ON- THE En'EK COLKE, WATFORD. 177 



I presume our Colne. I should think that the river Gade at Cassio- 

 bury also had a good reputation as a fishing stream, for, I read 

 in ' The Ingoldsby Legends,' in the Irishman's Account of the 

 Coronation : — 



" All in the gallery you might persave ; 

 But Lord Brougham was missing and gone a fishing, 

 Ounly the crass Lord Essex would not give him lave." 

 I need not say the late Lord Essex is meant. 



The facts that I have now mentioned would lead us to infer that 

 the CoLne is not so full of fish as it used to be. I will now mention 

 some facts on the other side. A pike was lately caught in the 

 water at Aldenham Abbey weighing 14^1bs. Mr. Durham has had 

 it stuffed, and he has kindly lent it for the Society to see. A 

 friend of mine told me he lately saw in the Ver, within a hundred 

 yards, thi-ee trout, twenty inches long. Mr. Arthur H. Hibbert, 

 of Munden, says in a letter to me : — 



" In 1873, with one rod, eight trout averaging over 2|lbs. were caught in six 

 days; in 1874, in five days, six averaging 2^rbs. were caught; in 1875, in eight 

 days, ten averaging 21bs. ; and in 1876, in seven days, seventeen averaging 

 just over 22lbs. ; so last year was the best. In th^ above I have counted every 

 fish that was caught, but you can hardly judge from the statements I give as to 

 the quantity of ti-out in the river, as it is only fished for eight days at the most. 

 One trout caught last year, weighing 2flbs., had seventy odd large minnows in 

 him. The largest trout was 3ilbs., and this is the largest caught since 1873." 



I wrote also to my friend Mr. Henry Howard, formerly of "Watford, 

 now of St. Albans, for facts regarding his fishing. He says with 

 regard to the different fish and rivers : — 



" I can only send you a list of the fish that I myself have captured, with the 

 date, weight, and place where caught. All the fish from Boxmoor were from the 

 small river Bulbom'ne, which flows into the Gade at Two "Waters. Some years 

 ago, Mr. J. King caught (netting) one trout, I believe over 81bs., between the 

 Rookery and Hamper Mill. Of the Ver I now know nothing, but on the 8th 

 July, 1858, I kiUed one trout, at Bowbridge, of 3lbs., and since then, about four 

 years since, I have landed three fish iu' one day averaging 3|lbs., from the Ver, 

 for Major Gape." 



With regard to eels, I should say they are not less plentiful. Mr, 

 Mead says the largest quantity caught on any one day was three 

 hundredweight. Three hundred and thirty-six pounds weight of 

 fish is a good haul. 



The practical point that we have to discuss is this : If the fish 

 are decreasing, why are they, and are the causes remediable ? 



Lord Essex tells me that in the year 1876 there has been a 

 disease in the trout in the Grade, at Cassiobury. The symptoms 

 are the following : — A film forms over the eyes, the body turns 

 black and emaciated, the head seems enlarged in consequence, and 

 a mildew or fungus seems to spread over the body ; many fish die 

 and sink to the bottom of the water. I do not know the cause of 

 this. Could caustic lime have got into the water ? For I read 

 that " alkaH is death to every species of fish."* It is singular 

 that the same disease, or a similar one, attacked the gold 

 fish that Lord Essex had in the large aquarium in the conser- 

 * Boccius, ;. c, p. 28. 



VOL. I. — PT. VII. 14 



