THE TKOUT 9 



is held on a number of trout brought to net, 

 some of them are sure to contain evidence 

 confirming the above view. In rocky, hard- 

 bottomed streams, little food accumulates for 

 the fish, as such rivers are constantly liable 

 to sudden floods. Trout in these streams 

 are late in getting into condition, whereas 

 the fish of the chalk- streams in the south of 

 England where the current is slow, and the 

 banks and bottom soft, are more forward, 

 owing to the superiority of the food supply. 



5. Is fishing cruel ? 



From time to time the supposed cruelty 

 of fishing forms a subject for discussion. 

 Although a trout contains blood, and is 

 often distinctly warm to the touch when 

 taken out of a cold stream, there is ample 

 evidence to prove that its sense of feeling 

 or pain is practically nil. On several occa- 

 sions I have taken trout which showed the 

 result of old wounds, some of the latter 

 having been of such a severe nature that 

 only a practically nerveless creature could 

 have survived them. Any angler of experi- 

 ence can bring forward evidence to the same 

 effect. I remember fly-fishing one day on 

 a hill-stream, when a trout of about 4 oz. 

 rose to the fly, missed it, rose again, and 



