open, she did not even know that there was such a place until she was
set down in it and told to shift for herself.

However, by dint of strength, speed, agility, and good judgment in
selecting hiding-places--and also, in all probability, by a run of
remarkably good luck--she made her way unharmed through all the perils
of babyhood and early youth, and now she was one of the most beautiful
little three-year-old pirates that ever swooped down upon a helpless
victim.

As she and our friend swam side by side, her nose and the end of her
tail were exactly even with his. Her colors were the same that he had
worn before he put on his wedding garments, and if you had seen them
together in the early summer I don't believe you could ever have told
them apart. They were a well-matched pair, more evenly mated, probably,
than is usual in fish marriages.

But they were not to be allowed to set up housekeeping together without
fighting for the privilege. Hardly had she finished inspecting the nest,
and made up her mind that it would answer, and that he was, on the
whole, quite eligible as a husband, when a third trout appeared and
attempted to do as the big bully had done the year before. This time,
however, our young friend's blood was up, and, though the enemy was
considerably larger than he, he was ready to strike for his altars and
his fires. He made a quick rush, like a torpedo-boat attacking a
man-of-war, and hit the intruder amidships, ramming him with all his
might. Then the enemy made as sudden a turn, and gave our Trout a poke
in the ribs, and for a few minutes they dodged back and forth, and round
and round, and over and under each other, each getting in a punch
whenever he had a chance. So far it seemed only a trial of strength and
speed and dexterity, and if our Trout was not quite as large and
powerful as the other, yet he proved himself the quicker and the more
agile and lively. But before it was over he did more than that, for,
suddenly ranging up on the enemy's starboard quarter, he opened his
mouth, and the sharp teeth of his lower jaw tore a row of bright scales
from his adversary's side, and left a long, deep gash behind. That
settled it. The big fellow lit out as fast as he could go, and our Trout
was left in undisputed possession.

The nesting season cannot last forever, and by and by, when the days
were very short and the nights were very long, when the stars were
bright, and when each sunrise found the hoa