iZAAK Walton's association with the river t.ea. 197 



which it may be of interest to touch briefly before concluding!;, 

 namely, the former existence of salmon in the Lea. 



There is, no doubt, that long after the time of Walton, the Lea 

 was a salmon river, but when it actually ceased to be so, it is not so 

 easy to decide. Mr. Croft, in the article to which reference has 

 already been made, quotes Farmer's " History of Waltham Abbey," 

 to prove the existence of salmon in this river in 1735, but adds, " I 

 have not been able to ascertain the date of the capture of the last 

 salmon ; probably they were very scarce, if not extinct here before 

 the end of the last century." 



This was by no means the case, for there is evidence to show 

 that salmon were taken in the Lea at least a century after r'armer 

 wrote. Amongst the notes which I have collected on this subject 

 are the following : 



"The Sporting Magazine" for 181 6 contains the announcement 

 that, "In January, 1816, Mr. Salter hooked a very heavy male 

 salmon in the subscription water at Lea Bridge, supposed to be the 

 largest ever taken in the River Lea with rod and line. After an 

 arduous struggle of an hour and a half, he succeeded in killing it. 

 It measured 3 ft. 7^ in. in length, and weighed 28 lbs. From its 

 singular form and colours, Mr. Salter was induced to present it to 

 the landlord of the "Horse and Groom," at Lea Bridge, who had it 

 stuffed and a drawing made of the same and hung up in his parlour 

 for the inspection of the curious." 



A correspondent signing himself "an old and keen sportsman," 

 writing in " The Field " of 13th October, 1877, says (p. 419) : 



" One day in April, 1825, I caught a brace of salmon-peel in the 

 Lea a little above Old Ford, 6f and 4I lbs. in weight. At that time 

 it was thought a great piece of luck for any one to catch two in one 

 day, and I, a little more than a boy then, was very proud of the feat." 



"The Sporting Magazine " for 1833 records that, 



"On December 9th, 1833, a fine salmon measuring 3 ft. 2 in. 

 and weighing 15 lbs. was captured at Walthamstow Ferry Fishery. 

 It had taken advantage of recent floods, and had passed mills and 

 locks, and ultimately found its way into the old stream where it was 

 caught. The depth of this part of the River Lea is influenced by 

 the barge and copper-mill streams, and as the floods subsided, the 

 fish found it difficult to pass the ford on which it was found 

 splashing and throwing itself up towards a tumbling bay." 



A well known angler in the Thames and Lea, Mr. T. R. Sachs, 



