210 AUTUMN ANGLING ON THE LYON. 



river, and the journal of a Dee angler of those 

 days contains an entry of three fish between 

 20 Ib. and 30 lb., taken out one after the other 

 from the same pool, and on the same morning. 

 Ask any Dee angler how many 20-lb. fish are 

 captured with the rod in a whole season now ! * 



Sea-netted salmon are in the finest order for 

 the table. After ascending fresh water they 

 remain in good condition till the close of the 

 season ; but the test of a first-rate fish is when 

 the sea-lice prove him fresh from the brine. No 

 wonder, then, that sea-caught fish are in the 

 highest demand; and it is the exceeding skill 

 acquired by the sea-fishers in entrapping the very 

 salmon as they strive to penetrate and stock 

 our rivers that has done more to spoil salmon 

 angling than either breeding - ponds or river- 

 watching will ever be able to remedy. 



* In 1855, from the 6th of March till the 15th of May, I 

 landed fifty -five, and my eldest son (then a lad at school) four 

 salmon on the Dee. He was only down for a short time now 

 and then, but had the good hap to kill a beauty of 21 lb. the 

 heaviest clean salmon taken with the rod on our stretch of 

 waters for many seasons before. My largest fish was 18 lb. 



