," Myra replied, with an air of annoyance, "that's it. You can see
that light when the sun shines on it, which is nearly all day, and it
keeps on reminding us that we have a neighbour, although the loch is
between us. Besides, for some extraordinary reason it gets on father's
nerves. Poor old daddy!"

It may seem strange to the reader that anyone should take notice of
the sun's reflection on a window two and a quarter miles away; but it
must be remembered that all her life Myra had been accustomed to the
undisputed possession of an unbroken view.

"Anyhow," she added, as she turned away, "we came here to fish. One of
us must cross the stream here and fish that side. We can't cross
higher up, there's too much water, and there's no point in getting
wet. I'll go, and you fish this side; and when we reach the loch we'll
get into the boat. See, Sholto's across already."

And she tripped lightly from boulder to boulder across the top of the
fall which steams into the Dead Man's Pool, while I stood and admired
her agile sureness of foot as one admires the graceful movements of a
beautiful young roe. Sholto was pawing about in a tiny backwater, and
trying to swallow the bubbles he made, until he saw his beloved
mistress was intent on the serious business of fishing, and then he
climbed lazily to the top of a rock, where he could keep a watchful
eye on her, and sprawled himself out in the sun. I have fished better
water than the Malluch river, certainly, and killed bigger fish in
other lochs than the beautiful mountain tarn above Invermalluch Lodge;
but I have never had a more enjoyable day's sport than the least
satisfying of my many days there.

There was a delightful informality about the sport at the Lodge. One
fished in all weathers because one wanted to fish, and varied one's
methods and destination according to the day. There was no sign of
that hideous custom of doing the thing "properly" that the members of
a stockbroker's house-party seem to enjoy--no drawing lots for reaches
or pools overnight, no roping-in a gillie to add to the chance of
sending a basket "south." When there was a superfluity of fish the
crofters and tenants were supplied first, and then anything that was
left over was sent to friends in London and elsewhere. At the end of
the day's sport we went home happy and pleased with ourselves, not in
the least depressed if we had drawn a blank, to jolly and delightful
meals, without any formality at all.