THE BARBEL. 77 



his nose into the mire. After being held in this way for a short 

 time he will bolt off, and try the same dodge in another place. 

 These efforts the skilful angler will defeat, until the fish is exhausted 

 by his own exertions. 



THE BAB-BEL 



Is a well made, handsome, and powerful fish, very active and 

 vigorous, quite the sort of fellow to try the strength of the angler's 

 tackle, and the dexterity of his hand. He is very fond of rapid 

 waters, which run over stony bottoms, and will lie for a long time 

 in a boiling current under shelving banks, near old stone walls and 

 piles, or about sunken trees or old timber. In these sort of places 

 the larger fish are generally to be found, and as the barbel dreads 

 alike the fiery heats or extreme cold, he commonly lies near. the 

 bottom, and haunts the deepest parts of the stream. 



The barbel is gregarious, and is to be found in many of the 

 rivers in England- but the Trent and the Thames are perhaps 

 better supplied with this fish than any other British streams. 



Stories have been told of the barbel having attained a weight of 

 fifteen or twenty pounds; but these are instances of very rare 

 occurrence, as lie seldom exceeds eight or ten pounds, ana even 

 this is deemed a very large size, and by no means usual. These 

 fish spawn early in June. Walton says in April ; but perhaps they 

 vary according to seasons and situations. Some authors suppose 

 he never casts spawn until his fifth or sixth year. 



The barbel is a long-lived fish. His flesh is white and deli- 

 cate in appearance; and, when cooked according to the receipt 

 for stewing tench and carp, he is not altogether the most despi- 

 cable of all fish, and might perhaps be eaten by a very hungry 

 man. 



The fish will live four or five hours after he has been taken out 

 of the water. The barbel is supposed to possess the peculiar 

 power of causing the water to bubble up on the surface above his 

 head when he makes his respirations. The eel is also believed 

 to exhibit the ^same faculty ; but as these air bubbles may be 

 accounted for in a more satisfactory manner, we may be allowed 

 to call in question the truth of these notions altogether. 



The barbel takes its name from the beard or wattles which hang 

 about his mouth; and when he is young and very small, he is 

 called in Erance " Barbillon." "With these beards or wattles," 

 says Walton, " he is able to take such a hold of weeds and moss, 

 that the sharpest floods cannot move him from his position. He 

 seems to have the power of rooting into the mud, and pig-like, 

 wallowing in the mire and weeds at the bottom of deep holes, and 

 under overhanging banks." 



This fish feeds on flies, bees, bugs, wasps, maggots, < worms, 

 slugs, snails, and similar kinds of bait; but anglers have invented 



