SPORT ANCIENT AND MODERN 



appearance among the rudd, killing them off 

 by hundreds of thousands. The trout re- 

 mained unaffected by the disease, though from 

 several debatable causes they seemed fewer, 

 and certainly were shyer than ever. The 

 average weight of the trout, however, rose 

 from i^lb. in 1902 to nearly 2|lb. in 1903. 

 The presence of a large and growing colony 

 of herons on the shores of the lake, must be 

 productive of serious results to the stock of 

 trout. At all seasons, more especially at 

 spawning time when trout lie in the shallows, 

 these birds destroy great numbers offish. 



The above forms a practically complete 

 description of the trout fishing available in the 

 county. The two tributaries of the Nene 

 which join at Northampton, one from Sprat- 

 ton and Guilsborough, the other from 

 Weedon and Kislingbury, are, with the ex- 

 ception of the former close to Northampton, 

 not noted for their coarse fish. Years ago 

 pike up to 20 lb., chub to 5 lb., and large 

 perch and roach, used to be caught in the 

 Spratton Brook ; but this is changed now, the 

 growth of the town being a potent factor in 

 the decline of the fish population. A short 

 stretch of this stream beside the Castle rail- 

 way station at Northampton still holds some 

 splendid pike. It belongs to the railway com- 

 pany and used to be rented by a small club. 

 Pike up to 22 lb. have been taken there quite 

 recently. A short distance below Northamp- 

 ton the river is rented by the Northampton 

 Angling Club, which holds the stream, with 

 the exception of certain small reaches, all the 

 way to Wellingborough. Pike and roach 

 are extremely plentiful, but the pike run small, 

 an eight-pounder being considered a big fish. 

 They are rarely caught over 1 1 lb. The 

 river, however, teems with large roach, fish of 

 if lb. being not uncommon. There used also 

 to be plenty of perch, but of late years there 

 has been a marked falling off in the number 

 of these fine fish. 



From Wellingborough to Oundle and 

 Peterborough, the character of the fishing is 

 somewhat similar, most of it being in the 

 hands of the riparian owners. The further 

 down the angler goes, the larger the fish he 

 may expect to take : moreover the river be- 

 comes full of bream in addition to the species 

 found in the upper waters. Near Oundle and 

 Wansford bream are caught in considerable 

 numbers, and up to 5 lb. in weight. Pike of 

 from 10 lb. to 15 lb. are fairly frequent, the 

 river both abo\e and below Oundle being one 

 of the best pike reaches. Historic Fothering- 

 hay is perhaps the best part of the whole 

 river for all-round sport. From Wansford to 

 Peterborough the fishing is not so good, the 



proximity of Peterborough apparently having 

 an adverse influence. 



The second principal stream is the Wel- 

 land, which forms the northern boundary 

 of the county. It is a very bad second 

 to the Nene in the number of fish, chiefly 

 roach and chub, which it contains. There 

 are pike in the Welland, but they run small : 

 the best sport obtainable is with the roach and 

 chub, which rise readily to the fly, and are, 

 of course, to be taken in considerable quanti- 

 ties by bottom fishing. Perhaps the best part 

 of the river lies within easy reach of Wakerley 

 and Barrowden, but the whole stream is very 

 accessible from its proximity to the Market 

 Harborough and Peterborough line. From 

 Rockingham down to Stamford the whole of 

 the fishing, with the exception of a \ery few 

 reaches, is now in the hands of the Stamford 

 Angling Association. 



There can be no doubt that the best coarse 

 fishing is to be had in the private lakes and 

 reservoirs, of which there are a considerable 

 number in the county. Of those that can be 

 fished by payment, the Daventry reservoirs 

 and Castle Ashby ponds are best. 



The new reservoir is much the better of 

 the two, and an extra charge is made if a punt 

 is required. The Castle Ashby ponds teem 

 with pike, roach, tench, bream, and eels. 

 The pike are small, though isolated specimens 

 up to 20 lb. are caught ; perch run very 

 large, up to 4 lb. in weight, but the average is 

 not more than f lb. Tench frequently attain 

 4 lb. weight, and bream 5 lb. 



Naseby, Welford and Byfield reservoirs all 

 afford splendid fishing ; for them permission is 

 required, but granted favourable weather con- 

 ditions, and the fish on the feed, sport is sure 

 to be memorable, whether with pike, perch, 

 or roach. The great lake in Overstone park 

 contains perhaps the finest carp in the king- 

 dom. On a hot day in July they may be 

 seen rolling on the surface in hundreds, great 

 fish from 5 lb. to 20 lb. in weight. 



A glance at the ordnance map shows various 

 sheets of water in the spacious and beautiful 

 parks of the county, amongst the best being 

 Fawsley Park, the residence of Lady Knightlev, 

 where there are three large lakes all full of 

 pike, perch, roach, tench, etc. Blatherwycke 

 Park, at the other end of the county, the seat 

 of Mr. H. Stafford O'Brien, is a splendid 

 sheet of water, and full of fish ; the same may 

 be said of Wakefield Lawn, the seat of the 

 duke of Grafton ; Sir Vere Isham's ponds at 

 Lamport, Mr. Loder's at Maidwell, the 

 Broadwater lake near Wolverton, Lord Lil- 

 ford's at Oundle, and many smaller but equally 

 well stocked lakes throughout the shire. 



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