CHAPTER XV 



ODDS AND ENDS 



It is, when you come to think of it, rather odd that 

 on some fisheries the standard of retainable trout 

 is one of weight, while on others it is one of length. 

 Would it not be better if clubs and fishery owners 

 all had a length standard? Supposing you have 

 a standard of one pound and catch a fish of fifteen 

 and three-quarter ounces or sixteen and a quarter 

 ounces, you could not venture to retain it (nor 

 would you lightly return it) without first ascertaining 

 whether it really reached the lawful pound. That 

 would mean weighing it, and that would mean a 

 great deal of unnecessary handling and messing 

 about which is not good for the fish if it proves to 

 be below the specified weight. 



There may be ways of attaching the hook of a 

 spring balance to a trout whicli are unobjectionable 

 (if it is going back into the water), but I do not know 

 them. The best, I suppose, is just to hang the trout 

 on the balance by the gill cover, but if the fish gives 

 a kick when hanging a serious wound to the gills 

 may be the result. If it has been out of the water 



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