Part 10 (2/2)

”A miller's thumb!--a miller's thumb!” shouted the party, laughing heartily. ”What a fine dinner he will make for us,” cried one. ”I hope you'll let us have something else, Power,” said Digby.

”Not unless you will all hold your tongues, and let me try again, for I don't think any of you will catch anything,” said Power.

Just then Toby arrived, with a stick and line. He held up the poor bull-head with a comical look, and pretended to let it drop down his throat--a proceeding which he would have found very unpleasant as besides its large head its back was armed with a row of sharp spines.

”We call this a sea-scorpion, or sea-toad, and some call it a father-lasher, because he is supposed to be so wicked that he would beat even his own father,” said Toby, putting back the fish with a pretence of the greatest care into the basket. ”Now, young gentlemen, I'll see what I can do for the pot; it's on, and boiling, and only wants something put into it. I'll make you some pebble-soup if we don't catch any fish; but the fish will be best, I think.” Toby, on this, went a little lower down the creek, and taking his seat on the bank, let his line drop into the water, throwing in, every now and then, some ground bait. Before long, he pulled out a s.h.i.+ning silvery little fish, of most graceful form; another and another followed in rapid succession.

Digby, who had caught nothing, went up to him. ”Why, Toby, what are those pretty little fish? I should like to have some of them,” he observed. ”How do you catch them?”

”I'll show you if you'll sit down and try,” answered Toby. ”You've caught no fish because you've been wandering about from place to place, and not taking advantage of the experience you have got with your first trials. If one depth won't do, raise or lower your float; if one bait don't do, try another; and the same with your hook, if you find that you get bites and don't catch anything. Perseverance is the thing. I generally can tell how a lad is likely to get on in life by the way I see him fish. You'll excuse my freedom, Master Digby; I like to say what I think will be likely to be useful to you.”

Digby thanked Toby, though he did not quite see the drift of his reasoning. He, however, put on a very small hook, and watched how he caught the smelts; and, in a short time, he had pulled up nearly a dozen. He might have captured more, but turning his head up the stream he saw that Power was hauling some big fish out of the water, and he could not resist the temptation of running off to see what it was.

”Help! help! Here, the landing-net, the landing-net,” shouted Power.

”I've a conger, a conger; there's no doubt about it.”

The conger-eel, which occasionally comes up salt-water rivers, is a ferocious fish, with powerful jaws. This was of good size, and struggled so violently, that Digby was afraid of losing hook, and net, and line. The other young fishermen had gone to a little distance, and were busily engaged in hauling in some captives which their skill had taken. Digby, in his eagerness, leaned over so far with the net that, just as he had got the conger into it, he lost his balance, and in he went heels over head. Power nearly followed. The conger got entangled in the net; and Digby's first impulse, as his head came above water, was to grapple hold of the fish. This he did most effectually, and a tremendous struggle commenced; the conger trying to bite Digby, and Digby determined not to let him go. Power's feelings were divided between his anxiety for Digby's safety and his wish not to lose his captive. His shouts called Marshall and Easton, who were not far off.

”Haul him out, haul him out!” he cried, l.u.s.tily. ”He'll make a magnificent dish.”

”Which?” asked Marshall, laughing, ”Digby or the fish?”

”Digby, Digby,” answered Power, really thinking that he was in danger.

”No, no,” cried Digby, ”I won't be cooked. Get out the fish first.

He's half mine, though, for I helped to catch him.”

The conger was wriggling about all the time, and Power was making every effort to keep his head away from Digby, whom the fish had apparently a strong wish to bite. Between all parties there was a tremendous amount of laughing, and shouting, and splas.h.i.+ng. At last Marshall got hold of Digby's collar, and out he pulled him, still grasping the net and the fish.

”Don't let us go till you have got us well up from the water,” exclaimed Digby, panting with his exertions. ”If you do, the beast may be getting away, and escape us after all.”

His caution was not unnecessary, for, breaking from the hook, no sooner was Digby's grasp off him than away he wriggled at a great rate towards the water. It was no easy matter to catch him, for he turned round with his savage head and made desperate bites at the lads, who were in hot pursuit of him.

”Oh, stop him!” shouted Digby, almost crying in his agitation. ”Oh, he'll be off,--he'll be off!”

Nearer and nearer the water he wriggled; with a hook in his mouth, and the mauling he had got, he was not likely to find much pleasure in his future career; still, life is dear even to fish. He was almost at the edge of the bank, when Marshall seizing his geological hammer, which he had thrown down to help Digby, with it dealt the poor conger such a blow on the tail that in an instant it was paralysed, and though its jaws moved a little, it no longer made an attempt to reach its native element.

It was now voted that dinner-time had arrived, or rather that it was time to begin cooking the fish. Altogether a very good supply had been caught: besides the smelt, Toby brought two grey mullets, a foot in length; these, he said, were rarely caught with the hook, as they suck in their food. They do not often eat living creatures, but grub down at the bottom for offal or weeds. It is a very sagacious fish, and, when enclosed by a net, always makes the greatest efforts to escape by leaping over it, or by seeking for some opening. Only a very perfect net will secure them. In some parts the fishermen form an inner line of straw, or corks, and the mullets leaping over it, and finding themselves still enclosed, do not make a second attempt till there is time to draw them to the sh.o.r.e.

Power had done even more than he had promised, for he had caught a salmon-peel and three or four flounders, besides his conger; while the rest of the party, who had gone to another spot, had caught some ba.s.se, and some plaice, and other flat fish. The ba.s.se is like a freshwater perch in some respects, but it is not so rounded, nor has it the bright colours of the perch. The plaice and flounders were not very large.

”What funny twisted-head fellows they are,” observed Digby, as he handed them to Toby to clean. ”Well, it never did occur to me before I came here what a vast number of curious animals of all sorts live in the sea.”

”I believe, if people would look for them, they'd find as many in the sea as on land,” answered Toby. ”Some of them are wonderful curious.

Just think of a big whale, and then of a little shrimp; and there are thousands of things smaller than shrimps which live in the sea, and quite as curious.”

What a frying, and broiling, and boiling of fish took place; everybody was busy. Digby wanted, by the by, to remain in his wet clothes, but Toby would not let him, but made him strip, and then hung them up on the black rock, against which the sun was striking with full force. Here they quickly dried, while he sat near the fire, the b.u.t.t for his companions' jokes.

”Arrah, now,” exclaimed Power, ”would Mr and Mrs Heathcote ever mistake you for their own eldest son and heir of all their virtues and estates, if they were to come by and see you sitting for all the world like a little Irish spalpeen or a gipsy boy, before his camp fire, gutting fish?”

”It's hard, Power, after I helped you to save the conger, to laugh at me,” said Digby. ”He'll stick in your throat, depend on it.”

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