48 ANGLING IN GREAT BRITAIN. 



pike. The other fish, if not in fair condition, are rapidly 

 arriving at that stage, and from this date the professional 

 fisherman hopes to have his regular customers, and each 

 favourite station of the Thames will have its periodical 

 visits from anglers. The efforts of the Thames Angling 

 Preservation Society have undoubtedly been crowned with 

 success, for the stock of fish has been improving year by 

 year, and, as a passing reference in the previous chapter 

 shows, the angling of the present season has been in all parts 

 satisfactory. The Thames anglers are somewhat of a 

 school to themselves, and, moreover, a very numerous class. 

 They have a variety of fishing at their disposal. Roach 

 and dace are plentiful everywhere from Kew to the 

 source. Barbel are taken at certain stations in bulk. 

 Pike too and perch are equally distributed along the whole 

 length of the beautiful river, and the fly-fisher has plenty of 

 room for the exercise of his abilities with chub and 

 dace. 



Fly-fishing for chub answers best in the hot summer 

 months — say July and August ; and along the willow and 

 alder lined reaches, at odd times payable sport is obtained. 

 It is a great boon after all for the man in the big city pent 

 to be able to get away from business, and by an afternoon 

 train arrive at any portion of the Thames below Oxford in 

 time to have three or four of the best hours' fly-fishing 

 which the day affords. The chub is not fastidious in its 

 choice of flies. So long as the lure is large and hairy ; so 

 lono- as it bears some passing resemblance to a caterpillar 

 or beetle, or large-winged moth, the angler's chances of big 

 fish are good. The chub, however, is an easily scared fish, 

 and it is a primary essential that the whipper shall keep 

 out of sight. 



The breadth of such rivers as the Thames at Moulsford, 



