2 86 AMERICAN FISHES. 



Buckland, in his " History of British Fishes," devotes several pages to 

 the exploits of Mr. Alfred Jardine, where he describes as '' the most suc- 

 cessful angler for Pike in modern times." 



In this country, the Pike and the Pickerels have few friends, although 

 the Muskellunge is not without admirers, among those who fish for sport. 

 The opposition party is led chiefly by the angler-fish -culturists, who have 

 good reason for their spite, since the hungry Esox is a sad foe to the pro- 

 prietor of a fish preserve, and until it has been banished from a pond, no 

 other species can be expected to thrive. In the days of the infancy of 

 fish culture, Pike and Pickerel were frequently transplanted into our 

 waters, and the results of this ill advised enterprise are by no means 

 satisfactory to those who desire to propagate carp or trout in the same 

 area. Only a few of these fish can live in one pond, and in the end the 

 colony consists of a few patriarchs, strong, large and voracious. 



The Pike is not without its uses in fish-culture however. One or two, 

 kept in a pond, are believed by German carp-breeders to benefit the carp, 

 by "keeping them lively," and thinning out the feeble. 



The enemies of Esox in America denounce him vigorously, and declare 

 that he is bony, flavorless, and of trifling value. He has his friends how- 

 ever. In the reign of Edward I., the value of Pike was higher than that 

 of fresh salmon, and more than ten times greater than that of the best 

 Turbot or cod, and in the time of Henry VIII, a large one sold for double 

 the price of a lamb, and a Pickerel for more than a fat capon. Tough 

 old Pike, and those taken from muddy, sluggish water, are of course not to 

 be desired, but as a rule, any one of the American species is to be chosen 

 as a delicate morsel for the table. 



"Roast him when he is caught," said Isaac Walton, "and he is 

 choicely good — too good for any but anglers and honest men." 



