186 SALMON I A. [seventh day. 



shorter road; but tell nie, have you caught a large 

 fish amongst you, and preserved him for crimping ? 



POIET. — We have preserved two fishes in the barrel, 

 but I fear they are much below your proposed size. 



HAL. — They are good fish, and of the average size 

 of the large grayling in this stream — 16 inches long, 

 and about 1^ lb. ; they will make a good variety 

 boiled and placed in the middle of the fried fish. 

 And how many have you caught altogether ? 



POIET. — I have basketed (to coin a word) three 

 trout and six grayling. 



PHYS. — And I have taken seven grayling. I 

 caught trout likewise, but, not considering them in 

 proper season, I returned them to the river : but 

 Ornither has been the most successful ; he has killed 

 ten grayling. 



HAL. — The trout is rarely good in this river — at 

 least I never saw one that cut red, and vet I have 

 taken them in July, when their external appearance 

 was perfect and beautiful ; but they have, to my taste, 

 always a flabby and soft character of flesh, and at all 

 seasons here are inferior for the table to grayling ; yet 

 they often attain a considerable size. There are few r 

 small fish in these streams, and I suppose the grayling, 

 which are most numerous, deprive the trout of their 

 proper share of the food, depending upon larvae 

 and flies. 



