set off by masses of golden St. John's wort, and on our
walk to The Rocks we would trample down meadow-sweet, marsh mallow,
bird's foot trefoil, and potentilla. There was one little detail of
the picture that was quite remarkable; it was a bright composition of
harebells, with the red-brown of ripening grass, and a patch of
Prussian blue representing a crop of oats immediately behind. By and
by the haymakers came, and down went the harebells, and in course of
time the Prussian blue became yellow straw. One Sunday evening
impresses itself upon my memory especially. The bells were tinkling as
the cows came down from the mountains, and the voices of the women and
children were heard afar in the clear air; down the valley came the
music of a military band in the encampment, and the sun disappearing
over the mountains brought out the colours of the pines and birches in
an indescribably vivid manner, and everything seemed luminous beyond
conception.

But what impressed itself most upon me were the odours brought down to
me on my rocky seat by the soft wind. For quite half an hour there
were regular alternations of the fragrance of pine and new-mown hay. I
had often read of scents borne by zephyrs, but never so thoroughly
realised the sensation of air filled with them. The Rocks, I may add,
were at places hoary with age, curiously stained by the weather,
patched with mosses and ling, and rearwards was the wood with all
manner of shrubs and diversity of forest trees, amongst which I noticed
elm, oak, and cedar, and a complete undergrowth of bilberry and other
berries, which we could pluck and eat at any hour of the day, and
diversify such dessert with wild strawberries and raspberries by a
little search. The whole scene from The Rocks was one of peace and
tranquil prosperity, and one's heart was always warming towards the
kindly people, whose friendship we had quickly gained. During our stay
we cast and caught from many rocks, but none gave us so characteristic
and beautiful a picture in sunshine and in shade as these to which we
gave the distinctive name.

* * * * * *

The majority of anglers probably agree that fishing from a boat must,
under the best of circumstances, be ranked amongst the necessary evils
of an angler's life. The ideal salmon pool is one that can be waded,
and the stream where the salmon lie commanded from head to tail with
precision, without danger or unnecessary