Enough of science and of art : Close up these barren leaves ; Come forth , and bring with you a heart That watches and receives . '' WORDSWORTH . So the salmon went up , after Tom had warned them of the wicked old otter ; and Tom went down , but slowly and cautiously , coasting along shore . He was many days about it , for it was many miles down to the sea ; and perhaps he would never have found his way , if the fairies had not guided him , without his seeing their fair faces , or feeling their gentle hands . And , as he went , he had a very strange adventure . It was a clear still September night , and the moon shone so brightly down through the water , that he could not sleep , though he shut his eyes as tight as possible . So at last he came up to the top , and sat upon a little point of rock , and looked up at the broad yellow moon , and wondered what she was , and thought that she looked at him . And he watched the moonlight on the rippling river , and the black heads of the firs , and the silver-frosted lawns , and listened to the owl 's hoot , and the snipe 's bleat , and the fox 's bark , and the otter 's laugh ; and smelt the soft perfume of the birches , and the wafts of heather honey off the grouse moor far above ; and felt very happy , though he could not well tell why . You , of course , would have been very cold sitting there on a September night , without the least bit of clothes on your wet back ; but Tom was a water-baby , and therefore felt cold no more than a fish . Suddenly , he saw a beautiful sight . A bright red light moved along the river-side , and threw down into the water a long tap-root of flame . Tom , curious little rogue that he was , must needs go and see what it was ; so he swam to the shore , and met the light as it stopped over a shallow run at the edge of a low rock . And there , underneath the light , lay five or six great salmon , looking up at the flame with their great goggle eyes , and wagging their tails , as if they were very much pleased at it . Tom came to the top , to look at this wonderful light nearer , and made a splash . And he heard a voice say : `` There was a fish rose . '' He did not know what the words meant : but he seemed to know the sound of them , and to know the voice which spoke them ; and he saw on the bank three great two-legged creatures , one of whom held the light , flaring and sputtering , and another a long pole . And he knew that they were men , and was frightened , and crept into a hole in the rock , from which he could see what went on . The man with the torch bent down over the water , and looked earnestly in ; and then he said : `` Tak ' that muckle fellow , lad ; he 's ower fifteen punds ; and haud your hand steady . '' Tom felt that there was some danger coming , and longed to warn the foolish salmon , who kept staring up at the light as if he was bewitched . But before he could make up his mind , down came the pole through the water ; there was a fearful splash and struggle , and Tom saw that the poor salmon was speared right through , and was lifted out of the water .
And then , from behind , there sprang on these three men three other men ; and there were shouts , and blows , and words which Tom recollected to have heard before ; and he shuddered and turned sick at them now , XXXXX he felt somehow that they were strange , and ugly , and wrong , and horrible .
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