his reach, and the man drew back. Again it came to the side, much
nearer. Once more Forsyth lay down, reaching over the pool as far as
he could, and insinuating his hand into the water. But the fish moved
off a little.

Thus they coquetted with each other for some time, until the man's
comrades began to observe that he was "after something".

"Wot's he a-doin' of?" said one. "Reachin' over the pool, I think,"
replied another. "Ye don't mean he's sick?" cried a third. The smile
with which this was received was changed into a roar of laughter as
poor Forsyth's long legs were seen to tip up into the air, and the
whole man to disappear beneath the water. He had overbalanced
himself in his frantic efforts to reach the fish, and was now making
its acquaintance in its native element!

The pool, although small in extent, was so deep that Forsyth, long
though he was, did not find bottom. Moreover, he could not swim, so
that when he reached the surface he came up with his hands first and
his ten fingers spread out helplessly; next appeared his shaggy head,
with the eyes wide open, and the mouth tight shut. The moment the
latter was uncovered, however, he uttered a tremendous yell, which
was choked in the bud with a gurgle as he sank again.

The men rushed to the rescue at once, and the next time Forsyth rose
he was seized by the hair of the head and dragged out of the
pool.

It has not been recorded what became of the fish that caused such an
alarming accident, but we may reasonably conclude that it sought