last through winters many ; 
 
 The frosts of years but tend to prove 
 
 The links that bind to Nannie, 
 
 Though teeth are fled and locks grown grey. 
 
 She's yet sae kind an' cannie. 
 
 Love that outlasts young life's heyday 
 
 Is the love I bear my Nannie. 
 
 Mid a' the thoughts that trouble me, 
 
 The saddest thought of ony. 
 
 Is wha may close the other's e'e — 
 
 May it be me or Nannie ? 
 
 The ane that's left will sairly feel 
 
 Amid a world uncannie, 
 
 I'd rather face auld age mysel 
 
 Than lanely leave my Nannie. 
 
 The loving wish so pathetically expressed in this poem was 
 granted ; John Younger died on June 19, i860, having sur- 
 vived his faithful partner rather more than four years. Soon 
 after my intimacy with John commenced, his wife became 
 totally blind from cataracts on both eyes. Many a time, when 
 seated with John in his workshop, I have seen him steal away 
 as secretly as he could to the adjoining room where in her 
 
io6 Fishing in the Cale. 
 
 chair by the ingle-neuk sat the poor helpless woman, listening, 
 always listening for the sound of the step she knew and loved 
 so well. The old man would take her hand, whisper some 
 tender words, and bending down bestow the longed-for kiss. 
 Then wiping away the tear that would gather in his eye, John 
 would return to his lapstone and his labour, leaving the loving 
 heart to count the minutes till he would return again. 
 
 1 84 1. — My early spring fishing this year was again at Dry- 
 burgh, and during the summer I visited the Tweed, the Eden, 
 and the Cale. The only incident I recall in this trip was the 
 capture of an eel in the last-named river. The Cale is a small 
 stream easily commanded by the angler, and at the time of 
 which I am writing it was well stored with trout, averaging 
 four to the pound. Charlie not being with me, I engaged the 
 services of the fisherman of the Floor's water, and it was well 
 that I did so, for on two successive days I captured 99 trout, 
 each day's basket being above 20 lbs. in weight. On the third 
 day our fishing was interrupted by a fierce thunderstorm 
 accompanied by violent rain, mingled with large hailstones, 
 which drove straight in our faces. During two hours we were 
 glad to secure shelter beneath an overhanging bank, then the 
 storm abated and gleams of sunshine stole out. Soon the 
 dark clouds rolled away, leaving a few lingering drops of rain, 
 with now and then a faint glimmer of lightning and the last 
 murmurs of distant thunder. Returning to the river we found 
 it so swollen and discoloured that plainly nothing was to be 
 done but to retrace our steps ; still I could not resist the 
 temptation as I walked along of dropping my line here and 
 there into a quiet spot, and thus I added a few more trout to 
 my creel. 
 
 While thus engaged I hooked a fish so heavy that it resisted 
 all my attempts to raise it to the surface. It moved swiftly 
 down the stream, always keeping near the bottom. I had 
 
The III Repute of Eels in Scotland. 107 
 
 never before had a fish on the line which so completely set me 
 at defiance, and I was greatly in doubt what I had got hold of. 
 Keeping in the middle of the river it had the advantage of the 
 swollen current, and in spite of all I could do the creature 
 dragged me on a mile or more. At last a favourable landing- 
 place led me to try conclusions with it, and putting on all the 
 pressure I dared, I succeeded in dragging on shore an enormous 
 eel weighing 3^ lbs. I had when a boy killed many junior 
 members of the family, and my gratification at their capture 
 led me to look upon them with complacency, but I cannot 
 describe my .disgust on beholding this horrid-looking monster. 
 The detestation with which I regard eels has ever been in the 
 exact ratio of their size. Though they are commonly regarded 
 in England as a dainty dish, they are detested by the Scotch. 
 I well remember some years later giving my good old landlady 
 Mrs. Johnston some eels to cook for dinner, and her remon- 
 strating ' Nay, nay, Mr. Henderson, surely ye wudna hae me 
 touch thae serpent beasts. Think now o' what the serpent did 
 to puir Eve ; nay, aw canna get ower that.' Many of the 
 Scottish peasantry believe the eel to be only a species of water- 
 serpent. 
 
 1842. — ^In the March of this year I found myself once more 
 at St. Boswell's, fishing alternately the Dryburgh water with 
 Adam Johnston, and the Mertoun water with John Purdey. 
 It was during this visit that I made the acquaintance of Cap- 
 tain * who was lodging in the neighbourhood. As we 
 
 frequently fished opposite to one another we became gradually 
 intimate, till at last he pressed and I accepted his generous 
 hospitality. During the evenings that I spent with him seated 
 by his comfortable fireside, he used to relate many a strange 
 tale of other days and distant lands which even now rise 
 vividly before me, though I cannot relate them in the graphic 
 language of the bronzed old sailor. 
 
io8 Captain * at Algiers. 
 
 Captain * had been present as a midshipman at the 
 
 battle of Algiers, and described the morning of that eventful 
 day as having been so still and quiet that it was necessary to 
 tow the fleet into the harbour by boats manned for the pur- 
 pose. Approaching in this manner, ship after ship took up 
 her position in line beneath those formidable batteries which 
 had so long defied all Christendom. The commander of the 
 
 vessel in which young * served had for several days been 
 
 confined to his berth by so severe an attack of gout that his 
 officers waited on him there before the engagement began to 
 learn his directions. To the astonishment of all, the com- 
 mander ordered four sailors to carry him upstairs and place 
 him on the centre of the quarter-deck. Having seated him 
 there the men made an attempt to screen him from the eye of 
 the enemy by placing a hen coop and other light things in 
 front of him, but their endeavour brought down such a burst 
 of indignation that the oifending barrier was quickly removed. 
 Then ordering a can of grog, and with a long clay pipe in his 
 hand, he addressed his officers in strong heart-stirring words 
 and ordered them to their several posts. Seated in his chair, 
 a fair mark for the enemy's fire, he directed the deadly fight 
 and refused to be borne from it till the great stronghold of 
 piracy was taken. As the last gun was knocked down from 
 the enemy's battery, the Turk who had been directing its fire 
 jumped upon the parapet, and cursing the hated Christians, 
 waved his sword thrice round his head, and hurled it on the 
 deck of the British vessel. The English sailors were so struck 
 with his dauntless spirit that, led by their commander, they 
 gave him one of those ringing cheers which none can give so 
 heartily as the brave tars of old England. 
 
 Another anecdote shows that the dare-devil spirit which led 
 to so many conquests was not confined to men who had seen 
 long service, but burned as fiercely in the hearts of those who 
 
Duelling Among Midshipmen. 109 
 
 were in training to fill their places. Young * — \ — was still a 
 midshipman, his ship lay in the Hooghly, a few miles from 
 Calcutta. It was evening, all the superior officers had gone 
 ashore, leaving four midshipmen aboard. Dinner over they 
 sat down to drink, and cards were introduced to while away 
 the hours till midnight. Whatever danger may attend wine 
 or cards separately, the risk is far greater when the two are 
 united. Intoxication led to quarrelling, and a glass of wine 
 was thrown in the face of one of the party. According to the 
 code of honour of that day nothing but blood could efface so 
 
 dire an insult. A duel was arranged, * and another 
 
 agreeing to act as seconds. From this time till two in the 
 morning ' the four sat in perfect silence, then rising they went 
 in a boat to a small island a few miles off in the river. Now 
 
 came the worst part of the affair. * and the other 
 
 second disagreed on some details of the arrangement, high 
 words followed, and ended in a challenge to another duel. 
 Nay, so impetuous were these new disputants that they insisted 
 on their quarrel being settled first. After much opposition 
 from the other pair this was agreed to, and they all sat down 
 to wait for daylight. 
 
 The first gleams of morning showed the party that they 
 were seated just below the bodies of five pirates who had been 
 gibbeted in this lonely spot. The sight sobered them a little, 
 but the code of honour permitted no retreat, and the island was 
 so small that the duel could only take place with the hideous 
 objects creaking in their chains right over the combatants' 
 heads. The first and second shots were harmless; it was 
 agreed that honour could only be satisfied with the shedding 
 
 of blood. They fired again ; * 's antagonist was severely 
 
 wounded, he fell insensible and bleeding profusely. The lads, 
 for such they were in reality, thoroughly sobered, returned to 
 the ship, and were placed under arrest. 
 
no The Dueller Punished. 
 
 The practice of duelling had become so common in India 
 that the authorities were determined to put it down by the 
 
 severest punishment. * was tried, found guilty, and 
 
 sentenced to be imprisoned for twelve months in a cage or 
 caravan, having one side guarded by iron bars through which 
 the prisoner could be seen. Above the cage was placed a 
 notice of his offence, and thus exposed to the jests and gibes of 
 the mocking crowd, he was dragged along and exhibited 
 through the principal towns of Southern India. The sentence 
 was a fearful one, and it appears to have had the effect 
 
 intended, for Captain * believed he was the only duellist 
 
 so punished. At the close of the year he was restored to his 
 rank in the Navy, and distinguished himself afterwards at 
 several engagements.t 
 
 \ It is due to my friend to say that this tale was one of many told by the 
 gallant Captain — ' after dinner.' 
 
112 Mr. Williamson's Minnow -fishing. 
 
 little courtesies led to our dining and spending the evening 
 together. The time passed most pleasantly, and was the pre- 
 cursor of many agreeable evenings, in which a warm friendship 
 was cemented between Mr. Graham and myself. We had too 
 many thoughts and feelings in common not to fraternise, and 
 we were both enthusiasts in the gentle art. How pleasant it 
 was to tell adventures past ; to discuss the merits of our 
 favourite rivers, and the most approved systems of casting. 
 Midnight came too soon, and nothing but the necessity of 
 rising early next morning drove us to our beds at night. 
 
 We mustered a formidable party for our next day's fishing. 
 It was my fortune to join Mr. Graham and Mr. Williamson, 
 and as it is seldom that something new may not be learnt by 
 those who keep their eyes open, I learnt on this day that 
 trolling with minnow for trout may be practised successfully 
 by casting up stream. Advancing a few feet into a quick- 
 flowing stream, Mr. Williamson cast his minnow towards the 
 opposite bank, but still considerably upwards, thus securing 
 the placing of himself below the fish. In this way he took 
 several, but the art seemed his own, for though I and others 
 did our best, the best was nothing. I have never met with 
 any other angler who fished with minnow in this peculiar 
 manner. 
 
 After two or three days spent most agreeably Mr. Hutchinson, 
 Mr. Graham and I went on to the Glen, while the rest of the 
 party returned home. The distance of Wooler Cottage from 
 the Glen and the Bowmont induced us to take up our quarters 
 at a little public-house near to Bendor, known as the Black 
 Bull. The accommodation was of the roughest. All that 
 could be said in its favour was that the landlady was obliging, 
 and cleanly in her doings. We could only secure two rooms 
 for the three, one dark and damp enough, in which we sat and 
 took our meals ; the other above it was larger, and had three 
 
A Strange Bedfellow. , 113 
 
 beds in as many of its corners. During several years this sort 
 of lodging was all that my friends and myself deemed neces- 
 sary. ' Man wants but little here below ' was our motto, and 
 I have known many gentlemen whose homes possessed every 
 comfort and not a few of the luxuries of life take kindly to 
 these simple surroundings. It is true that at times there'were 
 penalties to be paid, and so one of our party found on this 
 occasion. 
 
 The house was the accustomed resort of drovers who took 
 cattle and sheep to the southern market, and knowing the 
 scant ceremony common among these people, we generally 
 took care to fasten our bedroom door. Unfortunately this pre- 
 caution was once neglected. After midnight a drover arrived, 
 found the house door as usual open upon the latch, made his 
 way up the staircase, and entered the accustomed room. He 
 then plunged into his accustomed bed, where at the time one 
 of the party (I say not which) was stretched in peaceful 
 slumbers, dreaming of the heavy basket he was to achieve on 
 the morrow. At daybreak the unfortunate sleeper, giving a 
 lunge in his dream, came into contact with the drover and 
 awoke. As his eyes opened they rested upon a red woollen 
 nightcap beside his own on the pillow, and the whole situation 
 was revealed at once. Had an alarm of fire been raised the 
 poor fellow could not have sprung out of bed with greater 
 expedition. Soon he was to be seen performing his ablutions 
 with most commendable fervour, after which he went out for a 
 couple of hours before breakfast, and aired himself in the 
 fields. Not till evening did his face relax from the look of 
 dire disgust it had assumed. 
 
 Late in the month of June Mr. Hutchinson, Mr. Graham 
 
 and I made a party to fish the Bowmont, the Glen, the Teviot, 
 
 and the Ale. We thus varied the scene of sport, but our 
 
 success in the two latter streams was scarcely satisfactory. I 
 
 I 
 
114 Salmon Roe. 
 
 see by my memoranda that on the 29th of this month the 
 friendly competition generally going on between Graham and 
 Henderson resulted in a close struggle. The water selected 
 was from Bendor to Coupland, and the result was : 
 
 A. Graham . . . 88 fish = 25 ibs. 
 
 W. Henderson . . . 87 „ = 25 „ 
 and^on the following day : 
 
 A. Graham ... 40 fish = 13 lbs. 
 
 W. Henderson . . . 59 ,, = 18 „ 
 This trip was in general successful, but the above-mentioned 
 days were the best we had. Graham occasionally indulged in 
 a description of fishing unknown on the Northumberland 
 rivers ; indeed I had never heard of anyone practising it but 
 himself. It is well that it should be so, judging by its deadly 
 character on the only occasion on which I tried it. 
 
 One morning before starting from Bendor, Graham gave me 
 seventeen dried pea roe which had been taken from a large 
 salmon, and were of proportionate size. He wished me to 
 take more, but I had scruples as to such bait being legitimate, 
 and only took enough to test their value by experiment. On 
 reaching the lower end of the Fox Holes'-pool, I determined 
 to make trial of their power. There was a charming breeze 
 blowing up the water, just sufficient to hide my movements 
 without impeding the true play of the line. Screening myself 
 beneath some bushes which overhung the southern bank, I 
 cast the line close to an old tree stump which projected into 
 the water from the opposite side. Fifteen times did I cast the 
 line and each time a fish-was basketed ; nay, the longer I fished 
 the more perfectly could I see that directly the pea touched 
 the water several fish rushed forward and contended for the 
 delicious morsel. I had now only two peas left, so putting on 
 a worm I cast it among the shoal ; a trout instantly gorged it 
 and was taken, but on trying a second worm the fish merely 
 
Tyranny Among Trout. 115 
 
 circled round, made their observations, and advanced no 
 farther. I now put on the sixteenth pea and the fight was 
 renewed, the fish fairly leaping over each other in their excite- 
 ment. Once more I placed a worm upon the hook, but it was 
 useless ; the fish had learnt to discriminate. The seventeenth 
 and last pea was put on with the same success as before, and I 
 wound up half an hour's fishing with seventeen good trout 
 taken with seventeen peas of roe and the one unwary trout 
 that took the worm. So murderous do I consider this bait 
 when used in clear water, that I should not have recorded this 
 tale had not the legislature some years ago made the possession 
 of samon-roe illegal. It is now only resorted to by poachers, 
 a class of persons not likely to see these pages. 
 
 The foregoing incident also illustrates the quarrelsome 
 habits of trout when intent on feeding. No angler with 
 ordinary habits of observation but must have noticed fre- 
 quently how the largest trout of the shoal establishes himself 
 in the most favoured locality, and should any of the lesser fry 
 attempt to seize the tempting fly as it passes, how he is at once 
 attacked by the tyrant of the stream, and compelled to put 
 forth his utmost speed if he wishes to save his life. 
 
 I remember a tale told me by Johnny Younger which shows 
 how surely the angler may rely upon this habit of the largest 
 trout. On one of my visits to his workshop he mentioned 
 three evenings' fishing which his son had recently taken in the 
 Tweed. On the- first of these, when fishing upwards, I believe 
 with worm, he came to the stream which flows immediately 
 below Mertoun Cauld. The hour was late, the gloaming far 
 advanced, and the angler had captured several trout of the 
 usual size, when on trying one particular spot which he knew 
 by experience to be the best, he succeeded in taking a fish 
 of, if I remember rightly, 3 lbs. weight. On hearing this 
 Johnny observed that no doubt this was ' the tyrant,' and 
 I 2 
 
1 1 6 Might makes Right. 
 
 advised his son to try the same spot on the subsequent evening, 
 as the fish next in size would no doubt be found there. The 
 prophecy proved true ; a fish somewhat smaller than the last 
 was basketed. On the third evening another trout still 
 rather less was captured, but the three were far heavier than 
 any others taken. An angler can scarcely pass a more inter- 
 esting hour than in hiding behind a bush close to a bright 
 clear pool well stored with trout, where he may watch in still- 
 ness the actions of the shoal. If the sun favours him by 
 shining out, every movement of the fish will be clearly visible, 
 and the social despotism of ' might makes right ' witnessed in 
 all its strength. 
 
 The distance of Bendor from the Bowmont had hitherto 
 confined our fishings in this river to its lowest stretches, and 
 now for the first time we went as high as Mindrum Mill. While 
 fishing near the mill an old man approached me with a kindly 
 good-day, and a hope that I had good sport. He was a fresh 
 complexioned man, of apparently more than threescore years 
 and ten, and somewhat feeble in his walk. A few more words 
 passed, and he enquired at what time I expected to return. 
 Having named five o'clock, I passed on thinking no more of 
 the matter. Our fishing ended, my friends and myself were 
 wending our way back along the river side when the old man 
 came forward and said courteously, ' My wife's waiting for you, 
 and all's ready, come away.' We could not resist such 
 unaffected kindness, and followed him into the house. Here 
 he introduced us to his very counterpart in age and simple 
 gentleness. Dressed in plain homespun, but with cap and 
 collar white as drifted snow, this aged mistress of the farm 
 entered on her hospitable task. We were ushered into a 
 charming little room in which to make our toilette, and then 
 into the best sitting room, where we found a table spread with 
 meat hot and cold, eggs, honey, tea, and oh ! such cream and 
 
The Hospitable Miller. 117 
 
 butter. The old lady sat down and presided at the feast, but 
 her husband would only walk about the room pleased to ask 
 us questions and to join his wife in urging us to every possible 
 effort in eating and drinking. Next came the inevitable toddy, 
 of which our host took a little, and it would be difficult to 
 describe his pleasure when he learned that two of his guests- 
 came from Durham. In early life he had held the farm of 
 Littletown, about three miles from that city, and with his wife 
 had migrated to the Borders after several years. The name of 
 Lynn I knew was still well remembered at Littletown ; and well 
 sustained it has been by his son, it will not soon be forgotten on 
 the Borders. Warm invitations were given to us all by this 
 charming old couple ; I always think of them with pleasure, 
 and can scarcely recall anything more beautiful than the loving 
 deference of the wife and the devoted protection of the hus- 
 band. Past the allotted space of human life as they were, 
 their mutual love seemed holier and more intense ; to have 
 lived and loved so long was surely a step to the Eternal 
 Paradise. 
 
 Before we parted the old people gave us warm invitations to 
 visit them again, and whenever I fished the Bowmont in after 
 years I always found at the farmhouse of Mindrum Mill a 
 hospitable welcome for my friends and myself, first from the 
 father and in later days from the son. And everyone who has 
 fished much in the valleys of the Borders can, I believe, from 
 personal experience, confirm what I have said of the free hos- 
 pitality there offered to the unknown wanderer. 
 
 1843. — On the 8th of March in this year I recommenced my 
 salmon-fishing at Dryburgh, and was joined by Mr. Graham on 
 the 14th. The results were, 
 
 A. Graham, in six days' fishing . . 22 salmon. 
 W. Henderson in nine „ . . 34 „ 
 It will be seen that our success was nearly similar, and let me 
 
ii8 The Blind Water -Rat. 
 
 say that it adds much to the pleasure of a fishing tour when 
 friends are so equally matched as to make the competition 
 of each day doubtfiil. It was on the 20th of this month, when 
 resting in front of the fisherman's cottage, that Adam Johnston 
 drew my attention to Graham, who was then engaged in 
 battling with a heavy fish. The struggle was so long main- 
 tained that at last we went to his assistance, and reached the 
 stream below the cauld just in time to see him land a splendid 
 new run fish of 19 lbs. To capture a clean fish of such a 
 weight in the early spring, and so far up the river, was a most 
 unusual event, indeed so scarce were they at the time that the 
 common market price was Ss. per pound. Adam Johnston, in 
 addition to the Dryburgh water, rented some of the finest 
 Bemerside pools. The rent for the last-named waters was only 
 £io per annum payable in kind, and Graham had great 
 pleasure in knowing that his salmon was accepted by the Lady 
 of Bemerside in full payment for six months' rent. The 
 recollection of these facts of thirty years ago enables me to 
 compute the enormous difference between the value of the 
 Tweed fishing then and now. 
 
 During the month of May my firiend A. W. Hutchinson and 
 I had five days' fishing in the Glen, the Bowmont, and the Till, 
 fixing our head-quarters at Bendor as the rhost convenient 
 centre. My diary shows the result to be 130 trout taken by 
 my rod, and nearly the same by that of my fi-iend. The 
 weather and state of the water were, however, very unfavour- 
 able, so we shortened our visit. It happened one day while 
 fishing in the Bowmont that I had separated from my friend, 
 and was trying a gentle running stream immediately below a 
 small island. The sun was shining brightly, and I observed a 
 water-rat of the old English breed crossing the water about 
 half a dozen yards from me. I tried to intercept its passage 
 by a gentle touch with my rod ; this made it dive, but it 
 
The Shepherd of Cheviotside. iig 
 
 quickly rose to the surface. Again I touched it, and it dived, 
 till reaching the farther shore it ran backwards and forwards 
 upon the narrow strip of gravel which lay between the river 
 and a steep grassy bank. As there were several rat-holes in 
 the bank, I could not understand why the creature did not 
 take shelter in one of them. I shouted several times, while it 
 continued to search for a hole, till at last in evident despair it 
 sat upright with its face raised direct to the sun and its fore 
 legs held upwards, the very attitude which in man would 
 have been that of prayer. On approaching it, which I did 
 noiselessly, I saw the poor animal was blind. A more touching 
 appeal to man's compassion I cannot conceive, and who shall 
 say but that as it sat there it did not in some way appeal for 
 light and guidance to the Father of Light .' I withdrew as 
 gently as I could, and looking back some minutes after saw it 
 still in the same prayerful attitude. 
 
 The following anecdote is borrowed from my ' Folk Lore,' as 
 it was during this tour that the second visit took place. 
 
 ' About twenty years have passed since, after a long day's 
 angling in the College, a small river which winds round the 
 northern side of Cheviot, I entered the thatched cottage of a 
 shepherd, which stood near the confluence of that stream with 
 the Bowmont. The man and his wife bade me welcome after 
 the kindly hospitable fashion of that district. I grew intei-ested 
 in their conversation, atid promised to visit them again when 
 I came next into their neighbourhood. I did so during the 
 following spring, but what was my grief at finding the man, 
 who had seemed to me a model of strength, now a complete 
 wreck ; he was lying on a long settle by the fireside, wrapped 
 in blankets. The poor woman on seeing me burst into tears, 
 and it was some time before her suiFering husband could tell 
 his tale of too confiding simplicity. 
 
 ' In the latter part of the preceding autumn he had caught 
 
1 20 Salmon Fishing with Charlie. 
 
 cold while tending his flock on the mountain side. Acute 
 rheumatism had followed ; he suffered a good deal, and being 
 of a sanguine temperament he chafed at the slow but the safe 
 steps adopted by the surgeon of the district. As week after 
 week passed by with little amendment, constant pain and 
 impending poverty induced him at last, in an evil hour, to give 
 heed to a neighbour's advice and resort to " the wise man who 
 lived far over the hills." The wise man declared that the case 
 was desperate, and demanded desperate remedies. As the first 
 step he directed that the sufferer should be wrapped in a blanket 
 and laid in the sharp running stream which flowed a few yards 
 from the cottage. This was done with full faith, though it was 
 the depth of winter. Never shall I forget the poor victim as 
 he turned his dying eyes on me and said, " Oh, sir, I laid there 
 twenty minutes, but I could endure it no longer, and I just 
 said, lift me out, I am dead. They took me out and I have 
 laid on this settle ever since." A few days more, and the poor 
 fellow passed, as we humbly trust, to a better life, a sacrifice to 
 one of the most cruel and heartless impostures I ever heard of. 
 Had not death intervened, who can tell what further tortures 
 might have been in store for him at the hands of this ignorant 
 and presuming monster ? ' 
 
 i844.-i-Hitherto I had not been accompanied by Charlie on 
 any of my salmon-fishing expeditions. He had seen little of 
 this kind of angling, so being desirous to give him a treat I 
 took him with me to Mertoun water on the 12th of March 
 this year. We only fished five days, the weather being bitterly 
 cold with much snow and frost. My sport was from a boat 
 and the result twenty-one salmon = 213 lbs. Charlie who 
 had only such water as he could command from the shore 
 captured eight salmon = 57 lbs. 
 
 At this time it was that my friend Captain * suffered 
 
 from a misfortune which, like many others, left a sting behind. 
 
.-.•!j« 
 
Too Sedulous Filial Affection. 121 
 
 One day, when everything seemed to favour the angler's hopes, 
 when fish were in plenty and seemed only desirous of offering 
 
 themselves a ready sacrifice. Captain * , attended by his 
 
 son, a lad of some twelve or thirteen years of age, commenced 
 his fishing in the Hare Craig pool. This is the deepest pool in 
 the Dryburgh water, and was a special favourite with the 
 Captain, who had made many a glorious capture in its recesses. 
 Let me add that the Captain was a big burly man, six feet 
 two in height and with a breadth and amplitude befitting the 
 imperial Jove. 
 
 His son was managing the boat, so that it drifted slowly 
 down the stream, when the Captain, too eager in making a 
 vigorous cast, went head and heels overboard. The poor boy 
 thought he would certainly be drowned, so seizing a salmon 
 cleik which lay in the boat he made a wild dash at his sub- 
 merged sire, who was floundering with his head downwards, 
 and succeeded in planting the cruel tool deep in the parental 
 buttock. Roar upon roar, yell upon yell, proceeded from 
 below, but the lad held on gallantly, pursuaded that he was 
 doing the right thing to save his father, till, after a long 
 struggle, by a vigorous twist behind, the agonised Captain 
 succeeded in wriggling off the hook, and instinctively avoiding 
 the boat swam towards the shore, where I fancy the poor boy 
 got more kicks than halfpence in requital of his display of 
 filial affection. It was long before the Captain could bear the 
 solicitous enquiries of his friends as to the state of his tail. 
 Mentally as well as physically it was long a sore subject. 
 
 1845. — ^The 1 2th of March in this year found me once more 
 at St. Boswell's, and for the first time without a companion. 
 Happily for me the omission was well supplied by Mr. Forbes 
 Brown, whom I found at the hotel, and whose daily fishing was 
 on the Rutherford water, then rented by his brother, Mr. 
 David Brown, of Longformacus. We at once agreed to occupy 
 
122 Fishing in Frost and Snow. 
 
 the same sitting room and take our meals together, and never 
 have I known a more genial and pleasant companion. His 
 fishing being on the Rutherford and mine on the Mertoun 
 waters, we frequently exchanged our day's rights, and thus 
 added variety to our sport. During the night of the i6th 
 (Sunday) a heavy fall of snow occurred, and looking out on 
 the following morning I found the snow resting twelve inches 
 deep on the ground. The frost was so severe that the quiet 
 pools were almost frozen from side to side. I had given up all 
 idea of further fishing and was preparing to return home, 
 when John Purdey the fisherman arrived at the hotel, and to 
 my surprise announced that though we could only have a short 
 day, yet he was certain we should kill ' a lot o' fish.' These 
 words had a magical effect upon me, and putting on my long 
 boots, we waded through the snow to Mertoun bridge. 
 
 Here a stoppage occurred, for the boat was about a mite 
 lower down the river, and had to be towed upwards. Pointing 
 to the shallow stream above the bridge, John said, as he started 
 to fetch the boat, 'Aw saw a schule o' fish playing there 
 yesterday ; maybe if yer were to wade in yer might heuck ane 
 or twa.' The chance seemed small, but it was not in my nature 
 to neglect it. I fitted on a set of minnow tackle at once, and 
 soon I had my reward. The sun shone out, which on such a 
 cold day was in my favour, and when John returned he found 
 me with eight salmon on the bank, all taken within an hour 
 and fifteen minutes. This put us in high spirits, and we fished 
 slowly downwards to the 'Pot,' but the sun had ceased to 
 shine, and when we concluded at five o'clock we had only 
 added eight more fish to our basket. Still sixteen fish in five 
 hours was a brilliant success ; only on two other occasions 
 have I taken the same number, and I have never exceeded it. 
 
 Two days later, by exchange with Mr. Brown, I fished the 
 Rutherford water, and made the acquaintance of the fisherman 
 
Fishing in the Wharf e. 123 
 
 John Aitken, one of the most obliging professionals on the 
 Tweed. The Rutherford water is generally shallow, but at 
 times it affords excellent salmon-fishing, while for common 
 trout it is universally admitted to be the best in the Tweed. 
 Through Mr. Forbes Brown's kindness I was allowed to fish 
 this water for trout, and this permission, afterwards confirmed 
 by his brother at Longformacus, led to annual visits here 
 during several years ; and here I have known some of the 
 most delightful days' sport of the many I have enjoyed through 
 life. The kindness was not a little enhanced by the leave Mr. 
 David Brown granted me to take a friend with me, and by the 
 directions he gave Aitken to let me have occasionally a day's 
 salmon-fishing. My first day's sport at Rutherford ended in 
 the capture of eight salmon == loi lbs., one of which was a 
 new run fish. Altogether this tour was the most profitable I 
 had yet had. During nine days, in which I had fished forty- 
 nine hours, I had taken in all seventy-three salmon — an 
 amount of sport quite sufficient even to satisfy me. 
 
 In the early summer, by the advice of my physician, I went 
 to Harrogate for a few weeks to recruit my health. Certainly 
 angling was not among the prescribed remedies, but it was not 
 forbidden, and when I saw the stream glitter in the sun, and 
 the pool curl in the breeze, the temptation was too much for 
 me. So taking a light pony phaeton I drove to the little 
 village of Castley, near the ' banks of crystal Wharfe.' Leaving 
 my carriage at a charming little public-house, I walked to the 
 river and began fishing a strong stream which flowed from 
 beneath a mill. I took six good trout with worm, much to 
 the surprise of the miller, who had no notion of there being 
 such large fish in the water, and satisfied with my sport 
 returned to 'mine inn.' I there asked the old landlady to 
 make me some tea, and while she was absent T hung up my 
 long wading boots on a crook that was in the ceiling. She 
 
124 Unfounded Apprehensions. 
 
 soon returned carrying a tray of crockery, but in an instant 
 she dropped it with a crash, fell on her knees, covered her face 
 with her hands, crying out, ' Oh mercy, mercy ! O good sir, 
 don't kill me, I never did you any harm.' I could only say, 
 ' My good woman, what is the matter ? ' but the sound of my 
 voice made her desperate and she exclaimed yet more pitifully, 
 ' Pray, pray don't murder a lone woman ; I'm not wicked, I've 
 done no wrong to anybody.' Again I tried to pacify her and 
 put my hand upon her shoulder, but this made matters worse. 
 Shriek upon shriek ensued, and then a violent fit of trembling. 
 
 Finding my attempts to sooth her were of no avail, I went 
 in search of assistance and brought a servant girl to do what 
 she could with her mistress. On re-entering the room we 
 found the poor woman kneeling and gazing with a look of 
 horror upon the boots. The maid saw the cause of her alarm, 
 and tried to make her understand that they were only a pair 
 of boots used for wading in the river. When she apprehended 
 this she turned to me and said, ' Oh, sir, I really thought you 
 had murdered a man and hung his legs up there.' Then she 
 crept away and I saw her no more, the fright having made the 
 poor creature seriously ill. 
 
 At this period of my life I generally accompanied my 
 friends R. Hern and J. H. Forster, on their annual visit to 
 Wolsingham Park for August 12. My enjoyment lay by the 
 side of the pure running Waskerly-burn which meanders 
 through the park, while theirs consisted in toilsome struggling 
 over broken ground, in search of the most game bird in the 
 British sportsman's list. I never did shoot ; whether I might 
 ever have done so is a speculation, all desire to ' go a gunning ' 
 having been extinguished in my breast by an untoward event 
 which occurred when I was about twelve years of age. I had 
 heard my mother complain of the inroads made in her garden 
 by a certain family of cocks and hens, the gardener on his part 
 
Going A-gunning. 125 
 
 declaring that neither peas nor gooseberries could be raised 
 while such depredators went unpunished. I was just at the age 
 which is ever on the look-out for adventure ; my favourite 
 books were those of spirit-stirring narrations, and I held life 
 without such moving incidents to be stale, flat, and unprofitable 
 indeed. Don Quixote had contended with windmills, why should 
 not I go forth against cocks and hens ? On pretences which a 
 strict code of morals would scarcely justify, I obtained the loan 
 of a gun, and loading it with what I imagined the due pro- 
 portions of powder and shot, I ensconced myself beneath some 
 laurels, and awaited the arrival of the feathered family. At 
 last they came, and to my delight the old cock himself, the 
 head and leader of all the mischief, led the way. After a 
 moderate dinner on sweet peas Chanticleer went to roost 
 among the lower branches of a wide-spreading old gooseberry 
 bush, the hens and chickens clustering round him. My heart 
 fluttered with joy ; the long desired moment was at hand ; I 
 believed that the prize was my own, and that my enemy's 
 proud comb would soon take its place in my satchel together 
 with marbles and cherry-stones. Stealthily I moved onwards, 
 and inserting the muzzle of the gun into the bush — let fly. 
 Oh what clouds diffused themselves ; of smoke from my inno- 
 cuous weapon, of dust from the scuffling of the outraged 
 Gallican ! 
 
 I ' back recoiled, I knew not why,' but alas ! what were my 
 feelings when the patriarch of the farmyard stepped out and 
 stood undaunted before me, spread his wings and crowed his 
 highest note of victory. A profound disgust took possession of 
 me, and from that hour I confessed that the Fates had so 
 settled my life as to omit all gunnery from the arrangement. 
 Although during these glorious August days I could not join 
 my friends in eking out their heavy bags of game, I could yet 
 add something to the pleasure of the evening meal, and I 
 
126 Boars Better Let Alone. 
 
 usually started before 8 a.m. to fish the trickling stream, so 
 making my way upward that we might all meet by the side of 
 a pure cold spring and enjoy the sportsman 's luncheon with 
 the sportsman's appetite 
 
 One morning I approached the stream which lay far below 
 me ; the bank on which I stood was steep and perhaps eighty 
 feet high, thickly covered with trees, while behind me was a 
 stiff hedge, on a high earthen embankment. While I was 
 putting my rod together, I heard a series of complacent grunts 
 not far off, and looking downwards I observed a boar of more 
 than ordinary size routing in the ground about thirty feet 
 below me. The air blew briskly, the morning was bright, 
 young spirits naturally ran high, and I felt very mischievous. 
 So, ensconcing myself behind a tree, I imitated the creature 
 so closely that he started and made an answering grunt ; I 
 repeated my call and was again responded to, then stepping 
 from behind the tree I poked fun at the brute with one mighty 
 grunt more. It is impossible to describe the savage look he 
 assumed, as with open jaws and tusks projecting he rushed 
 towards me. The notion of flying from a pig, however, never 
 occurred to me, so when he came near I merely dodged round 
 the trees ; but a sense of the creature's real ferocity dawned 
 upon me, and finding he got nearer and nearer I began to run 
 at full speed. For some time the race was pretty equal, but at 
 length I was so hard pressed that I was glad to throw down my 
 fishing rod, spring upon a fence, and vault into a field on the 
 other side, where I remained till I was satisfied that the brute 
 had retired. He must, I am convinced, have been akin to the 
 Brawn of Brancepeth who needed the courage of Hodge of 
 Ferry to overcome him. Since that day I have seen boars 
 before whose strength and fierceness no unarmed man could 
 stand and live. 
 
CHAPTER XII. 
 
 ' Let ither anglers choose their ain, 
 An' ither waters take the lead, 
 O' Hielan' streams we covet nane, 
 But gie to us the bonnie Tweed.' 
 
 T. T. Stoddart. 
 
 Shortly before my visit to Harrogate Mr. Walter Scruton 
 had succeeded in forming a club composed of gentlemen who 
 had during some time past frequented the Tweed. The Eden- 
 mouth salmon fishings were advertised to be let by sealed 
 tenders, and Mr. Scruton offered an annual rent of ;^2io on 
 the understanding that a lease for five years should be given. 
 Being the highest tender it was accepted, and the club entered 
 into possession at Whitsuntide 1845. The members were 
 Mr. W. Scruton of Durham, Mr. T. P. Teale of Leeds, Mr. E. 
 Bond of Leeds, Mr. W. Hey of Leeds, Mr. A. Graham of 
 
128 Peculiar Feature of Scotch Law. 
 
 Liverpool, and myself. And now occurred a dispute which 
 showed a curious and not very satisfactory feature of the 
 Scotch law. The advertisement stated that the water to be let 
 was three and a half miles in length. Mr. Scruton, doubting 
 the correctness of this assertion, had it measured, when the 
 true length was found to be two miles and three quarters. On 
 this he applied for a proportionate reduction in the amount of 
 rent, but was met with a statement that the law of Scotland 
 allowed a man to advertise his property as of any size or 
 possessing any advantages he might choose to ascribe to it, the 
 onus of seeing that things were in all respects as stated lying 
 with the purchaser. The unfairness of such a mode of action 
 was pleaded, and Mr. Waldie, the owner of the water, con- 
 sented to refer the matter to arbitration. Two gentlemen of 
 Edinburgh learned in the law were appointed arbitrators, and 
 they decided that the law of Scotland was against us, but that 
 as a matter of equity the rent should be reduced from ^210 to 
 £\%S- Mr. Waldie at once yielded, and the club paid the 
 rent of ;^i85 until the year 1850. 
 
 The next thing to be done was to secure comfortable 
 lodgings, with a room in which such members as were present 
 might meet and take their meals together. Thus we should 
 secure the sociabilities of life without any of the conventional 
 restraints that would fetter the angler when he desires to shut 
 out the world's cares for a time and to live in ease and freedom. 
 We found all that we could desire in the house of Mr. Johnston. 
 He had built it for himself on an elevated piece of ground 
 leased under the Duke of Roxburgh. Three sides of the 
 cottage were surrounded by garden and paddock, while it 
 afforded from every window a view of the Tweed both near 
 and extensive — a never-failing source of interest to the 
 members of the club. The stretch of water which lay before 
 them was long, and the swirls of the salmon could often be 
 
Mr. Johnston and his Family. 129 
 
 noticed as they rose to the surface, warning the fisherman to 
 hasten to his breakfast lest the happy moment of success 
 should pass away. Our landlord was already advanced in 
 years and in feeble health, but there was a quiet quaintness 
 in his conversation which made it enjoyable, and his wife was 
 one of the dearest old women that ever lived. Whoever came 
 under her influence succumbed to it at once ; nature had 
 stamped on every word and look the impress of simplicity and 
 truth ; the Bible was her daily guide and companion, and an 
 atmosphere of refinement and purity surrounded her. I need 
 say no more, as Mrs. Johnston will hereafter be referred to 
 more than once. Her pretty daughter Margaret waited upon 
 us, and altogether more comfortable quarters could not be 
 desired. 
 
 The Edenmouth water comprises a fair number of streams, 
 generally well stored with salmon ; but the gem, not only of 
 this water but of the Tweed itself, is the far-famed Sprouston 
 Dub. The cast here is at least half a mile in length, and the 
 numerous sunken rocks are to the salmon as so many palaces 
 of delight. Our old fisherman used to say ' There's never a 
 schule o' fish pass, but some o' them clap down i' the dub, they 
 canna help it.' He spoke truly, and I believe that during the 
 autumn fishing there are more salmon killed in this pool than 
 in any other in the river. Old Bob Kerss had been for many 
 years the tacksman of the water, and we now engaged him to 
 act as our boatman. Long nights spent in watching his Cairn- 
 nets in times of flood had brought on acute rheumatism, which 
 bowed his back so as to make him unfit for other work ; but 
 when once he was seated in the boat his infirmity did not 
 prevent his doing his work well, and his knowledge of the 
 habits of fish could not be surpassed. 
 
 My first visit to Edenmouth was in the early part of Sep- 
 tember. It was not successful ; during five days' fishing I only 
 
 K 
 
130 Distinguished Observers. 
 
 captured nine salmon and one grilse. Coming again in the 
 middle of October I found Mr. Bond and Mr. Graham at 
 Sprouston, and we made a most pleasant party. I remained 
 there eight days, but the weather was so stormy, and the river 
 so much affected by floods that I only fished four days, taking 
 in all fifteen salmon and grilse. It was at this time however, 
 I believe, that I had an extraordinarily rapid capture of grilse. 
 I was fishing in the dub near the cast known as the Hedge-end ; 
 the water was blackish and a few inches above its best height 
 for fishing. It was afternoon. Putting on a small double 
 white-tipped fly, I cast, and immediately hooked and captured 
 a grilse of 9 ibs. weight ; another cast, and the success was 
 repeated ; a third cast, and again the same success. Then from 
 the bank behind me rose a loud cheer, and turning I saw a 
 group of four gentlemen seated on the grass, among them Mr. 
 David Robertson of Kelso, and Mr. T. T. Stoddart, the writer 
 of some of the best books on angling ever published, and also 
 of a volume of poems of no mean merit. 
 
 Now to be cheered by two such eminent professors of the 
 gentle art as Mr. Stoddart and Mr. Robertson was great 
 encouragement for such a tyro as myself, and the excitement 
 
 was not a little heightened by the fact that Sir C D 
 
 was at the time my immediate opponent. He was fishing with 
 old Tom Kerss exactly in front of me ; indeed as Bob said, 
 ' Baith your fleas are fair amang the " schule." ' A fourth, 
 fifth, and sixth grilse were taken as rapidly as possible, and at 
 each victory the cheers of the spectators rang out loudly. 
 They were mingled, however, with something like strong 
 language from the boat opposite, and when my opponent at 
 last did capture a small bull-trout the laughter which greeted 
 the feat was too much for him, and he ordered old Tom to row 
 home. Before they had got twenty yards I had my seventh 
 fish ; the strong language then assumed an undeniable form, 
 
Fishing at Sprouston. 131 
 
 and only died away as distance intervened. Suddenly the fish 
 sulked, not another rise was to be had, and my fishing ended 
 with seven grilse, weighing 47 lbs., all taken within an hour. 
 Here was an instance of the decided preference of fish for one 
 fly over another. My rival was a more accomplished salmon 
 fisher than I could at that time claim to be, yet these grilse 
 slighted his offering while they seized mine with zest almost 
 before it touched the water. We were both fishing among the 
 same ' schule,' and undoubtedly the flies of each angler were 
 seen by the same fish. 
 
 1846. — I remained at Sprouston this year from February 17th 
 to March 3rd, and had during the interval ten days' salmon- 
 fishing. The weather was unfavourable, there were often 
 small floods, and when the water suited us as to height and 
 colour there was no wind; all this sadly lessened our sport. 
 My diary shows a total of 44 salmon and bull trout = 312 lbs. 
 
 It was on February 20th that I captured the largest salmon 
 which had been taken in the Tweed for eleven years — so at 
 least the old fishermen averred. I had fished steadily for five 
 hours without taking anything, the unruffled surface of the 
 dub offering indeed small prospect of success. At last I put 
 on a large fly, named the Durham Ranger by Mr. Scruton, the 
 inventor. The fly had scarcely fallen in the rapid gliding 
 water which forms the Cauld Slap, when a boil broke the 
 surface and the line tightened. It was evidently a large fish, 
 and Bob began to preach caution. ' Ah,' I exclaimed abruptly, 
 ' the hook has come away ! no, it's fast again ! Rely upon it 
 Bob, if I get this fish we shall find that the hook has changed 
 firom one side of its mouth to the other.' 
 
 The fish ran wildly up the dub, its pace being at one time 
 
 so fast that almost a hundred yards of line were expended, 
 
 then down he rushed to his original haunt, and ' indignant of 
 
 the guile' he began to drop down the rapid rushing stream 
 
 K 2 
 
132 Catching ^ the Big" Un' 
 
 beneath the Slap. This put Bob in an agony. ' Dinna baud 
 tight,' he exclaimed. ' Easy, easy, and maybe he'll come up 
 again o' his ain fancy, but if ye pull ye'll be wrackit.' Acting 
 on this advice I gently eased my line, and the fish was induced 
 to return ; then, untired by his exertions in the torrent, he 
 once more sped up the dub for half a mile. It was as much 
 as Bob's most rapid rowing could do, together with my gentlest 
 playing of the line, to avoid a catastrophe. When he reached 
 the highest end of the dub he turned, and with failing powers 
 returned to his first ' lay.' Here it once more occurred to him 
 to use the assistance of the torrent, and spite of all my coaxing 
 down he went, and on and on, till finding my line expended I 
 sprang on shore and followed him far down the stream. Home 
 is still home to a salmon as to us human creatures, and 
 though weakened by his severe exertions he determinedly made 
 for it. But his strength was now evidently far spent, so putting 
 on all the pressure I dared, the fatal cleik was inserted, and the 
 (for that day) monster fish lay upon the bank, a kepper salmon 
 of 30^ ibs. weight. 
 
 This was the largest fish that Bob had ever borne a part in 
 capturing, and the old man's agitation was proportionate. He 
 could only cry out, ' Kill him, sir, kill him at once, he's awful 
 to look at ! Oh, what eyes he has ! Pray kill him, sir.' On 
 examining the mouth of the fish we found that the hook had 
 been first planted in the further lip, but the hold giving way 
 the hook had then firmly fixed in the other side. That night 
 there was great rejoicing in the club, and an extra glass was 
 quaffed to the memory of ' the big un.' The next morning 
 my prize was despatched to Mr. William Proctor of Durham, 
 by whom it was stuffed, and it now reposes in a glass case 
 with the Ranger fly in its mouth, as fixed in the memorable 
 struggle. 
 
 Practical jokes are certainly among the most dangerous 
 
A Practical Joke. 133 
 
 things in which a man can indulge, and he who risks the 
 result is as likely to experience this truism as the child who 
 carelessly plays with fire is to be burnt. As a rule I may say 
 that I have always avoided practical jokes, but there have been 
 times when a sudden and unexplainable impulse has moved 
 me, and ere cool reflection came I have found myself on the 
 highway to mischief. My truly good-natured and excellent 
 boatman. Bob Kerss, was on one occasion my victim. 
 
 The scene was the long rolling stream called Edenmouth, a 
 short distance below the spot where the pretty river Eden 
 joins the Tweed. The wind blew strongly from the East, and 
 meeting the stream caused the waves to rise high, so it was as 
 much as the old man could do to hold the boat sufficiently 
 steady for my salmon-fishing. While doing my utmost to keep 
 a firm footing and cast a true line, I observed something pass 
 downwards bobbing on the tops of the billows. At first it 
 looked like the body of an infant, but closer inspection as it 
 floated by showed that it was a dead puppy. 
 
 Poor Kerss of course could see nothing of this visitor, for as 
 usual his eyes were bent on the bottom of the boat. Bob, bob, 
 went the puppy, till it drew provokingly near to my fly, when 
 in sheer roguery I struck the hook firmly into its side. Of 
 course it was at once submerged. Out went the line, whirr ! 
 whirr ! went the reel. ' Ah,' exclaimed the old man, ' there 
 he is ; hold him firm ! What does he look like ? Is he a 
 clean fish ? ' ' Hold steady,' said I, ' he pulls terribly,' and so 
 more line had to be let out till some eighty yards were at a 
 tight stretch. ' What ails the fish to run that way .? ' said Bob ; 
 saw e'er a body the like o' that ? The beast's fair bent on 
 wracking us. We maun hae him ashore or he'll brick the 
 line.' So to shore we went, and amid many charges that I 
 should be careful, the line was shortened, till there lay upon 
 the bank a puppy. ' Hegh, man, what's that ? a deed dawg,' 
 
134 -^n Enthusiastic Angler. 
 
 was Rob's only word. Then turning on me a look of reproach 
 which spoke volumes, the good old man quietly took his oars 
 without a word, his tenderest feelings, his pride as a fisherman 
 was too deeply hurt. It would have been small comfort to him 
 to be told I had only tricked him as Cleopatra tricked Mark 
 Anthony, so I could only vow internally never again to play a 
 practical joke. 
 
 The fishings of the remainder of this year, though varied 
 by visits to different rivers, do not present any events worth 
 recording. I therefore only relate a feat by which my friend 
 Mr. Bond astonished his brother members of the club, and 
 which appears to me, considering the circumstances, to be 
 quite without a parallel. It took place in July, which is 
 commonly esteemed the worst month in the year for salmon- 
 fishing, the month of which the Coquetdale bard drily observes 
 
 ' The shade fishin' skulkers in July, 
 Went slinkin' for what they could get.' 
 
 When passing through Berwick-upon-Tweed, Mr. Bond's pas- 
 sion for everything connected with fishing led him to walk 
 down to the place where the fishermen were drawing their 
 nets. Here he learnt that a flood in the river had allowed 
 many salmon to pass onward to the upper waters. This was 
 quite sufficient to rouse him instantly to follow in pursuit, and 
 taking the coach he arrived the same evening at Sprouston, 
 sole unlooked-for representative of the club. Early next 
 morning he was afloat on the dub, with old Bob as his boat- 
 man. Alternately sanguine and anxious they arrived at the 
 Hedge-end cast, where a noble fish was soon hooked, run, and 
 killed. He proved to be a salmon of 24 lbs. weight, with sea 
 parasites thickly studding his bright silvery sides. To use the 
 words of my friend as he now tells the tale, he ' kept pegging 
 away ' up and down the dub, according to the conventional 
 rule of the boatmen, whose laws in these matters are as rigid 
 
Successful July Angling. 13S 
 
 as were those of the Medes and Persians. Each time that he 
 came to the Hedge-end he rose or captured a salmon, till in 
 the early afternoon the sun burst forth in most unwelcome 
 splendour, and the fish all sunk to the bottom of the river as the 
 surest retreat from his scorching beams. All fishing of course 
 was now at an end, but there lay on the bank five glorious new 
 run salmon, weighing altogether 118 lbs. Taking into con- 
 sideration the time of year, and the weight and quality of the 
 fish, I consider this the most extraordinary take of salmon that 
 I have ever known. The whole five fish were so equal in 
 weight that, as Bob observed, ' they were just neebours.' 
 
 In the autumn Charlie and I paid more than one visit to 
 Piercebridge, hoping to bring our knowledge of salmon-fishing 
 as practised on the Tweed to bear upon the Tees. In this we 
 were disappointed, blank days being the rule to which there 
 was no exception. Still the drive of twenty miles before 
 breakfast, the long day by the river, and the return in the 
 evening were not without their charm. 
 
 On one of these visits we were again the unwilling cause of 
 suffering to one of the brute creation. Our day's fishing 
 ended, we returned to the village inn, which with its rows of 
 pewter dishes, its bright chimney nook and sanded floor, was a 
 model of cleanliness. Our hostess, though well advanced in 
 years, was brisk and active, and while she busied herself on our 
 behalf, we turned our eyes upon two handsome pointer dogs, 
 who in lazy luxury were warming their noses before the fire. 
 In reply to our praises of the beautiful creatures, she said, 
 'Aye, they are bonnie dogs. My John's fonder of them than 
 of any mortal creature. If owt happened to either of them 
 dogs, aw believe he'd kill me, though I be his mother.' 
 
 Weary with our exertions we had not taken down our tackle, 
 but had planted our rods upright near the door. The salmon 
 flies hung about five feet from the ground, and a gentle breeze 
 
136 
 
 Johiis Bonnie Dogs, 
 
 was swaying them hither and thither, when unhappily one of 
 the pointers, having strayed to the door, in larksome mood 
 sprang into the air and seized a ' blue doctor.' With a wild 
 yell, which was echoed by our hostess, the dog rushed out and 
 ran up the village as if he were mad, his companion careering 
 by his side and joining in the yelping duet. Out ran Charlie 
 and I at once, but the animal was far in advance, dragging the 
 salmon rod at a pace which it was impossible for us to vie with. 
 Beyond the village we saw the dog bolt through a hedge, 
 smashing both rod and line, then with its companion it tore 
 up a steep hill, which resounded to their cries. Nothing more 
 was to be done, so we retraced our steps, and found the poor 
 woman at the inn seated in her arm chair, rocking herself to 
 and fro and sobbing out, ' Oh, dear ! Oh, dear ! what will 
 become of me 1 What will John say .' ' Finding every 
 attempt at consolation vain, we paid our bill to the servant 
 girl and left the poor woman, grieved that she should have to 
 bear the brunt of her son's anger alone, and yet not altogether 
 sorry to escape an interview with the redoubtable John. 
 
CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 ' Of most disastrous chances, 
 Of moving accidents by flood and field.' — Shakespear. 
 
 I WAS unable to visit Sprouston bfefore April 1847, and then I 
 found the water much disturbed by small floods. Still I was 
 not without compensation, for the season had arrived in which 
 we might fairly expect excellent sport in the Edenmouth water 
 by fishing for bull-trout and for common trout with fly. It 
 was our practice during this month to fish for trout from the 
 time when the ' feed ' appeared on the water till about three 
 o'clock, the earlier and later hours being given to angling for 
 salmon. Hence our baskets at night presented a goodly 
 variety of fish. I have captured on the same day clean salmon, 
 kepper-grilse, kelt-salmon, bull-trout, silver white, and com- 
 mon trout. This variety of fish in April gives the Tweed a 
 special advantage over most rivers. We fully appreciated it 
 
138 A Perilous Drive. 
 
 and our little dinner-parties every evening added to our 
 enjoyment. Many fishing tales were told, many speculations 
 as to the morrow indulged in, till at last we adjourned to the 
 kitchen, where pipes were smoked in concert with our obliging 
 landlord, and we extracted not a little amusement from the 
 quaint simplicity of his dear old wife. 
 
 In the month of June I encountered an accident so terrible 
 that even at this distant date I cannot recall it without feelings 
 of horror. My dear old rector, the Rev. James Raine, pro- 
 posed to me a visit to Ushaw College in company with the 
 Rev. Joseph Stevenson (the well-known Saxon scholar), Miss 
 Raine, and himself. The inspection of the College treasures 
 proved full of interest, while the kindness and courtesy of 
 the officials bore out the general sentiment in their favour. 
 A heavy storm of rain detained us there some time ; before it 
 was quite over our phaeton was brought to the door, and we 
 hurried off without inspecting properly the harnessing of our 
 single horse. I was placed in front as driver, with Miss Raine 
 by my side, Dr. Raine and Mr. Stevenson occupying the seat 
 behind. 
 
 Scarcely had we reached the descent of the hill leading from 
 Neville's Cross to th^,city, when the horse began to rear and 
 plunge, and finally started off in a mad gallop. In vain did I 
 exert all my strength ; the horse was too young and powerful 
 to be restrained. All I could do was to guide the animal 
 through the turnpike, and then we tore down the roughly 
 paved street of Cross-gate at a terrific pace. The cries of the 
 by-standers brought crowds to the windows, and all screamed 
 in concert as we approached the point of special danger. The 
 little party alone were mute. Some closed their eyes, and 
 from each heart arose a silent prayer to the Father of 
 Mercy. But it devolved on me to make a decision. To attempt 
 the ordinary road leading to Framwellgate Bridge seemed 
 
An Overturn. 139 
 
 certain destruction, for no horse could possibly gallop at full 
 speed doAvn that steep ill-paved hill and keep its footing. I 
 therefore determined to try the way by AUergate, and casting 
 away the whip tugged at the left-hand rein with all my 
 strength. I succeeded in turning the horse in that direction, 
 but the angle of the street corner was too sharp to allow the 
 wheels to revolve, and with a terrible crash the carriage was 
 thrown over and shivered into fragments. I was carried into 
 a neighbouring house and remained insensible some time, till 
 at last I became conscious that my friends with a surgeon 
 were standing around me. Most providentially they had 
 escaped with only slight cuts and bruises. I was taken home, 
 and during a fortnight which 1 spent in bed I had time to 
 think over the great mercy vouchsafed to me. 
 
 Two days afterwards my dear old rector came to see me ; 
 we had much serious conversation, and deeply rejoiced I was 
 to hear him say on leaving me, that under God he considered 
 my presence of mind had saved his life. Pressing a little 
 packet into my handi ' Take this,' he said ; ' I give it to the 
 church as a thank-offering to God for His great goodness.' 
 The offering consisted of £'^0 towards the restoration of the 
 beautiful little church of St. Mary in the South Bailey, of 
 which he was the rector and I his churchwarden. I should, in 
 justice to the dear memory of my old and valued friend, add 
 that this sum was given after he had already devoted much 
 valuable time and labour to the work, and had subscribed in 
 money to what was considered the utmost extent of his power. 
 
 A few weeks elapsed, and my wonted strength did not 
 return, so a fishing tour on the Borders was recommended to 
 me, such a tour having always proved more efficacious to me 
 than any medicine. The result was that one accident led to 
 another, in which last unhappily a friend of mine suffered 
 severely. It was arranged that the Rev. W. Green well, Mr. A. 
 
140 The Wanderer Left Behind. 
 
 W. Hutchinson and myself should try our fortune in the 
 bright flowing steams of the Whiteadder, and we were speedily 
 conveyed by train to Berwick-on-Tweed. Here it was neces- 
 sary to wait about three hours, and Hutchinson declared his 
 intention of seeing what he could of the old town, so famous 
 in Border history. 
 
 As the time approached for again taking the train. Green- 
 well and I looked in vain for our friend's arrival. His innate 
 love of wandering had overcome his good resolutions about 
 punctuality, and as we sped from the station we perceived him 
 picking shells and sea weed far away upon the shore. Pursuing 
 our way we left the train at a small station, walked across the 
 country till we gained the water-side a short distance below 
 Abbey St. Bathans, and took up our quarters at a little public- 
 house not far from the Abbey, but on the opposite side of the 
 Whiteadder. Late in the evening our missing friend arrived 
 in a small cart, drawn so far as I remember by a donkey, good- 
 natured as ever and ready to join in the laugh against himself. 
 Always happy, always cheerful, he was invaluable as a com- 
 panion in spite of the scrapes into which he was incessantly 
 falling. 
 
 The public-house was charmingly situated by the side of a 
 rivulet which joined the main stream just below, and its hostess 
 was a good-looking, good-tempered woman, though unhappily 
 disposed to imbibe too freely what she was so constantly 
 serving out to others. The chief apartments were a large 
 kitchen to the right of the entrance door, and a small parlour 
 to the left ; in the former were three box beds, in the latter 
 two. Now of all contrivances for murdering sleep these 
 abominable box-beds are the most successful. Carefully 
 arranged for the exclusion of fresh air, and well stocked with 
 insect life, only a very weary traveller would venture on such 
 a couch. Such indeed we were, but there was a further 
 
A Night Never to be Forgotten. 141 
 
 difficulty, the parlour only contained two beds, and each of us 
 vowed that nothing should induce him to sleep double, while 
 as ill luck would have it the kitchen was crowded with navvies 
 shouting bacchanalian songs. The often-repeated refrain, 
 
 ' We won't go home till morning 
 Till daylight doth appear.' 
 
 gave fair warning that a bed in the kitchen would prove no 
 place of rest, but there was no other place for one of the party, 
 so we agreed to decide by drawing lots. Poor Hutchinson ! 
 Fate was not propitious to him ! As he drew the shortest 
 straw he exclaimed with a comical side-glance, ' I don't know 
 how it is, but you fellows always have the luck ; ' nor can I 
 honestly assert that his good nature was not imposed upon. 
 Undoubtedly he had a warm night of it, and he was wise to 
 make it as short as he could. A roaring fire on a July night, 
 a bed lively past endurance, a room full of navvies singing and 
 drinking whiskey toddy, looming through wreaths of tobacco 
 smoke — all these were strong incentives to early rising. I too 
 rose betimes, and was thankful to open the house door and 
 breathe the fresh morning air. Stepping across the short grass 
 cool with the heavy dew, I beheld our friend performing his 
 toilette under difficulties but with commendable fervour. He 
 was seated on a rock in the middle of the stream laving his feet in 
 the rushing water. His costume was of the slightest, consisting 
 of but one laconic garment ; in one hand he bore a small 
 glass, while the other wielded the shaving brush with which 
 he was lathering chin and cheeks. The scene was really 
 worthy of an artist's pencil. 
 
 We fished the stream upwards towards Elmford ; the result 
 fully satisfied our ambition, and I learnt to estimate Mr. 
 Greenwell's angling powers even more highly than before. 
 Up to this time he had fished but little with worm, and never 
 except in small brooks. His intuitive perception of the haunts 
 
142 Departure for Ckirnside. 
 
 of the trout as they vary throughout the day stood him, how- 
 ever, in good stead, and to my no small surprise, when we 
 concluded our fishing his creel showed fifty-seven trout, while 
 mine only boasted fifty-three. This was only one of the many 
 occasions on which he evinced an accurate knowledge of the 
 habits of fish almost akin to instinct. 
 
 We returned to dine at the romantic public-house, but not 
 to sleep ; the memory of the past night was too vivid. We 
 had ordered an open carriage to come from Dunse and take us 
 on to the village of Chirnside. While seated at dinner we 
 were ^startled by an announcement that one of the horses 
 which had been stalled in a low shed, had raised the thatch of 
 the roof with its head, topped the low wall, and was now 
 scouring at full speed up the valley. A good deal of time was 
 lost in capturing the animal and our journey so delayed in 
 consequence that great part of it had to be made in the dark- 
 ness of night. Hence the following misadventure took place. 
 
 By eleven o'clock we had reached the summit of a hill 
 separated from Chirnside by the Whiteadder. Our driver 
 being doubtful of the way stopped the carriage, handed the 
 reins to Hutchinson, who received them quite unconsciously, 
 being like the rest of us fast asleep, and set off himself to 
 make enquiries at a cottage where a glimmer of light was to 
 be perceived. The horses began to move, and feeling no 
 restraint broke into a trot, which passed into a gallop down 
 the steep hill, before we recovered our senses. Greenwell, ever 
 prompt, was the first to act. He clambered over the back of 
 the carriage, intending to drop gently to the ground, but in 
 consequence of the rapid motion he fell with such force as 
 seriously to injure one of his knees. Unable to move through 
 pain he lay by the roadside, while the horses now quite frantic 
 burst through a hedge, tore across a ploughed field, and then, 
 still dragging the unfortunate carriage, sprang down an abrupt 
 
The Catastrophe. 143 
 
 bank of ten or twelve feet, landing on a bed of loose gravel 
 on the margin of the stream. The speed of the animals was 
 at this time so far checked that I ventured to open the carriage 
 door and spring out, but I fell down stunned and unable to 
 rise. A dense fog at last shut out all surrounding objects, and 
 as I lay on the ground the last sound that reached my ears was 
 the splashing of the horses in the water as they bore the only 
 passenger down the bed of the river. 
 
 I must have remained there unconscious for some length of 
 time, since when I recovered I found my face and hands wet 
 with dew. But the efforts of the driver at last roused the 
 neighbouring peasants, and they came upon the scene carrying 
 lanterns and ropes. When I enquired after my friends, they 
 replied, 'Oh, one's gone down the river, and he must be 
 drowned by this time ; the other's lying back ow'r there wi his 
 leg broke.' This intelligence quite overcame me and again I 
 fainted away, but I was aroused after a time by the cheery 
 voice of our drowned friend exclaiming, ' Why, what on earth 
 did you jump out for ? No good ever comes of jumping out ; 
 always stick to the ship. Why, I sat still till the horses came 
 to a stop, and then I clambered over to the driver's seat and 
 caught up the reins, and there I sat till the people came and 
 carried me ashore. And now here I am as right as a trivet. 
 Stick to the ship, say I ; stick to the ship ! ' Very good advice 
 no doubt, only it came too late to be acted upon. ' Yes, I kept 
 quite still,' he went on, 'though the roar of the sea all round 
 me was terrible.' But this was too much for the bystanders, 
 one of whom replied indignantly, ' Heer'd ye e'er the like o' 
 that ? Why, men, the sea's twal mile awa ! It maun hae 
 been the water rinnin ow'r the cauld that tickled yer lug.' 
 
 We were now joined by Greenwell, who was supported by 
 two men ; and leaving the driver and those around to land the 
 carriage and horses, we proceeded to Chirnside and took refuge 
 
144 '^^^ Worst Imt's Worst Room. 
 
 in a little inn where dirt, ill smells, and cobwebs reigned 
 supreme. Poor Greenwell was installed in a bed festooned by 
 the spider's toil, and a surgeon sent for, who declared that the 
 knee had suffered a severe contusion, and ordered leeches to be 
 put on at once. This was done, but acute pain and fever soon 
 made the patient delirous, and when I crept into his room at 
 daybreak I found him in a rhapsody among the cobwebs, while 
 our landlord, who had undertaken to watch him through the 
 night, lay stretched on the ground equally insensible from the 
 effects of the whiskey he had relied on for support during his 
 exertions. Weary and spent I was forced to throw myself on 
 a sofa and get what sleep I could. 
 
 In the morning the sun shone brightly, and Hutchinson and 
 I walked to the scene of our adventures, accompanied by a 
 gentleman who resided at Ghirnside, and who declared frankly 
 that it was impossible the horses could have gone down the 
 river. He said that in that case they must have passed beneath 
 the arch of the large stone bridge then under repair, and that 
 the water there was so deep that the county authorities were 
 engaged in casting several hundred tons of stone into the hole 
 to prevent the downfall of the structure. As, however, we 
 stood on the bridge in the bright sunlight, we distinctly traced 
 the marks of the carriage wheels, and found to our astonish- 
 ment that they had passed over the foundations of the bridge 
 and some newly-laid stones, the width being only just sufficient 
 for the purpose. Had the carriage altered its course by only 
 three feet, it would have plunged into the deep water, and our 
 friend must have perished as well as the horses. Though poor 
 Greenwell was ill-able to travel, the miseries of our abode were 
 such that within a few days I succeeded in removing him and 
 placing him with friends in Northumberland ; Hutchinson 
 went on to Edinburgh, and I returned home, certainly not im- 
 proved in health by my brief tour with its strange adventures. 
 
Sprouston Reapers. 14S 
 
 In the autumn of this year, when the corn stocks stood 
 thick in the fields, several nTembers of the club and their 
 friends were collected at Sprouston, when one of the latter 
 encountered an ordeal more after the manner of the ancients 
 than of A.D. 1847. It was drawing near the hour of dinner, 
 and Mr. P. W. Forster, satisfied with a long day's trouting at 
 Reddon-haugh, took his way across a field of corn on which 
 the reapers were at work. A comely damsel turned to him 
 and asked for something ' to wish his health.' Unfortunately 
 his purse was not in his pocket, and yet more unfortunately he 
 stood and parleyed with the syren, while several of her com- 
 panions gathered around. Suddenly he was seized by a dozen 
 arms strong, though feminine, and with a loud ' yo-ho,' he 
 was sent flying into the air. On his descent he was dexterously 
 caught, and with a second ' yo-ho ' he was flung up yet higher. 
 This operation was repeated a dozen times, till his tormentors 
 paused from very weariness. Poor Forster was just able to 
 gasp out a civil good day with thanks for their attentions, and 
 then to crawl homewards. His pale face and fainting condition 
 alarmed us, and we gave him a glass of brandy and water, 
 before allowing him to recount his adventure. 
 
 One of our party, a clergyman with a strong dash of the 
 Puritan in his composition, a model of decorum and rigid 
 propriety, was horrified at the outrage, not only for its effects 
 on the victim, but for its intrinsic impropriety. He could 
 neither think nor talk of anything else that evening, and 
 evidently looked upon the firolic in a much more' serious light 
 than did Mr. Forster himself. On the following afternoon, 
 having returned from fishing earlier than usual, and looking 
 out of a window in the direction of the harvest field, I beheld 
 our stiff severe parson flying before a score of women, who with 
 screams and shouts ran him as close as ever hounds did hare. 
 With a dash worthy of a ' first whip ' he rushed at his leaps, 
 
 L 
 
146 
 
 Tlic Parson Baited. 
 
 but to little purpose. His pursuers held on, and the chase was 
 only ended by his bursting into the house and locking the door 
 behind him. A yell of angry disappointment was heard 
 outside, as the poor baited parson sank on the couch unable to 
 speak. Our landlady was profuse in her application of cold 
 water ; we did all we could for him, but it was long ere he 
 unclosed his eyes. Then he tottered to bed, from whence he 
 only reappeared in time to go off by the morning train. It 
 was his first visit and his last to Sprouston — and its cornfields. 
 By a friendly exchange of water with Admiral Cator I found 
 myself on November 4th fishing the Dryburgh streams with 
 the fisherman David Johnston. The water was in excellent 
 order, a recent flood had brought a great run of salmon and 
 grilse from the sea, and my takes were : 
 
 On November 4 . . 8 salmon = 93 lbs. 
 
 „ 5 • • 3 „ = 433 ft>s- 
 
 6 . . 2 „ =38ifts. 
 
 after which I returned to Durham. 
 
CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 ' You see the ways the fisherman doth take 
 To catch the fish ; what engines doth he make ! 
 Behold how he engageth all his wits, 
 Also his snares, lines, angles, hooks and nets ! 
 Yet fish there be that neither hook nor hne. 
 Nor snare, nor net, nor engine can make thine. 
 
 John Bunyan. 
 
 T was not till March 30th, 1848, that I 
 recommenced my salmon-fishing on the 
 Tweed. Although during this visit 
 iSatjiKFisiiijBa^ the water was generally excellent both 
 in height and colour, these advantages were neutralised by 
 bright sunshine and little wind. The air was so cold and the 
 surface of the pools was so quiet that we could seldom fish 
 with fly, but were obliged to have recourse to the minnow. 
 The result of my nine days' fishing was : 
 
 25 kelt salmon = 191^ fibs. 
 5 clean salmon = 48I lbs. 
 One evening when it was nearly dark, old Rob rowed me 
 across the Butterwash stream, intending to land me on the 
 southern bank. I had allowed the minnow which was upon my 
 line to drag at the boat stern, and when I stepped on shore was 
 annoyed to find it fast, as I supposed against a sunken stone. 
 Several vigorous pulls failed to release it, and the boat was again 
 launched for my assistance. When we arrived above the sup- 
 posed stone we found that the minnow had in fact been seized 
 L 2 
 
A Disappointment. 
 
 by a very large salmon, who began steadily to take his course up 
 stream with lofty disregard of our vicinity. Up stream and 
 down stream he went, dragging us completely at his pleasure, 
 till at last Rob said, ' He's ower gran a fish to lose, we maun 
 land o' our ain side, or we'll hae to gie him up to the Deuk's 
 folk.' So we landed on the north bank of the stream, on which 
 the fish suddenly sulked, and Rob quietly observed, 'He's just 
 ane o' thae beasts that if ye heuik them i' the gloamin' always 
 run till next day.' This was not a pleasant prospect ; it was now 
 quite dark, the snow was falling in large flakes, and we heard 
 the Kelso clock strike seven. Still it was out of the question to 
 give up the contest, so despatching a boy to the house for 
 wraps, a kettle, and a bottle of whiskey, Rob endeavoured to 
 light a fire with some tolerably dry materials which were at 
 hand, and we prepared to make a night of it. Still the fish 
 sulked, time wore on, the clock struck eight, and then the 
 monster began to move. He ran vigorously for a few minutes, 
 when, alas ! the hook came away and our excitement was at an 
 end. Clearly the position of the hook in the mouth was such 
 that we ought to have continued the run from the southern 
 bank of the river. By changing to the north the hook was 
 turned over and so came away. It is always dangerous for the 
 angler thus to change his position in relation to the fish. 
 Rob's feelings found a vent in a few words, 'It's weel he's gaun, 
 it's varra cauld.' 
 
 Late in August Mr. W. Greenwell and I went to Sprouston 
 in hopes of some good fishing for grilse. At the time of which 
 I am writing the vicious legislation which allowed undue 
 advantages to the owners of net fisheries, had caused the 
 autumn supply of fish to consist chiefly of grilse, and not till 
 near the close of the angling season did salmon ascend to the 
 upper streams. The system of net fishing at the mouth of the 
 river was so carried out as almost to ruin the upper fisheries. 
 
The '■GreenwelV and the ' Wilkinson.' 149 
 
 The mischief had become so obvious that an agitation com- 
 menced which eventually led to the great Parliamentary 
 struggles between the proprietors of the upper and lower 
 fisheries. 
 
 Our joint take in five days was twenty -one grilse = 150^ lbs. 
 We learnt on this occasion how much more mere chance, luck, 
 fortune, by whatever name it is called, has to do with salmon 
 than with trout fishing. On August 29 Mr. Greenwell cap- 
 tured six grilse while I only caught one. On the following 
 day the case was reversed ; his take was one and mine eight ; 
 yet I have no doubt that had our chances been equal, our sport 
 each day would have been equal also. 
 
 Mr. Greenwell's success on the 29th led to a good deal of 
 discussion as to the best salmon fly for a black water. My 
 theory was that a sharp contrast to the colour of the water was 
 the best, and accordingly I directed Jemmy Wright to dress a 
 fly with white silk body, golden-crest wings, blue chatterer 
 shoulders and grey tippet. Here was a fly that certainly did 
 show startlingly in a black water, and the result was that on the 
 morrow I took eight grilse and rose eight more fish, while no 
 angler in the neighbourhood captured more than a couple. It 
 was still more remarkable that on none of my later fishings 
 had I any great success with this fly yclept the 'William 
 Henderson.' Some years afterwards the idea of a white-bodied 
 fly was improved upon both by Mr. Greenwell and Mr. P. S. 
 Wilkinson. The former invented a fly whose chief character- 
 istic was a pale blue silk and silver body, whilst the latter 
 boldly struck out the notion of a body of silver tinsel. These 
 flies are now acknowledged to be among the best used on the 
 river if not the very best. By reference to the table of fish 
 weighing 25 lbs. and upwards, it will be seen to some extent 
 what success has been attained with ' the Greenwell ' and ' the 
 Wilkinson.' 
 
ISO The Water -Hen's Nest. 
 
 A.D. 1849; — ^My first fishing this year commenced on February 
 27, but though I remained at Sprouston till March 8 the river 
 was so much flooded that there were only two days on which 
 it was possible to fish for salmon. On the 27th I fished from 
 Rosebank downwards with Charles Kerss and captured fourteen 
 fish, three of which were new run. They were chiefly taken 
 with minnow, the water being clear and low and the air frosty. 
 It is very unusual to take so many clean fish so early in the 
 year ; these three were all taken in shallow quick running 
 streams. 
 
 In the month of July my sister-in-law and some of her 
 children accompanied me to Sprouston. July is allowed to be 
 the worst part of the year for fly-fishing for trout, and I did 
 not wish to try with worm, so the time was passed in taking 
 an occasional cast for grilse, not without success, while the 
 chief pleasure of the party lay in paddlings in the Eden and 
 in boating upon the dub. 
 
 Soon after our arrival the children discovered a water hen's 
 nest, built among some high reeds which grew in the water by 
 the side of the Hedge-end cast. The nest was placed a few 
 inches above the water and about seven feet from the river 
 bank. When we first observed it, it contained eggs ; these 
 were soon hatched, and great was the delight of the children to 
 watch the old birds scuffle away from the nest and then to 
 peep in and mark the progress of the brood. One sad day 
 heavy rain fell, a high flood followed, and great was the 
 children's grief over the little birds which they thought must 
 be drowned and their nest swept away. Our first excursion on 
 the subsiding of the flood was to the river-side nursery. What 
 were the delight and astonishment of the young folks at 
 beholding the nest firmly fixed to some of the reeds and 
 waving in the air fully five feet above the surface of the water ! 
 As we watched we saw the mother bird travel down an inclined 
 
My Prey the Prey of Eels. 151 
 
 plane made of bent rushes which led direct from the nest to 
 the river bank. Her brood followed her, and soon all dropped 
 into the water and were hidden among the reeds. Within an 
 hour we saw them all return to the nest up the inclined plane, 
 and so things went on for several days till they forsook their 
 home. On examination it was clear to us that as the water 
 rose the old birds must have placed themselves beneath their 
 nest and gradually lifted it on their backs some five feet. But 
 it was not in their power to make it descend, so they fastened 
 it securely to the reeds and constructed the roadway to the 
 shore for the egress and ingress of their brood — a beautiful 
 instance of parental care and of the instinct God bestows upon 
 his creatures for their preservation and that of their brood. 
 
 Within a month I paid another short visit to the Tweed, 
 uninteresting but for the capture of a grilse under singular 
 circumstances. Fishing with old Bob as my boatman and the 
 stream named the ' Bushes ' as my locality, I succeeded in 
 hooking a good-size grilse. After a very short run it suddenly 
 sunk to the bottom of the river, and there rested for a long 
 time quite immoveable. Our patience was at last exhausted, 
 and supposing that the fish had broken away I applied a strong 
 steady pull. Something then began slowly and heavily to 
 ascend. One would have thought the hook was bringing up 
 a gooseberry bush. When it reached the surface Bob inserted 
 the cleik, and lifted into the boat a grilse of 9 lbs. and with it 
 half a score of eels. Some dropped from the mouth, some from 
 the stomach, while others held on so determinedly as to be 
 captured rather than yield their prey. On examination we 
 found that the fish had been hooked in the gills, and being 
 choked must have died almost immediately. The flow of 
 blood from the gills had attracted a number of eels, always to 
 be found in the streams on warm summer days, and they had 
 greedily commenced the work of demolition. They had 
 
152 Memoranda of Air. Teale^s Fishing. 
 
 already made several holes in the belly of the fish, and Bob 
 assured me that according to his experience they would have 
 eaten up the inside of the fish within an hour, leaving the 
 skin according to their custom as nearly whole as possible. 
 
 In Mr. T. P. Teale the club possessed a most pleasant and 
 genial companion. His bright cheerful conversation was rich 
 with thought and information derived from his deep scientific 
 knowledge, yet no boy could have enjoyed more thoroughly 
 the frolics and pleasantries of those around him. He has 
 now passed to his eternal rest, but his memory is fondly 
 cherished by those members of the club who still remain. 
 The following memoranda culled from his diary exemplify his 
 careful habit of analysing events, in order correctly to draw 
 conclusions from them. 
 
 Particulars of lid Fish of the Salmon kind (being those first 
 caught by T. P. Teale in the Edenmouth water J, and com- 
 mencing A.i). 1845. 
 
 116 salmon, grilse, bull trout, and whitling, averaging nearly 
 6 lbs. each = 662 lbs. 
 
 Of the 116 fish 51 were bull trout and whitling, averaging 
 nearly 3^ lbs. each = i7S lbs. 
 
 Of the 116 fish 65 were salmon and grilse, averaging nearly 
 8 lbs. each = 473 lbs. 
 
 Of the 116 fish loi were taken in the spring and 15 were 
 taken in the autumn. 
 
 Of the loi fish taken in the spring 8 were new run and 
 93 were kelts. 
 
 Of the 116 fish, 71 were taken with fly, 39 were taken with 
 minnow, 6 were taken with salmon roe. 
 
 Of the 71 fish taken with fly, 
 
 22 were taken with the White wing. 
 
Memo7-anda of Mr^ Teale's Fishing. 
 
 153 
 
 IS were taken with the Double white tip. 
 
 7 , 
 
 » 
 
 Tippet flies, i.e. Butcher, Ranger, &c. 
 
 7 , 
 
 
 Golden crested Flies. 
 
 6 , 
 
 
 Grey Drake. 
 
 S , 
 
 
 Doctor, Purdey, &c. 
 
 4 , 
 
 
 Snipe wing. 
 
 3 , 
 
 
 Mottled Flies. 
 
 I 
 
 
 Silver Pheasant. 
 
 I 
 
 
 Dun Turkey 
 
 71 
 
 The ii6 fish were taken in the following salmon- casts : — 
 
 33 in Sprouston Dub Cast. 
 26 „ Eden Water Foot. 
 19 ,, Falls and Mill End. 
 13 „ The Bushes. 
 II „ Sharpitlaw Stream. 
 
 6 „ Bob's Door. 
 4 „ Turn of Haugh. 
 
 3 ,, Butterwash. 
 
 1 ,, Prison 
 
 116 
 
 The first thing which will probably occur to a Tweedside 
 angler on reading these particulars, is the low average weight 
 of the fish. I have already stated that the cause of this was 
 to be found chiefly in the unnatural excess of grilse over 
 salmon. Happily since the wholesale destruction of foul fish 
 in spring has been stopped, and net-fishing restricted, we can 
 point to a vast increase in the size of the fish taken. 
 
 A.D. 1850. — In the middle of February Mr. William Green- 
 well and I went to Sprouston for a week, but the water was in 
 
IS4 James Wright of Sprouston. 
 
 such high flood that we had no fishing and so returned home. 
 Hearing that the river was again in good order, I returned a 
 few days later but had little success, only taking five fish. 
 Thus ended my fishings as a member of the Sprouston Club, 
 than which was never association of gentlemen whose inter- 
 course was conducted more courteously and more pleasantly. 
 
 During my connection with it, indeed I may say up to the 
 present time, my friends and myself have owed much of the 
 comfort and success of our angling to the proximity of the 
 justly celebrated fishing-tackle maker James Wright. His 
 cottage being but a stone's throw from the Club-house, his 
 workshop formed a favourite rendezvous for fishermen, both 
 amateur and professional. Here the news of the day was 
 discussed, tackle repaired, and flies ordered for the morrow's 
 fishing. It is impossible to speak too highly of James Wright 
 as a tackle maker. His flies for salmon and trout cannot be 
 excelled, combining as they do in a high degree beauty and 
 strength, together with a peculiar ' knowing look about them ' 
 which stamps them as works of high art. At the world's 
 exhibition of a.d. 1862, Mr. Wright had a medal awarded to 
 him for 'very great excellence in the tying of salmon and 
 trout flies,' and at this day no man stands higher as a master 
 of his craft. 
 
 Let me here atone for my negligence in not earlier putting 
 on record the kindness of Lord Frederick Fitzclarence, and 
 after his death that of her Ladyship, with regard to the 
 lovely stretch of water which runs below the picturesque 
 village of Etall. They granted to my friends and myself 
 ample permission to fish it, and from the first to the last of 
 our many visits made about this time, we never failed to feel 
 quite welcome there. 
 
CHAPTER XV. 
 
 ' The salmon, proud in undisputed sway, 
 The' trout in crimson-speckled glory gay ; 
 The red-finned roach, the silver-coated eel. 
 The pike, whose haunts the twisted roots conceal.' — LoBB. 
 
 ' Forth from his den the otter drew. 
 Grayling and trout their tyrant knew. 
 As between reed and sedge he peers. 
 With fierce round snout and sharpened ears ; 
 Or prowling by the moonbeams cool 
 Watches the stream, or swims the pool.' — Sir W. Scott. 
 
 HEN during the summer of 1850 I found 
 ■ ' myself once more at Bendor cottage, my 
 companions were Mr. Alfred Graham and 
 a friend whom I will designate as X. A very merry time we 
 
156 A Quaint Costume. 
 
 had of it ; X. was a delightful fellow in his way, but he was 
 not without his eccentricities. Happily he was good-tempered 
 as well, and always ready to join in a laugh against himself. 
 He was marvellously economical, his economies all growing 
 out of the maxim immortalised by Poor Richard, ' Take care 
 of the pence and the pounds will take care of themselves.' 
 He would give his guineas freely in charity, but alas for the 
 waiters or drivers who had to deal with him ! they sadly 
 jnissed the accustomed sixpences. 
 
 A fishing trip ever appeared to X. a favourable opportunity 
 for exercising what he termed a wise economy. He would on 
 such occasions spare his ordinary suit of clothes, and don 
 certain quaint garments which he ferreted out from the 
 recesses of his wardrobe. The present visit was destined to 
 witness a more than ordinary adoption of the antique. Mr. 
 Graham and I had risen early and enjoyed a short stroll while 
 our landlady Mrs. Chambers was preparing our eggs and 
 bacon. Returning to the house we met our friend whose 
 strange appearance first struck us dumb and then provoked us 
 to peals of laughter. ' What are you fellows about ? ' cried X. 
 ' You are always laughing. If a fellow may not wear his old 
 clothes on a fishing trip, I should like to know when he may 
 wear them.' However he began to laugh as heartily as we did, 
 and we all sat down to breakfast merrily enough. I must explain 
 that our friend had in earlier days hunted the fox, but with 
 advancing years he had given up this recreation for the gentle 
 art so dear to the quiet contemplative man. His ' wise 
 economy ' now dictated to him that the garb which so well 
 became the field was not unsuitable for the flood. So he shone 
 resplendent this summer morning in a bright green coat with 
 velvet collar, gilt buttons, white cord breeches, a purple satin 
 waistcoat figured with gold, well known some years before at 
 many a dinner table, a pair of pale blue worsted stockings, and 
 
A Catastrophe. 157 
 
 a white hat whose brim was faced with green. But the climax 
 of absurdity was reached in the boots, boots that had seen 
 much service in the chase and were now minus their polished 
 tops. 
 
 In such guise did X. coolly sit down to breakfast and as 
 coolly prepare to mount the dog-cart and drive to the scene of 
 our fishing. But alas for economy ! On stepping into the 
 vehicle the soles of the boots, long disused and dried up, 
 deliberately detached themselves from the upper leathers, and 
 their wearer stood confessed in his stocking feet. A fresh fit 
 of laughter followed, and then Graham to the rescue ! With 
 some cords long used for driving the plough, he strapped and 
 bound his friend's feet till they resembled those of an Italian 
 brigand. X. surveyed the operation with great complacency, 
 apparently quite contented with his legs ; he stepped into the 
 dog-cart, and we drove oif to fish the Till below Etall. 
 
 The day was most successful ; in the afternoon, we being all 
 three near together, Graham and I observed the approach of a 
 large party of ladies and gentlemen on horseback, returning to 
 Etall House after a ride. As they passed us they paused to 
 enquire what sport we had had, glancing again and again at 
 our highly picturesque-looking friend, who, unconscious that 
 he was the observed of all observers, was fishing from a flat rock 
 with about six inches of water flowing over it. Suddenly he 
 looked up, perceived the group, saw the many eyes bent upon 
 him, and for the first time in the day wished that he was 
 not attired in Kendal green and brigand thongs. Obeying a 
 natural impulse to retire out of sight he backed and backed, 
 desirous at least to hide his legs in somewhat deeper water. 
 Still he continued his retrogade motion till unluckily he 
 stepped over the edge of the rock and fell backwards into 
 deep water, from which he floundered out to stand in confusion 
 before the gay riders, dripping like a water-god. The most 
 
IS8 The Lost Hook. 
 
 finished politeness could scarcely bear such a spectacle unmoved, 
 and as the Etall House party pursued their way poor X., now 
 thoroughly humbled, could hear peal after peal of merry 
 laughter at his expense. 
 
 A.D. 1851. — From this date to the yeaf<j856 my journal is 
 sadly imperfect. It contains very few memoranda, and this I 
 regret the more because- several excursions with friends which 
 I took at this time deserve to be chronicled. 
 
 In May, 1851, I went with Mr. Brown's leave to fish at 
 Rutherford, the most charming locality for trout fishing on the 
 whole Tweed. The fisherman's cottage, within a few yards of 
 the river, has a bedroom and sitting-room for the accommoda- 
 tion of anglers, and I frequently availed myself of them when 
 during many years after this date I fished the Rutherford 
 water. One day, starting from Sprouston with a friend after 
 an early breakfast, we drove to the cottage and met as usual 
 with a kind welcome from John Aitkin and his wife. Excel- 
 lent baskets were made that day by" my friend and myself, and 
 I was leisurely fishing from the river-bank near the cottage, 
 when flourishing my line rather wildly I became aware that 
 the end fly was gone. Accordingly I sat down on the bank 
 with Aitkin's son, Sandie, then a big lad, and began to search 
 for a counterpart of the missing fly, but the search was a long one, 
 and a quarter of an hour passed before I was again equipped. 
 Now Sandie possessed the virtue of taciturnity in a remarkable 
 degree and was singularly quiet and self-possessed, so it sur- 
 prised me not a little to see him all this time indulging in 
 most extraordinary and grotesque contortions of countenance. 
 At last the poor lad clapped his hand to his ear and roared 
 out, ' Dash it, aw believe it's in ma lug ! ' And sure enough 
 in his ear we found the missing fly. However for most mis- 
 chances there is a remedy. Taking out a penknife, I sharpened 
 it upon a stone, and sawed out the offending hook ; but I 
 
The Salmon and Otier. 159 
 
 observed that after this Sandie never failed to give me a wide 
 berth when I was fishing with fly. 
 
 About two hours later, while John was boating me at the 
 lower end of the dub, we were surprised by seeing a fine salmon 
 raise itself perpendicularly out of the water, and after poising 
 itself for an instant, descend slowly, tail first, till it disappeared. 
 This was only at the distance of about six feet, and the move- 
 ment of the fish was unaccountable. While we were discussing 
 the matter, it rose a second time, and while peifectly upright 
 wriggled spasmodically. Now the enigma was explained. An 
 otter was holding the poor creature firmly by the tail, and its 
 efforts to cast itself out of the water were restrained by its 
 enemy' who on each attempt dragged it slowly downward. 
 There could be little doubt of its ultimate fate, and I believe 
 that the number of fish annually destroyed by otters is not 
 inconsiderable. 
 
 During this summer an event occurred which thoroughly 
 aroused the heroic combativeness of every dweller on Tweed- 
 side in the neighbourhood of Sprouston, nay, even sent a thrill 
 beyond the Borders wherever the strange tale was repeated. 
 
 I shall have much to say hereafter about the far-famed 
 Sprouston Dub, undoubtedly the most certain cast for salmon 
 in all the length of the Tweed. Meantime I will only state 
 that the Dub is caused by a high and long mill cauld which 
 stretches angle-wise across the river, and terminates at its 
 southern side in a narrow sharp run of water which leads 
 onwards to the mill wheel. This mill-lade may be 1 50 yards 
 in length and 10 feet in width, and its northern bank has 
 gradually, under the influence of floods, grown to be a massy 
 barrier between the lade and the main stream of the river. 
 This bank has, so far back as memory goes, always been the 
 resort of a pair of otters. Many a time have its tenants been 
 captured by hounds, nets, or spears, but another pair has 
 
i6o Lord John Scott and the Otter. 
 
 invariably taken their place at once and reared their infant 
 progeny in this favourite home within a few yards of the 
 cottages which surrounded the mill. 
 
 Again, however, did a day of evil fate impend over these 
 inhabitants of the river bank. The Duke of Athol had been 
 hunting for some days in the Teviot, and on July 24th he 
 essayed a trial of his hounds' sagacity in the Tweed. Com- 
 mencing at the large pool immediately below Kelso Bridge, the 
 hounds dropped downwards, till at Rosebank stream they were 
 satisfied that the game was but a short way ahead. Then 
 onwards they sped to Sprouston Dub, whose length they tra- 
 versed swimming breast high, while they indulged themselves 
 with music sweet to the hunter's ears. Dodging from the Dub 
 the hunted creature passed beneath the sluice of the Mill-head, 
 which he entered and made for the ancient home of his fore- 
 fathers in the embankment I have described. To this spot his 
 pursuers soon tracked him. The hounds were drawn off and 
 two small terriers were introduced into the hole which was 
 close to the water's edge. Much noise ensued, and after a 
 time the terriers were driven back seriously mutilated. The 
 question arose, ' What was now to be done ? ' and a powerful 
 Highlander, who always accompanied the pack, set to work at 
 enlarging the hole, but though he was assisted by other hands 
 the countless roots of trees which guarded the otter's castle 
 prevented them from making much progress. Seeing this, 
 Lord John Scott, the brother of the Duke of Buccleugh, began 
 himself to dig on the top of the embankment, and soon 
 succeeded in making a hole which led direct to the inner 
 retreat of the defender. He then announced his intention of 
 trying conclusions with the otter in his own person. Casting 
 aside coat, waistcoat, and necktie, he boldly entered the hole, 
 carrying a large open clasp knife across his mouth. Gradually 
 forcing his way onward he at length almost disappeared, 
 
Lord John Scotfs Victory. i6i 
 
 nothing but the soles of his boots being visible to the eyes of 
 the anxious spectators. Again strange sounds were heard, 
 followed by a dead silence. The crowd outside could bear it 
 no longer, and loud cries arose of ' Dig him out, he's suffocating.' 
 Happily the soles of the boots were soon seen to move, and 
 then the legs and body began to emerge slowly as if exhausted. 
 At last a cry was heard from below, ' Where is my friend Mr. 
 Stark ? ' which being responded to by that gentleman. Lord 
 John came out into the daylight holding in his outstretched 
 hand a large otter quite dead. 
 
 How much of the victory may have been due to the terriers, 
 how much to Lord John, can never be decided, but certain it 
 is that face to face in that narrow den of darkness man and 
 beast had striven for life and that victory rested with the 
 former. The conqueror's appearance showed, however, at what 
 a price it had been won — arms, hands and chest torn, clawed, 
 and bleeding told their tale only too clearly. 
 
 So terrible a spectacle awed the crowd, and for some minutes 
 a deep silence reigned over all. Then when their minds had 
 comprehended the bravery of the man such cheers arose from 
 every one present as do good to honest hearts. All rushed 
 forward to grasp the victor's hand, every disparity of rank and 
 station was forgotten, their own hero stood before them and in 
 his presence each man felt himself exalted. Suddenly, as if 
 by inspiration, arose the cry of ' Chair him ! chair him ! ' and 
 without allowing his Lordship time to wash his bleeding hands 
 and arms, heedless of every protest, he was mounted on the 
 shoulders of the strongest men and in presence of a large 
 crowd of admirers borne towards the Mill. With cries of 
 ' See the Conquering Hero comes,' and many a loud Hurrah ! 
 he was carried on in triumph, probably himself the only man 
 present who wished himself any where but where he was. 
 
 Among the most notable events of the year was certainly the 
 
 M 
 
i62 A Voracious Pika. 
 
 capture of a pike by my friend Mr. J. B. Langhorne, and I am 
 pleased to be able to give the particulars in his own words : — 
 
 ' I was visiting my good old friend and patron, Richard 
 Ellison, Esq., at his mansion of Sudbrook Holme, near Lincoln. 
 One morning at breakfast arose a discussion as to the merits 
 of pike as an article of food. Opinions differed, so it was 
 finally agreed to test the matter, to a certain extent at least, by 
 having a pike at dinner that very day, if one could be procured ; 
 and I, as a supposed expert in the gentle art, was deputed to 
 capture the " wolf of the water." 
 
 'There is at Sudbrook an extensive sheet of water containing 
 in its bosom, I doubted not, numerous pike. So to it I betook 
 myself, and in one of the boats there moored I set out on my 
 piscatorial expedition, but not one pike could I see or feel 
 through all the lake. Either the water was too deep, or my 
 assistant had not hit upon the right spots. It then occurred 
 to me to move upwards to the stream which fed the lake, 
 and this I found to be only two or three feet deep, and as 
 clear as crystal. After proceeding up it a short way I saw 
 the very gentleman I was in quest of — a fine pike about 
 eight or nine pounds in weight, poising himself quietly by a 
 gentle movement of his fins in mid-water. In water so clear 
 as this I thought it almost hopeless to attempt to capture him. 
 However I chucked my bait, a dace, before him as quietly as I 
 could, and to my astonishment it was instantly seized in the 
 most voracious manner. My tackle being pretty strong I 
 promptly drew my friend ashore, and then, not many more of 
 his species being apparently in the run, it occurred to me that 
 I might as well have some more sport out of him if he was 
 willing. So I gently put him in again, on which he paddled 
 off a short distance, wheeled round, and stationed himself 
 much as at first. I threw the bait again, he seized it imme- 
 diately, and this operation was repeated some five or six times. 
 
Misplaced Incredulity. 163 
 
 ' On the seventh or eighth occasion, I cannot precisely 
 remember which, whether the hook had given him an awk- 
 ward prick, or for what other reason I know not, a spirit of 
 caution and reflection took possession of him. He made long 
 sweeps round the bait, he approached his nose to it and recoiled 
 again and again, and only with much twiddling and a great 
 deal of management did I at last persuade him to make 
 another bolt at the lure. This time I durst not trust him 
 again, but carried him off incontinent to the cook, and we ate 
 him at dinner that day. 
 
 ' There was a distinguished company to partake of hira ; one 
 peer, one bishop, two or three baronets, and many county 
 notables. I told my tale as I have told it above ; the company 
 was far too dignified for anything like direct contradiction, but • 
 I heard two or three dry coughs, and another subject was 
 introduced at once. Plainly not a soul believed me. I have 
 repeated the story since in many companies, but have no 
 recollection of ever finding any Christian or Samaritan yield 
 the slightest credence thereto. I once told it at an angler's 
 dinner of about twenty assembled by my excellent old friend, 
 Teale of Leeds, to meet Frank Buckland. On that cele- 
 brated occasion every man excelled his neighbour's fishing 
 anecdotes, with some yet wilder tale, but the above simple 
 story was rejected by all as a " cram " entirely beyond deglu- 
 tition. 
 
 ' And yet the tale is perfectly and entirely true. In explan- 
 ation I would only mention the impression I was under at the 
 time that there was then very little to feed on in the water, 
 and that the fish was in fact half starved.' 
 
 For myself I cannot see why any doubt should have been 
 cast upon this narration. Indeed the capture of my first pike 
 in the year 1837 was almost as marvellous. Not till I had 
 drawn the fish four times to the shore did I succeed in cap- 
 
 M 2 
 
164 The Angler's Luncheon. 
 
 turing it. That Mr. Langhorne's pike made a similar journey 
 six or seven times is a diiFerence too trifling to make the tale 
 less credible. 
 
 A.D. 1852. — In my early spring fishing this year I was once 
 more accompanied by Charlie Ebdy, and the scene of our 
 labours was the Glen. The weather was bitterly cold, with 
 showers of sleet and hail, such weather as inclines the angler, 
 however hardy he may be, to provide himself with any com- 
 forts that may be attainable. Charlie was very handy in the 
 preparation of snug little luncheons. Selecting two or three 
 brace of well conditioned trout, he used to divest them of 
 heads, tails, fins and interiors, sprinkle them inside with a 
 mixture of pepper and salt, and then encase each fish separately 
 in about six folds of wet paper wound tightly around it. Mean- 
 while I was not idle. Choosing the nearest ' bieldy bit,' I lit a 
 fire of dry furze and fed it till there was a good supply of red 
 ashes. In these we placed our fish, together with a few 
 potatoes from the depths of our pockets, covered the whole up 
 with more lighted furze, and watched some twelve or fifteen 
 minutes. When we withdrew our hot luncheon from the 
 embers we thought it more delicious than any banquet spread 
 in hall or bower, and I believe that all my angler friends would 
 agree with me if with the same surroundings they would make 
 the same experiment. A little drop of mountain dew seasoned 
 our repast, and then our backs resting against a tree, our feet 
 turned to the glowing embers, I solaced myself with a pipe, 
 remembering with the old English divine Isaak Barrow, ' to 
 thank Him who hath wrapped up a blessing in a weed.' I 
 have since tasted the luxury of the Italian dolce-far-niente, but 
 it pales before the joys I have described. 
 
 While so seated one day we suddenly heard the distant 
 cries of hounds in chase ; the sounds grew nearer and nearer, 
 and at last poor hunted Reynard appeared upon the scene. 
 
A Sly Fox. 165 
 
 We were seated about a hundred yards from the river on its 
 southern bank, a little below Lanton Mill. On the farther 
 side of the river rose a steep hill, and here direct from the 
 water's edge to the sky-line ran a stone wall, apparently the 
 division of separate estates. To this wall Reynard made his 
 way wearily, with protruding tongue, evidently quite exhausted. 
 He sprang upon the wall, though with difficulty ; there he 
 paused and listened as if to calculate the distance of his pur- 
 suers. His next proceeding was to run along the top of the 
 wall for about forty yards in the direction of the river, then 
 suddenly turning he retraced his course and still keeping on 
 the wall trotted some hundred and fifty yards up the hill and 
 finally dropped down upon the grass on the side from which 
 he had first come. We distinctly saw him skirting along far 
 up the liill side while the hounds were coming forward to the 
 wall on a parallel line. 
 
 Charlie and I were much struck by the scene, and agreed 
 not to say a word about what we had witnessed, but to give 
 the poor creature a fair chance for his life. On swept the 
 hounds topping the wall, but they were soon at fault ; a cast 
 was made and then a second wider one, but without result. 
 Next a cast was made within the wall, and after that a consul- 
 tation held, ending in the return of the hunt eastward ; — 
 they were completely foiled. No doubt at the next merry 
 meeting of the foxes of Glendale when the tale was told of our 
 Reynard tricking his pursuers, he was greeted with cheers and 
 one cheer more — and well he deserved such an honour. 
 
 Shortly after this Mr. Langhorne and Mr. Swire had a 
 splendid day's sport in the Tweed, and by the kind permission 
 of the former I am enabled to insert his description of it. 
 
 ' The best day's trout fishing that I ever had in my life was 
 on a certain day in the month of May, and as far as I can 
 recollect in the year 1852. 
 
1 66 A Memorable Morning. 
 
 ' My brother-in-law, Mr. Swire, and I were staying, as had 
 been my habit for years during that month, at St. Boswell's on 
 the Tweed, partly I think to angle for trout and partly to hold 
 pleasant converse with my old friend Johnny Younger, that 
 most skilled of old Tweed fishermen and most genial of men. 
 ' That memorable morning we did not take things in haste, 
 but sauntered out about lo a.m. to walk slowly up the 
 river in search of some spot suitable for commencing our 
 sport. About II a.m. we reached the fine deep rolling stream 
 opposite Bemerside. There had been a flood, but the water 
 had now run down to the best colour for an angler, and I saw 
 the trout rising in every direction, not leaping out of the 
 water in mere sportive play, but with an evidently determined 
 intention of feeding. I said at once, " Let us start here." 
 Swire went a little higher up the water, and we both com- 
 menced work. 
 
 ' My very first cast was rewarded by a trout weighing 3f lbs., 
 the largest I had ever caught in my life, and he was landed in 
 no time, the stream and the shelving gravelly bank favouring 
 me. I need hardly say that I fished after the Southern fashion, 
 with a one-handed rod in one hand and my landing net in 
 the other. 
 
 ' Shortly after this my coadjutor arrived with a splendid 
 trout in his hand weighing 3^^ lbs., crowing over me thereupon. 
 " Call that a trout, youth," said I, " I call it a minnow," and 
 produced mine. I then proceeded, and in a very few minutes 
 landed eight more trout, and including my first monster they 
 averaged one pound each. At this crisis up rose out of a 
 ruined Starch House (whatever that may mean, I only know 
 certain old buildings are so designated in that part of the 
 country *) the keeper, who had been watching me. " Waal," 
 
 * Some curiosity having been excited respecting the Starch Houses here 
 alluded to, Mr. Langhorne at my request kindly made enquiries on the subject 
 
splendid Success. 167 
 
 said he, •' you're joost a graaund fusher. I niver saw anything 
 like it afore, and I could na bear to interrupt you at furst. I 
 was quite daised, but you see our maister Mr. Fairm * of 
 Chapel allows no fushing here, so you maun just move on." 
 
 ' This I took to mean half-a-crown, but as there was plenty of 
 water before us I did move on and joined my partner. We pro- 
 ceeded up the river, and such a day's fishing has surely seldom 
 been seen. We fished chiefly by wading in at the bottom of 
 the stream and casting up. Each of us carried two baskets, 
 and by one o'clock the baskets and all our pockets, even my 
 trousers pockets I remember, were crammed with trout. 
 Finding ourselves unable to carry any more we put up our 
 rods and walked straight to Melrose, where we went into the 
 first grocer's shop we saw, bought a tea chest, weighed it, 
 poured out all our take into it, and found that it touched a 
 good 56 Bbs. We then nailed up the chest, addressed it to our 
 friends in England, and proceeded down the river on our return 
 to St. Boswell's. 
 
 ' Meanwhile an excursion train had arrived from Edinburgh, 
 and in our downward progress on arriving at one of the best 
 streams below Melrose we encountered an Edinburgh citizen, 
 clad from top to toe in the garb of old Gael, kilt and philabeg 
 and all. " Glad to see you, gentlemen," he exclaimed. " Fine 
 weather, but this is an awefu bad fushing day." I made 
 answer that we at all events had not found it so. " Hoity, 
 toity ! nonsense mon ! Am considered a guid fusher, but I've 
 
 among several of his friends residing on the Borders. Singularly enough 
 though some among them have Starch Houses on their estates, he could get 
 no account of their origin or ancient use. When the search seemed almost 
 hopeless, an old lady between eighty and ninety years of age was heard speak- 
 ing accidentally of the use of Starch Houses by the peasantry at the close of 
 the last century ; and from her it has been ascertained that large quantities of 
 starch were then made by the villagers throughout the Borders in their potato 
 fields, and stored in these roughly built houses. 
 * Properly Fairholm. 
 
1 68 The Cit Turned Angler. 
 
 flogged this stream down seven or eight times and never 
 had a rise." " That is strange," said I, " for I think I have 
 hardly made a cast to-day without a rise." " Waal now I call 
 that extraordinary. I canna believe it. Will you tak my gad 
 (Anglice rod) an see if ye can get a rise wi' it ? " I looked at 
 his "gad," and perceived it to be a two-handed aifair, about the 
 size and weight of an ordinary salmon rod, with a line fit to 
 pull out a grampus, and some seven or eight flies upon it each 
 about the size of a bumble bee. However, having accepted 
 the task, I shouldered the gad, and proceeded to walk down to 
 the bottom of the stream. " Guid sake ! Where are you 
 gawing to ? Wha ever saw any body fush frae the bottom o' 
 the waater ? " I replied that generally, if not always, we did 
 fish from the bottom of the water in England. " Waal, Sir, 
 I've heerd mony a queer story about things they do in England, 
 but this bangs a' ! Fauncy a mon fushing frae the bottom o' 
 the water ! " 
 
 ' This action of mine was so absurd in the eyes of our friend 
 that his amusement at it quite exhausted him. He had to lie 
 down on the bank to laugh, and to refresh himself with a little 
 whiskey. His eyes however were shortly opened as I hauled 
 to bank some eight or nine fine trout one after another, having 
 however great difficulty in deceiving them in consequence of 
 the weight of the rod, the thickness of the line, the size of the 
 flies, and the assistance which the worthy Celt had previously 
 rendered by flogging the stream. But it was a day for taking 
 such as I have never seen before or since. Soon our friend 
 broke in again with, " Waal noo, you're just a fearfu' magee- 
 cian ! Whaar did you learn that trick ? Ye ken it's quite 
 impossible to believe it's fair fushing'. Ye hae a trick mon, 
 there's no denying it. For did na I fush this stream mysel' 
 doon several times without a rise, an' ye fushed it up ? And 
 of coorse it's quite impossible for a man to fush up a stream 
 
The Wark Streams. 169 
 
 and catch a trout without he has a trick." I told him the 
 trick was simply to fish from the bottom of the stream with a 
 small rod and light tackle, but this doctrine he indignantly 
 rejected as heretical to an inexpressible degree — and so we 
 parted. 
 
 ' He hallooed after us however with an offer of the trout I 
 had caught, declaring that he was quite sure that '' wi' such 
 feckless gads as oors we should never catch enough for dinner," 
 which nevertheless we did, and with scant trouble.' 
 
 A.p. 1853. — ^It was in the autumn of this year that I first 
 fished the Wark water. The stretch is short, containing only 
 two pools and as many streams. All these may be considered 
 shallow as compared with the best waters in the river, but the 
 shallowness which is a valid objection in a dry season is just 
 the reverse when the Tweed is moved by frequent swells, and 
 I have often known the shallows of Wark furnish heavier 
 baskets than the celebrated casts of Carham, Sprouston, or 
 Makerstoun. The locality is picturesque. Almost overhanging 
 the river are the still imposing ruins of Wark Castle, one of 
 the Border fortresses taken by James IV. when marching to 
 the fatal field of Flodden. 
 
 And first they heard king James had won 
 
 Etall and Wark, and Ford ; and then 
 
 That Norham Castle strong was ta'en, 
 At that sore marvelled Marmion. 
 
 The Donjon keep was almost destroyed ; the Castle fell never 
 to be reared again, but enough remains to prove its noble 
 extent. 
 
 Beneath the shelter of these ruins and near the edge of the 
 cliiF stood the cottage of the fisherman old James Scott, who 
 for many a year had toiled there as tacksman under the Earls 
 of Tankerville and Home. He was a kindly-hearted, simple- 
 minded old man, with few topics of conversation and a strong 
 
170 A Disappoinimettt. 
 
 tendency to refer to past events of the good old times, when 
 ' salmon were na sae pawky, and were satisfied with a grey 
 Turkey or a muckle white wing.' The labour of boating was 
 performed by his two sons Thomas and Robert, both men of 
 education superior to their station. Indeed it would not be 
 possible to find two fishermen more anxious to place good 
 sport within the power of any angler who needed their services, 
 or better acquainted with the fishing characteristics of their 
 own streams and pools. I speak in this place .of Wark and of 
 its fishermen because the time is approaching when I shall with 
 other gentlemen, become intimately associated with them. 
 
 One fine day in October I left Sprouston soon after 9 a.m., 
 went by rail to Wark station and enjoyed the invigorating 
 autumnal breeze as I walked along the pretty lane leading 
 thence to the fisherman's cottage. On arriving there one of 
 the young men took me in charge and we proceeded to fish the 
 dub, beginning at the lower end. The wind now blew fiercely, 
 tearing the half-withered leaves from the trees and scattering 
 them thickly on the surface of the pool. Our fly was selected 
 of a colour opposite to that of the leaves, and we had fished 
 three-fourths of the cast when we heard old James's voice 
 through the roar of the gale. ' What hae ye dune ? ' shouted 
 the old man. ' Nothing,' was our brief reply.' ' Put on a 
 white wing, and let it be muckle ane,' was the dictum, and 
 seating himself on the bank he awaited the result with con- 
 fidence. His patience was not severely tried, for after a few 
 casts I hooked a fish of certainly more than 20 lbs. weight. 
 After a good run, deceived by the violence of the wind, and 
 ignorant of the decay of my casting line, I pressed too heavily 
 and broke it near the hook. ' Ae sir, but ye were o'er heavy 
 on him ; ye should aye tak time wi sic big beasts.' So spoke 
 James, and he was right. The barb of self-reproach entered 
 deeply into my soul, and the next event by no means tempered 
 the smart. 
 
The Snipe. 
 
 171 
 
 Proceeding upwards we tried a pool termed the Snipe. 
 Here I soon rose and hooked another large salmon, but striking 
 too quickly I again lost my casting line. Almost crying with 
 vexation I had the boat pulled to the shore, and began an 
 examination of the line. I gleaned a few grains of comfort 
 from its condition ; it was quite rotten and unfit for use. Only 
 one small fish fell to my rod on this unlucky day ; still it made 
 good the old adage, 'many a bad beginning makes a good 
 ending,' for during the ten following years I made many a 
 heavy basket in the Wark water. 
 
CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 ' When the sunbeams are bright in the far eastern sky, 
 The angler departs with his rod, line, and fly ; 
 Of the cares of the town nor its folly he dreams, 
 For his soul is wrapped up in the sports of the streams.' 
 
 R. NiCHOL, ' Newcastle Fisher's Garland.' 
 
 
 A.D. 1854. — In this year the Earl of Durham became tenant 
 of Coupland Castle, and of as much of the fair stream of Glen 
 as wandered through the estate. To this his lordship added 
 the shootings and fishings of Lanton, making altogether a 
 stretch of five or six miles of as lovely trouting water as the 
 most epicurean angler could desire. 
 
 Through the kind intervention of Mr. Morton, his lordship 
 readily granted leave for myself and a friend to fish this water ; 
 indeed during the twelve years of his residence at Coupland 
 
Wease/s and Eels. 173 
 
 Castle this permission, whenever asked, was freely accorded to 
 me as to many other gentlemen, who thus partook of a pure 
 invigorating enjoyment such as no money could purchase. 
 
 In the January of this year Thomas Scott, our Wark boat- 
 man, observed a singular occurrence. While passing by the 
 foot of the island, below Wark fishing Shield, he saw a weasel 
 running away from the river side with a living eel in its 
 mouth. The eel was about a foot long and seemed by its 
 contortions strongly to object to the enforced journey. Scott 
 gave chase but the weasel bravely carried its prey to the mouth 
 of a mole run which it entered, leaving the eel outside. The 
 weather at the time was frosty and the ground hard, but there 
 was no ice upon the river. During the following winter 
 Thomas Scott's brother James saw another weasel running 
 briskly with an eel in its mouth about a hundred yards above 
 the ferry on the north bank of ^the river. I am at a loss to 
 understand how weasels can find eels in the depth of winter, as 
 the eels are at that season deeply buried in the mud to 
 escape the cold, which is death to them. 
 
 During the month of May Mr. William Greenwell and 
 James Wright made some memorable days' fishing on Reddon 
 Haugh. Morning after morning they were to be seen wading 
 deep in the wide quiet dub above the stream called Brose. 
 Happily for them each morning a breeze blew from the east, 
 ruffling the surface of the water, and so causing their flies to 
 hang leisurely over the fish. This circumstance, aided by lines 
 cast ' far off and fine,' enabled them every evening to show 
 bumper creels, the remembrance of which still lingers in the 
 neighbourhood of Sprouston. The work was chiefly done with 
 flies dressed of feathers taken from the blackbird's wing, the 
 bodies being formed of coch-y-bonddhu hackles. So deadly did 
 these flies prove that they have been awarded the commemora- 
 tive title of ' Greenwell's Glory,' In spring and early summer I 
 
174 The Duck-reach. 
 
 invariably use one on my cast of flies, and with the exception 
 of the March Brown I have found none more successful. 
 
 In June Mr. J. H. Forster and I commenced our fishings in the 
 Glen and Till. They lasted a whole week, during which time 
 the competition between my companion and myself was serious. 
 Fortune favoured first one and then the other. At length the 
 day came for our return home, and we agreed that the last 
 morning should decide who was the victor. The coach used 
 in those days to pass our little inn at half-past two o'clock, and 
 so we fixed the time of trial from eight a.m. to mid-day. Lots 
 were cast for choice of water, and the lot falling to my friend 
 he chose the stretch immediately above Coupland Mill Dam, 
 while I arranged to begin at Akeld Bridge and fish upwards, so 
 that we might meet the dog-cart at the Ford near Coupland. 
 
 I found the stream in beautiful order. A recent flood had 
 left the water of a pale-ale colour, and, to complete my satis- 
 faction, a gentle breeze from the east rippled the surface of the 
 pools. The fish were eager and enthusiastic, so that by ten 
 o'clock, when I arrived at the long shallow stretch called the 
 ' Duck-reach,' my creel was half filled with goodly trout. My 
 best luck however awaited me here. Hidden by the curling 
 ripple and keeping my back as close as possible to the row of 
 willows which lined the southern bank, I rarely made a cast 
 which did not result in a bite or a fish. Casting well upward, 
 the ripple allowed me to draw each fish so stealthily towards 
 me that the shoal remained in happy ignorance of my prox- 
 imity. 
 
 On gaining the top of the Duck-reach it only wanted a few 
 minutes to twelve o'clock, so I walked straight to the appointed 
 rendezvous. My friend soon appeared, and his languid air and 
 soiribre countenance seemed to tell of expected defeat. ' Well, 
 what sport ? ' said he. ' Pretty good,' was my reply, on which 
 he went on, ' Well, I have made a mess of it. I thought that 
 
A Heavy Take. 175 
 
 in such a beautiful coloured water my best chance would be 
 with minnow, but I lost two sets of tackle and only got a few 
 fish. At eleven o'clock I put on the worm, and in that last 
 hour did well, but it was quite a mistake to try with minnow.' 
 He then emptied his basket and counted 28 fish upon the grass. 
 I unstrapped the waterproof cloak which hung across my 
 shoulder and drew from the pockets exactly the same number. 
 ' Ah,' said he, evidently relieved, ' then it is a drawn bet, that's 
 better luck than I expected.' ' Yes,' I replied ' except for these,' 
 and from the shelter of a whin bush I drew forth my hidden 
 creel, in the hole of which stood a branch of broom, proud 
 token that it contained 20 lbs. weight of fish, and would hold 
 no more. My four hours' fishing thus produced 27 lbs. weight 
 of trout, being by far the heaviest take I have ever made in 
 that time. Of all trout rivers give me the Glen, and of all its 
 bonnie stretches give me the Duck-reach ! 
 
 During the preceding three or four years I had frequently 
 met Admiral Gator at the Sprouston Glub House, and these 
 meetings led to an intimate friendship, which continued till 
 his death several years later. The Admirals enthusiasm for 
 salmon fishing was unbounded, and although he was a tall 
 heavy man and advanced in years he would go through a long 
 day's fishing with little apparent fatigue. My experience of 
 the Wark fishing gained in the previous October induced the 
 Admiral, Mr. P. S. Wilkinson, and myself to take the autumn 
 fishings there, and many most enjoyable days we had, under 
 the guidance of the Scotts. I have no memoranda of the 
 results of this season, except a note of Mr. Wilkinson's killing 
 a salmon of 25 lbs. weight in the Guddy Hole on November 
 6th. This was considered a very large fish at that time when 
 the salmon fishings of the Tweed had attained their climax of 
 sterility, before the Act of Parliament a few years later gave 
 protection and length of life to the king of fresh-water fishes. 
 
176 Old Bewick. 
 
 A.D. 1855. — About this date I frequently fished the upper 
 stretches of the Till ; indeed my wanderings often took me 
 above Bewick Bridge where the stream bears another name, 
 that of Breamish. The local rhyme thus describes this change 
 of designation : — 
 
 The foot of Breamish and the head of Till 
 Meet together at Bewick Mill. 
 
 This is not the only Northumbrian river which thus curiously 
 alters its name. The Pont on passing beneath the bridge near 
 Stannington becomes the Blyth, and I believe other instances 
 might be adduced. When fishing the Breamish my residence 
 was generally at Old Bewick, where the warmest hospitality 
 awaited me and any friend who chanced to be my companion. 
 But this was not the only charm of Old Bewick. There was 
 a peculiar heartiness, a sort of almost boyish freshness in our 
 host's welcome which have endeared the spot to many now 
 far away. 
 
 The following incidents will show how heartily my dear old 
 friend Mr. Langlands entered into the pursuits of those about 
 him. One February some time before the year of which I am 
 treating, circumstances led me to visit Old Bewick. The season 
 was a severe one. A sprinkling of snow lay on the fields, the 
 ditches were coated with ice, and the struggling sun had barely 
 power to melt the floating 'grue.' Such was the aspect of 
 things when Mr. Langlands and I bent our steps to the bailiiPs 
 cottage, in search of a rod and line with which to capture any 
 trout voracious enough, or alert enough, to be open to tempta- 
 tion on so uncompromising a day. The rod and line were 
 obtained, but alas ! the pocket-book only contained one old 
 rusty worm hook, now exceedingly valuable, as things become 
 when they are scarce. The cold was piercing, still we per- 
 severed and a few lanky-looking trout were taken, till an 
 unlucky cast caused the hook to fix itself firmly among some 
 
Self-denying Kindness. i77 
 
 brushwood which laced a row of piles placed to protect the 
 farther bank from the rushing water. All my efforts to 
 disentangle it were vain, on which my friend stripped off boots 
 and stockings and prepared to wade through the icy cold water 
 in search of it. Nothing I could say was of any effect ; he was 
 determined my sport should not be interrupted. When he got 
 to the place he found the hook fastened at such a depth that 
 he was obliged to plunge his arm to its full length in the 
 perilous bath. He brought me back my hook, and I made 
 up a dish of eight trout. I never again tried trout fishing 
 in the depth of winter, and when I recall that day's sport 
 I think how far one might travel without finding a man 
 past fifty who would insist upon undergoing such punish- 
 ment in order that his guest might have another hour's 
 amusement. 
 
 The glowing descriptions he heard of the charms of Tweed- 
 side induced my friend F. Greenwell to join me at Sprouston 
 in the month of May. Though no angler, he was a devoted 
 ornithologist, and during his rambles by the streams and in 
 the woods he was always seeking to add fresh specimens to his 
 rich collection of the eggs of rare birds. One day, on the 
 fourteenth of the month as I remember, I found the water at 
 Rutherford too high and too dark in colour to allow of my 
 wading with safety, so the fisherman John Aitkin proposed to 
 row me upon the dub while I fished from the boat with fly. 
 The strong current running through the pool, aided by sunken 
 rocks and boulders caused numerous swirls upon the surface, 
 which together with the blackness of the water effectually 
 veiled my tackle from the eyes of the fish. 
 
 Waiting till some trout near at hand rose at the natural 
 insect, I cast my fly about two yards above. In most cases the 
 fish responded, and I was rapidly filling my creel when it 
 occurred to me that as there was such excellent prospect of 
 
178 The Wee Wee Fish. 
 
 sport, my friend, however ignorant he might be of the art, 
 would do well to try his luck. 
 
 A second rod and tackle were soon put in order, and as no 
 boatman was at hand Mrs. Aitkin, like a good soul as she was, 
 volunteered to lead my friend to the triumphs he anticipated. 
 Manfully he swung his rod, but the greater his vigour, the 
 more erratic was the course of his lure, till after half an hour's 
 severe labour I saw him quietly on terra firma again. I landed 
 too to enquire the cause and met first the old lady, who with 
 a rueful countenance exclaimed, ' Aw just landed to save ma 
 auld e'en fra being heuked. Ae what a mon it is ! He just 
 had his fleas all round ma heed, an they stuck i' ma heer till 
 aw could stand it na langer, sae aw just rowed ashore.' On 
 reaching my friend he presented me with his solitary trophy, 
 a wee wee fish not four inches long, while with a peal of 
 laughter he declared that he too had had enough of it, and that 
 nothing should ever again tempt him to take a fishing rod in 
 hand. That evening at Sprouston the ' wee, wee fish ' was 
 pinned on the wall above the fireplace as F. G.'s mark, and 
 there I found it on my return in July. When a friend who 
 called then to see me asked my landlady how she could bear 
 such a nasty smelling thing in the room, her reply was ready, 
 ' Ae Sir, it's ower wee to stink ; it niver had a stink in it.' 
 And so the wee fish long remained as a memento of May 14 
 till some ruthless unsympathising hand tore it from its place. 
 For myself my day's fishing produced 48 trout = 24 lbs. I 
 have often noticed that when the fish take well in the Tweed, 
 the average weight is two to the pound. 
 
 My health being delicate I went to Sprouston in July, 
 hoping to gain tone and vigour from the pure bracing air of 
 Tweedside. I was alone there for a fortnight, and though 
 health was my chief object and the season of the year as well 
 as the low state of the water were sadly against fishing, still I 
 
The Tweedside in July. 179 
 
 could not avoid making a trial, and I succeeded better than I 
 had dared to hope. 
 
 I found my old ally Charles Kerss wandering by the river 
 side, lonely and dejected, for the present his occupation, like 
 Othello's, gone. We sat down on the bank to talk over past 
 feats, ever to the zealous angler a consolation, and while so 
 engaged hope whispered that the situation, bad as it was, might 
 still afford us some sport. ' What say you to spearing in the 
 sunlight ? ' said Charles. ' Shall we try it ? ' 'I never had a 
 spear in my hand,' replied I, ' and I don't think I have strength 
 to wield it.' ' Oh, you'll do the trick if you do but try,' was 
 the oracular response, and accordingly on the morrow armed 
 with a light leister we commenced a searching investigation of 
 the bed of the Rosebank stream. 
 
 The sun shone brightly on the water, which was five or six 
 feet in depth, and thickly strewn with large boulder stones. 
 These stones afford the sort of quiet shelter which induces the 
 fish to settle down behind them. Taking my stand in the 
 front of the boat, I peered to the bottom of the water, and 
 after half an hour's dodging here and there I discerned at last 
 something like a black log of wood behind a stone. I watched 
 this intently while Charles held the boat steadily in hand, and 
 soon had the satisfaction of seeing a movement such as might 
 have been expected from the tail of an almost quiescent fish. 
 'Now steady,' said Charles. 'Turn the leister so that the 
 prongs may dross his back, glide it slowly down till it is about 
 a foot from him, and then strike. Pin him firmly to the 
 ground, and if you do not hold firm he will wriggle off.' This 
 advice I carefully followed, and succeeded in pinning the fish 
 tight upon the gravel, but the thrill which tingled through my 
 arms from the poor writhing creature was very painful. I felt 
 quite sick, and for the first time in my angling career felt 
 something of .the self-reproach of a murderer. The fish 
 proved to be a clean grilse of 6 lbs. weight. 
 
 N 2 
 
i8o Spearing Salmon in Sunlight. 
 
 It is said that a Frenchman, while visiting at an English 
 country house, found himself one day the only gentleman left 
 at home in company with the ladies. 'Ah,' he exclaimed, 
 with a truly national shrug, ' Ah, these Englishman ! they 
 take their breakfast, and then they say, "Let us go and kill 
 something." They go and kill, and are seen no more till it is 
 time to dine and to eat that which they have killed.' Now 
 when I am in the country, and close to a river, this national 
 craving is too strong for resistance, so despite the qualms with 
 which first I used the leister, the next morning found me again 
 at Rosebank. Indeed during several days Charles and I 
 generally succeeded in butchering at least a couple of grilse. 
 I am thankful however to say that this most objectionable 
 method of taking salmon is now prohibited by law. 
 
 It seemed at last as if no more grilse were to be found, but 
 Charles suggested that probably there was a salmon in the 
 ' Grain stream ' waiting to be captured with worm. Again I 
 objected ; I had never fished for salmon except with fly or 
 minnow. I knew nothing of the art of fishing with worm. 
 However Charles' arguments, seconded by my own desires, 
 soon brought us to the indicated cast. It is a narrow rapid 
 rushing stream which the angler may easily command from 
 side to side by wading in a short distance from the bank. 
 Here taking an old casting line, long used for fishing with 
 minnow, Charles attached a link with two large hooks short in 
 the shank, and placed near together. He then fastened on 
 them two and a half large worms of the kind known as dew- 
 worms, creatures that are most easily found after dusk, when 
 they come out of their holes to enjoy their damp surface of the 
 ground. 
 
 A formidable array of No. i shot was next added to the 
 line, then taking two or three steps into the stream at its 
 highest point, I began fishing downwards. This kind of 
 
'■Try Again.' 
 
 fishing is the most unnatural that I know of. According to 
 Charles' directions I drew in three or four yards of the reel 
 line which was to be first reserved, and then gradually payed 
 out as the bait went down the stream. Then casting directly 
 across towards the further bank I began to play the bait with a 
 jerking motion against the stream, allowing it to travel 
 gradually round. Next I took a couple of steps down the 
 stream, and then another throw, and so went on till I had 
 nearly got to the end of the cast, when to my delight the line 
 stopped, and I distinctly felt a fish nibbling and pulling at the 
 bait. Trembling with excitement I cried out, ' Here he is ! ' 
 'Give him time,' replied Charles, 'let him pouch it.' But 1 
 was too eager to heed the advice, and giving a sharp stroke 
 had the mortification of finding that the fish had gone off 
 with more than half the casting line. 
 
 Moments like these are to the angler a taste of purgatory. 
 I was full of self-reproach for a lost opportunity, and there was 
 no need of Charles' ' I told you so ' to make rae perfectly 
 wretched. However Charles added ' Try again, very likely he 
 has a neebor.' We therefore proceeded to construct a new 
 line, and I found some consolation in the fact that the one 
 I had been using was thoroughly rotten. All once more in 
 readiness, I recommenced at the head of the stream, and 
 fishing carefully arrived at the exact place where I had first 
 felt the salmon. Immediately a munching and tugging began 
 which said plainly, ' Here I am.' This time I gave theiish at 
 least a minute pulling and jerking the line all the time, to 
 make him hold eagerly on to the bait. ' Now strike,' said 
 Charles. I did so and a fine salmon sprang out of the water, 
 showing his sides of dazzling silver in the brilliant sunshine. 
 Most tenderly did I play him, and it was not till after a quarter 
 of an hour's run that he lay on the bank, a fish of 9 lbs. weight. 
 What was our surprise to see hanging from its mouth the lost 
 
182 
 
 Fish Have Little Feeling. 
 
 line with a long array of heavy shot attached to it. On 
 examination we found that the first set of hooks was planted" 
 far down in the stomach, and yet though the long heavily 
 weighted line was hanging in a strong stream and therefore 
 tugging at that most sensitive organ, our salmon's appetite was 
 equal to a second breakfast. Surely this bears out the comfort- 
 able theory that fish have little feeling. 
 
 My salmon fishing this autumn was again at Wark, the 
 tenancy being shared as before between Admiral Cator, Mr. 
 P. S. Wilkinson, and myself. I was but little there, and have 
 no memoranda of my captures. 
 
CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 ' Give mine me angle, — we'll to the river.' — SHAKESPEARE. 
 
 A.D. 1856. — The fishing memoranda of this year are too 
 numerous to be given in full. I only cull from them such 
 particulars as will give fair evidence of the average sport of my 
 friends and myself. The following are recorded in my diary. 
 
 AT WARK. 
 
 Feb. 19. — Rev. J. Cundill, i bull trout, 8 lbs. ; and William 
 Henderson with same rod, i salmon kelt, 9 lbs. ; Henry Bram- 
 well, 5 fish, kind unknown. 
 
 Feb. 20. — William Henderson, i bull trout, 6 lbs. 
 
 Feb. 21. — Rev. J. Cundill, i salmon kelt, \\ lbs. ; William 
 Henderson with same rod, i salmon kelt, 14 lbs., i bull trout,8lbs. 
 
 Feb. 22. — Capt. Henderson, 2 salmon kelts, 28 lbs. ; William 
 Henderson with same rod, 2 clean salmon, 26 lbs., 2 salmon 
 kelts, 26 lbs., 2 bull trout, 13 lbs. 
 
 AT SPROUSTON. 
 
 Feb. 23. — Rev. J. Cundill, i bull trout, 7 lbs., i salmon kelt, 
 14 lbs. ; William Henderson with same rod, i salmon kelt, 8 lbs. 
 
 AT WARK. 
 
 Feb. 25. — P. S. Wilkinson, i salmon kelt, i bull trout ; 
 William Henderson 3 kipper grilse, 28^ lbs., 4 salmon kelt, 
 36 lbs., I grilse kelt, 5 lbs. 
 
184 A Day at Makerstoun. 
 
 Feb. 26.— P. S. Wilkinson, 10 fish, 80 lbs. ; William Hender- 
 son, I grilse kelt, 5| lbs., 3 salmon kelts, 35 lbs., 2 bull trout, 
 7i lbs. 
 
 Feb. 27. — P. S. Wilkinson, i clean salmon, 4^ lbs., i salmon 
 kelt, 13 lbs. ; William Henderson, 2 grilse kelt, 12^ lbs., 2 
 salmon kelts, 24J lbs. 
 
 AT SPROUSTON. 
 
 Feb. 28. — William Henderson, 3 salmon kelts, 37 lbs., i 
 clean salmon, 9 lbs. 
 
 The weather being mild, nearly all the fish in the above list 
 were taken with fly. I give these particulars because they 
 fairly represent the size, quality, and number of the fish 
 usually taken in the Tweed during the spring fishings imme- 
 diately preceding the Parliamentary legislation of a.d. 1857 
 and 1859. 
 
 On March ist I drove to Makerstoun, to fish that most pic- 
 turesque water under the guidance of James Kerss, who acted 
 as boatman. It was a dull heavy morning, no break in the 
 leaden-coloured sky, not a breath of wind to move the pools. 
 Still my sport was fair, and the day ended with a basket con- 
 taining 
 
 1 kepper salmon . . . . 19 lbs. 
 
 2 salmon kelts ..... 22 lbs. 
 
 2 grilse kelts iiflbs. 
 
 I clean salmon ..... 9 lbs. 
 
 all having been taken with fly. 
 
 We commenced fishing on the uppermost portion of the 
 water and gradually dropped downwards. Many of the best 
 casts were, however, useless for lack of wind to move the 
 surface. Soon after we began my boatman observed a dead 
 salmon at the bottom of the water, which he promptly raised 
 with the gaff' and placed in the prow of the boat. I made 
 some remonstrance, but let it pass. Soon he drew the boat to 
 
Dead Salmon Utilized. 185 
 
 a place where the water turning round a rock made a quiet 
 eddy and hauled up two more large fish. A more disgusting 
 sight I never beheld ; they had been dead several days and 
 stank offensively. My wrath was now fairly roused and I 
 insisted on their being taken out of the boat, which was done 
 after some demur on James' part. ' What can you want with 
 such horrid creatures ? ' I enquired. ' Oh, they'll do weell for 
 Paris when they're mixed wi' better beasts. Parlezvous is a 
 capital cook.' On subsequent enquiry I learnt that they did 
 go to Paris and that James received 6d. per pound for this 
 loathsome food. It must not be supposed that in this matter 
 James Kerss was worse than his neighbours. Up and down 
 the Tweed from Peebles to Berwick many fishermen pursued 
 the same practice. Indeed the high price, 6d. per pound, then 
 given for all kelts whatever their appearance, created a 
 numerous body of scavengers who rose early and prowled 
 along the river banks to seize any fish that had died during 
 the night. And when they could not find purchasers in the 
 local markets the fishmongers had no compunction in sending 
 them to France. 
 
 In spite of the stringency of the present law I grieve to say 
 that there is still an illicit trade in kelts for Paris, and I would 
 warn all tourists who may visit the gay city in winter not to 
 venture on Bouchies de Saumon. 
 
 Early in May I had a few days' trout fishing with Mr. Cundill 
 and Mr. J. C. Evans. Weather and water were alike un- 
 favourable, and our pleasure was mainly derived from fresh air, 
 exercise, and good fellowship. 
 
 On the first of the month we went to Rutherford and found 
 the water brown in colour, though by two o'clock it so far 
 cleared as to permit fishing with fly. My morning was spent 
 in trying with minnow, but my captures consisted only of 
 three large fish, and my losses were severe since I ran at least 
 
i86 At the Eden. 
 
 a dozen more. Soon after midday the water was covered with 
 myriads of ' March-browns,' a few ' Yellow-duns,' and some 
 small black flies. The fish rose madly, and I must have hooked 
 upwards of a hundred, though by some strange chance I only 
 succeeded in landing thirty-two. So ravenous were they that 
 twice I took two large trout at the same time. Mr. Cundill 
 and Mr. Evans lost much time in fishing with worm, which 
 the fish would not take. It was not till the afternoon that by 
 changing to fly they had any chance of sport. They found as 
 I did that though the fish rose well they would not hook, 
 which was the more surprising because in the afternoon the 
 water had assumed that rich dark colour which so frequently 
 fills the angler's basket. Mr. Cundill secured twenty-two fish 
 and Mr. Evans about the same number. 
 
 Nothing more occurred specially worthy of record till May 
 9th, when Mr. Cundill having returned to Durham Mr. Evans 
 and I availed ourselves of leave to fish the Eden near to 
 Spotmains, a point much higher up the river than I had hitherto 
 visited. We were kindly welcomed by the aged farmer Mr. 
 Bromfield, who, however, warned us that we should probably 
 find the waters dammed back in a lake for the use of a cornmill 
 two or three miles up the stream, and must not expect any 
 sport until the barrier was raised. His words were but too 
 true. Hour after hour we flogged the river in vain, passing by 
 many small runs and streams which we felt instinctively must 
 hold many good fish. Long accustomed to expect a rush of 
 water at a certain time of day, and with it their daily feed, the 
 fish would not move earlier, and at four o'clock in the afternoon 
 neither of us had taken more than four trout. We were only 
 a quarter of a mile from the lake where our fishing was to 
 end, and our prospects were gloomy enough, but they soon 
 began to brighten. Observing that the volume of water 
 suddenly increased and became slightly discoloured, I planted 
 
Success at Last. 
 
 187 
 
 myself under the shadow of a tree near the foot of a pool 
 about six yards long. Through the middle of this pool ran a 
 stream of about six feet in width, and in this I made my trial 
 cast. Without moving a yard I took out twelve noble trout of 
 at least 9 lbs. weight, to the astonishment of my friend Evans, 
 who gave up his own fishing simply to watch my sport. From 
 this spot up to the mill I continued to basket the fish with all 
 possible speed, and at 6.15 p.m., i.e. in little more than two 
 hours, I had made a total of thirty-eight trout = 20 ibs. Had 
 
 THE TANKERVILLE ARMS, WOOLER. 
 
 there been wind enough to allow the dubs to be fished during 
 the earlier part of the day, or had the mill sluice been raised 
 in the morning, I believe that each of us might have, taken 
 40 to 50 lbs. weight, so numerous and so large are the fish in 
 the neighbourhood of this lake. 
 
 On July Sth I dined at the Newcastle Barracks with Colonel 
 Grey and the officers of the 8 Sth Light Infantry, my eldest 
 son having recently entered this regiment. Major Maunsell 
 and I started the next morning for the Tankerville Arms, 
 
Fishing with Major Maunsell. 
 
 Wooler, bent on using our time for fishing in the Glen to the 
 greatest advantage. 
 
 We began our work on the 7th near to the wooden bridge 
 below Bendor. The water was rather high and quite clear, 
 the wind south, the sky heavy with dark clouds. For some 
 time we could only capture small fish, which I have noticed 
 is often the case before rain. About mid-day the clouds 
 opened and the rain fell heavily ; the fish, finding the ' feed ' 
 which instinct had warned them was at hand, began to take 
 eagerly, and the result was that Major Maunsell took thirty- 
 five fish while I captured fifty-seven. My fishing was with 
 worm, but my friend, having only been accustomed to fish 
 with fly, preferred keeping to the decoy he was used to. He 
 was an excellent fly-fishef, but early in July no skill however 
 great can make the heavy baskets with fly that can be made 
 with worm. 
 
 On the following day the river was in high flood, so we took 
 a carriage and drove to Old Bewick, making a diversion to 
 visit the ancient Tower of Hepburn and try if possible to obtain 
 sight of the celebrated wild cattle in Chillingham Park.* For 
 two hours we wandered among grassy slopes and through 
 masses of forest trees searching for the herd. At length we 
 reached the top of a little hillock, and found ourselves nearer 
 to them than we altogether liked. The herd consisted of 
 about sixty. We instantly threw ourselves on the ground in 
 hopes of escaping observation, and for some minutes we 
 apparently succeeded. Then, either from the animals scenting 
 us or from some other cause, a movement took place which 
 showed us that our presence was suspected. Three large bulls 
 advanced in front of the herd, while the cows and calves 
 
 * It is impossible not to feel a deep interest in these the only surviving 
 descendants of the savage herds which anciently roamed free in the Cale- 
 donian forests. 
 
An Unexpected Bolt. 189 
 
 huddled together in a compact body. In this position they 
 remained for about ten minutes, and then the bulls began, first 
 at a trot, then at a gallop, to circle round the hillock on which 
 we were lying. Thus warned, we sprang to our feet and fled 
 for shelter to the nearest wood. We were only just in time to 
 clamber over the palings before the bulls reached it, in a wild 
 fury which fully warranted our retreat. In fact we hurried on 
 to the park wall and hardly felt safe till we were on its farther 
 side. 
 
 The 9th proved one of those exceptionally cold days which 
 sometimes deface an English summer. The wind was bitter 
 with occasional showers of hail, but I have often observed that 
 these cold days prove the most profitable to the angler. Major 
 Maunsell killed with fly forty fish = 20 lbs., while my take 
 with worm was fifty-seven fish = 30 lbs. The most successful 
 flies were a drake with red body, and a blue dun with yellow 
 body. 
 
 On the loth, when we began to fish at Glen Bridge we found 
 the water of a rich dark colour. This was a great advantage 
 to us, as the air was sultry and the sun shone with a trouble- 
 some glare. Scarcely had I commenced when an unusual 
 accident befell me. I hooked a good fish, which suddenly 
 bolted straight down the river between my legs, and of course 
 carried the line with it. Force of habit made me strike, but I 
 did so too sharply and my rod parted in the middle. This 
 unlucky stroke cost me an hour's loss of time to make the 
 necessary repair. 
 
 The fish continued to take well till we gained the Fox-Hole 
 Pool, where I observed that the surface of the water was per- 
 fectly still and that the fish were rising fast at the flies which 
 rested on it. This- induced me to abandon the worm, and 
 putting on a cast of flies I crept stealthily beneath some bushes 
 that lined the southern bank. Here, hemmed in by trees and in 
 
I go Well-filled Creels. 
 
 a cramped uncomfortable position, I shortened line to the length 
 of my rod. The fish rose at every throw and in a very short 
 time I took twenty fine trout, while Major Maunsell sat on the 
 bank and most kindly prepared a set of flies for me on finer 
 gut. 
 
 At this juncture Mr. Jones, the keeper, came upon the scene, 
 and begged us as a favour to walk to Glen Bridge, and then 
 fish downwards, as Lord Ossulston had just arrived to fish the 
 Glen for the first time, and he knew that Lord Durham was 
 desirous his friend should have good sport. Of course we 
 complied at once with his suggestion, and recommenced below 
 the bridge. The water here comprises many deep holes and 
 dubs, with intervening streams. Much of it is difficult to fish 
 when the water is clear and still, but in its then discoloured 
 state I did not hesitate to fish the streams, walking downwards, 
 though I greatly dislike such a style of fishing. The result 
 was that when we reached our inn, and my basket was 
 examined, there were but two small trout in the lot, the total 
 being seventy-four fish = 35 lbs., while Major Maunsell's basket 
 contained forty-five trout taken with fly. 
 
 In the evening my old friend the Rev. William Dodd came 
 in, eager to learn whether the report he had heard of our day's 
 sport were triie. On learning that it was so, he added that 
 Lord Ossulston had expressed a great wish to see its results. 
 To this we gladly acceded, and all paid a visit to the larder, 
 where a man was engaged in packing the proceeds of our two 
 days' labour, in all about 105 lbs. weight. Lord Ossulston was 
 exceedingly surprised at the sight ; indeed our success created 
 quite an excitement in the inn. I had previously heard a good 
 deal of his Lordship's fame in the field, and of his special 
 powers in the deer forests of the Highlands. From the Scotts 
 I had heard of his remarkable success in fishing for salmon at 
 Carham ; all the more surprised I was to find that so universal 
 
An Angling Party in the Till. 191 
 
 a sportsman had scarcely ever heard of fishing with worm for 
 trout in clear water. 
 
 Lord Ossulston most kindly invited us to fish that portion 
 of the Till which passed through his estate, and an appoint- 
 ment was made for all the party to meet on the following 
 morning about two miles from Bewick Bridge. There were 
 visitors at the castle, so Lord Ossulston could not join us till 
 half-past twelve o'clock, but Major Maunsell and I began 
 fishing at ten. The general features of the Till at this point 
 are excellent for angling, only in worm fishing many hooks 
 are necessarily lost on the snags or hidden branches of trees 
 which protrude from the gravelly bed of the river. The 
 banks are high, and abound in willows which afford capital 
 shelter for the fish ; but the quiet character of the pools 
 requires a breeze, and for the want of this we sadly suffered. 
 
 The morning was dull with dark threatening clouds, and the 
 air had that peculiarly close heavy feeling which disposes all 
 animals to become lethargic. The cattle stood knee deep 
 in the river, idly whisking the flies with their tails, and the 
 insects that abounded among the willows were one and all too 
 lazy to leave their homes. From the time Lord Ossulston 
 joined us my attention was directed not so much to taking a 
 number of fish as to showing his Lordship the best method of 
 fishing with worm. Standing in the middle of a pool, with 
 willows projecting from either bank so as to make casting 
 difficult, I was yet able to capture six fish of more than half a 
 pound each in no long space of time. His Lordship took the 
 rod, and his past experience in fly fishing enabled him at once 
 to cast a long clean line. His difficulty was in knowing where 
 to look for the fish, which is the most vital point connected 
 with worm fishing in low clear water. Before long however 
 he landed eight fish, while he expressed his determination to 
 pursue the art in future summers. 
 
192 The Tyrant of the Whirlpool. 
 
 On reaching the lower end of the field below Bewick Bridge 
 the river takes a sharp bend, and at this spot in the very 
 middle of the water there then stood a large boulder stone 
 which caused a whirling circling eddy behind it. To this I 
 directed Lord Ossulston's attention, and urged him to try his 
 luck in the inviting whirlpool, which I instinctively felt must 
 be the abode of some monster fish, too grand to brook a divided 
 empire. His Lordship, however, drew back, and insisted on 
 my making the essay while he looked on. The first cast was 
 unsuccessful ; at the second the line was gently stopped. It 
 was no doubtful motion telling of indecision or the weakness 
 of early youth ; a slow sailing about the eddy was going on, 
 evidently showing a proud indifference. At last I summoned 
 all my courage, and pointing my rod down the stream and 
 almost on a level with its surface, I gently struck, and the fish 
 feeling the hook, rushed upwards intending to gain his accus- 
 tomed haunt beneath a ledge of rock. Here the struggle 
 commenced in earnest. As I put on all the pressure I dared my 
 fish was fain to seek refuge in a downward rush, which he did 
 gallantly, and ran me at my top speed upwards of fifty yards. 
 As his broadside was towards me and his head averted, it was 
 not possible sooner to check his speed, but finding him bent 
 on attaining the shelter of a tree-root, I held on to the utmost 
 strength of my tackle, and happily succeeded in landing him 
 on a convenient gravel bed.^ He proved to be a short thick fish 
 of if ftjs. weight, and both in form and colour the most beautiful 
 trout I have ever seen in England. The sides of the head were 
 bright Prussian blue shading off into various tints of olive, the 
 body chiefly gold while the pectoral and anal fins were a rich 
 vermilion. The numerous scarlet and black spots made the 
 combination of colouring exquisite, and we all regretted no 
 Landseer was at hand to portray these beauties ere they faded. 
 Such not being the case his Lordship proceeded to crimp the 
 
' Fe are Waur Than a Net.^ 193 
 
 fish with his couteau de chasse, and here a surprise awaited us. 
 In the stomach of this glutton we found thirty full-grown 
 undigested minnows, yet he had been eager to add to them 
 the worm which caused his ruin. After arranging to meet 
 his Lordship on the following Tuesday, Major Maunsell and I 
 drove to Old Bewick and spent the evening with our friends 
 there. 
 
 July 12. — Major Maunsell having never seen 'Tweed's fair 
 flood,' we decided that after our day's fishing we would drive 
 over the hills to Sprouston. At 10 a.m. we began work at the 
 shallow ford below Coupland, and I at once put on the worm. 
 The place did not look especially favourable, but then the fish 
 were clearly ' in the mood. ' I had scarcely taken a few steps 
 into the water and was just ' wetting my line ' when Mr. Jones, 
 the keeper, appeared on the opposite bank and commenced a 
 conversation with ' Good morning. Sir, I hear you have got 
 leave to fish.' I replied, and we went on chatting while, with- 
 out stirring a yard, I drew fish after fish from the water, till six 
 goodly trout lay in my basket. All this time my new acquain- 
 tance eyed my movements attentively, till when the sixth fish 
 was captured within ten minutes his excitement could no 
 longer be restrained, and he burst out ' Egad Sir, ye are waur 
 than a net, I never seed the like ! ' I have always considered 
 this the most flattering compliment to my system of worm 
 fishing that I ever received. My dear old friend Mr. C. Bram- 
 well, with whom during the next few years I had many a 
 fishing campaign, took up the cry. Whenever he saw my 
 basket filling with unusual rapidity the old man would call to 
 me with his cheery, ringing laugh, ' Egad Sir, ye are waur than 
 a net, I never seed the like ! ' Many happy evenings did 
 Mr. Bramwell and I spend together, of which I shall have more 
 to say hereafter. 
 
 From this time till four o'clock we did little ; a storm had 
 o 
 
1 94 -^ Storm and a Drenching. 
 
 been brewing in the west, and at length it burst with terrible 
 fury. The rain with mingled hail pouring down in torrents 
 drove us to the shelter of a hedge, but it proved a sorry refuge 
 and we were soon wet through. To add to our disasters my 
 pipe was drowned and the last fusee expended, but a drain of 
 mountain dew cheered us a little, and at a quarter to five we 
 recommenced our labours a little below Lanton Mill. 
 
 We found the fish running in the heavy strong strejuns and 
 had a splendid hour's fishing. Throwing a long line towards 
 the further bank, and well below a row of willows, I drew out 
 one large fish after another in rapid succession, and in the 
 course of an hour converted a shabby creel into one containing 
 fifty-five trout. Indeed the broom was in, and it would hold 
 no more. By this time the carriage had arrived, but we were 
 so thoroughly drenched with rain that we were glad to 
 enter a cottage where an old woman kindly allowed us to 
 change our clothes. A good horse took us past Mindrum and 
 over Haddon Rig in gallant style, and at half-past eight o'clock 
 we arrived at Sprouston, where we found Mr. William Green- 
 well awaiting us. 
 
 On Monday, the 14th, Major Maunsell and I went to Ruther- 
 ford, while Mr. Greenwell remained at Sprouston nursing his 
 strength for the following day. On arriving at our destination 
 we saw at once that all fishing was useless. The river had 
 suddenly risen and looked more like a mess of pea-soup than 
 the lovely pale-ale tint which anglers delight in, so after a 
 short and unsuccessful essay we returned to our lodgings. 
 
 We started at six o'clock the next morning to keep our 
 appointment with Lord Ossulston. It was a charming morning, 
 the air soft and warm, and the scent of the newly mown hay 
 was delicious in the early breeze. In driving over Haddon Rig 
 we passed by the 'south running water,' at whose well so 
 many a love-lorn maiden has sought to discover her future 
 
Sottth Running Water. 19S 
 
 fate. There was little difficulty about the spell. The fair 
 enquirer had only to borrow the wedding ring of some gude 
 wife, take a glass of water from the well, and with her finger 
 and thumb to suspend over it the ring by a hair from her own 
 pretty head. If the ring struck against the side of the glass 
 she learnt that she should die an old maid, if it turned quickly 
 round she would be married once, if slowly twice. 
 
 While crossing the high ground which separates the valleys 
 of the Tweed and the Bowmont, we could not but remember 
 that we were on the site of the bloody fray of Haddon Rig, and 
 that this line, for centuries the boundary of the two kingdoms, 
 must have witnessed many a dark and ruthless deed. How 
 great the contrast presented by the present scene ! On which- 
 ever valley we cast our eyes all was smiling brightly ; there 
 was peace in the present, and promise of plenty in the future. 
 Shortly before nine o'clock we met Lord Ossulston and Mr. 
 Dodd ; on which the party divided. Mr. Greenwell chose the 
 water below Akeld Bridge, Major Maunsell and Mr. Dodd that 
 from the bridge to Coupland, while Lord Ossulston and I 
 fished the stretch of water above the Castle. I fished but little, 
 being chiefly engaged in pointing out the places where the 
 largest fish might be expected to lie. His Lordship proved an 
 apt pupil, and when I left him at three o'clock the trout were 
 taking well, so I have no doubt that by the evening he made 
 up a good basket. On reaching our inn we found that Mr. 
 Greenwell had had excellent sport. The totals were : — 
 
 Mr. Greenwell 56 fish 
 
 Major Maunsell 29 ,, 
 
 William Henderson . . . . 3° n 
 Thus closed our eight days' fishing, the incidents and succes- 
 ses of which will ever rest among my pleasantest memories. 
 
 On October 4 Major Warren and Mr. F. S. Warren accom- 
 panied me to Sprouston, where we found the Tweed in high 
 o 2 
 
1 96 Worm-fishing for Salmon. 
 
 flood, so on the following day all the party with the addition 
 of Mr. J. B. Langhorne crossed the hills and fished the river 
 College for trout. Here too we found more water than we 
 wanted, but we made fair creels, and thoroughly enjoyed our 
 expedition. The five following days were spent in fishing for 
 salmon at Wark and Sprouston, but the river still ran so high 
 and discoloured that our success was small. At last we gave 
 the matter up, and returned to our homes after one of the 
 most unprolific week's fishing I had ever known. 
 
 Our tenancy of Wark water was now so far altered that 
 Admiral Cator ceased to be one of the partners. He found 
 that the Dryburgh water, which he also rented, offered him 
 as much angling as he wished for. 
 
 On October 25 I joined Mr. Henry Bramwell at Sprouston, 
 and found that several gentlemen had during the last fort- 
 night been fishing the Tweed with fly, but that their ill 
 success had been so decided that most of the party had dis- 
 persed. Indeed the few fish then in the river had seen so 
 many various flies that they were probably as learned in ento- 
 mology as the fishermen themselves. Our success was almost 
 nil, until on November 5 Mr. Christopher Bramwell and I 
 went to fish the Carham water, with John Scott as our boat- 
 man. We had only one rod, and we hailed it as a cheerful 
 omen when my friend captured with it a new-run grilse 
 of 9 lbs. Scott then proposed that I should change the tackle 
 and make my essay with worm. This was done, and 
 dropping leisurely down from the 'Wheel,' we reached the 
 ' Kirk End ' stream, where after a gallant run I captured a 
 beautiful fresh-run salmon of 16 lbs., and a few yards lower 
 down in the same stream, a grilse of 7 lbs. Besides these I 
 rose two fish and hooked a third with the ' White-wing.' The 
 result of this day convinced me that worm-fishing for salmon 
 was the most toilsome, most difficult, as well as most exciting 
 mode of capturing that noble fish. 
 
The Anglers' Carnival. 197 
 
 November 6. — It was my misfortune on this day to have 
 only the fishing of the ' Boat stream ' at Wark, the other parts 
 of the water being occupied by my friends. I tried it on each 
 side with fly, but met with no response. 
 
 About one o'clock I put on the worm and tried the south 
 side, on which I captured one fine grilse and ran another. 
 Proceeding to the north side I hooked two fish above the 
 ' Upper Cairn,' but was unfortunately nervous and lost them 
 both by not allowing them sufficient time. When I went to 
 the fisherman's cottage old James fell into a state of great 
 excitement. Wandering backwards and forwards with his 
 eyes fixed on the fish, he repeated again and again in melan- 
 choly tones, ' Eh ! just to think I hae lived sae lang, an niver 
 tried worm. What a many bonnie fish might I hae killed 
 when the water was ow'r law for any ither way.' In this 
 pathetic wail of the old man I quite agreed, and applied it to 
 my own case. 
 
 November 7. — ^This, the last day of the fishing season, was 
 usually held up and down Tweed side as the Anglers' Carnival. 
 It was usual for the river to be occupied by as many rods as 
 could find boats and boatmen, while many a zealous angler, 
 failing to get either, boldly waded the streams in search of 
 sport. 
 
 Touched with the prevailing mania I rose at six o'clock, 
 breakfasted ere the sun had risen, and went out with a light 
 heart. Tradition avers that in spite even of a hard frost and 
 low water salmon will never be so unkind as to sulk just when 
 the angler is about to bid them a long farewell. November 7 
 was always spoken of, beforehand at least, as ' the great day,' 
 and such this year it was destined to prove to me, for on it I 
 killed more fish than had succumbed to any rod for many 
 weeks. 
 
 Threading my way through piles of dead leaves crisp with 
 
igS Securing a Grilse under Difficulties. 
 
 frost, across the plantations of Carham, I found James wander- 
 ing on the river bank, eager to ' be at it.' The old man was 
 restless, haunted as he was by the notion of a wasted life 
 through his ignorance of worm-fishing. His son Thomas 
 acted as boatman, and we began our work on the south side of 
 the ' Snipe cast,' a few yards above the rock point. The result 
 was exciting ; in little more than two hours I killed three fine 
 grilse and hooked or ran seven others. This was all done 
 while going once down the southern side of the cast, for the 
 northern side was closed to me on account of an eddy which 
 prevented the free travelling of the worm. We then pro- 
 ceeded to the ' Dub,' which we tried for a short time. Here 
 two fish ventured to enquire of the bait, and both were cap- 
 tured. A short trial of the ' Island stream ' produced no results, 
 so we quickly passed on to the ' Boat stream,' which had done 
 so well on the previous day. 
 
 Tom now went to secure his share of the family dinner 
 which was going on at the cottage, and left to my own devices 
 I waded into the stream above the ' Upper Cairn ' and killed 
 two more grilse. One of these made a famous run for life. 
 At the moment of hooking, one of the screws which attached 
 the reel to the rod fell into the water and was lost. This 
 made it impossible for me to work the reel with steadiness, 
 and to make matters worse I soon found that I had to deal 
 with a Tartar. First he banged beneath the boat, and when I 
 succeeded in coaxing him from this hold he struck straight 
 down the stream so furiously that a hundred yards of line were 
 run out before he slackened pace. Many times and with 
 difficulty did I manage to reel up line, but it was only to have 
 the manoeuvre repeated till I was about as crazy as himself. 
 Could I have followed him on the gravel bed my work would 
 have been comparatively easy, but I was placed on a small 
 patch of ground only two yards square, with deep water on 
 
Mingled Feelings. 199 
 
 each side. In this cramped position and with a damaged reel 
 the work had to be done. Done it was at last to my great 
 joy, and he lay at my feet, as pretty a fresh-run fish as could be 
 seen. 
 
 It was now half-past two o'clock, three-fourths of the beau- 
 tiful ' Boat stream ' was yet untried, and as I looked fish after 
 fish showed himself on the surface, when, horror of all horrors ! 
 I found that my last worm was spent. It was, I knew, useless 
 to attempt to fish with common worms, for only the green 
 sickly-looking dew worms have power to captivate the fancy 
 of a salmon. I thus lost two hours of as tempting promise as 
 ever man had ; and vexed though pleased, grumbling though 
 proud, I walked to the cottage and spread upon the ground 
 
 I salmon and 6 grilse . . . =63 ibs. 
 All were fresh run from the sea, and all about the same size. 
 Poor old James was almost beside himself. Present delight 
 and regrets for the past showed themselves in his oft-repeated 
 words, ' Eh, what a bonnie lot of fish ! Oh if I had but 
 knawn sooner ! ' It was gratifying to learn that no angler on 
 the Tweed had for several weeks past made such a basket, and 
 that on this day the highest number recorded as falling by any 
 other rod was three fish. 
 
CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 ' We twa hae fished the Cale sae clear 
 An streams o' mossy Reed, 
 We've tried the Wansbeck an the Wear 
 
 The Teviot an the Tweed.'— T. Doubleday. 
 
 A.D. 1857— On March 3 I Avent to Makerstoun by appoint- 
 ment with James Kerss. We flogged the whole length of 
 water, and only captured one small grilse with minnow, 
 the next day was more favourable, for on the same water 
 I took a clean salmon with fly, and four grilse kelts with 
 minnow. 
 
 March 5. — This day was noticeable for a violent hurricane 
 of wind. The boatmen could not hold the boat on Sprouston 
 
Snow in May. 201 
 
 Dub without the help of a second man, and a rope attached to 
 the rowlock. It was, in spite of the storm, a successful day. 
 My take was one fish in the Bushes, two at the Skerry Rock, 
 three at the Slap, and one at the Dub, all taken with minnow. 
 Before concluding I gave the White-wing fly a trial, which 
 added two more, making a total of nine fish = 80 ibs. The 
 singular event of this day was the taking of the three fish at 
 the Slap in three throws of the line. 
 
 March 6. — Fished Sprouston upper water, and took two 
 grilse kelts. 
 
 March 7. — My brother-in-law the Rev. T. C. Durham having 
 joined me, we drove this morning to Makerstoun. Mr. Durham 
 fished the lower water while I tried the upper. The first hour 
 was spent in a vain endeavour with fly, so at 11.30 a.m. 
 changing to minnow I fished steadily till one o'clock, by which 
 time I had taken six fish. The weather then changed suddenly, 
 it became cold and stormy with violent hail, so that I only 
 added two more to the number, making in all eight fish. On 
 this day Mr. Durham killed his first salmon, an event ever to 
 be remembered by the angler. 
 
 March 9. Fished again at Makerstoun and took two grilse 
 kelts, thus ending my spring fishing for salmon. 
 
 Early in May Mr. Cundill and I went to Sprouston with 
 intent to fish the lovely streams at Rutherford for trout, and 
 meeting Mr. C. Bramwell and his son it was arranged that on 
 the first day I should be the companion of the latter. The 
 snow fell heavily during the morning, and the air was so cold 
 that it lay unmelted on the ground, a very unusual sight in 
 May. I had taken fifteen trout and was sitting in the fisher- 
 man's cottage talking with Mr. Brown of Longformacus, when 
 a telegram was handed to me announcing the alarming illness 
 of my dear wife. I at once hastened home, and did not return 
 to the Tweed till July. 
 
202 A Wmdy Day at Rutherford. 
 
 July 13. — Accompanied by my nephew I went by appoint- 
 ment to meet my old friend Mr. C. Bramwell. We all fished 
 at Rutherford on the following day, but with little success on 
 account of the foulness of the water. Our next essay was in 
 the Bowmont, which we fished near to Mindrum Mill. The 
 water was dead low, foul with moss, and most unpleasant for 
 worm-fishing. Mr. Bramwell's basket contained forty-eight 
 trout and mine but forty. And here let me observe that 
 though my friend was past the prime of manhood, and had lost 
 much of his early activity, still the excellent lessons he had 
 learnt from the Witton-le-Wear scholars made him a com- 
 petitor not easy to deal with. He certainly was for his age the 
 best worm fisher I have ever known. 
 
 July 16. — ^Again we all went to Rutherford, Mr. Bramwell 
 beginning below the Cauld with worm. I had recently received 
 some minnow tackle of a peculiar description, and being 
 desirous to try its merits, I walked on to the top of the ' Coarse- 
 Heugh ' streams, and fished most carefully for several hours, 
 but I had only one run from a trout, and killed a large eel 
 which seized the minnow while trolling in a strong running 
 stream. This completed my disgust, and I retreated to the 
 Cottage, where I found Mr. Bramwell and my nephew. The 
 former had been fishing with worm in the strong rough water 
 of the north stream below the Cauld. The wind blew fiercely, 
 and it was only in ' odd places,' behind stones or some other 
 shelter that he could do anything. On such days it is the 
 observant angler alone who can take fish. Mr. Bramwell had 
 in this way caught fifteen large trout. After luncheon we all 
 returned to the river, but the trout had ceased to feed, and the 
 day closed with few fish though of good size : — 
 
 C. Bramwell . . . 1 8 trout = 1 1 lbs. 
 John G. Henderson . 9 ,, = 4 ,, 
 
 William Henderson . . 7 „ = 4 ^^ 
 
Disappointed Hopes. 203 
 
 July 17. — Mr. Bramwell and I went to Carham, determined 
 to fish the water thoroughly from thence to Sprouston Dub. 
 We laboured on, hoping that the fish would begin to feed, but 
 all in vain ; Mr. Bramwell took but four trout and I took five. 
 Two of mine weighed over a pound each, and my line was 
 broken by a grilse which seized the worm below the Slap. 
 We had set our hopes very high on the results of this most 
 unlucky day. There appeared no reason why the fish should 
 not feed, but at last we came to the conclusion that they had 
 fed early in the morning and would not do so again till late in 
 the evening. This is not unfrequently the case in July. 
 
 July J 8. — ^My nephew and I with James Wright made an 
 early start for the picturesque village of Hownam. On 
 arriving at the little inn our party divided, Wright going to 
 fish the Yet-bum, while my nephew and I pursued the valley 
 of the Gale. 
 
 We began at Chatto where the brook is very small, and was 
 then remarkably so, owing to a long continued drought. The 
 fishing was most diflScult. As I came near to pool after pool, 
 the fish saw me distinctly and scuttled away at once to the 
 streams above. In the small trickling streams alone was it 
 possible to take them, as there only would they allow the 
 angler's near approach. The Gale, however, abounds with fish 
 of fairly good size and excellent quality. I fished upwards of 
 three miles till I was no great distance from its source, and in 
 spite of all drawbacks succeeded in taking 58 fish = I2| Bbs. 
 
 While fishing my attention was arrested by a rustling in 
 the grass at the edge of the Burn. Next there was a violent 
 shaking, and then I perceived a trout jerking about and 
 gleaming in the water most unaccountably. Looking more 
 attentively I saw the tail of a trout projecting from the mouth 
 of an enormous eel, certainly two feet in length. The eel 
 made several attempts to ascend the stream but in vain, being 
 
204 The Eel and Trout. 
 
 apparently half choked by the trout, which was too large for it 
 to swallow, and which seemed stuck fast in the creature's 
 throat. My nephew rejoining me, we determined to try and 
 stab the eel by fastening a knife to the butt end of my fishing 
 rod. Unfortunately the blade doubled backwards, and so 
 prevented my pinning him to the ground. In the struggle he 
 cast the trout out of his mouth, and it fell upon the bank at a 
 considerable distance from the edge of the stream. It was 
 seven inches long, and though dead was not marked by the 
 teeth of the eel. 
 
 Returning from our day's wandering we paused to examine 
 the singular sculptured stone which once formed the door head 
 of Linton Church, and is built into the south-westerly extre- 
 mity of the present structure. Full of interest it undoubtedly 
 is. The figures, though defaced by time, can be made out 
 pretty clearly. A knight on horseback with a lamb by his 
 side, attacks two monsters and plunges his lance into the 
 throat of one of them. Popular tradition connects this sculp- 
 ture with the ancient legend of the Worm of Linton, a terrible 
 dragon whose poisonous breath laid waste the country round 
 till it was destroyed by the Laird of Lariston. It is said that 
 after failing in an attack with ordinary weapons the Laird 
 armed himself with a peat dipped in scalding pitch and fixed 
 upon his lance. He was thus enabled to endure the monster's 
 poisonous breath, and according to the local rhyme, 
 
 The wode Laird of Larristoune 
 Slew the Worme o' Wormestone, 
 An' won a' Linton parochine. 
 
 The church, though of no great antiquity, is built of the old 
 materials and stands on the old site. And a noteworthy site 
 it is, consisting of a little knoll of fine compact sand differing 
 entirely from the soil of the neighbouring heights. The geol- 
 ogist may see in this sandy knoll the work of some mighty 
 
Legends of Linton. 205 
 
 river of ancient days ; the villagers of the neighbourhood 
 account for it by a wild and pathetic legend. They relate 
 how, long ago, a young man slew a priest and was condemned 
 to death ; but his sisters, two fair maidens, interceded for him 
 and at last won his pardon on condition that they should sift 
 sand enough to form a mound on which to erect a church. The 
 maidens undertook the task and completed it, though one of 
 them it is said died of fatigue immediately afterwards. 
 
 Local tradition has done much to add a charm to Linton, 
 and the place is in itself very attractive, lying as it does 
 beneath the woods of Clifton and the lofty heights of Cheviot, 
 while the Cale adds a brightness to the scene as it hurries by 
 in haste to add its waters to those of the nobler Teviot. 
 
 July 20 and 21 were spent in fishing the Cale at Morebattle 
 and the Tweed at Rutherford. Nothing worthy of record took 
 place on either day, and we then returned to Durham. 
 
 October 5. — ^I returned to the Tweed in hopes of good salmon 
 fishing at Wark, but the flooded state of the river during the 
 whole of my visit allowed no sport worthy of record except 
 perhaps one morning's fishing for trout with salmon roe, this 
 being the last season during which it could legally be practised. 
 
 In the late autumn, when the Tweed and its tributaries 
 were too much flooded for salmon fishing, it was the practice 
 of anglers to resort to the water side and pass their time in 
 taking trout with this most destructive bait. Some idea of the 
 havoc played with it in those days may be formed from the 
 entry in my journal which records that on October 8 Mr. 
 Langhorne, James Wright, and I killed at Reddon-Haugh, 
 between the hours of nine and twelve, 121 trout = 43 lbs. 
 Robert Roxby might well say 
 
 ' The midge-flee may do in fair weather, 
 For foul, sawmon-roe is the king," 
 
2o6 March Coming in Like a Lion. 
 
 but the law of 1857 has prohibited its use, and with great 
 propriety. 
 
 A.D. 1858. — The 1st of March found me again at Sprouston, 
 seated at breakfast by a glowing fire. It was not cheering to 
 look at the landscape buried deep in snow, and when I reached 
 Sharpitlaw stream I was driven to take shelter under a hedge 
 by the violence of the wind, which drove the hail and snow 
 wildly below it. The only place where it was possible to fish 
 was the 'Grain Stream,' and here with the 'white-wing' I 
 landed a kelt salmon of more than 20 Sbs., and afterwards with 
 minnow three other kelts, all within two and a half hours. In 
 accordance with the new law all were at once returned to the 
 river. The bitter wind then drove me to our lodgings, where 
 I found Major Dickens, whose companionship, always enjoyable, 
 was doubly welcome on such a dreadful day. 
 
 On the next morning I went to Wark by train, and had to 
 wade more than a mile through deep snow ere I reached the 
 fisherman's cottage. I first tried the north side of the dub, 
 and landed a grilse kelt with the white-wing and then 
 changing to minnow, captured two clean salmon, besides 
 landing five more kelts. Total : — 
 
 6 kelts =46 lbs. 
 
 2 clean salmon . . . . ^14 lbs. 
 in 3^ hours. It will be seen that in very cold weather the 
 only successful fly was the white-wing, and that on this and 
 the minnow the angler must depend for sport. 
 
 March 3. — This proved a milder day, with bright sun and a 
 moderate wind. I fished the 'Snipe' at Wark with minnow, 
 and landed four kelts but no clean salmon. I then returned to 
 Durham. 
 
 On April 24 I went to Sprouston, in accordance with an 
 arrangement that Mr. C. Bramwell, Mr. Cundill, Mr. John 
 Bigge and myself should meet there on Monday, the 26th, for 
 
The Tweedy Glen and College. 
 
 207 
 
 15 1 
 
 rout. 
 
 19 
 
 
 20 
 
 
 14 
 
 
 48 
 
 
 14 
 
 
 29 
 
 
 31 
 
 
 II 
 
 
 a few days' trout-fishing. My journal does not record the 
 success of my friends ; mine was as follows : — 
 April 26, at Reddon Haugh (Tweed) . 
 ,, 27, at Rutherford ,, 
 
 „ 28, below Hownam (Gale) 
 „ 29, at Reddon Haugh (Tweed) . 
 „ 30, below Mindrum (Bowmont) 
 May I, at Rutherford (Tweed) . 
 
 " 3) 1) » 
 
 ,, 4, below Mindrum (Bowmont) 
 
 „ S, at Rutherford (Tweed) . 
 
 On July 2 my wife and I went by rail to Alnwick, and 
 thence drove to Wooler Cottage, where we met Mr. J. C. 
 Evans and our nephew John. When commencing our fishing 
 at Coupland the next morning Mr. Jones informed us that 
 Lord Durham had interdicted fishing with worm in the Glen. 
 This was a great disappointment, and we were obliged to carry 
 on our fishing chiefly in the Ewart water and in the College, 
 where no such restriction existed. 
 
 During this trip there were only two days on which I made 
 baskets worth recording. On July 5 we fished the Ewart 
 water, when Mr. Evans made a good basket with fly, while I 
 killed with worm 22 lbs. weight of fish. On the 7th we fished 
 the lower portion of the College, and had hardly begun work 
 at the bridge near West Newton when a thunderstorm burst 
 over our heads, and heavy rain discoloured the water. Hitherto 
 the fish had taken shyly, but now all was changed. At every 
 cast of the line a fish was captured, and we were rapidly filling 
 our creels when we approached Heath Pool. Here taking my 
 stand by the largest pool, I had such an opportunity as can 
 only occur in small mountain streams which swarm with fish, 
 and that when the water is high, and dark in colour. Without 
 moving more than three yards I took about fifty fish. So 
 
2o8 The College and its Surroundings. 
 
 greedy were they that I repeatedly took three trout at a cast, 
 and the result was that my basket, though chiefly filled with 
 small fish, eventually weighed 25 lbs. 
 
 The scenery of the College is indeed extremely pretty ; it 
 is a little tumbling stream, and has a course of about five 
 miles ere it joins the river Bowmont just below Newton 
 Bridge, where the united streams take the name of the Glen. 
 The valley through which it hurries on, varies in width from 
 three or four hundred yards to a mere ravine, and pretty hazel- 
 woods ornament it here and there. About two miles above its 
 junction with the Bowmont, in the very narrowest part of the 
 valley, where the hills on either side almost overhang the stream, 
 is a succession of small cascades and deep black pools, guarded 
 by precipitous cliffs, locally know as Heath-Pool Lynn ; — a 
 favourite place for picnics and such-like summer entertainments. 
 
 The College is formed at a spot called Southern Knowe, by 
 the junction of two small mountain brooks. One of these 
 named Fleehope Burn presents through the greater part of its 
 course no special features of interest, its little vale being flat 
 and swampy, and the hills around it, round and green. But as 
 you approach its source and turn ah angle in the hills, you 
 enter the really fine gorge of Henshole, a chasm extending from 
 top to base of Cheviot, down which the stream rushes in a 
 succession of cascades, with lofty precipices and towering rocks 
 on either hand. The other burn, hight Lamsdon, rising near 
 the eastern end of Cheviot, has a longer course, and generally 
 a more picturesque one. Still, though the chasm on the side 
 of Cheviot known as Bizzel is fine, and the cliff called 
 Dunsdale-Crag which forms the base of a rugged precipitous 
 hill, and overhangs the brook, and which has already been 
 brought before my readei's as the scene of Mr. Culley's night 
 adventure, is yet finer, there is no special feature connected 
 with the Lamsdon equal to Henshole. 
 
Scenery Round the Cheviot Hills. 
 
 209 
 
 Although 'auld Cheviot's frosty pow' is not very lofty, 
 the scenery of the little wild valleys that nestle at his feet is 
 varied and very pretty, while the countless 
 
 ' petty rills 
 That tumble down their several hills,' 
 
 with their many falls and miniature cascades, lend an addi- 
 tional charm to these lonely secluded spots. 
 
 
CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 ' When the wind is in the north 
 The skilful angler goes not forth. 
 When the wind is in the south 
 It blows the bait in the fishes' mouth. 
 When the wind is in the west 
 Then the sport is at its best ; 
 When the wind is in the east 
 'Tis neither good for man nor beast.'— 
 
 ' Old Rhyme.' 
 
 
 ' iOCi'lT«.'-''J^' 
 
 A.D. 1859. — My attempts at salmon-fishing this year exem- 
 plified the exceeding uncertainty of the royal sport. On 
 March 12 I went to Sprouston and found the river in flood. 
 After waiting for four days, during which it was not fishable, 
 my patience was exhausted, and I returned to Durham. The 
 28th found me again at Tweedside, prepared for a day's fishint^ 
 on Birgham Dub, where the water was in such excellent order 
 that Sandy Smith, the boatman, declared I should kill a 
 boatful. I did not altogether share in his anticipations. 
 
The Swallow-Smolt and Trout. 211 
 
 During the previous night the wind had blown violently from 
 the west, and during my long experience I had scarcely ever 
 failed to see a rapid rise of the river follow as a matter of 
 course. 
 
 However, I began work, and commencing at the foot of the 
 stream as it enters the dub, I soon landed two kelts and rose 
 four others. But the river rose several inches, and I had no 
 alternative but that of turning to fly fishing for trout. I took 
 several, but further floods followed, and I was obliged a second 
 time to return home, thus losing all my spring fishing for 
 salmon — a disappointment, t;he bearing of which demanded all 
 my philosophy. 
 
 On April 19 I visited Sprouston, intending to fish for trout 
 in the Tweed. The water was low and clear, which made it 
 necessary to use fine tackle, and cast ' far off and fine.' 
 
 On the 2 1st my fishing began in the deep streams imme- 
 diately below BamfFMill. A good basket of fish may generally 
 be secured at this season by boating among the several runs of 
 heavy water. I had scarcely made a few casts with a ' March 
 Brown ' fly ere I hooked a trout of about six ounces weight. 
 While dragging it against the stream, here very powerful, the 
 trout was seized by a large fish which contended fiercely with 
 me for the prize, and ran out many yards of line. On drawing 
 it to the side of the boat I found it to be a monster swallow- 
 smolt of five or six pounds weight. Seeing me he gave up 
 his prey, and retired into deep water. I was so astonished 
 that, instead of raising the line preparatory to making another 
 cast, I dropped the point of the rod, on which, of course, the 
 small trout sank downwards. It was promptly seized again by 
 the swallow-smolt, who on this occasion ran out nearly all the 
 reel line, and it was long before I brought him sufficiently near 
 to attempt a capture with the net. For this he proved too 
 cunning, yielding the prey rather than be caught himself. 
 p 2 
 
212 
 
 Angling in the Glen. 
 
 Unfortunately, I had not a set of trolling tackle at hand, or I 
 should probably have secured this, the most voracious fish of 
 the trout species that I have ever chanced to encounter. My 
 day's work ended with a goodly basket of fish. 
 
 My next trip was to the Glen, for which I started on June 
 20. I reached Old Bewick in the evening ; was disappointed 
 at not getting the companionship of the boys, and went on 
 alone to Wooler Cottage. Next morning I drove to Ewart, 
 and began fishing with worm about 10.30 a.m. The water was 
 
 COUPLAND CASTLE. 
 
 low and dear, the sun shone brightly, and there was little 
 wind. This part of the Glen abounds in long stretches of 
 deep water, and though the streams are not numerous, yet at 
 the times of feeding they are filled with trout of good size 
 which visit them for their daily meal. I fished upwards to 
 Bendor, and left off with a basket of 17 Ifcs. weight. 
 
 June 22. — Began fishing at Akeld Bridge and so upwards to 
 Coupland, between 10.30 a.m. and 6 p.m. The wind blew 
 
Angling in the Glen. 213 
 
 strongly from the south-east, and several showers of rain fell. 
 The trout took eagerly, and when my basket was weighed at 
 Wooler Cottage the scale turned 27 lbs. 
 
 June 23. — To-day I indulged my bent for a change of water. 
 It is, I must avow, a weakness of mine to long for fresh 
 streams and new scenes, which seem to bring back ' the merry 
 days when I was young,' days when hope made everything 
 bright and gay. Starting just above Coupland at 11 a.m., I 
 wandered on, and ended my day some way up the river 
 College at 6.30 p.m. My basket was again a heavy one, 
 weighing 22 lbs. 
 
 June 24. — My beat this day was from Akeld Bridge to 
 Coupland. The water was low, there was no wind, and ap- 
 pearances were against my having any sport ; still by careful, 
 delicate fishing with a long line, in the still shallow dubs, I 
 succeeded in taking 15 lbs. weight of trout between 9 a.m. and 
 1.30 P.M. I then returned home, after four days of most suc- 
 cessful fishing, during which I captured 81 lbs. of trout in 27 
 hours. All the fish were of good size, the small ones having 
 been at once returned to the water. 
 
 August I. — The month of August is considered the worst 
 part of the fishing season, but circumstances led me near the 
 Glen, and I was joined there by Charles and John Langlands, 
 young lads who entered heartily into such sport as was to be 
 had. We began the day with worm near Bendor, and worked 
 upwards to the Duck-reach, when- the fish suddenly ceased to 
 feed, and we returned down the river, taking a few casts with 
 fly. Charles' basket weighed 9 lbs. and mine 12 lbs. 
 
 August 2. — We all began fishing a mile below Bendor. The 
 wind blew furiously, and it was with difficulty that we could 
 guide our lines or know when a fish offered himself. Alto- 
 gether our day was not successful. At this time John 
 Langlands was but a schoolboy, not yet in his teens. Still 
 
214 Only an Eel. 
 
 what he lacked in years was more than supplied by his ardour, 
 which made him in after life a first-rate angler. In the after- 
 noon, with a shout he announced the joyful tidings that ' a 
 big fish was pulling like mad.' Charles and I at once ran to 
 his assistance, and soon satisfied ourselves that the big fish was 
 an eel, whose weight enabled it to run sulkily along the bed of 
 the pool. However, we thought it best not to dash Jack's 
 hopes all at once, so suggesting that it might be a salmon, we 
 begged him to use his utmost care and skill. ' Give him line,' 
 shouted Charles ; ' Now then, reel up,' ' Bend your rod upon 
 him,' with many another piece of advice. At last Jack, with 
 a face as serious as if he were about to deal death to. a twenty- 
 pounder, enquired, ' Shall I play him ? he pulls terribly.' 
 This was too much for us, and with smothered laughter we 
 made off, leaving Jack with his big fish. Poor lad ! bitter was 
 the disappointment when he drew to bank only an eel. 
 
 On September 29 our good old landlord Mr. Johnston died, 
 aged sixty-three. He was buried at Eckford, leaving many to 
 sorrow for the kindly-hearted old man, and to miss him in his 
 accustomed place in the ingle newk, where he used to hold his 
 ' cracks ' and tell his tales of ' Auld lang syne.' The parting 
 with this friend of fifteen years was a severe wrench to me. 
 
 I went again to Sprouston on November 9, and fished 
 steadily at Wark for four days, killing however only two small 
 grilse and four bull-trout. Annoyed at such poor results I 
 returned on the 25th, eager if possible to wind up the season 
 brilliantly. I found Mr. William Greenwell and Captain Kidd 
 at the lodgings, the latter having that day fished the south 
 side of Sprouston Dub, and killed 10 salmon = 173 lbs. Mr. 
 Greenwell had fished the shallow streams at Wark with no 
 success, while in the Snipe and Dub Mr. Wilkinson had taken 
 one salmon and five new-run grilse. 
 
 November 26. — I drove to Wark and fished the Snipe and 
 
Thomas Scotfs Dexterity. 215 
 
 Dub. There was scarcely any wind, and I could do but little, 
 killing 2 new-run grilse and rising 6 more. One of these, a 
 fine salmon of more than 20 lbs., was twice in the landing net, 
 and after all escaped, owing to the drawing of the whipping 
 silk on the gut. May none of my fishing friends ever experi- 
 ence the feelings with which I saw that fine fish glide away. 
 Though my success was small, the day was enlivened by a feat 
 of dexterity on the part of Thomas Scott which well deserves 
 to be chronicled. Tired with wielding the rod I handed it for 
 a time to Tom, while his brother Robert acted as boatman, 
 and I lay idly in the stern. Tom was fishing from the bow of 
 the boat, and casting a somewhat long line, when a salmon 
 sprang into the air four or five yards nearer to the boat than 
 the position of the fly. Raising the fly rapidly from the water 
 Tom jerked it in the direction of the fish, and succeeded in 
 striking the hook into it while still in the air. The action was 
 so violent that the fortunate angler fell at his full length 
 within the boat, and so he lay for some time, playing the fish 
 which rushed violently to the farther side of the river. But 
 in good time Tom was ' up and at him again ' with skill and 
 patience which entailed a victory. Having been hooked in 
 the side the run was of necessity a long one, but the fish was 
 landed at last, and proved to be a new-run salmon of 16 lbs. 
 weight. I have frequently tried to hook a salmon when in the 
 air, but never succeeded. 
 
 On this day Captain Kidd fished the south side of Sprouston 
 Dub, and killed 7 salmon averaging 18 lbs. each, while Mr. 
 Greenwell from the north side took 5 salmon of the same 
 average weight. Mr. Wilkinson fished the shallow streams at 
 Wark, and had no sport. 
 
 November 28. — Just as I was starting for my fishing at 
 Wark a messenger came to inform me that the south side of 
 Sprouston Dub was at my service. The temptation was 
 
2l6 
 
 At Sprouston Dub. 
 
 irresistible, and I was just stepping into the boat with sanguine 
 hopes of a grand day's sport when Captain Warrender arrived 
 with permission from the Duke of Roxburgh to fish the Dub. 
 All fishing for the day was thus lost to me. The river was in 
 splendid order, and a brisk wind crested the waves with foam. 
 Captain Warrender killed 9 salmon and Mr. Greenwell 7, the 
 average weight of all the fish being nearly 20 lbs. Captain 
 Wilkinson and I fished the remaining two days of the season 
 at the Lees and Wark, but our sport was not worth recording. 
 
 SPROUSTON DUB. 
 
 Our experience during these last days verified the rule that 
 Wark water is best when slightly in flood, while Sprouston 
 Dub excels all other casts when the water is low. Two or 
 three hours' rain upon the hills would have reversed the sport • 
 Wark would have yielded the heavy baskets and Sprouston 
 Dub proved a failure. 
 
 A.D. i860. — On April 10, Mr. Cundill, Mr. John Bigge and 
 I found ourselves at Wooler Cottage. We fished for several 
 days in the various stretches of the Glen, the College, and the 
 
The Strange Irregular Beast. 217 
 
 Breamish, and although the weather was very unfavourable we 
 managed on an average to take each about three dozen trout 
 daily. It was an exceedingly agreeable visit, and not the least 
 agreeable part of it were the evenings, when clustered round 
 the fire while the wind was whistling without, we fought our 
 battles o'er again and prepared for future conquests. 
 
 On October 8 Dr. Holden of Durham and I fished the south 
 side of Sprouston Dub and the adjacent streams. We occupied 
 the same boat under the guidance of Charles Kerss, and fished 
 with the same rod. My friend killed a fine salmon of 18 lbs. 
 with the ' Double-white-tip' fly, had a fierce run with another 
 and rose a third. I took one fish of 18 lbs., another of 14 lbs. 
 and a third of 10 lbs. All these fish were new-run and in 
 excellent condition. The flies used were very small and dressed 
 on double hooks. 
 
 We fished the same water on the following day, but there was 
 not a breath of wind upon the Dub, and our efforts were useless. 
 
 October 10 — ^The morning was wet and stormy, still we went 
 to Wark, and while I tried the Dub for salmon, Dr. Holden 
 with a light rod searched for ' what could be had ' in the Ana- 
 side stream. Good luck awaited him, for he succeeded in 
 hooking a noble salmon which tried the powers of his rod and 
 tackle to the utmost. The fish ran out seventy yards of line, 
 and described so many circles round the boat that Tom Scott 
 declared it to be 'a strange irregular beast.' After a long 
 struggle the Doctor captured him in gallant style, and he 
 proved to be a new-run fish of 22 J lbs. One that I had taken 
 in the meantime weighed 18 fbs. 
 
 The three following days exemplified again the proverbial 
 uncertainty of salmon-fishing. A continual flood precluded all 
 chance of sport, and we therefore returned to our homes. 
 
 November 5. — I began my fishing on this day about 12 
 o'clock at Rosebank stream. The water was in beautiful order, 
 
2:8 
 
 At Sprotiston Dub. 
 
 but not till after two hours did I succeed at Sharpitlaw in rising 
 four fish, two of which I killed and ran a third. The two taken 
 weighed respectively 12 and 18 lbs. The former was the 
 most beautiful salmon I had ever seen so late in the season. 
 We decided to cut it up and ascertain its character ; not a par- 
 ticle of milt could be found, and all present unanimously agreed 
 that the fish was an unusually early spring salmon. 
 
 November 6. — I began this morning at Sharpitlaw about 
 eleven o'clock, and soon rose three fish, killing two of them, 
 which weighed iG^ and 18 ibs. respectively. Besides these, I 
 had a run with a much larger fish, which finally broke away. 
 In the Butterwash I rose five fish, killing one and struggling 
 a long time with another of at least 20 lbs. weight. Lord 
 Tankerville had throughout the day fished the south side of the 
 Dub and killed six fish = 80 lbs. weight. After his lordship's 
 departure, I made a few casts in the Dub, and captured two sal- 
 mon of 22 and 1 7 lbs. weight respectively, besides running others. 
 My creel showed a result of 88 lbs. this day. The two following 
 days, however, only ended in the capture of three small grilse. 
 
 November 9. — ^This day was spent in fishing the south side 
 of Sprouston Dub, in company with my brother-in-law, the 
 Rev. T. C. Durham. I rose 17 fish, killing 6, and running 3 
 others, according to the following table : — 
 
 Name of Fly. 
 
 Number of 
 Rises. 
 
 Salmon. 
 
 Grilse. 
 
 Weight. 
 
 At the Silver body 
 
 „ „ Ranger (black body) . 
 
 „ „ Doctor .... 
 
 „ „ Silver body (grey hackle) . 
 „ „ Ranger (blue body) . 
 „ „ White wing 
 „ „ Double-white-tip 
 
 5 
 
 3 
 
 2 
 
 2 
 2 
 2 
 I 
 
 2 
 
 I 
 
 I 
 2 
 
 (■22 lbs. 
 (28 „ 
 
 f 3 „ 
 18 „ 
 
 17 
 
 3 
 
 3 
 
 88 lbs. 
 
Results of Fishing. 
 
 219 
 
 November 10. — ^This day was also passed by the south side 
 of the Dub. The water was in excellent order, and a south- 
 east wind made it most favourable both for rising and hooking 
 the fish. The only drawback was that it rained incessantly. 
 The following table shows the results : — 
 
 Name of Fly. 
 
 Number of 
 Rises. 
 
 Salmon. 
 
 Grilse. 
 
 Weight. 
 
 At the Ranger (black body) . 
 
 „ „ Silver body 
 
 „ „ Grey Turkey (blue body) ■) 
 
 )i n M » M )) J 
 
 „ „ White wing 
 
 7 
 
 I 
 2 
 
 3 
 
 2 
 
 I 
 
 2 
 
 I 
 
 5 23 lbs. 
 18 „ 
 
 17 „ 
 12 „ 
 
 fi5 ,, 
 1 15 „ 
 
 13 
 
 5 
 
 I 
 
 100 lbs. 
 
 Besides the six fish taken, I hooked and ran four others. 
 
 November 1 2 proved to me a blank day, but Mr. T. P. Teale, 
 while near me, killed a fine fish of 28^ lbs. weight. 
 
 November 26. — Being again at Sprouston, I went with Cap- 
 tain Burrell to Wark. He and Mr. Wilkinson began to fish 
 the Dub ; a fine wind was blowing, and Burrell killed four 
 salmon. Wilkinson left us early enough to allow me to fish 
 one fly up the north side of the pool. Selecting a ' double- 
 white-tip,' as well suited to the colour of the water, I soon 
 rose four fish of which I killed one beautiful fresh-run salmon 
 of 28 lbs. 
 
 November 27 found me once more at work with my old 
 friend John Scott, the well-known fisherman of Carham water, 
 for boatman. The morning gave little promise of sport, for 
 the water was thickly covered with ' snow-broo,' which caused 
 the fish to take shyly. I rose 6, killing two of 14 and 16 ibs. 
 respectively. While fishing the Dub I rose a monster salmon, 
 the largest I have ever had the fortune to see alive. He lay 
 for some time on the surface of the water, as if proud to exhibit 
 
220 Escape of The Monster Fish. 
 
 his goodly proportions. John eagerly declared him to be a 
 fifty- pounder. The fish ran steadily for some time, and our 
 hopes rose high. In fact, John passed into a state of tempo- 
 rary insanity, and exclaimed repeatedly, ' He's jist a notorious 
 fash ; was ever such a fash seen ? ' I begged for a rational 
 estimate of his size, and John protested, ' He's far far aboon 
 forty ; he's jist fifty punds.' But, alas for us, the monster 
 soon changed his tactics, and, wheeling round, made a sudden 
 rush down the river, whereupon in a few seconds the hook came 
 away. Probably it was stuck upon a bone, and the reversed 
 position of the fish acted as a lever upon it. When the line 
 came home I turned to John, who was gazing intently on the 
 spot where the fish had disappeared. He appeared to have 
 lost all consciousness ; at last a deep sigh marked the bitterness 
 of his disappointment, and he wailed out the reproach, ' He's 
 jist a notorious vaag-a-bone.' Alas ! it is a melancholy fact 
 that the monster fish are very apt to get away. 
 
 November 28. — Again I fished at Wark, amid ^now, which 
 the severe frost would not allow to melt. My only capture was 
 a salmon of 22 lbs. 
 
 November 29. — My fishing was at Sprouston, and before 
 11.30 A.M. I took two salmon, weighing respectively 20 Hbs. 
 and IS ibs., and a grilse of 9 lbs. These were taken in the 
 Bushes, but when we came to the Dub, which was the great 
 centre of our hopes, we found it perfectly calm. I rose four 
 fish, but could not hook them. Had there been a good breeze, 
 the slaughter would doubtless have been large, for the Dub was 
 full of salmon. 
 
 Among the pleasures of Tweedside, I have already mentioned 
 the daily chat on fishing matters carried on chiefly in the 
 workrooms of the tackle-makers. The following list of large 
 salmon taken during the autumn of this year was obtained 
 from that source. I believe it to be correct as far as it goes. 
 
List of Large Captures. 
 
 221 
 
 though doubtless many more ' heavy weights ' were captured 
 that did not come to my knowledge. I give the list, because 
 it fixes the time when the beneficial results of returning the 
 kelts to the river could first be measured. The Act of Parlia- 
 ment only came into operation in the spring of 1858, at'^which 
 time the capture of a 20-lb. salmon was a rare event. By the 
 autumn of i860, few anglers fished the Tweed without taking 
 one or more of still heavier weight. 
 
 List of some of the large salmon captured with fly in the 
 autumn o/" i860 .• — 
 
 Name. 
 
 Place of 
 
 Number of 
 
 Weight. 
 
 
 Capture. 
 
 Fish. 
 
 
 By The Duke of Roxburgh . 
 
 Floors 
 
 2 each 
 
 28 lbs. 
 
 
 , Mr. Egerton 
 
 
 Lees 
 
 2 ,, 
 
 28 
 
 
 , Captain Kidd . 
 
 
 Birgham 
 
 
 28 
 
 
 , Lord Dunglas . 
 
 
 n 
 
 
 29 
 
 
 , Mr. William Scott 
 
 
 M 
 
 
 30 
 
 
 , Lord Guildford 
 
 
 n 
 
 
 29 
 
 
 , Lord Gardner 
 
 
 Makerstoun 
 
 
 29 
 
 
 , Mr. James Forest 
 
 
 M 
 
 
 28 
 
 
 , Mr. Gray 
 
 
 Carham 
 
 
 29 
 
 
 , Mr. Broadwood 
 
 
 Pavillion 
 
 
 3ii 
 
 
 , Mr. T. P. Teale 
 
 
 Wark 
 
 
 28^ 
 
 
 , Rev. J. Cundill 
 
 
 1} 
 
 
 28i 
 
 
 , Mr. William Henderson 
 
 » 
 
 
 28 
 
CHAPTER XX. 
 
 ' A birr ! a whirr ! the salmon's in, 
 
 Upon the bank extended ; 
 The princely fish lies gasping slow, 
 His brilliant colours come and go, 
 Silver alternating with snow, 
 
 All beautifully blended. 
 Hark to the music of the reel ! 
 
 It murmurs and it closes ; 
 Silence falls on the conquering wheel. 
 
 The wearied line reposes.' — T. T. Stoddart. 
 
 N February 25 1861 accompanied by Mr. 
 L. I fished Birgham Dub. The Tweed 
 was a 'big water,' and good in colour, 
 but not a breath of wind was stirring, 
 and this told against us seriously. I rose 
 7 fish, and landed 6 of them. This was 
 the first day on which Mr. L. had seen 
 salmon taken in the Tweed, and his anxiety to witness the 
 sport carried him just ' a leetle too far.' While I was running 
 a fish near the boat and this eager spectator was craning his 
 neck far ahead and gazing intently downwards, suddenly he 
 lunged head-first into the water and appeared a moment after, 
 diving side by side with the salmon. Happily for him, Mr. L. 
 had been trained to swim in strong running rivers and though 
 now encumbered with heavy wading boots, he struck out so 
 vigorously that he soon reached the shore. 
 
 February 26. — The water was clear, but still too high for 
 good fishing. Mr. L. began at Rosebank stream, while I 
 
Sprouston Dub and the Butterwash Stream. 223 
 
 remained at Sprouston to write letters. During the afternoon 
 I joined him and fished for a short time. Mr. L. landed three 
 kelts and I one, in all about 50 lbs. weight. 
 
 February 27. — By this time the water was in excellent order, 
 and I fished the south side of Sprouston Dub with a wind so 
 boisterous that I had again and again to sit down lest it should 
 blow me overboard. It is at such times that the fish rise 
 boldly, and this day was no exception to the rule. I rose 21 
 fish, of which I ran \^, and succeeded in landing 10. All were 
 kelts and had to be returned to the river, but we estimated 
 their weight at 107 lbs. Meanwhile Mr. L. fished at Birgham, 
 and landed 6 fish = 93 lbs., running also two more. 
 
 February 28. — ^Important letters recalled me to Durham. 
 
 April 24. — My fishing this day was for trout in the ' Butter- 
 wash stream,' in front of my lodgings. I soon captured two 
 bull trout and ran a third of about six pounds weight. Next, 
 my fly was seized by a large salmon kelt, which in spite of my 
 most careful coaxing ran out the whole length of line, and so 
 made off with the lure. Five large common trout were added 
 to my creel during the morning, and at i o'clock I joined Mr. 
 Cundill and Mr. Bigge at our lodgings, and we set off to spend 
 the afternoon among the ruins of Kelso Abbey and Roxburgh 
 Castle. We saw them to great advantage. Never did the old 
 castle look nobler than on that April day, standing pic- 
 turesquely on its high grass mound, canopied by ancient trees 
 just mantled in a cloud of tender green, and guarded by the 
 classic waters of the Teviot and Tweed. 
 
 Several days' fishing followed, on which my friends and I 
 made baskets which, if not specially heavy, were yet sufficient 
 to satisfy us. But not till May 3rd did anything of particular 
 interest occur. 
 
 On the morning of that day Mr. Cundill, Mr. Bigge and I 
 drove to Rutherford for a day's trouting. The weather was fine. 
 
224 Tlie Cofifest 
 
 and the water low and clear, necessitating the use of very fine 
 tackle. My friends chose the streams near the Cauld to begin 
 their operations, while I took a bold rough run of water about 
 two hundred yards above the boat-house. Putting on one of 
 James Wright's inimitable ' March-browns,' dressed on double 
 hooks as my end fly, and attaching this and two other flies to 
 the finest casting line in my possession, I began at the highest 
 point of the stream and captured two bull trout and two 
 common trout of large size. All seemed to promise a heavy 
 basket, when a huge boil, followed by a tug, announced to me 
 that a salmon had not disdained to include even a ' March- 
 brown ' in his morning meal. During a full quarter of an hour 
 he ran boldly up and down the stream, springing from the 
 water several times, so that I ascertained him to be a fish of 
 about 12 lbs. weight. At last, finding that he could not shake 
 off my persevering attentions, he sulked, lay down behind a 
 large stone, and determinately sawed the line in two. Taking 
 a casting line and flies similar to the last, I recommenced at 
 the head of the stream, and in less than a quarter of an hour 
 hooked another salmon, evidently larger than his predecessor. 
 Warned by experience, my attention was now directed to 
 keeping clear of the point of danger, while the fish seemed as 
 determinately bent on making for it. The long struggle that 
 ensued was as to whether he should make this stone his asylum 
 or not. My rod was a light one, 13 ft. i in. in length, and 
 made for single-handed trouting with fly. By an unfortunate 
 mistake I had on leaving Sprouston placed in my pocket an 
 old worn-out reel which had not more than six yards of spare 
 line, and in the middle of this was a knot such as could with 
 difficulty be made to pass through the rings of the rod. Such 
 were the frail materials with which I had to do battle with the 
 largest salmon I had ever hooked with a trout fly. 
 The salmon, proved ' game.' Never resting for a moment. 
 
The Contest. 225 
 
 up and down the stream he sped, and away to the opposite 
 side with a rapidity which kept me not only reeling up and 
 letting off line with all ray might, but also running in and out 
 of the stream, and frequently far into the heavy, deep water, 
 where I kept my footing with diflSculty. Many times, my 
 spare line being run out, my only resource was to cast the rod 
 into the water and allow the" fish to drag it at his will, until by 
 dropping down stream he allowed me to recover it. 
 
 The current ran strong and rapid, ending in a long, shallow 
 ford. Below that lay the Cauld Pool, by the side of which 
 the fish could not be followed, the rocks on the river bank 
 allowing no passage, so my only resource would have been to 
 swim after him. It was not possible for me to measure the 
 length of this long and severe contest. Long and severe it 
 was, but at last the fish began to show signs of relenting, and 
 gradually dropped down to the Ford. Here I succeeded in 
 coaxing him into water not above three or four inches deep, 
 and he lay on his side panting. I looked round for some 
 friendly assistance, but my brother anglers were out of sight, 
 and the fisherman John Aitken was too far off to hear my 
 cries, which were doubtless feeble through exhaustion. The 
 work was plainly to be done alone, and a critical moment I 
 found it. Shortening line I attempted to approach the fish, 
 but the time for jcoming into such close quarters had not 
 arrived. Away he went on his side for upwards of ten yards, 
 splashing in a style that seemed to destroy all hopes of his 
 capture ; only the most equal and gentle handling could have 
 held him. 
 
 Having gained the deep part of the Ford, the salmon began 
 dropping down to the Cauld Pool. This would never have 
 done, so shortening line and running into the middle of the 
 stream below the fish I commenced a great splashing in the 
 water, and showed myself as much as possible. The ruse was 
 Q 
 
226 The Victory. 
 
 successful ; the salmon was ' glifFed,' as I intended, and up 
 stream he rushed as furiously as when first hooked, then true 
 to his instinct he made for his first hold near to the fatal stone. 
 Steady pressure was again applied, and the fish, maddened by 
 the coercion, sprang many times into the air and attempted to 
 lash the line with his tail ; nothing but holding the rod 
 upright prevented a catastrophe. With a gentle but firm hand 
 he was gradually drawn to the shallow water at the foot of the 
 pool, where line was once more shortened and the fish lay on 
 his side gasping convulsively. I paused a moment for thought, 
 and then, though the water was some inches deep, I threw 
 myself upon my prize, which vainly wriggled beneath my 
 chest while I inserted my fingers beneath the gill cover. 
 
 My prize was soon laid upon the bank ; the struggle over, 
 my brain began to swim round and round, and I fell upon the 
 green bank as helpless as the fish itself Victor and victim lay 
 in equal unconsciousness side by side, for how long I do not 
 know, but happily my situation was seen from the opposite 
 bank by the fisherman's daughter, who pulled across the river 
 to my assistance. A dram of whiskey and a few moments of 
 rest restored me, and I was able to appreciate my wonderful 
 success. Before me was a beautiful kepper salmon of 19^ ibs. 
 weight, with both hooks of the small ' March-Brown ' firmly 
 embedded in his mouth. 
 
 Larger fish may perchance have been captured by anglers 
 with fine trout tackle in other rivers, though of this I feel 
 doubtful, since I placed a challenge in the ' Field ' newspaper 
 which produced no response ; but the oldest fishermen in the 
 Tweed say that the feat has no parallel in that river. The 
 salmon was carefully stuffed by Mr. Proctor, of Durham, and 
 still rests in a glass case hard by my accustomed chair. 
 
 There are few anglers who cannot point to some exploit 
 which has taxed their powers to the utmost. The foi-egoing 
 
Mr. Culley's Long Struggle. 227 
 
 incident was the great event of my angling life, while the 
 following history, as told by my friend Mr. Culley, speaks of a 
 similar feat in another of our northern rivers : — 
 
 ' A truly exciting scene was the capture of my first salmon, 
 in the Glen, near Kirknewton, now many years ago. I had 
 gone out in the morning unattended, had hooked a good fish, 
 and had lost him for want of assistance. I may say that 
 salmon then came seldom so far up the Glen except in heavy 
 floods, but there had just been a very heavy flood, and there 
 were plenty of fish. Returning to the Vicarage in great dis- 
 gust, I procured the services of my woodman, J. Thompson, 
 jun., and went again to the river, selecting a pretty pool under 
 a high craggy bank, half-way between Lanton Mill and the 
 a:djoining Ford. 
 
 ' A fish soon came, rising short ; in a few minutes came an 
 unmistakeable pull, and the run of a lovely fish, who quitting 
 the pool, almost immediately went at a most alarming rate 
 down stream, for about three-quarters of a mile, causing us to 
 run after him through or over every obstacle as fast as we could. 
 
 ' So little did I know of salmon-fishing at this time that I 
 was using a diminutive single-handed rod of about 11 feet 
 long, with a small whitling fly and a trout fly on the gut line, 
 so that I had scarcely any control over the fish, who bolted 
 into a new-made weir at the opposite side — a hideous place 
 bristling with projecting boughs. Here he lay, and I tugged 
 at him in vain. 
 
 ' At last Thompson plunged through the river (it was late 
 in October), and from the top of the weir prodded down with 
 a long pole, and succeeded in ejecting our fish. The creature 
 went down into the next pool, and here the work began in 
 earnest. So far the fight had occupied three-quarters of an 
 hour, but in this pool it was continued for an hour and three- 
 quarters longer. It was dreadfully tiresome and fatiguing, but 
 Q 2 
 
228 Thompson to the Rescue. 
 
 the trouble and discomfort fell chiefly on my faithful attendant. 
 The fish's tactics were twofold. He made occasional wild 
 attempts to bolt down stream, which would have proved fatal, 
 as a little further down the river was full of recently fallen 
 trees, where he must have broken us ; so at each rush Thompson 
 dashed into the water up to his waist, and the passage being^ 
 narrow, always succeeded in turning him back into the pool. 
 Between these rushes the fish sulked, lying like a log at the 
 bottom of the pool until my attendant waded in and stirred 
 him up with a pole, upon which he rushed for the outlet, 
 Thompson flying to be there before him. 
 
 ' How often this was repeated I cannot say ; meantime the 
 top joint of the rod broke, but this gave me a rather heavier 
 hold on the fish, who at last began to turn on his side. It had 
 been dark for some time, and we were almost disposed to 
 break oiF the tackle in despair, when suddenly Thompson 
 plunged into the water and reappeared with the fish in his 
 arms ! We laid him down and gazed in speechless admiration, 
 i.e. as far as the darkness permitted. Thompson was but just 
 in time, for the hook (the fish had taken the trout fly) was 
 bent nearly to a right angle. Strange to say, the fish was a 
 grilse of only 5^ lbs., and was not hooked foul.' 
 
 About this time (a.d. 1861) a storm which had long been 
 brewing culminated in the determination of several gentlemen 
 never again to fish the Tweed for trout. The Parliamentary 
 Act of 1857 had produced a general and loyal desire to give 
 effect to its provisions, and so to recover for this beautiful river 
 its ancient celebrity. It unfortunately happened either that 
 the Tweed Commissioners were not happy in their selection of 
 water bailiffs, or that the bailiffs, dressed in their brief 
 authority, exceeded the instructions of their masters as they 
 certainly passed the limits of decency and discretion. During 
 April and May the banks of the river were generally crowded 
 
Difficulties at Tweedside. 229 
 
 with anglers of all grades and all ages, and it was the bailiffs' 
 duty to see that no young fry of any fish of the salmon kind 
 were captured either by persons aware or unaware of the 
 offence committed. Now as regards the young of the salmon 
 there can never at any time be a doubt ; their appearance is 
 always sufficiently distinctive ; but with the young of the bull 
 trout it is far otherwise. These latter fish have not, as a rule, 
 by the month of April assumed the silver mail in which they 
 take their journey to the sea, and before they don their salt 
 water garb their appearance is almost identical with that of 
 the common trout. Indeed, the resemblance is so great that I 
 have often seen the produce of a day's sport laid on the grass, 
 the opinions of professional fishermen taken as to which were 
 bull trout fry, and different verdicts given by judges equally 
 experienced in all matters connected with fishing. 
 
 Few who know the difficulty of the case would speak 
 positively in it. What shall we say, then, of water bailiffs, 
 with an assumption of certain knowledge, coolly swearing in 
 the magisterial courts that such and such fish were fry of the 
 salmon kind, and magistrates, on such evidence, entering 
 convictions against gentlemen who neither intended to break 
 the law nor believed they had done so ? How shall we speak of 
 water bailiffs seizing the proceeds of an hour's angling of a 
 lady and a little boy, and casting fish and basket into the river 
 with language unfit for them to listen to ? Or how excuse 
 the seizing of the basket and rod of an aged clergyman, and 
 throwing both into the stream ? These and such-like glaring 
 outrages were perpetrated within my knowledge, and much 
 ill-feeling they produced, but happily of late years I have 
 heard less of such disgraceful doings. 
 
 A.D. 1862. — February 24. I fished the Edenmouth water 
 with James Kerss. The river was in excellent order, and the 
 wind blew freshly from the south-east. I thought it strange 
 
230 A Gathering of Anglers. 
 
 that with such advantages I only captured one small grilse. 
 Mr. Lewis fished at Birgham Dub, rose 10 fish, and landed 3 
 of them. 
 
 February 25. — ^The day's beat was on the south side of 
 Sprouston Dub with Charles Kerss, and both wind and water 
 were all that could have been desired. I rose four fish, and 
 missed them all ; then putting on the minnow I had six runs 
 from which I landed 3 fish. Mr. Lewis fished at Rosebank 
 and rose 8 fish, landing four of them. 
 
 February 26. — ^I began the day at Hempseed Ford. The 
 water was very white and I tried the fly without success. 
 Late in the afternoon I put on my minnow tackle, and within 
 an hour ran 7 fish, landing five of them. One of those which 
 got away was a clean salmon, and he made such an excellent 
 run that I deemed his capture safe. Mr. Lewis fished at 
 Birgham Dub with minnow, and had three runs, landing 
 2 fish. 
 
 February 27. — Again I fished the south side of Sprouston 
 Dub, and again wind and water were in my favour. My diifi- 
 culty arose from a scarcity of minnows, of which I had only 
 seven. With these I had 7 runs and landed 5 fish = 59 lbs. 
 I had also excellent runs with the two fish that got away. 
 
 April 22). — A large party was now gathered at Sprouston. 
 I found there Dr. Holden with his two eldest sons, Captain 
 Burrell and Mr. William Greenwell, and we were soon joined 
 by Mr. W. G. Wooler. The Tweed being flooded. Dr. Holden 
 and his sons, Captain Burrell and I went to the Bowmont. 
 The wind was unpleasantly high. I took only 20 trout. 
 
 April 24. — Dr. Holden, Captain Burrell, Mr. Wooler and I 
 fished at Rutherford. The river was of a good colour, but 
 high. I killed 23 fine trout. 
 
 April 2^. — Rain was falling heavily when Burrell, Wooler 
 and I drove over the hills to the Bowmont. We found the 
 
Mr. P. S. Wilkinson's Flies. 231 
 
 water high and slightly discoloured. My fishing was with 
 worm, and I took 26 good trout. 
 
 April 26. — ^The Tweed being in full flood I went again to the 
 Bowmont, where I found many anglers at work, tempted by the 
 discoloured state of the water. I killed only 25 small trout. 
 
 April 28. — On this, our last day, Dr. Holden and one of his 
 sons went with me to Rutherford. The water was very high 
 but clear, the sun shone brightly, and the fish rose so short at 
 the fly that their capture was difficult. I killed only 1 5 trout, 
 but fortune brought me some excitement in the shape of a long 
 run with a salmon and another with a sea trout. Both unfor- 
 tunately got away. In the evening we returned to Durham, 
 well pleased with our trip. 
 
 I have so far, said but little of the fishing of my friend Mr. 
 P. S. Wilkinson, for though we had at this time been par- 
 takers of the Wark salmon fishery for eight years it had 
 seldom happened that we were there at the same time. Thus 
 it was not possible for me to chronicle his doings. When our 
 partnership began, I naturally imagined that my experience of 
 salmon-fishing as practised in the Tweed gave me a certain 
 advantage over my friend, and accordingly recommended him 
 to put aside his accustomed flies, and to fish with the most 
 celebrated Tweed models, such as the White-wing, Double- 
 white-tip, Doctor, or Ranger. He did make some trial of 
 these, but soon returned to his former favourites, which being 
 formed chiefly after one fashion, appeared to me to present too 
 little variety. Old James was in great distress about it ; he 
 could not imagine how salmon at Wark could be killed with 
 strange flies, and said to me very ruefully, ' The Captain jist 
 believes in fleas o' his ain graithing, an they're a' kizzens, jist 
 as like as peas.' I fully agreed with James, and went on my old 
 way, while Mr. Wilkinson was equally constant to his favourite 
 flies. After a few days, however, both James and I found 
 
232 Notes of Mr. P. S. Wilkinson's Fishings. 
 
 cause to moderate our conceit, and the old man, after looking 
 round to make sure that no one else heard the admission 
 confessed to me one day, ' I've jist been thinking that after a' 
 the Captain may be reet, for aw dinna see but he kills as mony 
 fish as ither folk, 'an maybe mair.' This was undeniable, and 
 the present year was to bear witness to James's experience. 
 
 The delicate health both of my wife and of myself necessi- 
 tated a long Continental tour in the autumn of this year, and 
 thus I lost the best season for salmon fishing, except that of 
 1873, which has occurred in the present generation. Frequent, 
 but not excessive rains, were the chief features of the autumn. 
 These kept the shallow pools and streams of Wark generally 
 in fishing order, and the successful angling of Mr. Wilkinson 
 and other friends made the place and the season famous. 
 Having myself no notes respecting the sport of this memor- 
 able year, I gladly, with Mr. Wilkinson's permission, insert 
 some of the memoranda taken by him at the time. The 
 following extracts from letters written by him to me, will, I am 
 sure, be read with interest. 
 
 'Respecting the angling season of 1862, the principal fea- 
 tures of my sport that autumn consisted in the absence of a 
 single blank day during the nineteen days on which I fished at 
 Wark, from October 29 to November 24 — in the large number 
 of fish taken by myself and by other rods there during the 
 first few days of that period, and also in the number of large 
 fish taken, at a time when the increase in the size of Tweed 
 salmon had only just begun to be noticed. The total produce 
 of my rod in the 19 days was 114 fish = 1,762. tbs. weight, an 
 average of exactly 6 fish per day ; the best day's sport being 
 13 fish = 235 tbs., and the worst 2 fish = 28 lbs. weight. 
 There were only two days during this time when the water 
 was not fishable, but it had been in flood for some weeks before 
 October 29, and it was frozen over when I was driven home on 
 
8 fish = 88i lbs. 
 
 weight 
 
 13 „ =235 „ 
 
 jt 
 
 13 » *= 165 „ 
 
 )> 
 
 9 ,. =1" .. 
 
 1) 
 
 5 ,, = 55 „ 
 
 jj 
 
 The First and Last Days of the Season. 233 
 
 November 25. During the five days from October 30 to 
 
 November 4, omitting Sunday, my rod killed as follows : — 
 
 October 30 
 
 31 
 
 November i 
 
 ,. 3 
 
 „ 4 
 
 ' On this last day I only fished the Cuddy Hole after Lord 
 Tankerville, who had all the water, and killed 10 fish =154 
 lbs. weight. 
 
 ' In the first four of these days your rod killed as follows : — 
 
 October 30, Messrs. Grey and Scurfield 5 fish 
 
 11 3I) II II II ^5 11 
 
 November i, ,, ,, ,, 7 » 
 
 „ 3, Mr. Teale . . . . 10 „ 
 
 ' Thus the total of my rod for these four days was 43 fish = 
 600 lbs. ; and the total of two rods in the four days was 80 fish. 
 By adding Lord Tankerville's day (the 4th), we get as the total 
 of Wark in five days, 95 fish. 
 
 ' I consider, however, that my most remarkable days in the 
 season were the first and last. The first was on October 29, when 
 the Dub was at a height at which old James Scott said he had 
 never seen a fish killed there ; yet in the lower part of it I 
 killed 5 fish = 95^ lbs. weight. The last day was November 24, 
 when the frost was intense, the sun very bright, the water low 
 and clear, and the day quite still. Yet from the south side of 
 the Dub, in water as smooth as glass, with the low sun throw- 
 ing my shadow right across the fish, I killed during two hours 
 7 fish = 95 lbs. 
 
 ' It only remains to mention the weights of the large fish 
 taken by my rod, and I give those of 24 fts. and upwards : — 
 * Three of these taken by Sir J. R. Carnac. 
 
234 ^ Disappointment. 
 
 5 fish of 24 
 
 lbs. 
 
 weight 
 
 I fish of 27 J 
 
 lbs. 
 
 weight 
 
 2 „ „ h\ 
 
 11 
 
 )i 
 
 4 I, 
 
 ,1 28 
 
 11 
 
 II 
 
 2 „ „ 25 
 
 jj 
 
 1) 
 
 I ,. 
 
 I, 29 
 
 II 
 
 II 
 
 2 „ „ 26 
 
 )j 
 
 ?j 
 
 I I, 
 
 ,1 33 
 
 I' 
 
 II 
 
 2 „ „ 27 
 
 I) 
 
 II 
 
 I n 
 
 ,1 34 
 
 II 
 
 I' 
 
 ' On some days the fish I took averaged heavy weights ; 
 thus on November 14, among 7 fish which I took, I had 
 z%\ lbs., 26, 25, and 24^ ; and on November 21 I had, among 
 6 fish, 28 lbs., 28, 24^, and 24. 
 
 ' Before closing my account of the season, I will exhibit the 
 other side of the picture by narrating some circumstances 
 connected with the most unlucky and unhappy day's angling 
 I ever experienced, to which even now I cannot revert without 
 a pang of regret for a great opportunity lost. It was November 
 3, and I fished Wark Dub, which, after the long series of 
 floods, had run down to a capital size, though growing rather 
 clear. I had previously been fishing with flood-size hooks, and 
 had only tied one of a smaller size the night before as more 
 suited to the present state of the water. The first fish I 
 hooked was a very large bright salmon, which at its first rush 
 ran right across the Dub, then back and down stream, by 
 which course it sunk my line, which hitched on a stone in 
 mid-stream and itself broke away, drawing the hook out of 
 the fly. Having no more flies of the right size, I was obliged 
 for the rest of the day to fish with hooks far too large for the 
 water, and the result was, that while I hooked and ran 20 fish, 
 some of very large size, I only landed 9 of the smallest among 
 them. Besides these, I had touches or slight hold of full 20 
 more. The Dub was swarming with fish, and I felt quite 
 convinced that with smaller flies I might have taken 20 good 
 fish. In connection with this day's angling, I may mention 
 that I found the fly from which the hook had been drawn was 
 uninjured in the wing, so I slipped another hook into the 
 
A Disappointment. 
 
 23s 
 
 vacant hole in the head, lashed down the loop, and remade the 
 silver hody ; and with the fly thus resuscitated I had ample 
 revenge. It never lost a fish that took it, and must have 
 killed some 20 fish during the remainder of that season. 
 
 'There was one great day at Floors in the 1862 season, 
 when Mr. Philip Egerton landed 16 or 17 fish, which weighed 
 284 lbs.' 
 
CHAPTER XXI. 
 
 ' When genial spring a living waj-mth bestows, 
 And o'er the year her verdant mantle throws, 
 No swelling inundation hides the grounds, 
 But crystal currents glide within their bounds. 
 The finny brood their wonted haunts forsake. 
 Float in the sun and skim along the lake ; 
 With frequent leap they range the shallow streams. 
 Their silver coats reflect the dazzling beams. 
 Now let the fisherman his toils prepare, 
 And arm himself with every watery snare ; 
 His hooks, his lines peruse with careful eye, 
 Increase his tackle, and his rod retie.' — John Gay. 
 
 A.D. 1863. — ^April 18 was the beginning of a delightful week 
 which I spent at Sprouston with my wife, our little daughter 
 Bertha, and Mr. Cundill. Our fishings were in the lovely 
 streams at Rutherford. Mr. Cundill and I pursued our sport 
 with satisfactory success, while my wife and child strolled along 
 the lovely banks of the river or rested in the fisherman's bright 
 
A Border Funeral. 237 
 
 cheerful cottage, where at midday a dish of trout dressed in a 
 coating of oatmeal awaited us, a meal which with our good 
 appetites a Prince might have envied. 
 
 One morning we found the fisherman and his wife absent, 
 nor did they return till late in the afternoon. They had been 
 at the funeral of a friend some miles away, and on our asking 
 whether there had been a large gathering, our hostess replied 
 in scornful accents, 'A' it was a puir affair a' the gither. 
 There was na ae mon fou ; it was a puir affair.' Here was an 
 expression of the general feeling of the Borderers as to the 
 importance of the ancient virtue of hospitality. My friends 
 were themselves perfectly sober persons, but they expected 
 that the once general consequences of feasting should be 
 apparent on such a solemn occasion. 
 
 June 9. — My visit to the Glen was now varied by my having 
 for companions my wife, our three eldest girls, and Mr. Brinton. 
 The children were very young, their united ages being short 
 of thirty years. A father must be an enthusiastic angler to 
 enjoy thoroughly, as I did, seeing his little girls each with rod 
 in hand and tiny creels upon the shoulder, wildly casting their 
 lines into places where assuredly no fish were to be found, 
 while ever and anon he was employed in releasing their hooks 
 from branches of trees, grass and stones, nay often from their 
 own frocks and hats. All places and things seemed to possess 
 a magnetic attraction for their lines, and so eager were the 
 trio that every moment lost in the necessary extrications 
 seemed to them a cruel deprivation of happiness. Consigning 
 the little people at last to the care of Mr. Jones the keeper, 
 Mr. Brinton and I pursued our separate fishings. My friend's 
 take was very satisfactory, considering that up to this time he 
 had not had much practice in fishing for trout. My success 
 was far above the average, being 104 fish, chiefly captured with 
 the ' Greenwell's Glory ' fly. 
 
238 Juvenile Anglers. 
 
 On rejoining the children we found them almost wild with 
 excitement, each claiming instant attention to her own captui-e 
 The results proved to be : — 
 
 Lucy 2 trout and i eel 
 
 Mildred . . . . 6 ,., 
 Bertha .... 7 „ 
 
 June 10. — The rain fell so heavily that it was impossible 
 for my wife and children to leave their snug quarters at 
 Wooler Cottage. Mr. Brinton and I however were not daunted 
 by such a trifle as a soaking rain, and donning our waterproofs 
 we proceeded to fish the water above Coupland. My take was 
 fifty good fish, Mr. Brinton's twenty-six, the most killing fly 
 being the Yellow body with starling wing. 
 
 June II. — The flood was so high as to preclude all possibility 
 of fishing. 
 
 June 12. — ^Mr. Brinton and I drove to the water above 
 Coupland, but we found it so swollen that we proceeded to the 
 College. Here to my surprise I killed only forty-eight fish, 
 while, stranger still, twenty-four of these were taken with fly 
 in one pool within half an hour ; indeed, the take was exactly 
 one fish per minute of time. 
 
 June 13. — The river had by this time subsided to a moderate 
 height, and its deep porter colour was exactly suited to the 
 efforts of the juvenile angler. So placing the children under 
 the guidance of Mr. Jones, Mr. Brinton and I pursued our 
 fishing above Coupland. My friend had very good success, 
 and my bumper basket, including one sea trout, more than 
 satisfied me. On our return I found the two younger girls 
 fishing the ' split streams ' below the Cauld, while their sister 
 was to be seen a hundred yards lower down struggling with 
 a large sea trout, which kept repeatedly springing out of the 
 water to the young lady's no small alarm. Unhappily just as 
 I drew near to render the much needed aid, the fish broke 
 
Daft Jock. 239 
 
 away. The young angler looked very sad, indeed I am not 
 sure that a tear did not lurk in the corner of her eye. It was 
 . indeed a trial to lose by far the largest fish of the day. The 
 baskets when examined showed : — 
 
 Lucy ... 7 trout and i sea trout 
 
 Mildred . . . 11 „ 
 
 Bertha . . . 7 „ and i sea trout. 
 All the fish were of good size, and when we clustered round the 
 fire that evening each was captured over again, amid many a 
 merry laugh such as only comes from those who have the 
 sunshine of the breast. 
 
 June 15. — Mr. Brinton having returned home, I once more 
 fished the river above Coupland. The water was in beautiful 
 order, the sky darkened by slight showers. The fish were 
 feeding continuously throughout the day, and I captured, 
 chiefly with fly, a splendid basket of trout, as well as two sea 
 trout. The total weight was 28 lbs. My attendant was one 
 of those ' unfortunates ' who on the Border commonly go by 
 the name of ' daft.' I had not hitherto studied the idiosyncrasy 
 of these beings, but experience now convinces me that in 
 many who are considered half-witted, cunning combines with 
 folly if it does not predominate over it. Sir Walter Scott 
 brings this out in his delineations of Guse Gibbie and David 
 Gellatley. Saunders Saunderson calls this last an ' innocent,' 
 yet describes him as more knave than fool. The same might 
 have been said of the lad who attended me. I learned 
 afterwards from the keeper, Mr. Jones, that he had been 
 observed by some labourers taking fish again and again out of 
 the creel he carried and throwing them into the furze bushes 
 which lined the river bank. On the following day the 
 labourers, searching these bushes, found a considerable quantity 
 of trout, which, with many a laugh at ' daft Jock's ' trick, they 
 appropriated to their own supper, mightily enjoying the 
 
240 Captain Hendersoii's Return. 
 
 rogue's discomfiture, when, on his second visit to the river he 
 found — nothing. 
 
 The children again fished the stream which had already so 
 well repaid their labours. Their success was: — 
 Lucy 8 trout and 2 sea trout 
 
 Mildred 13 „ one of them above I lb. weight 
 Bertha 16 ,, i perch and i eel 
 In the evening Mr. P. S. Wilkinson joined our party. 
 
 yune 16. — ^The showers of yesterday had partially flooded 
 the river and limited my destructiveness. The results of the 
 day were : — 
 
 Lucy 10 trout 
 
 Mildred n ,, 
 
 Bertha ...... 9 ,, 
 
 while my basket weighed but 12 lbs. Thus ended the most 
 enjoyable week's fishing I have ever known, and one which I 
 believe has left its impress for life on the minds of the three 
 children. 
 
 My son Captain Henderson returned about this time from 
 
 South Africa, where he had been stationed so far in the interior 
 
 as to afford him splendid shooting both of large and small 
 
 game. In spite of the long period which had elapsed since his 
 
 hand had been acquainted with a rod, he was anxious to revisit 
 
 the valley of the Glen ; so we hastened there on the morning 
 
 of June 21, and reached Akeld Bridge in time to begin our 
 
 fishing at 3.30 p.m. The water was clear, but not low ; and as 
 
 evening drew on the sky became dark with strong wind. The 
 
 fish took boldly, and our creels when weighed showed : — 
 
 William Henderson . 47 trout = 14:^ lbs. 
 
 Captain Henderson . 37 „ =12;^ lbs. 
 
 J^une 22. — My son could not as yet forget his African 
 
 tastes, and hearing that Mr. Jones had some beautiful sporting 
 
 dogs, the first hours of the morning were given to their 
 
Father and Son. 241 
 
 inspection, so that we did not begin fishing till 1 1 a.m. The 
 
 sky was then dark and a high wind made fishing difficult, but 
 
 in the afternoon all was changed, the wind fell and the sun 
 
 shone so brightly that the fish came but shyly to the fly. We 
 
 fished from Coupland to College Bridge and the result was : — 
 
 William Henderson . 78 trout = 20 lbs. weight 
 
 Captain Henderson . 57 ,, ^ I5 » u 
 
 June 23. — We drove to Coupland, and arrived there in time 
 
 to begin our fishing at 10. 45 a.m. It was a bright sunny day 
 
 TWISEL MILL. 
 
 with little wind. The fish were shy and very difficult to take, 
 
 and it was only by perseverance that we accomplished : — 
 William Henderson ... 54 trout 
 
 Captain Henderson . . . 5^ n 
 
 June 24. — This morning we changed the scene by going to 
 
 the Till. My son fished the streams below Old Bewick Bridge; 
 
 while I attempted to fill my creel from those above. The 
 
 water was low, and much discoloured by sheep-washing. 
 
 These disadvantages together with a hot glaring sun told sadly 
 
 against us. Our baskets were : — 
 
242 Mr. GreenweWs Discovery. 
 
 William Henderson ... 27 small fish 
 
 Captain Henderson ... 49 good fish 
 
 We returned the same evening to Durham. 
 
 At this time my friend Mr. Culley of Coupland had three 
 noteworthy days' fishing in the Glen. On June 16 in the 
 Lanton water, which being shallower was much clearer than 
 where we were fishing, he took with worm 34 lbs. of trout, 
 some fish weighing i lb. each or more. On the following day, 
 fishing from Glenly Ford to the Fox Holes, he took 24^ lbs. of 
 trout and a sea trout. On June 23 in the Lower Akeld 
 which was full and coloured, he killed with worm 30J lbs. of 
 trout and 2 sea trout, in all 34 lbs. ; thus making a total of 
 94 lbs. in the three days' sport. 
 
 During the autumn of this year I made two unsuccessful 
 attempts at salmon-fishing. My first visit to Sprouston began 
 on September 14, and though I fished carefully during six 
 days I only took one salmon of any size. It weighed 25 lbs. My 
 second visit was on the 22nd, when I again fished six days, 
 but the water was so flooded that the work was hopeless. 
 
 The present is deemed an age of progress — ^by us who dwell 
 in it. Possibly posterity may smile at our conceit when they 
 compare what we leave behind us with the almost indestructible 
 relics of Egypt and of Rome, the statuary of Greece, or the 
 glories of Raphael and Correggio. Over-civilization and luxury 
 may bring effeminacy and decay ; another influx of barbarians 
 may sweep over us, and the New Zealander be found on the 
 ruins of London Bridge. Meanwhile every man who adds his 
 unit of discovery to the common stock will be hailed as a bene- 
 factor, and in particular let me add that he who makes a 
 marked discovery in the art of angling has earned his place in 
 the general Valhalla. 
 
 Such a discovery was made about this time by Mr. William 
 Greenwell. The scene was Sprouston Dub, when the water 
 
Angling at Wark. 243 
 
 was unusually clear and its surface lay glistening in the sunshine 
 as smooth as a sheet of glass. The salmon had for many days 
 been in fisherman's parlance ' set up,' i.e. nothing would induce 
 them to move from their resting places deep down in the water. 
 At this time when all angling seemed hopeless it occurred to 
 Mr. Greenwell to try an experiment altogether contrary to 
 ordinary practice. Adopting flies which are generally used 
 in low water, he sunk them as deep as was possible without 
 actually touching the rocks and gravel, and then played the 
 line slowly and with little motion. Happily he was not con- 
 tented with an isolated trial, but persevering during several 
 consecutive days he ascertained that, though the fish would not 
 move in the morning, yet no sooner had the sun begun to 
 decline than they began to take as freely as they would have 
 done with a good curl on the Dub, and they continued on the 
 alert till dark. Fishing in this manner from the north side of 
 the Dub, Mr. Greenwell generally killed his three, four, or even 
 five salmon per diem, but when the same system was tried by 
 other anglers from the south side it proved less successful. 
 
 In November I went to Sprouston accompanied by my son 
 Captain Henderson, and we began our fishing at Wark on the 
 1 6th of the month. My beat was the upper, his the lower 
 water. The river was in good order, and a refreshing breeze 
 from the south gave augury of a good day's sport. The 
 angler's reveille seemed addressed to us 
 
 Haste away ! haste away ! for the south wind is blowing 
 
 And rippling so gently the face of the stream. 
 Which neither too full, nor too fine, yet is flowing 
 
 Now clouded, now bright with a sunshiny gleam. * 
 
 And never did I see so many fish show themselves as on this 
 day. Seldom did five minutes pass without a large salmon 
 springing above the water. Indeed their frantic movements 
 soon convinced me that instinct had forewarned them of the 
 
 * Newcastle Fisher's Garlands, page 213. 
 R 2 
 
244 Unexpected Success. 
 
 approach of rain, and so it came to pass ; in the afternoon it 
 rained heavily. I had however killed first in the ' Snipe ' and 
 Dub five salmon weighing respectively 25 lbs., 24I lbs., 20 lbs., 
 18 lbs., and 17^ lbs. ; as well as a grilse of 8 lbs. ; in all 
 113^ lbs. My son killed in the Ana-side stream and Cuddy 
 Hole three salmon of 27 lbs., 22 lbs., and 195 lbs. = 68^ lbs. 
 
 We were not able to wield our rods again till the 1 9th of the 
 month, and even then the river was far too high. My take was 
 only a bull trout, and my sQn's two grilse. 
 
 November 20. — This day was given by my son to partridge- 
 shooting. Lord Tankerville having kindly sent his keeper to 
 accompany him over a part of his estate. During a short trial 
 on Sprouston Dub I killed, to my surprise, a salmon of 21 lbs. 
 and a beautifully shaped grilse of 10 ibs. Mr. CuUey fishing at 
 Wark in place of my son, captured a fine salmon of 32 lbs., 
 over which the elder Scott was greatly excited. 
 
 November 21. — ^My son again went with Lord Tankerville's 
 keeper, while I pursued my fishing in the Snipe and Dub at 
 Wark. I took two salmon of 25^ and 24^ lbs., a grilse of 8 lbs., 
 and a bull trout kelt of 11 lbs. = 69 lbs. weight; all taken 
 with the Durham Ranger fly. I had also three long runs with 
 large fish that eventually got away. 
 
 November 22. — ^The river was in high flood. 
 
 November 23. — ^The river was still too high for fishing, but 
 being weary with idleness Mr. Hey and I went in the afternoon 
 to Wark, and spite of the fisherman's assurances that it would 
 be of no use, made a short trial at the foot of the Dub. To the 
 surprise of everyone Mr. Hey with my rod hooked a salmon. 
 The fish was much aided by the strength of water, but after a 
 long run it was killed, and proved to be a fine new-run salmon, 
 weighing 19 lbs. 
 
 November 24. — On this my last day of the season I started 
 very early for Wark, and breakfasted at the fisherman's cottage. 
 
The Penalty of Age. 245 
 
 The water was still high and dirty ; accordingly I only captured 
 one salmon oi z\\ lbs. and another 13 lbs. In the evening we 
 returned home. 
 
 From this time to the year 1874 I have no regular record of 
 my fishings either for salmon or trout, and but few memoranda, 
 yet during these years I had many a pleasant tour with friends 
 the memory of which I would gladly cherish. I chiefly fished 
 with Mr. Culley of Coupland Castle, sometimes at Wark and 
 Sprouston, sometimes in the Glen. So far I have not observed 
 in myself much change in my powers of fishing for salmon, but 
 alas ! it is not so as regards trout. By comparing my daily suc- 
 cesses with those of Mr. Culley, I feel how much I have lost 
 with advancing years, the agility and dash of early manhood 
 giving place gradually to an easy-going quietude which does 
 not fill the creel. Often am I tempted with Coleridge to 
 exclaim 
 
 When I was young ? Ah woeful when ? 
 Ah for the change 'twixt Now and Then ! 
 
 I must now ask my reader to accompany me to one of the 
 choicest spots on my most favourite river — the Glen. The 
 month June, the day hot with bright sun, and the hour so 
 far past midday as to justify a resort to the much loved Fox- 
 Hole's pool, to idle away an hour there, meet my friend 
 Piscator and have luncheon with him. Here stretched on the 
 bank we lazily watched the movements of the many large fish 
 who thei'e abide ; the incidents of the morning's fishing had to 
 be related, and many a speculation as to the afternoon's sport 
 was of course indulged in. The soothing pipes were adding 
 incense to the air, and all was peace when our friend Careless 
 appeared on the scene, and throwing down a creel which 
 seemed to be of the lightest, the following conversation began : 
 
 Careless ; Well, what luck ? 
 
 IHscator : Why, my creel got heavy, and the take quite 
 went off, so I sat down to ease my shoulders. 
 
246 Piscator's Instructions. 
 
 Careless: Just the same as ever ; and here I have scarcely 
 a thing, yet you started well a-head, so I had plenty of unfished 
 water. I fished hard, too. Now, how can you account for the 
 difference ? It is annoying. 
 
 Piscator : Well, if you wish to know why some people catch 
 more trout than their neighbours, it is a difficult question to 
 answer. Doubtless out of every hundred anglers there are not 
 five really good. But why is there such difference in results 
 among those apparently good ? I have had pupils who seemed 
 to fish in all respects just as I did, and yet the results were 
 marvellously different. I speak of worm-fishing in clear water, 
 our present pursuit, and without reference to people who 
 cannot cast a line or to those who do not know where fish lie. 
 Well,, one thing is that very few persons are really aware what 
 M/-stream fishing actually means. Many a man says, ' I always 
 fish up-stream ! ' If you watch him you will notice that he 
 walks up-stream, but in casting he only casts across, and his 
 fly or worm is almost always below, so that he is under a 
 delusion altogether. Very few people really keep their bait 
 above them. This does not so much matter in fly fishing, for 
 then you cast a longer line and so keep more easily out of 
 sight, but the man who finds this method answer in fly fishing 
 is apt to adopt the same in worm fishing. And what a differ- 
 ence ensues ! If the water is as low and clear as it is now, such 
 a proceeding is destructive to any chance of sport. You ought 
 to cast directly above you, and if possible be in the water. If 
 this is impossible, creep or stoop as low as you can. But there 
 is nothing like being in the water, for it is Seldom one can cast 
 a very long line in worm fishing. Where there is a quiet 
 slope, so that the angler stands lower than his fish, if he gets 
 into the water behind them, his body is scarcely apparent and 
 the wave of the rod is less seen. Under these circumstances I 
 have often stood, and with no ripple on the clear water seen 
 
Piscaior's Instructions. 247 
 
 the trout lying before me, and cast my line over whichever 
 fish I chose, seen him take the bait, and struck at my own 
 time, dragging the fish when hooked down stream as quickly 
 as possible so as not to disturb the others. This may be 
 carried on for some time if the angler does not move, or moves 
 forward very slowly ; but as soon as he comes on a level with 
 his fish, all is changed, the motion of the rod is seen at once, 
 and so is he, unless he stoops and almost creeps. This is what 
 makes worm fishing so laborious, and only those who practise 
 the art know how laborious. 
 
 Most people wade, but nevertheless fish on one side, not 
 above. They had far better stay on the bank, for in this case 
 their wading only serves to disturb the water without doing 
 their sport any good. If the wind is very high you may fish 
 with a little more safety on one side, but I always like to throw 
 up-stream even if the wind is dead against me. Often in such 
 a case my worm is blown back and does not get out beyond 
 the top of the rod, but I am sure that by persevering in this 
 course I get more fish than a man fishing to one side would do. 
 Now in this pool here you must fish more or less on one side, 
 because the depth of the water does not permit you to wade 
 far in. But then the opposite side is covered in very much by 
 trees, whose boughs prevent the motion of the rod from being 
 seen. In fishing it I wade as deep as I can and throw above 
 me in a slanting direction under the boughs, a mode of oper- 
 ation which needs no little care, as in places they hang very 
 low. It is necessary too, you will observe, to throw as long a 
 line as circumstances permit. The sport here is beautiful when 
 the trout are taking. To see your worm just miss a tough 
 bough and fall close to the bank ; then your line gently 
 tightens out, a slight stroke, and there is your fish splashing ! 
 It is delightful ! Though the place is so small it takes more 
 than an hour to fish it up if trout are in a good humour. 
 
248 Piscator's Instructions. 
 
 The most difEcult place to fish is the Duck Reach, not far 
 above. To be sure in a coloured water it is a splendid place 
 for either fly or minnow, but I am now speaking of worm 
 fishing in a clear water. It is a long, still, shallow reach, 
 fringed on each side with osiers. It is very shallow and 
 swarms with trout, aye, and with good ones too. If there is 
 no wind it is quite useless to attempt it, but if there should be 
 a breeze, whether up or down, it is well worth trying. If you 
 have a strong wind wade up the middle, casting first in front, 
 then to each side. Throw as long a line as you possibly can, 
 and in throwing sideways (always of course as much above 
 you as possible) try to let your worm fall on a willow twig and 
 drop off. A very long line is needed, as the trout see wonder- 
 fully quickly in such shallow water. When they come to the 
 worm they do not bite slowly as in deeper water, but come at 
 it with a rush as it falls on the surface, and often, if you have 
 not a ready hand, are gone before you have struck. Aye, and 
 when you have, the fish not unfrequently bolt straight down 
 the shallow towards you, perhaps between your legs, and leaves 
 you with fifteen yards or so of limp entangled line which you 
 don't know what to do with. Then if the least thing frightens 
 them, down they all come past you in a line of little waves, 
 their backs almost out of the water. But if you really get 
 them on the feed it is indeed sport ; they fly at the worm and 
 well repay all your labour in casting a long line in a stooping 
 position. A man only five feet high would have immense 
 advantage in a place of this sort, if he only had sufficient skill 
 to cast a long enough line. You see I am rather too tall, and 
 often has my back ached for it. But, hullo ! What is the 
 matter ? Why you're snoring ! 
 
 Careless (awakening slowly) : H'm — ^yes — ^what ? Ah ! I 
 believe I've been asleep. Did you think I was going to sit 
 and listen to your drawling rigmarole when you had been 
 
Careless — the Result of his Fishings. 
 
 249 
 
 catching more fish than I had ? Not likely that. I hate any 
 body who catches more fish than I do. Now please hold your 
 tongue and go on fishing and I'll light my pipe. 
 
 It may be added that our friend Careless still continues to 
 fish in his old style, and that the result is as formerly — a toom 
 creel. 
 
 
CHAPTER XXII. 
 
 ' Oh the gallant fisher's life 
 
 It is the best of any ; 
 'Tis full of pleasure, void of strife, 
 And is beloved by many. 
 Other joys 
 Are but toys, 
 Only this 
 Lawful is ; 
 For our skill 
 Breeds no ill 
 But content and pleasure.' 
 
 From ' The Complete Angler.' 
 
 A.D. 1864. — ^It was towards the close of April that I met for the 
 last time Mr. Brown, of Longformacus. I was fishing for trout 
 by the waterside at Rutherford when I found him seated in a 
 boat and similarly engaged. He was evidently in ill health, 
 but the ruling passion was still strong within. In spite of his 
 feebleness his spirit seemed to rise when looking on the 
 streams he loved so well, and the rod to know his practised 
 hand, as trout after trout yielded to the spell. His greeting 
 was more than cordial, and after a long conversation such as 
 attests the true brotherhood of anglers, he turned to John 
 
Mr. GrreenweWs Best Day. 251 
 
 Aitken his fisherman, saying, ' Be sure that Mr. Henderson 
 and his friends have fishing whenever he wishes it.' I had for 
 many years enjoyed the kind permission of this most generous 
 man on the Rutherford water ; and little did I now think that 
 this meeting was to be our last on earth. A few months later 
 he was resting with his forefathers, leaving behind him the 
 memory of one of the kindest of men. 
 
 A.D. 1865. — During a long career a successful angler must 
 needs have many days of good sport, of which, however, 
 memory may recall only a few particulars. But his best day ! 
 the very best he ever had ! that is fondly remembered and 
 enjoyed over again in sleeping and waking dreams. Knowing 
 that Mr. William Greenwell had during this year one such 
 memorable day's sport, I applied to him for particulars, which 
 he thus related : — 
 
 ' The best day I have ever had was at Floors, late in October 
 when I killed seventeen fish, viz., twelve salmon and five grilse, 
 having in all hooked twenty. One of these taking with a 
 barb against a bone, the barb broke, and so got off ; another 
 which I struck took away the hook, the gut being cut too 
 close to the hook, so it drew ; a third rose shyly, was played 
 for twenty minutes, and then the hold gave. I could only 
 have killed one more fish than I did, for the two first were off 
 at once, and another hooked immediately. I started at 11 a.m., 
 and never rose a fish after 4 p.m., having reserved the best bit 
 of water for that usually choice time of day. I have forgotten 
 the exact weight ; I fancy it was 275 lbs. " The Greenwell " 
 fly did most execution, and I fished with very small hooks and 
 fine single gut.' 
 
 A.D. 1866. — The late Lord Hume used to say, 'In all my 
 long experience of salmon-fishing, I do not think I have 
 averaged more than two really good days a year.' Now had 
 his lordship said two really great days I might have agreed 
 
252 Uncertainty of Salmon Fishing. 
 
 with him. Salmon-fishing is of all sports the most uncertain. 
 It is so seldom that the right size and colour of the water are 
 accompanied by a brisk wind, and a sky cloudy yet disdaining 
 the adornment of ' powthered wigs.' And when all these 
 circumstances conspire to meet the angler's wish, disappoint- 
 ment often awaits him unless there has been a recent run of 
 fish or the salmon chance to be in what the fishermen call ' a 
 taking mood.' When they are in the mood there are some- 
 times unexpected successes, just to keep the salmon-fisher from 
 being down-hearted. During the autumn of this year Mr. 
 William Greenwell experienced one of these exceptional days, 
 and I am glad to give the account of it in his own words. 
 
 • The water was so low that no one could possibly have 
 expected a fish to be lying there. Scarcely a fish had been 
 killed anywhere about for several days, and the " Bushes " had 
 been fruitlessly tried day after day in the vain' hope that a new- 
 run fish might have taken up his quarters there, and rise to the 
 fly. After the usual attempt at the " Bushes," I accidentally 
 cast my eye up the river, and saw a salmon roll over about the 
 middle of the " Butterwash." I mentioned the fact to Sandy 
 Smith, my boatman, who was incredulous, and declared it to 
 be quite out of the question that a fish should be there, the 
 water being in the low condition in which it was. However I 
 was certain I had seen a fish, and so we rowed to the spot, where 
 the first cast brought him up to be hooked and landed. Eleven 
 other fish were afterwards landed, every one indeed that rose, 
 and, I believe, every one that was in this short and shallow 
 cast. I have no doubt they had been driven out of the 
 " Bushes " by the constant passing of boats and casting of 
 lines, and never having seen a fly in the " Butterwash " before 
 my lucky attempt, they freely rose to it.' 
 
 Knowing that Mr. Bond had a great day on Sprouston Dub 
 towards the end of November, I applied to him for the parti- 
 culars, which he thus communicated to me. 
 
Mr. Bond's Great Day. 253 
 
 ' I began the day unluckily. As soon as I started I hooked 
 the biggest fish I have ever seen on a line. There can be no 
 mistake as to this, for I fought him a full hour, during which 
 time he threw himself out of the water at least fifty times, and 
 we saw him as plainly as if we had had him in the boat. At 
 last the fly came clean away, so little injured that it killed 
 several fish afterwards. Such was my beginning ! Then my 
 luck changed, and from that time till it was dark I was never 
 for ten minutes without a fish on my hook. I only changed 
 my fly once, and still keep both in remembrance of the day. 
 One is a Silver Doctor, the other a plain Dark-winged Tweed 
 fly. At night I had twelve salmon and a grilse, of the aggre- 
 gate weights of 252 Hbs. The weights of each were 37^, 28, 
 26, 24, 21, 19, 17I, isi, I4i, 14, 14, 12, and 8^ lbs. You will 
 see that six average 26 lbs., and the whole above 19 lbs. each. 
 This was the most slaughtering day's fishing that I have ever 
 had or witnessed.' 
 
 A.D. 1867. — This year is marked by one sad memory for all 
 the visitors at Sprouston. Our simple-minded kindly-hearted 
 landlady passed to her eternal rest. I never knew a more 
 practical Christian, or one who in her humble sphere more 
 thoroughly won the esteem and regard of both rich and poor. 
 She was buried in the Kirkyard of Sprouston, where a simple 
 but well cut gravestone covers her remains. The inscription is 
 
 TO THE MEMORY OF 
 
 ANDREW PLUMMER JOHNSTON 
 
 WHO DIED SEPTEMBER 29, 1859, AGED 63 YEARS, 
 
 AND WAS BURIED AT ECKFORD. 
 
 AND OF 
 
 AGNES TROTTER, 
 
 HIS WIFE, 
 
 WHO DIED DECEMBER 21, 1867, AGED 76 YEARS. 
 
 This stone is erected in token of regard and esteem for their simple worth, 
 by several gentlemen who at various times were lodgers under their roof. 
 
254 Associations for Preserving the Wear. 
 
 A.D. 1868. — Upwards of thirty years had now elapsed since 
 the public, indignant at the persistent closing of Lumley Lock 
 on the river Wear, brought the tenant of the Earl of Scar- 
 borough to trial in the Courts of Durham. Mr. H. J. Marshall * 
 prosecuted the case with such vigour and skill that the man 
 Curry was convicted, and his nets burnt in front of the County 
 Courts, amid the loud acclamations of the populace. A wide- 
 spread agitation ensued, which culminated in a petition to the 
 Bishop of Durham that he would not again grant a lease of 
 the Lock and Fishery to Lord Scarborough, but would transfer 
 it to a body of gentlemen in trust for the public. This petition 
 was signed by nearly all the nobility and gentry of the county, 
 and under the advice of Mr. R. D. Gresley the Bishop kindly 
 granted its prayer. But little time elapsed ere, with Mr. 
 Gresley's approval, I took possession of the Lock, while Mr. 
 John Gowland and a band of navvies broke an opening in the 
 stonework sufficient to allow a free run from the sea for all fish 
 of the salmon kind. The Earl of Scarborough was so much 
 irritated at being thus deprived of a property which his family 
 had held for centuries under the Bishops of Durham, that he 
 ordered an action at law to be commenced against the Bishop. 
 Just as this had every appearance of becoming a cause celebre 
 the Earl of Scarborough died, and his successor declined to 
 prosecute it further. 
 
 A powerful association was formed at this time for the due 
 preservation of the river Wear from poachers, and also, so far 
 as the law would allow, for limiting the pollution of its waters. 
 The scheme was popularised by granting five-shilling tickets to 
 anglers, and the fact that during twenty years there were on 
 an average upwards of two hundred working men willing to 
 pay that sum for the sport thus afforded, sufficiently proved 
 
 * For upwards of twenty years Mr. H. J. Marshall acted as lawyer to the 
 association without charge or remuneration. 
 
A Remarkahle Day in the Wear. 255 
 
 that there were a great number of fish in the river. It would 
 be too long a tale to tell how the enormous increase of popu- 
 lation on the river banks, the pumping up of foul water from 
 coal pits, and above all the fatal ' hush ' from lead mines broke 
 down the scheme, and in the year 1873 the association was 
 dissolved by a unanimous vote of the members present at a 
 meeting at Bishop Auckland. The water preserved by the 
 association had been divided into two districts, the Western 
 and the Eastern, the former under the able guidance of the 
 Rev. G. P. Wilkinson of Harperley Park, the latter under my 
 superintendence. The association was happy in its choice of 
 secretaries ; first the late Mr. John Duncan, then Mr. Herbert 
 Robson, and lastly Mr. John Caldcleugh. All did their work 
 well, and at the final meeting in 1873 the highest eulogy was 
 oifered to Mr. Caldcleugh, accompanied by a handsome testi- 
 monial. 
 
 During many of these years there was a considerable supply 
 of bull trout in the river, but the capture of the true salmon 
 was a rare event. One of the best certified instances of salmon 
 being taken with rod and line occurred on February 27, 1868, 
 when Mr. Crawhall, of Durham, and my son Captain Henderson, 
 both too good judges to be mistaken, had an extraordinary 
 day's sport. They began soon after 1 1 a.m. in a stream a short 
 distance above Kepier Wood. The rod was taken by Mr. 
 Crawhall, who soon landed a grilse kelt of 5 lbs. weight, and a 
 baggit salmon of i S lbs. On this Mr. Crawhall returned home 
 and my son made his essay, capturing a bull trout of 3^ lbs., a 
 salmon trout of 6 lbs., and a small common trout. Mr. Craw- 
 hall then came back, and resuming the rod rose a large fish 
 near the place where he had landed the baggit ; this was pro- 
 bably the male fish in attendance. Altogether for the river 
 Wear this was a remarkable day. 
 
 A.D. 1869. — I have several times in this journal referred to 
 
256 
 
 Adventure With Eels. 
 
 adventures with eels, and on one occasion related how I saw a 
 number of them quit their proper element and climb water- 
 side plants in search of food. Tales have long been in circula- 
 tion as to eels also crossing wet meadows and migrating to 
 ponds or other waters, but it was not till the summer of this 
 year that the wandering habits of the tribe came under my 
 own notice. The Wark fishery has a ferry, and the boat is 
 commonly tended by a boy. Now we know boys to be animals 
 of prey, always ready to seize upon any living creature they 
 
 i^ 
 
 WARKWORTH CASTLE. 
 
 can lay hold of, especially if it be of an unusual character^ 
 During the height of summer the river was very low, and the 
 evenings were damp with heavy mists. Near to the course of 
 the boat lay an island, formed of gravel, which had much 
 increased in dimensions on account of the low state of the 
 river. To this spot the boy's attention was drawn by the 
 unusual spectacle of several eels gliding across the gravel as if 
 in search of food. The same thing took place on several 
 
May on the Banks of the Glen. 257 
 
 evenings, and the result was that the boy captured a consider- 
 able number of eels, many of them being of large size. 
 
 November 25. — My son commenced his fishing at 11 o'clock 
 on the south side of Sprouston Dub, under the guidance of 
 Charles Kerss. The water was in excellent order, but a heavy 
 rain made it clear that this would probably be the last day of 
 the season. Up to three o'clock, when a dog-cart arrived to 
 convey him to Old Bewick, scarcely a minute passed in which 
 he was not engaged with a fish. It seemed as if they could not 
 be quiet. No sooner was the fly cast upon the water than it was 
 seized, and the result was that within four hours he killed twelve 
 salmon, the aggregate weight of which was 190 lbs. At three 
 o'clock he transferred the rod to James Wright, who killed two 
 more fish weighing 39 lbs. ; thus there fell to one rod fourteen 
 fish, in all 229 lbs., within little more than five hours. This 
 was the best day's salmon fishing my son ever had, but a still 
 brighter future awaited him ; in the evening he made a more 
 important capture, the tidings of which spread a general hap- 
 piness through two families, previously united in feeling, but 
 henceforth by still stronger ties. 
 
 A.D. 1870. — The 'Sovereignty of May,' to which Words- 
 worth pays such devoted allegiance, is acknowledged by all, 
 but specially by the angler. His close intercourse with nature 
 makes him feel all the charm of this ' Season of fancy and of 
 hope ' — he enters fully into the poet's exclamation : 
 
 Lo ! streams that April could not check 
 
 Are patient of thy rule ; 
 Gurgling in foamy water-break, 
 
 Loitering in glassy pool. 
 
 Nothing can be more delightful than to ramble in May by the 
 side of one of our little Border rivers. The grass at this season 
 is green, and well studded with primroses, while the young 
 leaves upon the trees avail to shelter the fishers from the sun's 
 rays. The trout are now fat with feeding on the myriads of 
 s 
 
Minnow -Fishing for Trout. 
 
 flies which float upon the water, without having yet attained 
 the lazy apathy which in June makes them indifferent to any 
 bait less solid than a goodly worm. During this season my 
 fishings at Wooler were chiefly in the Glen above and below 
 Akeld Bridge ; and being in delicate health it occurred to me 
 that it would be best to fish in the morning and evening, and 
 rest during the afternoon. Every morning's sport with fly 
 produced about two dozen trout before I returned to the 
 cottage at one o'clock. Then driving to the river-side about 
 five P.M., I used to begin at the highest point up the stretch of 
 water which I meant to fish, putting on a set of minnow tackle. 
 
 Up to this time I had seldom fished with minnow, but I 
 determined to give that system a fair trial during this visit to 
 the Glen. The water was quite clear and rather low, but there 
 was generally a wind which curled the surface of the Dubs and 
 made the sport in them almost as good as in the streams. 
 Taking the finest tackle and the smallest minnows I cast a long 
 line, allowing the bait to fall close to the farther edge of the 
 river, and playing it in a semicircle towards the bank from 
 which I fished. Repeated trials convinced me that this plan 
 was far better than that of deliberately playing the minnow 
 against the stream. The fish, supposing that the minnow was 
 crossing the river to take shelter in the grass at the other side, 
 naturally concluded that they had no time to lose, and there- 
 fore rushed at the decoy with such force that I generally 
 succeeded in hooking them. Fishing in this manner I had 
 charming sport every evening. Eight o'clock used to find me 
 again on my way ' to take mine ease in my inn,' and almost 
 always with two dozen good-sized trout in my basket. 
 
 There was now scarcely a year in which, independently of 
 other rivers, I did not, through the kindness of Mr. Langlands, 
 obtain fishing in that part of the Till preserved by Mr. Cress- 
 well. There occurred my latest, and I trust my final adventure 
 
My Last Adventure with a Bull. 259 
 
 with a bull. The scene was near the wooden structure named 
 the Church Bridge, which spans the Till about a mile below 
 Bewick Bridge. At a distance varying from ten to twelve 
 yards, a high hedge ran parallel with the stream, the inter- 
 mediate Haugh being used for the grazing of cattle. About 
 midday I heard at a little distance the bellowing of a bull, 
 mingled with the shouts of men and yelping of dogs, and soon 
 after the infuriated beast rushed upon the scene, bursting 
 through the hedge and galloping straight towards my unfor- 
 tunate self. On one side lay the river, too deep to ford, on the 
 other was a hedge too thick for me to attempt to get through. 
 Now to stand in the path of a bull in such mad career de- 
 manded more valour than I just then possessed, so casting all 
 pride to the winds I sprang down the river bank and drew 
 myself up into the smallest possible compass under the bushes. 
 On went the bull and on went his pursuers, till, bellowing, 
 shouting, and yelping, all were lost in the distance. Rejoicing 
 i>n my belief that I had seen the last of the brute I crept from 
 my shelter and recommenced fishing, when suddenly I heai'd 
 him returning at mad speed up the adjoining field. He was 
 retracing his former course, only just beyond the hedge. At 
 that moment a herd-boy, named Tom TuUey, came in sight, 
 carrying my luncheon on his shoulders, and attracted by the 
 noise he rushed to the hedge to see what was going on. Here 
 was an object on which the bull might expend his wrath, and 
 accordingly with a horrid bellow he rushed towards the 
 unhappy Tom. But young though he might be, Tom Tulley 
 was a hero born, not unworthy of his Northern descent. In- 
 stead of quailing before the monster, he drew from the hedge 
 a stout wooden stake, and as the creature rose on his legs to 
 burst through the hedge the boy brought the stake down on 
 his head with force enough to sober even a bull. Still the 
 struggle went on. The bull persisted in his attempt to get 
 s 3 
 
j6o 
 
 Tom Tulley to the Rescue. 
 
 through the hedge, but Tom from his post of vantage rained 
 such a storm of blows upon his head that the beast was fairly 
 cowed, and shaking himself went off in another direction. 
 
 I turned to my young hero, who, panting from his exertion, 
 gasped out with much satisfaction, 'Aw did yark his heed 
 weel ! ' and I believe he did not over estimate the yarking. 
 Down we sat on the lovely grassy bank bespread with flowers 
 to enjoy the luncheon of which Tom had certainly earned his 
 share. The midday sun filled the air with the hum of myriads 
 of insects, and solaced by my pipe I felt at peace with all the 
 world, when suddenly Tom shouted, ' Here he is again ! ' and 
 true enough not two hundred yards off appeared the beast in 
 wild career making straight for us. This was really too trying ! 
 To be baited by a furious bull three times within an hour was 
 not'to be borne. Happily Tom and I were just able to betake 
 ourselves to the wooden bridge, and when we had mounted 
 the short ladder which led to it we felt ourselves safe. With 
 glaring eyes and foaming mouth, he rushed up, but he saw in 
 an instant that he was powerless to reach us and so went on 
 his way. For myself, heartily sick of bulls and baitings, I 
 walked for a mile in a contrary direction before I recommenced 
 my fishing. 
 
CHAPTER XXIII. 
 
 ' Fishing, if I, a fisher, may protest 
 Of pleasures is the sweetest, sports the best, 
 Of exercises the most excellent. 
 Of recreations the most innocent. 
 But now the sport is marred ; — and wot ye why ? 
 Fishes decrease and fishers multiply.' — From ' Chrestoleros.' 
 
 During the autumn of 1872 the Wear Fishing Association 
 again invited Her Majesty's Salmon Fishing Commissioners to 
 visit Weardale, and thus to ascertain what attempts had been 
 made to obviate the ill effects of the frequent ' hushes ' which, 
 issuing from the lead mines of the district, have so evil an 
 
263 Links with the Past. 
 
 effect upon fish and insect life. The Commissioners were Mr. 
 Frank Buckland and Mr. Walpole. These gentlemen, together 
 with the Rev. George P. Wilkinson of Harperley Park and 
 myself, inspected several mines, the impression left on our 
 minds being that of the many pollutions which defile our 
 rivers those from lead mines are the most difficult to deal with. 
 
 Near the village of Stanhope our party separated, and a 
 thunderstorm soon compelled Mr. Buckland and myself to 
 seek shelter in the village inn. Few men are more fertile in 
 subjects of conversation than my companion, and among 
 others we were soon deep in that of longevity. Mr. Buckland 
 told me that his father, the well-known Dean of Westminster, 
 had taken him when a lad to see Doctor Routh, the President 
 of Magdalen College, Oxford. They found the venerable old 
 man seated in his library, wearing his College cap, his Doctor's 
 robes and a wig, the gown looking almost as ancient as its 
 wearer. Placing his hand on the boy's head, the Doctor said, 
 ' Remember, my little fellow, when you are an old man, that 
 you have talked to one who *has seen an old woman, who had 
 seen King Charles II. at Oxford with his spaniel dogs.' King 
 Charles died in 1685, thus there were only two persons in the 
 chain which connected Mr. Buckland with the merry monarch 
 and his spaniels of 187 years before. 
 
 One story commonly leads to another, and so my kindred 
 tale was told. When a boy I frequently sat on my grand- 
 mother's knee, as pleased to listen to stories of other days as she 
 to relate them. One of these was about a body of Scottish 
 rebels on their retreat from Derby in 174S, whom she had seen 
 when a little child. My great-grandmother, who lived in an 
 isolated country house in the western part of the county of 
 Durham, one day suddenly observed a considerable number of 
 Highlanders standing in the garden. Many were wounded, all 
 in miserable plight and unable to travel. No words were 
 
A Remarkable Capture. 263 
 
 needed to draw forth the charity of a tender-hearted woman. 
 The men were plainly starving, and her husband being absent 
 she at once ordered a good supply of bread, cheese, and beer to 
 be brought out upon the lawn. The poor fellows ate with 
 fearful voracity, famished as they were, and when their hostess 
 with her little girl by her side pressed them to stow what food 
 remained in their tartan plaids, they fairly broke down, and 
 falling on their knees prayed for a blessing on the good lady 
 and all her house ere they went their way. Alas ! these high- 
 souled if mistaken men received very different treatment from 
 the Calvinistic Lowlanders on their passage to the Highlands. 
 
 I write this little record a.d. 1875, and thus 130 years have 
 elapsed since my own grandmother beheld the sorrowful scene. 
 
 A.D. 1873. March 31. — This day was signalised by the cap- 
 ture of a fish under singular circumstances. Accompanied by 
 the boatman Charles Kerss, I began fishing the top of the 
 Butterwash stream about 11 a.m., and had made a few casts 
 when a rise of a vigorous character announced that I had 
 hooked a fresh-run salmon. The fish was thoroughly game, 
 and before I could succeed in checking his wild career he had 
 run out fully ninety yards of line, i.e. nearly all I had. But 
 time and patience gained the victory, and he soon lay on the 
 river bank, as beautiful a fish of 12 lbs. weight as angler's eye 
 could delight in. We then dropped a little farther down the 
 stream and recommenced fishing. Almost immediately a fish 
 rose, but so shyly that he altogether missed the fly, and I 
 remarked to the boatman that we must vex him till he did 
 take it in earnest. Three more throws and he came with an 
 eager rush, making the water fly before him, A gentle twitch 
 of the rod assured me that he was fast hooked ; ten minutes 
 more and he also rested on the bank, a fish of 15 lbs. 
 
 Here I must explain that, the river being clear and some- 
 what low, I was angling with two flies each dressed on double 
 
264 Mr. P. S. Wilkinson's Notes. 
 
 hooks, and these planted about four feet apart on the line : the 
 lower one a ' Jock Scott,' and the upper, or Bob, a small ' Dun 
 Turkey.' On looking for these we found that both flies were 
 fairly imbedded in the flesh far back in the mouth, while the 
 four feet of casting line lay circled in the same cavity ! The 
 line, when the fish was hooked was hanging straight down a 
 strong running stream ; there was no eddy to allow of the fly's 
 coming in proximity : beyond all doubt when taken, the flies 
 were four feet apart. Strange as it may seem, I can only 
 suppose that the fish came at them up stream with a wide 
 open mouth and with such a rush that he as it were at once 
 took both flies and the four feet of line, and that the hooks 
 being double were readily implanted in the flesh. The line 
 was not for one moment slackened during the run, so that all 
 idea of the fish having taken one fly first and then the other at 
 his leisure during the struggle must be given up. I have 
 known many extraordinary takes, but none more so than that 
 of this impetuous salmon. 
 
 Eight days later than this memorable adventure, Mr. P. S. 
 Wilkinson met with an in stance of unexpected success, some- 
 what similar to Mr. W. Greenwell's feat in the Butterwash in 
 1866. I copy the account from Mr. Wilkinson's diary. 
 
 ' By the 7th of April the water had fallen to an extremely 
 low state, and I was told by Charles Kerss on my arrival at 
 Sprouston that the water had been so constantly fished for 
 several weeks that there was no chance of sport until a spate 
 should come to move the fish to new quarters ; he also advised 
 me to try as great a change of flies as possible, since those 
 which had been lately used on the water much resembled my 
 favourite pattern. On that day I did try such varieties as I 
 had on the lower water, and had merely such moderate sport 
 as I had been led to expect. The 8th was a fine April day, 
 with a breeze from the East which made a nice curl as it blew 
 
Mr. P. S, Wilkinson's Notes. 265 
 
 up the water, and I resolved to give my " Silver Belle " the 
 first chance on the upper water. As we rowed from the Boat- 
 house up to Sharpitlaw Mill I tried a short shallow cast known 
 as "The Ford," and to the great surprise of my boatman, 
 Robert Kerss, I hooked and landed three fish. On reaching 
 the mill the sport began in earnest, and in the few yards of 
 water that constitute that cast I landed nine more fish. 
 
 'It is very possible that still further success might have 
 resulted had I stuck to this favourite spot, but unluckily it 
 occurred to us that the breeze might suit the Rosebank cast 
 and we expended nearly two hours in a journey there and 
 back — a fruitless journey, for the breeze did not touch the 
 water there, and every rock at the bottom was clearly visible. 
 On the way back I landed a fish from the stream above 
 "The Grain," making up the number to thirteen salmon. 
 There were only two spring fish among them, but the kelts 
 were the best mended I ever saw, and it was seldom that we 
 could be sure of their quality before they were on shore, and 
 even then it cost Robert many a pang to return several of 
 them to the water, for they looked as well shaped as clean fish. 
 
 ' Nine of the thirteen were taken with the " Silver Belle," and 
 it is noteworthy that I landed every fish that I hooked. One 
 large fish broke through the landing-net and fell back into the 
 river, and I was obliged to make the rod follow it through the 
 hole in the net and then play the fish until the hole was 
 tied up. It is not very common in so large a take to land 
 every fish that takes the fly, but I think an incident that 
 occurred to me many years ago was yet more curious. I was 
 fishing in the Ness before breakfast in low clear water, when 
 fish were very scarce, and just raised four grilse, none of which 
 took the fly, and yet I landed them all. Two of them were 
 hooked outside the mouth, and two in the body.' 
 
 It was my evil fortune not to be able to visit the Tweed 
 
266 Mr. P. S. Wilkinson's Notes. 
 
 during the autumn of this year, and thus I missed the best 
 chance of sport which has occurred through my whole fishing 
 experience. The results of this season were so memorable that 
 with the kind permission of Mr. P. S. Wilkinson, I again avail 
 myself of his memoranda. In answer to my enquiries he 
 writes as follows : — 
 
 ' In November I had two days at Carham and one at Lees, 
 which take high rank among my successful days. Having 
 heard that the Tweed was in flood I telegraphed for informa- 
 tion, and so just missed the express the day before, but arrived 
 much after time at Carham by the mail on the nth, the 
 boatman Sligh had given me up, and I lost much time in 
 seeking for him, so that it was past twelve o'clock when I 
 began to fish. The water was still so high that it seemed very 
 doubtful whether there was any chance of sport. I only fished 
 the rocky streams opposite the Hall, and before 4 p.m. had 
 hooked twelve fish, of which, however, I only landed seven, an 
 eighth being lost just at the net by fouling the line round a 
 sunken snag. I found on arriving at Kelso at night that no 
 one had been successful that day, except one rod at Floors. 
 There was on that night a very hard white fi^ost, and on the 
 morning of the 12th the ground was as white as if covered with 
 snow, while the air was still raw and full of fogbanks. It 
 seemed as if sport on such a day was impossible, especially as 
 the water was still a very full size. I began, however, to fish at 
 a shallow stream at the top of the lower water, and there killed 
 five grilse before I raised a salmon. I then got two salmon 
 a few yards farther down, but found the other water too full, 
 till I got down to the streams I had fished the day before. 
 Here I killed eight more fish, and wasted the rest of the day- 
 light in fishing the still water down to the ' Snipe,' where I only 
 killed one more fish, making a total of sixteen fish = 275 ibs. I 
 hooked seventeen altogether. Nearly all these were very 
 
Mr. P. S. Wilkinson's Notes. 
 
 267 
 
 handsome fish, and thirteen were taken on a fly, the " Silver 
 Belle;." which I had tied the night before. On the 14th I fished 
 at Lees. The Temple Pool was in good order and swarming 
 with fish, but dead calm, as what little air there was came from 
 E.N.E. However, I did fish the Temple over, and killed two 
 fish in the dead still water. Most of the streams were much 
 too full to fish, and I was therefore limited to little more 
 
 NORHAM CASTLE. 
 
 than a hundred yards of water above the Dedda Mouth. By 
 carefully working this I gradually picked up eight more fish, 
 only losing one that was hooked, and making a total of ten 
 fish = 177 lbs. 
 
 ' These two days and a half produced thirty-three fish = 
 553 lbs. ; and during the few day's that I fished in this season 
 
268 The Season of 1873. 
 
 I had the best day's spring fishing and the best and the third 
 best autumn days I have ever had. 
 
 ' The autumn season of 1873 was by far the most remarkable 
 known to the present generation, and quite eclipsed that of 
 1862. In the latter year there was no fishing until quite the 
 end of October, and after the first week in November the sport 
 was not regularly sustained in most waters. In 1873 the great 
 takes began before the middle of October, and continued 
 almost without a check till the end of the month over the 
 whole range of water from Clovenford to Coldstream. Sport 
 equal to what I have described in my own case, and sometimes 
 greater, was everywhere the order of the day, and no doubt 
 many great takes were never made public. There was a rather 
 slack time early in November, but after a large flood on the 7th 
 had subsided the sport continued on an equal, and in some 
 instances even increasing scale until the 29th, when a flood 
 ended the season which had afforded at least five weeks first- 
 rate sport ; but of the very incomplete accounts that reached 
 " The Field," I select a few to show the general character of 
 the takes. 
 
 ' In the third week in October Birgham water gave to three 
 rods 120 fish; Makerstoun to two rods eighty-six fish; the 
 Pavilion to two rods eighty-eight fish ; showing that all over 
 the water about forty fish to a rod was the produce of the week. 
 During the same week at Sprouston Dub, Mr. Burnless, of 
 London, took in one day sixteen fish (thirteen salmon and three 
 grilse) which weighed 332 lbs. 
 
 ' In the fourth week of November on Floors water, in one 
 day, Mr. Grogan took sixteen fish, and then from the same 
 boat Mr. McCall took four more. These twenty fish weighed 
 364 lbs. 
 
 ' About the same time Mr. Griffin on Sprouston Dub made 
 the great day of the season, landing twenty-one fish (fourteen 
 
Great Success. 26.9 
 
 salmon and seven grilse). These fish were bled as they were 
 landed, yet they weighed at night 361 lbs., and were estimated 
 to have weighed when taken 370 lbs. On several occasions 
 during this season sixteen fish were taken in a day by one rod, 
 and Mr. Denison told me that at Makerstoun both Mr. Malcolm 
 and himself had taken that number in a day, the weight being 
 between 270 and 280 Hbs. The one feature that made my 
 sport remarkable in such a season as this, was that it occurred 
 before the November flood had subsided, and when hardly 
 anyone else had sport, whereas the other takes I have recorded 
 were made when sport of the same quality was universal. 
 
 'I would call attention to the remarkably high average 
 weight of the salmon taken by Mr. Burnless, thirteen salmon 
 and three grilse weighing 332 fts. Allowing the liberal weight 
 of 25 lbs. for the three grilse, this leaves an average of nearly 
 24 ft)s. for the thirteen salmon ! an exploit quite unprece- 
 dented.' 
 
 Some few years before the occurrence of the following inci- 
 dent (I cannot say how many) I fished the rivers Cale, Teviot, 
 and Tweed in company with Mr. C. Bramwell, and our sport 
 was on the whole very satisfactory. But wherever we went it 
 appeared that two anglers had preceded us, whose worm fishing 
 had produced such enormous baskets as to cause a sort of 
 general consternation all around. The tales told of fish cap- 
 tured were so marvellous that we made special enquiries 
 respecting these successful anglers,- but they had said so little 
 of themselves that many days elapsed before we were able to 
 identify them as my friend Mr. George Crawhall, of Durham, 
 and his brother, Mr. Joseph Crawhall, of Newcastle. I am 
 unable to give any record of their wondrous feats, but happily, 
 through the kindness of the former gentleman, I can give in 
 his own words the particulars of a curious incident which 
 befel him in the year 1874. 
 
270 Mr. George Crawhall and Hohhie. 
 
 ' On one of our most beautiful Lowland Lochs, where during 
 the earlier spring months it has been my wont to spend 
 several weeks in angling, lived a solitary swan, a fierce, 
 irascible, cantankerous old bachelor, who had been sent into 
 exile from a neighbouring nobleman's park on account of his 
 pugnacious disposition and bullying propensities. Nay, if 
 report spoke truth, he had been guilty of the murder of more 
 than one of his more peaceable brethren. On a small island 
 in the loch, closely overgrown with " saugh bushes," and 
 separated from the shore by a narrow rush-grown marsh some 
 two feet in depth, this " warrior hermit " had taken up his 
 abode, and built himself a nest, trusting, it may be, that the 
 good Fairy of the lake would in due time send him a wife. 
 This nest he jealously guarded from all intruders, rushing 
 savagely out and flapping along the water open-mouthed with 
 feathers on end at the approach of any passing angler. Such 
 a tyrant was he that most people were glad to give him a wide 
 berth, few caring to try conclusions with him. At the back of 
 this island lay a famous feeding bank where big trout loved to 
 congregate, lazily sucking down the flies blown from the 
 bushes ; a sure catch, should Master Hobbie (for that was the 
 swan's name) permit you to fish it unmolested. 
 
 ' It was a beautiful April morning ; a good west wind was 
 raising a fine curl on the loch, and the trout were rising freely. 
 I had wandered on till I neared the island, when forth charged 
 Hobbie, looking more terrible and imposing than ever. The 
 sport was so good that I determined not to be daunted, but, 
 swan or no swan, to fish the back of the island. Accordingly 
 I roared at him and tried to drive him off, but in vain, for as I 
 progressed he swam on most pertinaciously with ruffled feathers 
 and angry eyes, close to me, in fact between myself and the 
 cast. To fish under such circumstances was impossible, and 
 , my temper, at times none of the best, was sorely tried. Pushing 
 
Hobble Vanquished. 271 
 
 on I waded through the marsh and stood upon the island, 
 still attended by the angry bird, who cared neither for the 
 stones or the left-handed blessings I hurled at him. I managed 
 to get to the point of the island, while the bird swam round 
 the marsh behind the bushes where his nest was placed, and 
 for a while was lost to sight. 
 
 * Now was my time for fishing. Out swept the flies and I 
 was soon fast in a good fish, congratulating myself on having 
 driven off my persecutor, when all at once I was made aware 
 of his presence by a vicious drive with his beak at my coat 
 tails. He had left the water, and waddled up stealthily behind 
 me to reilew the attack. Quick as thought I seized his long 
 neck with my left hand, and a sharp scrimmage began, the 
 powerful bird buffeting away with his wings, sending the 
 shallow water flying in all directions, and altogether proving 
 himself " an ugly customer." There was nothing for it but to 
 force his head down, which I did, and laying down my rod, 
 placed my knee between his shoulders and fairly pinned him to 
 the earth. 
 
 'My adversary was powerless now, but what was I to do 
 with him now that I had got him fast ? At a little distance 
 stood a cottage, so gathering in the great wings I got the bird 
 under my arm, taking care never to relinquish hold of his 
 neck, for he was still making savage though ineffectual drives 
 with his bill, and so I carried him off to the cottage. 
 
 ' There are few cottages in this pastoral district without a 
 " bit of kiel " used for marking sheep, and this was readily 
 furnished me, the inmates lending willing hands to rub it 
 down, for my captive was no favourite in the neighbourhood. 
 In a very short time Master Hobble's hitherto immaculate 
 plumage was exchanged for a beautiful red, much to his own 
 bewilderment. More kiel was applied, and ruddier and ruddier 
 grew the neck of the now screaming and terrified bird, till at 
 
272 Anglers Lovers of Nature. 
 
 last his own mother would not have recognised him. Then 
 we permitted him to waddle down as best he could to the 
 lochside, a little vixen of a terrier squeaking at his heels to 
 hurry him on his way. His retreat was anything but dignified, 
 for the dog kept harrassing him in the rear with keen enjoy- 
 ment of the fun, while the uneven ground tumbled him over 
 many a time, and we laughed long and loud at our enemy's 
 discomfiture. The lesson was not lost upon him, and many a 
 good trout from the back of the island subsequently found its 
 way into my creel, not altogether without protest, for Hobbie 
 did make occasional charges,- but remembering no doubt the 
 kiel he always kept a respectful distance. The tyrant was 
 vanquished.' 
 
 Anglers have, I believe, generally been ardent admirers of 
 the beauties of nature. Izaac Walton's pages show how im- 
 possible it is for a man of observation and feeling to pass hour 
 after hour in quiet spots sometimes of exceeding loveliness 
 without being attuned by them and moulded into harmony 
 with them. A yet earlier writer, Dennys, ' the first angling 
 poet,' speaks warmly of the enjoyment he derived from the 
 scenes in which he practised his art ! 
 
 Let them that list these pastimes then pursue 
 And on their pleasing fancies feed their fill ; 
 So I the fields and meadows green may view, 
 And by the rivers fresh may walk at will, 
 Among the Daisies and the Violets blue, 
 Red Hyacinth and yellow Daffodill, 
 Purple Narcissus like the morning rayes, 
 ' Pale Ganderglas and azor Culverkayes. 
 
 Few scenes offer so great a variety as a running stream, and 
 
 still fewer are so well calculated to fill the heart with gratitude 
 
 for being brought into such close communion with the Maker 
 
 and Preserver of all things. I have related much of happy 
 
 days passed with dear friends by Glen and Coquet, Teviot and 
 
 Tweed, and the very name of those rivers recalls many a face 
 
Old Tinibertoes. 273 
 
 fondly cherished by memory, but never more to be seen in 
 this world. But stepping beyond this inner circle, I have 
 made many acquaintances by the riverside of whom I still 
 think with pleasure, and that from every grade of society. 
 Angling is in its way a leveller, and intimacies often spring up 
 whose basis is simply piscatorial. It were an ' ow'r long tale ' 
 to tell how I fraternised with the old soldier, who having lost 
 his right arm in his country's service used his left to such good 
 purpose that few could throw so fine a fly ; or how day by day 
 I sought the companionship of the village postman, who, driven 
 by a penurious Government to eke out the scanty pittance he 
 received, shouldered his creel between his hours of duty, and 
 rarely failed to bring a welcome addition to the evening meal 
 he had so well earned. Happily in many districts the riverside 
 is still a free territory, where persons incapable of hard labour 
 may pass their time pleasantly and earn something towards a 
 living. 
 
 On a cold day in the month of April, while fishing for salmon 
 in the Tweed, I once observed a man trouting in a sharp 
 running stream. He lingered there so long that my attention 
 was drawn to him, and seeing that he was without wading 
 boots, I enquired of the boatman how it was possible for a man 
 to remain so long in cold running water. ' Oh, that's old 
 Timbertoes,' was the reply. ' No fear of his feeling the cold. 
 There's nothing like a pair of wooden legs for warmth. But 
 that's not the best of it ; look close, and ye'll see he has gotten 
 a third leg which he claps on to his tail and sits down as cozy 
 as if he were in the chimney neuk.' So the mystery was 
 explained ; seated on his wooden tripod, the old fellow fished 
 at his ease and drew the trout towards him in true epicurean 
 style. 
 
 Let me here mention that I once had an excellent oppor- 
 tunity of watching the wonderful success of William Ranken, 
 T 
 
274 The Blind Fisherman of St. BoswelVs. 
 
 the blind fisherman of St. Boswell's. The month was June 
 and the locality a beautiful stream not far from Mertoun 
 Bridge. The sun had long set, and as the darkness prevented 
 me from distinguishing my flies any longer I was in the act of 
 leaving the river when a young man came down from the 
 village and began to put on his fishing tackle. He did this 
 with as much speed as is usual with anglers, though it soon 
 became evident that he was quite blind. It promised to be 
 too dark for what is ordinarily termed ' night-fishing,' but my 
 curiosity was excited, and I determined to wait and see what 
 would come next. 
 
 Presently the young man walked to the edge of the stream, 
 and choosing the most suitable place waded as far into the 
 water as could be done with safety. Here casting his flies 
 exactly by the edge of the main current, he began playing 
 them with that peculiar motion which bespoke him at once to 
 be a master of the art. It was not long ere he basketed a 
 goodly trout, and then he pursued his course steadily down- 
 ward, taking fish after fish of a size that might excite the envy 
 of an angler accustomed to labour under day's garish eye. 
 
 Every now and then the blind man's large water dog circled 
 close round him, and I noticed that on each occasion he paused 
 or took a step backwards. It was evident that the dog watched 
 affectionately over his master's safety, and was accustomed to 
 give him timely notice of danger. 
 
 A thick fog had now gathered over the bosom of the stream, 
 such as under ordinary circumstances would have driven me 
 homewards, but there was a fascination in the scene which was 
 irresistible to me, and I stood a long time on the river bank, 
 listening to the slight noise the fisherman caused now and then 
 in the water, and to the constant spattering of the trout on its 
 surface as he drew them reluctantly to his feet. 
 
 The picture was a strange and weird one ; that solitary 
 
Major Beckmith. 275 
 
 fisherman, shut out for ever from the light of heaven, steadily 
 pursuing his path far in the deep flowing Tweed, with no 
 earthly help at hand in case of need except his faithful dog ; 
 and as all sound of him died away in the distance I could not 
 but reflect on the mercies of Him who, while shutting off from 
 his servant the glories of light, had granted him an intensity of 
 perfection in the senses of hearing and feeling which went far 
 towards supplying the lost blessing. Henceforth I have asso- 
 ciated the blind fisherman of St. Boswell's with the blind 
 naturalist whom Wordsworth commemorates in ' The Excur- 
 sion,' each affording proof 
 
 . . . that faculties which seem 
 Extinguished, do not, therefore cease to be, 
 But to the mind among her powers of sense 
 This transfer is permitted, — not alone 
 That the bereft may win their recompense 
 But for remoter pturposes of love. 
 And charity. 
 
 I have since been told that the blind angler not only made 
 his own flies, but made them well. It is certain that, during 
 many years after the scene I have described, he passed much 
 of his time in making fishing rods, which were justly prized 
 for their excellence and neat workmanship. 
 
 Another instance of the ruling passion surmounting difficul- 
 ties came before me while fishing in the Bowmont. I was 
 astonished one day to see immediately in front of my position 
 a very aged man seated on a pony, which a servant was leading 
 in the water while his master fished for trout. This old 
 gentleman was Major Beckwith. He was then quite blind, 
 and dependent on his companion's signal when to strike the 
 fish. After this I found the veteran angler on the Tweed, 
 fishing for salmon and capturing them too. 
 
 I have still one more case to adduce of angling combined 
 with blindness. A few years ago, on entering the public room 
 T 2 
 
276 Mr. Culley and Ganningan. 
 
 of the Cross Keys Hotel, Kelso, in company with Dr. Holden, 
 we found a gentleman there whose blindness was at once 
 apparent. We entered into conversation, and Dr. Holden 
 recognised in the stranger the eminent statesman Professor 
 Fawcett. He had taken a fancy to try salmon-fishing, and 
 had just had his first day under the guidance of the Duke 
 of Roxburgh's fisherman. He had, if I remember rightly, 
 killed two salmon, and was in high spirits about it. Since 
 then I believe he has had more practice, and has achieved 
 considerable success. 
 
 Quaint old humourists too are from time to time to be met 
 with by the riverside, and add no little spice to the day's 
 enjoyment. Mr. Culley tells me of an amusing conversation 
 he held on the banks of Till with a resident of Wooler, who, 
 save that he was Irish instead of Scotch, might have stood for 
 Long Bob in Mr. Francis' amusing book ' By Lake and River.' 
 ' I was giving him some fishing tackle,' writes Mr. Culley, 
 ' when he told me he had lately lost a fishing-book for which 
 he would not have taken ten shillings.' ' How was that, 
 Ganningan ? ' quoth I. ' Well, your honour, I was kind o' 
 drunk.' ' Drunk, Ganningan ! that wasn't quite right.' ' Och, 
 your honour, and I'm often drunk.' ' That is a pity, Gan- 
 ningan ; now did you ever see me drunk ? ' ' No, your honour, 
 sure and I never did. But sure it's your honour can afford it 
 better than I can.' 
 
CHAPTER XXIV. 
 
 ' To-morrow to fresh woods and pastures new.' — Milton. 
 
 ' I have fished in the Coquet sae clear, 
 
 The Brownie, the Breamish an Reed, 
 I have tried the Cale, Wansbeck and Wear, 
 
 And tickled the trout o' the Tweed. 
 I have roved on the braes o' famed Garrow, 
 
 I have traversed the Teviot and Tay, 
 Thrawn the fiie in the Dee an' the Devon. 
 
 And — mony a stream far away.' — R. RoxBy. 
 
 The remaining pages of these fishing notes describe some 
 attempts I made to bring my English experience to bear upon 
 the trout of the Continent. If my descriptions appear more 
 than usually prolix, let me allege by way of excuse that the 
 fishing was in localities not frequently described, and that it 
 was the charm of novelty which prompted me to write at some 
 length the letters to my children which are subjoined. 
 
278 Our Hotel. 
 
 'Das Rothe Haus, Treves, May ii, 1874. 
 
 Arriving here at last with my wife and two daughters after 
 a long journey from Brussels, we enjoy the quiet of this 
 ancient city, and love to wander among the massive ruins of 
 the buildings from which for centuries conquering Rome 
 governed Spain, Gaul, Germany, and Britain. To walk through 
 the halls from whence Constantine issued his decrees, and the 
 edijSce, now a church, in which his mother St. Helena lived ; 
 to stand on the grand gateway of the city 90 feet in height 
 and capable of housing 1,000 soldiers ; to gaze upon the piers, 
 still perfect, of the bridge, which existed B.C. 28 ; — all this calls 
 forth thoughts evoked nowhere else ; it is like living among 
 the ancient Romans. 
 
 Treves abounds in interesting ecclesiastical buildings dating 
 from the fourth to the eighteenth centuries, but these took 
 small hold of my mind, which was absorbed in the grandeur 
 of the wonderful structures which preceded them. The city 
 stands in a broad flat valley of exuberant richness and fertility. 
 Even at this early season it teems with crops of grasses, cereals, 
 and roots, many of them little cultivated in England, but 
 important here as furnishing fresh daily supplies for the cattle, 
 which are all stall-fed. The valley is surrounded by somewhat 
 abrupt hills, rising from 800 to 1,000 feet. They are very 
 picturesque, varied as they are with rocks of a bright ruddy 
 colour, and dotted over with fruit and forest trees, interspersed 
 with small patches of spade cultivation, and vineyards pro- 
 ducing wines which are prized at our English tables. 
 
 Our hotel is one of the most ancient dwellings in Trfeves. 
 The exact date is unknown, but it cannot be less than four to 
 five hundred years old. It is four storeys high, besides three 
 more storeys in the high-pitched roof. Everything is charm- 
 ingly mediaeval, both within and without. Outside there are 
 many figures of saints and knights in armour ; it is battlemented 
 
The So-called Last Stuart. 279 
 
 and coloured red, from whence the name ' Das Rothe Haus.' 
 There are two courtyards, into which many of the windows 
 look, and the upper storeys have open galleries of great length, 
 whence doubtless in former days many a fair lady looked down 
 on the armed knights below going out or returning from the 
 endless strifes and struggles of four or five centuries ago. And 
 a room is pointed out as that in which some years ago the last 
 of the Stuarts died after receiving a mortal wound in a duel. 
 Who this individual was I have failed to discover. He was 
 not the only person who asserted himself to be the last of that 
 noble but ill-fated race. I have seen one such claimant myself, 
 and was much impressed by his strong likeness to the portraits 
 of the ancestors he called his own. And I am assured that 
 there are yet plenty of Stuarts in the world who can trace 
 their descent to the royal James of Scotland. 
 
 After spending two days in these charming quarters, my 
 mind turned to the chance of procuring some trout-fishing, 
 and by dint of questioning our good-natured landlord I elicited 
 from him that there was a stream twenty miles off much 
 esteemed for its trout. It bore the seductive name of the 
 Kyll, and the village nearest to the scene of operation, that of 
 Kyllberg. Next I had to provide myself with a guide and 
 interpreter, my acquaintaince with the German language being 
 of the most limited character. Herr Becker murmured some- 
 thing about the ' very man,' went out and returned with a 
 little grinning Frenchman, whose demonstrative politeness 
 would have been in keeping with the Paris Boulevards. It 
 appeared that there were but two ' really suitable men' for my 
 purpose in Treves, an Irish cobbler and the Frenchman now 
 before me ; that the Irishman could not speak German, and 
 that the Frenchman was equally innocent of English. Now 
 as I wanted a guide for the express purpose of translating my 
 English into the German spoken by the burgomaster, inn 
 
28o My French Guide 
 
 keeper, and others at Kyllberg, the situation was embarrassing 
 enough. At last impertinent doubts suggested themselves as 
 to Paddy having possibly ' left his country for his country's 
 good,' and the Frenchman being in presence, and doing his 
 best to bow and grin himself into favour, gained the day. I 
 at once instructed him to procure some worms, giving him the 
 best description I could as to kind and size. Towards evening 
 the man re-entered our room with a proud confident look, and 
 presented me with an ink bottle, his whole manner plainly 
 saying, ' Ah ! the Irishman could have done nothing like 
 this.' A glance at the bottle showed me a score of as 
 unsightly worms as I had ever beheld ; hideous creatures of 
 every shade of green and yellow, crawling and slobbering 
 about in the water he had poured upon them. In vain the 
 ladies tried to explain to him that these were not the kind 
 required, and that worms died when placed in water ; he only 
 repeated that they were Men magnifique, as he walked up and 
 down and grinned in such a way as to prove his supreme self- 
 satisfaction. By this time we were in fits of laughter, but the 
 little man only took this as a personal compliment, and it was 
 some time before we could make him understand that he must 
 go and dig for worms of a different kind, and bring them in 
 their native earth. Late at night he came with a better 
 sample, and arrangements were made for starting next morn- 
 ing by the 8.30 train for Kyllberg. 
 
 Our route lay for a short distance along the broad valley of 
 Moselle, but soon diverged into that of the Kyll. We kept 
 close to this little stream through the remainder of the journey, 
 frequently crossing it, and thus obtaining ever-changing views 
 of river, vale, and hills. About ten o'clock we reached Kyll- 
 berg, and I despatched my guide to the burgomaster for leave 
 to angle in the river, which was granted with a facility which 
 did not augur well for the value of the boon. The day was 
 
Experiences in the Kyll. 281 
 
 fickle, with slight showers of rain and even hail, and bright 
 glimpses of sunshine between ; but not altogether unfavour- 
 able for fishing. The river differed from most English streams 
 in that, while the larger portion of it consisted of rapid running 
 water, the grassy banks were generally not more than a foot 
 above the level of its surface. Such a river in England would 
 have worn for itself a deep channel, but here its surface was 
 nearly on a level with rich crops of grass and cereals. The 
 water was clear in colour, and varied in depth from one to six 
 feet. In breadth it resembled the Glen below Akeld, but the 
 stream sped along a good deal faster. The worst feature for 
 the angler was the want of bushes and trees by the river- 
 side, and of those holes and special shelters for fish which are 
 the charm and the value of English rivers. 
 
 I beg^n fishing about 1 1 o'clock, and soon had several bites 
 with the worm. The missing of the fish surprised me ; how- 
 ever I soon captured a fine fat trout of \ lb. weight, and was 
 in hopes of making a tolerable day. The want of wading 
 boots and the necessity of keeping my feet dry told greatly 
 against my commanding the best haunts of the fish ; however 
 I persevered on till 2 o'clock without taking another trout. 
 My only captures were a large gudgeon, a dace 8 inches long, 
 and the landing of some scores of a beautiful-looking small fish 
 whose name I learned to be Barven. This fish is about 5 
 inches long with fiat sides like a roach, scales bright as silver, 
 and a leather-fleshed mouth ; but the stripe which generally 
 runs in a straight line down the side from the gill cover to the 
 tail, was in this fish of a tortuous shape. I only basketed two 
 or three samples, and threw the rest into the stream as too 
 small for carrying home. 
 
 Soon after 2 o'clock I came to where a railway bridge crossed 
 the stream, and quite altered its character for a space of twenty 
 yards. Instead of the equal rapid running water, the piers of 
 
282 Some Success at Last. 
 
 the bridge made a deep gully which whirled suddenly round. 
 My spirits rose, and I prepared for a change of fortune by 
 choosing a worm of faultless form, though like its neighbours 
 soft and untoughened by moss. The line fell on the intended 
 spot, and being well shotted sank deep in the gully. There 
 was a pause, a slight shake, a pull, a run of the line, and 
 another trout of \ lb. sprang upon the bank. I felt ' thankful 
 for sma' mercies,' and proceeded to impale a fine lob, believing 
 that if a large trout was in the neighbourhood it would be met 
 with here. Nor was my calculation wrong. The line ran out 
 with a swiftness that told of a prize at stake ; the fish fought 
 gallantly and victory was long doubtful, as the only landing 
 place possible consisted of huge stones which stood high out of 
 the water. Great was my joy at beholding there a noble fish of 
 lovely colour, hog-backed and deep-bellied, weighing more 
 than i^ ib. 
 
 My little Frenchman capered and indulged in a score of 
 ' bien magnifiques,' which seemed to do him a great deal of 
 good, while I cast the line again in this favoured spot and 
 immediately took another fish of i lb. weight. My basket 
 now consisted of four fine trout, and feeling tired in limb I put 
 on the fly and turned down stream, hoping to keep free from 
 those troublesome Barven. But this was not to be ; every 
 cast they rose at the flies, and after throwing a score of them 
 into the water I gave up the contest and made for the village. 
 I noticed that there were few flies on the stream except the 
 great stone fly, some of which were nearly twice the size of 
 those in England. 
 
 The hills, well covered with forest trees and vines, enclosed 
 a narrow valley, the whole landscape being rich and beautiful 
 beyond description. As we approached the village my olfac- 
 tory nerves warned me of horrors to come. The houses 
 looked fairly comfortable, quite equal to those of our English 
 
Kyllherg. 283 
 
 peasantry, but the surroundings were terrible. There was a 
 huge dunghill in front of every house, and as it was the season 
 for stirring up and removing the manure to the fields, the 
 result was obnoxious indeed. Deciding that Kyllberg must be 
 worse even than Cologne as sung by Coleridge I shut my 
 mouth and nostrils and ran for it, but alas ! the village was 
 too long and I imbibed gallon after gallon of thick efHuvia 
 which I would have given anything to keep from my lungs. 
 However we reached our Gasthof at last, where a clean room, 
 a well-cooked beef-steak, pommes-frites, coffee, eggs, and bread 
 and butter restored nature, and after an hour's sleep I returned 
 to Treves, well pleased with my first day's fishing in a German 
 trout stream. Next day the trout I had caught were cooked and 
 pronounced excellent. All were firm and good, but the largest 
 was as red as the reddest spring salmon ever taken in Tweed. 
 
 I find that my ill success was to be accounted for by the 
 constant netting of the river by the owner, who sells the fish 
 to the innkeepers at Treves. The gully below the railway 
 bridge was probably the only place I fished where netting was 
 impossible, and hence my success there. But for this netting 
 the Kyll would be a splendid river. 
 
 June 13. — We arrived at Wildbad at 8 p.m. in a violent 
 storm of rain, and went to the admirably-managed Klumpp 
 Hotel. 
 
 Wildbad is a large village in the Black Forest, containing 
 three or four hotels, besides the very fine buildings in which 
 the baths are placed. The baths are peculiar in that they are 
 taken at the very temperature in which the water emerges 
 from the ground, i.e. about 92° Fahrenheit. In fact the water 
 rises through fine sand on which the bather rests, the water 
 bubbling up beneath and around him. Only ten minutes 
 are generally allowed for a bath, the waters being very 
 powerful in their effects. The sensation they cause is 
 
284 Wildbad. 
 
 delicious. After the bath an hour is to be spent in bed, but 
 sleep is not permitted for fear the bather should fall into a 
 dangerous lethargy. It is really no easy matter to keep awake, 
 and every device is resorted to by the attendants to keep 
 their victims from sleep. It occurred to me that the mothers 
 of refractory infants might avail themselves with advantage 
 of these soporific waters. The most outrageous 'Moloch ' 
 could not resist a few minutes in a Wildbad bath, and his 
 mother as well as his attendant ' Johnnie ' would feel the relief. 
 
 Wildbad lies in a land of steep hills and valleys, a lovely 
 little river with water as clear as crystal bustling along through 
 every valley. These streams would abound with fine trout, 
 only the masters of the hotels offer as high a price as half-a- 
 crown per lb. for all that are brought them alive. Every hotel 
 has its wooden tank at the river's edge, well, alas too well ! 
 filled with trout. I have seen some fish swimming in them 
 from 3 to 4 Bbs. weight. The hills range from 600 to 800 feet 
 high, and are thickly covered with dark pine trees over- 
 shadowing a rich growth of bleaberry bushes, and thick 
 grass always green in consequence of the frequent rains. No 
 ploughed land is to be seen, so the rivers are extremely bright 
 and clear. Once during an unusually heavy rain my eye was 
 gladdened by seeing the stream come down a rich porter 
 colour, reminding me of the bonnie spates of Northumberland. 
 
 The little river Enz flows straight through the centre of the 
 village ; its course is rapid, chiefly among large boulder stones, 
 and though fairly stocked with trout there are but few quiet 
 pools in which they can rest. The Enz is generally about 25 
 feet wide, and is easily commanded by the angler fi-om bank 
 to bank. For a few miles both above and below Wildbad it is 
 preserved, and many English visitors fish in the evenings, 
 chiefly with fly, some few with artificial minnows, but none 
 save myself with worm. Before this season fly, minnow, and 
 
Notes of Five Evenings' Fishing. 285 
 
 worm were all permitted by the authorities, who issued tickets 
 of fishing leave. But some gentlemen, whose angling had been 
 in the South of England with fly only, were unenlightened 
 enough to look upon other branches of the gentle art with 
 disdain, and by private application they succeeded in restricting 
 all leave for fishing to persons as ignorant as themselves. 
 
 Knowing the comparative futility of angling with a lure 
 unsuited to the season, I was obliged each evening to go to a 
 considerable distance so as to get beyond the boundary of 
 these gentlemen's ' happy hunting grounds.' Owing to the 
 many hindrances of very rainy weather, my attention to the 
 prescribed daily bath, and physical exhaustion from the baths 
 of Wiesbaden, and the heat of Wildbad, I only fished on five 
 evenings, with the following results. 
 
 yune 21. — Started about three miles above the village, 
 weather cold and stormy ; fished from 5.30 to 8.15, taking 
 nine trout = 6^ lbs. One fish weighed i\ lb., and two others 
 I ft), each. 
 
 yune 22. — Started where I left off yesterday. Began fishing, 
 at 5.30, but a violent thunderstorm soon drove me to take 
 shelter behind one of the wooden houses in which the peasants 
 store their hay. The rain fell in torrents, and wet to the skin 
 I re-trod my way to Wildbad. I fished for only twenty 
 minutes, but took in that time four trout = 2 ft)s. 
 
 J^une 24. — Started where I began on the 22nd, and fished up 
 stream for half a mile, from 5.45 p.m. to 8.15 The water was a 
 pale-ale colour, and I expected that the fish would take raven- 
 ously ; however, the sport was only the same in number as on 
 the 2 1st, and the fish were not so large, i.e. nine trout =4^ lbs. 
 
 fune 28. — Fished the same stretch of water from 5.30 to 8, 
 and was very unfortunate in losing lines and hooks from 
 ' snags,' which abound in this river. These snags are branches 
 of trees brought down in the small floods, and by the swaying 
 
286 Rafts and Snags. 
 
 motion of the timber rafts which pass over them, driven fast 
 into the ground. There they remain fixed, and by moving 
 backwards and forwards under the action of the running water 
 are just so many traps for anglers' tackle. It is exceedingly 
 difficult to avoid them, and not having wading boots I was 
 compelled again and again forcibly to break my line. The 
 lack of wading boots has indeed been a sad misfortune to me, 
 since many of the rivers I have seen abroad have high banks, 
 and wading boots are necessary to put the angler in a position 
 to fish up stream. He is at a serious disadvantage indeed if 
 he is compelled to cast from high banks in waters far clearer 
 than those in England. Results, six trout = 3:| lbs. 
 
 yufy 4. — ^Began fishing a little higher up the river than 
 before, and found the fish more numerous, but the water was 
 so low and clear that the fish struck short, and I lost as many 
 as I captured, which had not been the case before. Had I 
 possessed wading boots, and been able to stand low in the 
 water and fish up stream, I believe my success would have 
 been considerable. As it was, between 5.45 and 8 p.m. I took 
 eight trout = sj Hbs. One of these weighed i lb., and another 
 lift.* 
 
 So ended my fishing at Wildbad. Let me add one word 
 about the rafts which, by fixing the snags in the bed of the 
 river, worry the angler so effectually. The treasures of the 
 Black Forest are its pine trees, which grow remarkably straight 
 and tall, and are of considerable bulk. Vast numbers of the 
 largest of these trees are felled every year, and made to slide 
 down the steep hill sides to the level of the river, where they 
 accumulate till about a hundred are at the same spot ready for 
 transmission, either to the cities which stand on the banks of 
 the Neckar or Rhine, or to the sea-coast. They are fashioned 
 
 • In 1876 I again tried the Enz, in company with my son Harry, and found 
 that a few days' fishing gave to each rod an average of six good trout per hour. 
 
Engelberg. 287 
 
 into a raft by placing three trees of equal length side by side, 
 then four in the rear of these, and after them five. The rest 
 of the raft is made of lots of five, till the hundred trees are 
 placed contiguously and bound together by branches, which 
 are twisted into a kind of rope. These fastenings act as 
 joints to the raft, which is thus enabled in snake-like fashion 
 to bend and accommodate itself to the numerous windings of 
 the stream. Even when the course is narrowed by boulders 
 and rocks, the raft will, as a rule, glide over them satisfactorily, 
 forced onwards by the current ; and when the water is too low 
 its volume is temporarily increased by letting off certain dams, 
 where an extra supply is stored up for the purpose. 
 
 The rafts travel from four to five miles an hour, and pleasure 
 excursions upon them are among the amusements of Wildbad. 
 Large parties congregate for this purpose, with bands of 
 musicians to herald them on their way. As the river widens 
 the rafts are increased in width, till at Coblentz or Cologne it 
 is not uncommon to see fifty men upon one raft, guiding it 
 with oars of such a size as to require six or eight men to each 
 oar. The journey being long, the men often erect temporary 
 huts upon the rafts, and take their families with them, and all 
 seem to enjoy their merry voyage to the mouth of the mighty 
 Rhine. 
 
 Engelberg^ August 5. — Ten days have passed since we 
 arrived at this lovely and secluded valley, ascending from 
 Lucerne through the mountain gorge, down which tumbles 
 the roaring torrent of the Aa, then much swollen by heavy 
 rains. The entrance of the valley is so narrow as to be undis- 
 tinguishable at a short distance. The traveller looking round 
 sees a level stretch of about four miles long by one in width, 
 with huge mountains rising steeply on all sides like a wall, 
 and might imagine it was a cul-de-sac without any exit except 
 the now invisible passage by which he entered. Near the 
 
288 Tiths. 
 
 middle of the valley stands the great Benedictine monastery 
 of Engelberg, founded in the twelfth century, and now chiefly 
 interesting to the traveller for its valuable manuscripts and 
 specimens of early printing. A small village has gathered 
 round the . monastery, and dotted over the plain are those 
 picturesque chalets which form so striking a feature of Swiss 
 landscapes. They cannot but charm the artist's eye, but let 
 him beware of approaching them too closely. From the date 
 of their erection, cattle, goats, sheep, and peasants have dwelt 
 there in close proximity. With supreme ignorance of sanitary 
 laws the master of the house allows the accumulated drainage 
 of years to fester round his dwelling, and however well it may 
 look upon paper, the view is best taken from a distance. 
 
 The mountains, except towards the base, are bare grey rocks, 
 exquisite in form and colouring. Some, like the Engelberg, 
 rise in pyramidal peaks ; others, square-headed, look, like 
 castles of the Titans. At the further end of the valley stands 
 the mighty Titlis 10,627 feet above the level of the sea, 7,Soo 
 above the valley at its feet. The snow lies deep upon this and 
 some of the surrounding mountains, and the shifting clouds 
 and varying sunshine produce marvellously beautiful effects of 
 light, shade, and colour unknown except among these won- 
 derful piles which God has heaped up for His own glory and 
 for the raising to Him of the thoughts and desires of His 
 children. 
 
 From my arrival in this valley I have been pining to try 
 my fortune in one of the streams which pass through it. 
 There are two ; the first a rushing roaring torrent, which 
 taking its rise in the melted snows, and hurled onwards at a 
 pace that pulverises its stony bed, is never clear, indeed during 
 the summer is the colour of milk and water. Before the 
 summer sun melts the snow this stream is sufficiently clear for 
 angling, and a few trout may be captured, but afterwards this 
 
Diffictdties. 289 
 
 is scarcely possible. The other stream is smaller, springing 
 chiefly from the boggy ground in the middle of the valley, and 
 its water is quite clear. Unfortunately its short course, which 
 is but a mile and a half from its source to its junction with 
 the larger stream, has been cut straight as a mill-lade, causing 
 the water to rush onwards at the rate of six miles an hour, 
 and as there are no pools or holds for fish the angler has 
 scarcely a chance. Still I went at 12 o'clock to-day to try my 
 fortune beginning near the source and fishing down stream. 
 
 In spite of the weight of the worm and of three heavy shot 
 corns the bait travelled quicker than I could walk ; indeed it 
 was more like running after the hounds than the quiet sport 
 which old Izaak loved and portrayed. The surface of the 
 valley is composed of rotten bog earth covered with luxuriant 
 grass ; stepping on this I found myself at once up to the thigh, 
 and had a narrow escape of breaking my leg — a warning by 
 which I was careful to profit afterwards. Through the whole 
 course of this short river there was but one spot where the 
 stream widened sufficiently to allow an eddy by the side, and 
 here I felt was my only chance. Choosing a tempting worm 
 I committed it to the vagaries of the eddy, and a tug soon 
 followed. A noble trout of i ft), weight flew out upon the 
 bank ; two other fine fish followed in quick succession, and 
 there my good fortune ended. These were the only denizens 
 of the spot, or their comrades were too wary to come and be 
 caught. 
 
 I now determined to bend my steps homewards, but there 
 was still ill luck in the pot for me. Stepping too near the edge 
 of the river bank, it gave way, and plump I went into the 
 eddy up to liiy waist. Indeed I should have dived deeper had 
 I not caught at some long grass and so by dint of struggling 
 succeeded in regaining my footing on terra firma — a pretty 
 picture to look at. I fished 2\ hours ; capture 3 trout = z\ ft)s. 
 
290 Lucerne and the St. GoUhard. 
 
 August 7. — Fished the same water for two hours, but never 
 saw a fish. 
 
 August 9. — Determined on one more trial, I secured the 
 companionship of a man warranted to be the best mountain 
 guide and most successful angler in the district. From him I 
 learnt that trout were very scarce, and that this is the wrong 
 season for angling ; however, he took his rod and I took mine, 
 and we set out about six o'clock in the evening. His bait was a 
 live grasshopper twice as large as those in England. As all 
 the land is grass and inhabited by myriads of these insects, 
 it is but natural that many of them should perish in the river, 
 and so become the common food of the fish. The grasshopper 
 was put on a small worm hook alive, with a heavy shot about 
 eighteen inches higher up the line ; the bait was dropped in 
 the water close to the edge where the current was weakest, and 
 then allowed to go slowly down stream. My companion 
 caught three small fish, and seemed satisfied with his evening's 
 sport. My worm brought no results, so I gave up all idea of 
 fishing at Engelberg, and shortening my stay there by ten 
 days returned to Lucerne and its lovely lake. 
 
 On September i, when friends at home were eagerly dealing 
 death in many an English stubble-field, we started at 8 a.m. 
 from Lucerne. Three hours' steaming brought us to the end 
 of the lake, where carriages were waiting to take us from 
 Fluellen to Andermatt. Some miles of gentle ascent under a 
 blazing sun, such as no umbrella could render endurable, 
 brought us to Amsteg, where we had luncheon, and with a 
 fourth horse added to our three we commenced the steep 
 ascent of the St. Gotthard Pass. For several miles the scenery 
 was wild, and it became more so till we neared the Devil's 
 Bridge, where we entered a scene of the wildest desolation. 
 An old bridge still spans the river Reuss, which roars and 
 tumbles in a series of cascades about a hundred feet below. 
 
The. DeviFs Bridge. 291 
 
 This bridge, like others which form the old road up the valley, 
 is singularly light and airy -looking, but it stands alone in 
 marking the scene of some of the fiercest and most sanguinary 
 battles on record. 
 
 One of these took place August 14, 1799, when the Austrians 
 entrenched themselves in a strong position near the bridge, 
 but were unable to withstand the attack of the French. They 
 therefore blew up the small side arch, and hundreds of soldiers 
 were precipitated into the abyss below. The French then 
 scaled the right bank of the river and compelled the Austrians 
 to retire in the night. A few weeks later however the Rus- 
 sians under Suwarrow marched over the St. Gotthard, and 
 pressed the French so hard that after a furious contest for the 
 possession of the bridge a passage was forced and the French 
 troops driven down to Lucerne. 
 
 Tradition still avers in the valley that the Russians being 
 long unable to force the passage, old Suwarrow, who was the 
 darling of his soldiers, lay down near the end of the bridge, 
 and declared he would not stir till the French were driven 
 down the gorge. His soldiers made one more desperate effort, 
 and succeeded. Another local tradition relates that the snow 
 was deep and the cold intense when the struggle took place, 
 and that the Russians arrived wild with hunger, so that they 
 not only devoured everything they could lay hold of, but 
 boile'd the skins of the sheep and cattle for food. After this 
 the stories of Russian partiality for tallow candles and train- 
 oil are credible. 
 
 The Devil's Bridge connects two clusters of rocks which rise 
 sheer up to the sky, allowing no standing point for man except 
 the few feet cut away to form a carriage road ; yet on this 
 scanty space thousands of men have contended. Only three 
 could possibly have fought abreast, and deadly indeed must 
 have been the contest of bayonet and bayonet. Leaving this 
 u 2 
 
292 Streams near Andertnatt. 
 
 fatal spot we passed through a rocky tunnel, and found our- 
 selves in the charming valley of Andermatt. Our hotel, the 
 Belle Vue, possessed every comfort, and being situated outside 
 the village was not troubled with any evil smell. The valley 
 is about two and a half miles long by one mile wide. 
 
 Let me explain here that my fishings were fully three 
 months too late in the season, the latter end of May and the 
 early days of June being the best time. Then only are the 
 finest streams free from melted snow from the glaciers, which 
 comes down every morning by 9 o'clock and makes the water 
 of a milky hue and so thick that the fish cannot see the lure. 
 The main streams which are full of very large fish, from i to 
 3 or 4 lbs. weight, are thus closed to the angler, and I could 
 only try such small branches as do not originate in the moun- 
 tain glaciers. These I found of singular purity, the water 
 clear as crystal, but to fish them properly wading boots were 
 indispensable. Not possessing these my fishings were conducted 
 with much difficulty, yet the result convinces me that a cam- 
 paign in early June with wading boots would be very successful. 
 Whether fly, worm, or minnow would answer best as bait I 
 cannot say. Some idea of the number of large trout which 
 exist in the main streams may be conceived from the fact that 
 towards the end of October, when they spawn, the peasants 
 turn out in large numbers, and with every kind of rude spear 
 attack them on the redding beds and slay hundreds daily. 
 These fish I am told run commonly from 2 to 5 lbs. each. 
 
 I must say one word as to the character of the fish of this 
 district. They are the shortest in length and deepest in body 
 of any that I have ever seen. No English trout can compare 
 with them in beauty of form ; indeed they are in shape almost 
 like perch. When taken out of the river they feel icy cold, 
 and as hard as stone ; when cooked the colour of the flesh is 
 as pink as salmon, and the flavour is excellent even in the 
 middle of September. 
 
Swiss Trout. 293 
 
 September 2. — ^I tried one of the streams called the Fuica 
 Reuss, which being filled with glacier water yielded no success. 
 
 September 4. — Hearing that a little stream in front of the 
 hotel contained some small fish, I went to look at it and found 
 it intensely clear, so that it was impossible to approach the fish 
 till the stream had narrowed so that I could drop the worm 
 over the edge of the bank, myself remaining unseen. I fished 
 with worm from 12 to 2.45, killing twenty fish, two of which 
 weighed respectively i;^ ib. and i lb., much of the fishing being 
 where the stream was only a foot wide. 
 
 September 5. — I started in a pony carriage for the Ober Alp 
 Reuss. The path led up the mountain side by a series of zig-zags 
 which after a gallant struggle by my two little steeds brought 
 me to an elevation that dwarfed the large hotel into a toy 
 house and the men about it into so many puppets. In another 
 hour I reached the stream two miles below the spot at which 
 it issues from a small lake. I began fishing at 4 p.m., and left 
 at 6.40. The river was a series of rushing streams, the water 
 very clear, but too rapid to allow of resting places for fish. 
 Result eighteen fish = 4 lbs. 
 
 September 7. — I revisited the small stream in front of the 
 hotel, in company with Mr. Gallaher, an American gentleman 
 whose acquaintance I had made. There I fished from 4 p.m. 
 to 6.30. Total seven fish = 3 lbs. ; of these were two fish that 
 weighed i lb. each. 
 
 September 8. — ^Mr. Gallaher and I fished the Ober Alp Reuss 
 from 2 to 5.45 P.M. Results : self twelve fish = 3 ibs. ; Mr. 
 Gallaher three fish = i lb. 
 
 September 9. — We tried once more the small stream in front 
 of the hotel. Mr. Gallaher fished with my rod from 4.30 to 
 6.15 P.M. Result, seven fish = i\ lb. 
 
 September 12. — We took a pony carriage to the upper part 
 of the St. Gotthard stream, and at 11.30 a.m. I recommenced 
 
294 Angling with Mr. Gallaker. 
 
 fishing at the foot of the valley, where wild as were the moun- 
 tain sides it was not difficult to skirt along the bank of the 
 river. The water was extremely clear, but for the most part 
 ran too rapidly, and without my often -regretted wading boots 
 it was impossible to get near to the fish. Hence the ' take ' in 
 point of numbers was small, but those I was fortunate enough 
 to capture were in form the most perfect fish I have ever seen. 
 Small head and tail with body singularly deep made up an 
 outline altogether ideal, certainly never actually witnessed in 
 England. When taken from the icy cold water they felt 
 as hard as a stone ; when cooked they were firm in flesh and 
 pink in colour ; model trout altogether, and this is the second 
 week in September ! 
 
 While I was engaged in the upper part of the valley, Mr. 
 Gallaher was trying the wild rocky portion of the Pass. At 
 the end of an hour he rejoined me, having only gained access 
 to two pools, in which he had taken two fish and seen another 
 of 5 or 6 lbs. weight. We paused to take luncheon, and then 
 had the mortification of discovering that the bright sun had 
 melted the ice of a glacier and brought down a torrent of mud 
 which rendered the stream wholly unfit for fishing. The 
 result of our one hour's sport were ; 
 
 William Henderson . . .2 fish = 2^ lbs. 
 
 Mr. Gallaher . . . . 2 „ = 3 lbs. 
 September 15. — Accompanied by Mr. Mott I started to 
 explore the lower part of the St. Gotthard stream. Each of 
 us carried his fishing rod, but our object was not so much to 
 fish as to see if it were possible to ascend this wild gorge, and 
 so arrange for an expedition on the following day. We crossed 
 the old bridge at Hospenthal, and then proceeded upwards on 
 opposite sides of the stream. The cliffs above are extremely 
 precipitous, rising abruptly for a thonsand feet or more. 
 Sometimes they are of perpendicular rock, but more commonly 
 
The Si. Gotihard Stream. 295 
 
 are formed of smooth grassy slopes at an angle of from 60 to 
 80 degrees. The grass is short, and so smooth and slippery 
 that none but an active mountain climber with an alpenstock 
 could possibly obtain a foothold. The stream bounds from one 
 enormous rock to another, and rushes rapidly through the deep 
 holes between, but there are eddies and still places well adapted 
 to hold fish of large size. And such indeed is the case ; \yith 
 such resting places, and protected from anglers by the inaccessi- 
 bility of the river banks, the trout are said to develop into 
 vast dimensions. Advancing up the side of the stream I con- 
 trived to fish two pools, but without success, after which I found 
 my pathway barred by a projecting rock. As I looked at this 
 from below it appeared to me that by scrambling up the bank 
 I could scale the top, and then descend on the farther side. 
 Accordingly I began to clamber up the bank, which was com- 
 posed of loose friable shale. Before I had ascended many feet 
 its yielding nature forced me to cling for support to the tufts 
 of grass which grew upon it here and there. As these yielded 
 to my tugs and pulls I had to rush sideways and upwards to 
 save me from slipping down ; the more my feet slipped the 
 greater the exertions I made, till after many a plunge I reached 
 the top of the rock, which terminated in a projecting narrow 
 ridge. Over this I flung my arms for support, and hung there 
 breathless and exhausted. 
 
 When I recovered myself I looked over the crest of the 
 rock, and saw to my horror a very steep grassy slope, extending 
 for forty or fifty feet sheer to the water's edge, and terminating 
 in a pool of deep water. It was clearly impossible for me to 
 descend that way, so I prepared to return as I came. I could 
 not however make up my mind for some minutes to turn 
 round upon the narrow ridge on which I stood, till reminding 
 myself that the longer I delayed the worse it would be for my 
 nerves, I made the effort. As I began to descend the crumbling 
 
296 An Awkward Scramble. 
 
 bank, a fresh embarrassment appeared. The rheumatic 
 gout, from which I have suffered so much, had for some 
 months increasingly impaired my strength of hand, and as I 
 grasped different tufts of grass I found my fingers powerless to 
 retain them. How I got down I really hardly know, but at 
 last I espied a wooden spout or trough for conveying water to 
 a mill, and into it I plunged knee deep in the crystal stream. 
 Thoroughly humbled I was content to go up or down the 
 spout, if only it led me off that terrible bank. 
 
 Once on firm ground I thought of my fishing-rod, which I 
 had left on the top of the rock. Off I walked to the village, 
 and through an interpreter explained to a peasant that he 
 should have two francs if he would bring me the rod. He 
 started with me up the mountain side, but the nearest approach 
 we could make to my ridge was some five hundred feet above 
 it, and at such a distance that we could not see the rod. We 
 therefore descended again and went up on the opposite side of 
 the stream, when we came to a point from which I descried 
 the rod and pointed it out to my friendly peasant. He returned 
 to the other side while I stayed to watch his attempts. Making 
 a long detour, after many a scramble he reached the precipitous 
 grassy slope, up which he cautiously proceeded with careful 
 steps till he reached the prize, and seizing it he retraced his 
 way as carefully. He was fully an hour about his task, and a 
 mountaineer alone could have accomplished it. An extra 
 franc and a cup of cognac sent him home delighted, and I 
 went back to my family thankful for a merciful preservation in 
 what I felt a really imminent danger. 
 
 September 16.— My nerves recruited, I started after breakfast 
 in a pony carriage with my landlord to fish the water in the 
 open valley above the wilder portion of the gorge which was 
 the scene of my yesterday's adventure. I found my companion 
 an ardent sportsman and keen angler. We fished the upper 
 
Night Fishing in the Black Forest. 297 
 
 portion of the St. Gotthard stream which took us between two 
 
 and three hours, and when we met for luncheon found that 
 
 between us we had captured seven noble fish : 
 
 Landlord .... 4 trout) 
 
 > = 6 lbs. 
 William Henderson . • 3 d J 
 
 My fishings on this day, as on former ones in the neighbour- 
 hood of the Andermatt, were with worm only, but I learn that 
 in June both fly and minnow are used with great success. 
 Let me add that these attempts of mine were made : 
 
 1. Three months after the proper season for fishing ; 
 
 2. When the best streams were spoiled for angling by the 
 melting of the glaciers ; and 
 
 3. In waters so wonderfully clear that wading boots were an 
 absolute necessity. 
 
 Properly equipped and in the glorious month of June, a fine 
 field lies open to the angler in those mountain streams, and I 
 cherish the hope of many a well-filled creel to be gathered 
 from their waters. 
 
 Monday, May 17, 1875. — One more record of angling in the 
 Black Forest, and my long tale must end. I had just settled 
 my family in a charming residence on an elevation overlooking 
 Stuttgart, which proved a happy home for the next two years, 
 when the spirit to be ' off and away ' to my fishing grew too 
 strong to be resisted, and involuntarily the cry burst forth : 
 
 " Come bring to me my limber gad 
 I've fish'd wi' raony a year, 
 An' let me hae my weel worn creel, 
 An' a' my fishing gear.'' 
 
 The month of May had come, a month always dear to 
 anglers, and whose annual return reminded me that, 
 
 " The laverock's liltin' i the sky, 
 
 And hails the gentle genial spring, 
 A' nature now is rife o' joy, 
 
 An' hill an' glen wi' music ring." 
 
298 At Gernshach. 
 
 With such feelings it was but natural that I should make 
 enquiries as to where good trout fishing might be obtained, 
 within a reasonable distance of my adopted home, and I decided 
 to go with my daughter Gertrude to Gernsbach in the Black 
 Forest, for report told that trout abounded in the river Murg, 
 which flows past that village. 
 
 We found most comfortable quarters at PfeifFer's Hotel, with 
 the addition of shrubbery and lawn stretching some distance 
 along the river bank. The place had to us a special peculiarity, 
 it was a centre for pine bathing. The neighbouring forest 
 supplied the necessary essence for flavouring the baths ; our 
 toilet each morning was made with pine flavoured water 
 improved by pine scented soap, and we were strongly recom- 
 mended to perfect our health by munching /zk« lozenges ; the 
 air and water, and all around was pine scented ; 'twas pine 
 everywhere. 
 
 The river Murg is a rough, quick-flowing, bright stream, 
 perhaps about thirty yards wide, and fairly well stored with 
 trout. The weather was hot, and the sun much too glaring to 
 allow of good fishing except in the evenings, when I always 
 made a fair basket, but it was not till Saturday, the 22nd of 
 the month, that anything worthy of special note occurred. 
 About 5 P.M. on that day I commenced work a mile above 
 Gernsbach, and whilst fishing down to the hotel I had to wade 
 deep and cast a long line to allow any chance of success. 
 
 My flies were larger than I should have used in clear water 
 in England, but this diflerence I have found to be generally 
 necessary in the German rivers. By eight o'clock I had 
 secured nearly a score of trout, which might weigh six or seven 
 pounds, and so I wound my tackle up, deeming my excursion 
 ended. A light supper followed, and then a strange fancy took 
 such strong possession of me that I felt constrained to bow to it. 
 
 The night was pitch dark, and distant thunder gave the 
 
Fishing During a Thunder Storm. 299 
 
 proverbial warning that all fishing was out of the question, 
 still, mad as the idea seemed, I determined to make an essay in 
 front of the hotel. So black was the night that a lighted 
 lanthorn was necessary to guide me in arranging my rod and 
 tackle at the door. This done I sought the edge of the lawn, 
 by the side of which rushed a rough rapid stream, which sped 
 from a mill immediately above. 
 
 Scarcely had I taken my position near to the top of the 
 stream than the lightning blazed forth, illuminating the pine 
 clad hills and making a sudden glare far exceeding that of the 
 brightest sunshine. Each tree of the forest might be distin- 
 guished, whilst the lightning quivered in the sky, and then 
 followed a darkness so dense that I could not see the rod, and 
 could scarcely distinguish my hand. 
 
 The dark intervals between the flashes might be five' minutes, 
 and it was during these that I cast my flies, straight across the 
 rushing mill-stream. The instant the flies fell on the water I 
 felt a tug, then a rush, and all was quiet. I was amazed ! but 
 at length concluded that a passing stick had struck my hook. 
 Another cast of the line, and here was no room for doubt, a 
 heavy fish was pulling violently. It was long before the 
 strength of the current allowed me to land my prize, indeed it 
 was only by the lightning's flash that I could judge where or 
 how to do this. I fished the stream steadily downwards for 
 about a hundred yards ; the lightning showed me where to 
 throw my flies, all around was inky blackness. I cast and rarely 
 failed either to hook or take a fish. The strength of the cur- 
 rent enabled many a fish to break away, but at the end of half 
 ■ an hour my basket held eight fish, and when these were tabled 
 at the hotel they proved to be three trout, three grayling, and 
 two fish resembling chub. The least was three quarters of a 
 pound in weight and the largest a pound and a half— altogether 
 a beautiful dish, and the fish by far the largest in size that I 
 
300 Why do Fish Refuse to Feed? 
 
 had captured during my week's angling. At an early part of 
 this book I have described a successful attempt at fishing for 
 trout with worm on a dark night,* and now after a lapse of 
 years I give particulars of fly fishing in a dark black night 
 attended with thunder and lightning ; these are the only 
 occasions on which I have made such attempts, and both were 
 eminently successful. What speculations these two experi- 
 ments force upon the angler's mind, as to the feeding of fish in 
 dark nights, when they are commonly supposed to be at rest ! 
 I am compelled to the conclusion that in these night banquets 
 is frequently to be found the true answer to the fisherman's too 
 common question, ' Why do the fish not take ? the water is in 
 good order, the wind is right, and everything bespeaks a good 
 day's sport, but they won't take.' The response should be, 
 ' Dined already, and requiring time for digestion.' 
 
 I have more than once mentioned to my angling friends 
 these two experiences of night fishing, but no one seems to 
 have tried it. Many have fished (with great success) quite late 
 on into the gloaming, but I can hear of no other instance of 
 real night work. I venture to commend the sport to any who 
 care to try a novel sensation. 
 
 Let the night be dark, the thunder echoing from cloud to 
 cloud, the wind sighing past in fitful gusts, the river dashing 
 round the feet of the angler. A good rod and line in his hand, 
 a good cast of flies to tempt the unwary, and I will venture to 
 predict a ' weird and wondrous fishing,' and possibly a great 
 success. 
 
 The subject of the night feeding of fish is one full of interest, 
 and, so far as I know, it has hitherto been but little studied. 
 
 My own fishing days are nearly over, but were I as young as 
 in the days of yore, nothing would please me more than to 
 carry out a series of experiments in order to ascertain some- 
 thing more of the night habits of fresh water fish. 
 * See page 53. 
 
Farewell to my Children. 301 
 
 And now, my dear angling friends, my tale is told. It only 
 remains for me to say my thanks to those who in years gone 
 by, have so often consented to float with me adown the flowing 
 stream of life, and by their friendship and companionship have 
 caused those gleams of sunshine which have so often brightened 
 its waters. 
 
 May we not indulge the hope that one of the purest and the 
 highest joys of this world still remains for us — when the toil 
 and the heat of the day are past — when the western sky is all 
 aglow — and when by the light of the setting sun we can look 
 back along the stream of life, noting each little nook and dell, 
 noting each gleam of golden light as it brightens the long 
 past, and then gently fades in the soft blue mist of distance ? 
 And may we not hold firmly to the belief that though, as time 
 passes on, the friends and friendships of early youth fade, as it 
 were, beyond the power of mortal sight, still they remain, 
 wrapped in the shades of evening, and waiting in quiet still- 
 ness, till they shall once more spring to life and joy in the 
 clear dawn-light of the everlasting morning ? Farewell ! 
 
 To my dear children I would add yet one word of counsel. 
 
 Speaking from the stand-point of my present age of sixty- 
 one years, and looking back on the past, my experience has 
 shown me that the happiness of life depends far more upon the 
 choice which young people make of the recreation for their 
 leisure hours, than it does upon the profession or employment 
 which comes to them in God's good Providence, whether 
 arranged for them by their parents or marked out by the 
 pressure of circumstances. The daily duty done as in God's 
 sight brings its own reward, and His favour ' makes that and 
 the action fine.' The choice of recreation lies in the power of 
 each man's own free will. If he decides in favour of freedom 
 and fresh air, if he makes himself ' nature's playmate,' if he 
 accustoms himself to look closely into the wondrous beauty of 
 
302 
 
 Farewell to my Children. 
 
 the outer world in which he lives, he will find an inexhaustible 
 mine of enjoyment and improvement ever open to him ; 
 while the steady active pursuit of any one sport will impart 
 tone, vigour, and manly decision, fitting him alike for work and 
 for relaxation. Truly, my dear children, I cannot give you a 
 better parting motto by which to remember your father than 
 the grand old words, ' Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do 
 it with all thy might.' Adieu ! 
 
 HOME AT LAST. 
 
APPENDICES. 
 
 I. 
 
 NE or two additional poems by John Younger, 
 which I have been fortunate enough to col- 
 lect, will, I believe, be read with pleasure 
 by all, especially by those who, like myself, 
 retain the writer in affectionate remem- 
 brance. 
 
 EARLY ASSOCIATIONS. 
 
 There may be sweeter spots afar 
 
 That I have never seen. 
 And lofty hills and rivers clear 
 
 With flowery vales between. 
 
 And fairer lasses too may grace 
 
 The garden and the hall. 
 But there's a place and there's a face 
 
 That's dearest aye of all. 
 
 And oh ! our cradle spot of earth 
 Where light first took our e'e, 
 
 And mother's love our infant heart. 
 Where'er that spot may be. 
 
 Though it were e'en on slavery's soil 
 
 And we yet free to rove. 
 Yet wander how and where we will 
 
 'Twill claim our latest love. 
 
304 On a Forget-me-not. 
 
 The salmon grey of Tweed or Spey 
 
 Returning from the sea, 
 Will to its native stream come back 
 
 Whichever stream it be. 
 
 The swallow dreams on Afric's shore 
 
 Of Scotia's summer pride ; 
 She plumes her wing, and knows the hour 
 
 To hasten to Tweedside. 
 
 Her native cliff she kens afar 
 
 O'er Dryburgh's ruin grey, 
 Where she was nursed in Dryburgh's scaur 
 
 I' the blooming month o' May. 
 
 And yet there is another bield 
 
 That ne'er can be forgot, 
 Tho' in his age from thence expelled — 
 
 My Nannie's faither's cot. 
 
 In inemory's light-like glow-worm's gleam 
 
 My fancy yet recalls, 
 Love's youngest hopes and downy dreams 
 
 Still nestling round its walls. 
 
 E'en spirits 'mong celestial orbs 
 
 In glory roaming free, 
 May own to earth — their first abode, 
 
 A soul-felt sympathy. 
 
 ON A FORGET-ME-NOT BLOOMING ON THE 
 GRAVE OF A YOUNG GIRL. 
 
 Oh ! what a lovely little flower 
 
 That blue forget-me-not, 
 I see it blooming on the grave, 
 
 Of one who seems forgot. 
 
To be Gallants Again. 305 
 
 Kind Nature's nightly tear will wet 
 
 It's pretty azure eye, 
 And morning sun again return 
 
 To smile and kiss it dry. 
 
 Oh ! as in sympathy it seems 
 
 To love the grassy tomb, 
 So e'en in Paradise it may 
 
 Perhaps unfading bloom. 
 
 So modest the appeal it makes 
 
 To fancy's listening ear, 
 I must suppose some gentle heart 
 
 Lies mouldering lonely here. 
 
 And tho' the slumbering tenant be 
 
 On earth remembered not. 
 The fond request in Heav'n is heard 
 
 Where there be none ' forgot.' 
 
 TO BE GALLANTS AGAIN. 
 
 Oh ! where fly the pleasures that manhood discairds 
 When scared from our youths by the tax-men and lairds ? 
 As men we can scarce get a will of our ain 
 Unless we're bewitched back to callants again. 
 
 In manhood there's no way of living at a', 
 
 We're so warped in the net-work of landlord-made-law : 
 
 The right to existence we scarce can retain 
 
 Unless we're bewitched back to callants again. 
 
 The laddie has pleasures the duke canna share, 
 He's born by his nature the wider world's heir ; 
 The bounds to his freedom we're apt to count sma' 
 While it's plain to perceive it has no bounds at a'. 
 
 He's free as the lav'rock that mounts to the cloods, 
 Scare him from the streamlet, he soars o'er the woods 
 And tho' the squirrel may climb to the top o' the tree 
 He ascends — ^by a rung or twa — higher than he. 
 
 X 
 
3o6 The Old Man's Lament. 
 
 Oh ! now to reflect on the pleasures so cool 
 Half-wading — half-swimming in that sunny pool, 
 And hunting wee pars around the big stane, 
 What would I na' gie to be callant again ? 
 
 And as in a dream I can see the first flee 
 A fisher by Ale-water kindly gave me, 
 What feelings of hope it aroused in my breast 
 Have never by poet on earth been expressed. 
 
 We may talk o' our lang salmon-rod, reel, and line. 
 Write essays on angling our friends may think fine. 
 But a rowan tree sapling, a thread and bent preen. 
 Afford visions to boyhood in age never seen. 
 Oh ! where was the callant so joyous about 
 When proudly I held up my first little trout 1 
 To utter my feelings all language is vain. 
 They were — what I ne'er can feel over again. 
 Unless in idea as we rub in life's rust 
 Wearing down into age ere we drop in the dust, 
 The thought of a new birth may weel gi' no pain 
 Were it only a hope to be callants again. 
 
 THE OLD MAN'S LAMENT OF THE CHANGES 
 OF NATURE. 
 
 O wae's me in the dowie change 
 
 That's come o'er a' I see. 
 There's naething now like what it was. 
 
 Or what it ought to be. 
 
 Nae sprig o' bush nor flow'r gets sprung 
 
 As Nature gae it birth, 
 Our gowden whins and yellow broom, 
 
 Are rooted frae the earth. 
 There's no a siller runnel now 
 
 Glides circling thro' a lea. 
 Nor yet a bonnie well-spring cool 
 
 An' sparklin' clear to see. 
 
Sad Changes. 307 
 
 For a' are sunk doon out o' sight 
 
 As dried or drained away, 
 And scarce a meadow-flower now opes 
 
 A blossom to the day. 
 
 Our burnie glens that once were gay 
 
 In Nature's robes bedight, 
 In all the flush o' flowery May, 
 
 An' slaethorn blossom white. 
 
 Are plantit now wi' forest trees 
 
 That screen the light o'day, 
 Their gloom and shadow bode an mind, 
 
 Auld age and dull decay. 
 
 Our wild birds too are perkit up 
 
 In hedg'd plantations fine, 
 Nor can they even whistle now 
 
 As in days o' auld lang syne. 
 
 They seem as they were cage confined. 
 Or dow'd wi' cauld and care. 
 
 An gin they e'er attempt to sing. 
 They dinna charm the air. 
 
 Lang syne when Jean and I slipt out 
 
 At gloaming by oursel', 
 I've heard the blackbird on the thorn 
 
 Aboon the drappin well. 
 
 And there would Jeannie listening stand 
 Pleased wi' the charming sound, 
 
 While a' the echoes o' the glen 
 Were whistling round an round. 
 
 For frae his throat, as wet wi' dew. 
 
 The notes sae mellow fell, 
 I kenned the hlackbird was in love, 
 
 As I was then mysel'. 
 
 I sometimes think it may be age 
 
 Bedims the world to me ; 
 Yet sure it could na wark sic change 
 
 On all I hear an see. 
 
:3o8_ 
 
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 Sprouston Dub, N.S. 
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