" he cried, "look at that!"

I was already looking, for before the old baits had gone down many
inches, we saw them both seized by largish fish, which seemed to dart
out of some lilies a short distance to our left.

"What are you going to do?" I said.

"Wait a minute and I'll show you," he whispered, laughing, and after
attaching the bait, he brought down the floats till they were only about
a foot away from the hooks. "Now then, do as I do. Throw your line out
as near as you can to those floating leaves."

He threw his own very cleverly, so that the bait dropped into the water
with hardly a splash, and I followed his example.

"Too far," he said, as my bait dropped on to a lily leaf, but the weight
of the shot drew it slowly off the dark green leaf, and it glided into
the water.

"I've got a bite," said Mercer, in an excited whisper. "Hi, look out!
Strike! strike!" he cried, for at that moment the white top of my float
descended suddenly, rose again and then began to glide in a sloping
direction along the edge of the lily bed.

I gave the rod a sharp, upward motion, and a thrill ran up my arm, as I
felt the line tighten, and a curious tugging commence.

"Hurrah! you've got him. Don't let him go into the weeds, or you'll
lose it. Keep your rod up, and you'll have the gentleman."

I heard all his instructions, but in the flurry of holding my first fish
I did nothing but what, as the rod and line were both strong, was for
the best. That is to say, I held my rod with both hands, and kept it
nearly upright, while the fish I had hooked darted here and there, and
tried vainly to make a dive down for the bottom.

"It's all right," said Mercer breathlessly. "It's a big one, and you
must have him. Don't hurry."

"Is it very big?" I whispered excitedly.

"I think it is--over a pound, I should say. Let him get tired, or he'll
break away. Ah, it's of no use, you're caught fast, old gentleman,
whatever you are. It's a big carp or a tench. I think it's a carp,
it's so strong."

The struggle went on for fully five minutes before the fish gave in.

"Now we've got to land it," said Mercer. "Can't do it here, or he'll
break away. I know. Give me your rod to hold. That's it. Now you go
back, and I'll pass it to you."

He laid his own tackle down, and I walked carefully along the narrow
woodwork, back to the shore, while he drew the fish round, and then
reached toward me, till I could catch hold of the