Tench, Carp ami Riuhl. 



21 



little doubt that it would have 

 survived. 



I have known an eel to live two 

 days in a field, and it seemed as 

 lively as when it came out of the 

 water. Unlike the tench, it was 

 not injured in any way. I got it 

 bobbing with worms threaded on 

 worsted. It was night time, and 

 I lost it in the grass. The gills 

 of the eel are more protected than 

 those of the tench, and of course 

 the grass contained a good deal of 

 moisture. 



Muddy ponds and rivers, being 

 the habitat of tench, angling de- 

 vices must be adapted accordingly. 

 For ground baiting a mixture of 

 potatoes, brown bread, and bran 

 is used. This bait is an excellent 

 "draw" in large ponds. If the 

 pond is small enough to fish all 

 over with the rod I should not 

 advise it unless one is certain that 

 eels do not comprise part of the 

 joint stock company. The latter 

 congregate on the baited spots, 

 and become a nuisance the 

 moment one begins to fish. They 

 will take the worm and swallow 

 it, hook and all, to a depth that 

 requires an abdominal surgical 

 operation for its recovery. They 

 will entangle and knot your gut 

 hopelessly, and slime you from 

 head to foot if you are not 

 careful. 



Brandlings are the best bait for 

 tench ; failing them red worms 

 and lobs. Brown bread paste 

 sweetened with treacle or honey 

 and greaves may be tried, but in 

 my judgment only when the stock 

 of worms is exhausted. Fine gut 

 cast and line will secure more 

 sport than heavier tackle. The 

 rod should be long and pliable, so 

 as to yield freely to the play of 

 the fish. The hold is not likely 

 to give way as the mouth is 

 leathery ; it is simply a question 

 whether the gut will bear the 

 heavy boring strain which the 



fish puts on ; a stiff rod, therefore, 

 would be fatal. It may be laid 

 down as a general principle that 

 the pliability of the rod should be 

 in direct proportion to the light- 

 ness of the tackle. 



Tench do not move far from the 

 spot where they are hooked, but 

 content themselves with fighting 

 it out on their own ground. This 

 they do with praiseworthy energy. 

 They take the bait from the 

 bottom. Tight corking, already 

 described, is a good method to 

 adopt. A second hook mounted 

 with paste may be used with ad- 

 vantage. In that case it should 

 be adjusted so that one lure lies 

 on the bottom and the other just 

 clear of it. Legering is necessary 

 to fish distant parts of the water, 

 using a very light bullet that will 

 not sink in the mud. Care should 

 be taken not to drag it along the 

 bottom, embedding it in the mud 

 and the bait with it, and prevent- 

 ing the line from running when a 

 bite occurs. The worm should 

 be looped on rather than threaded 

 on the shank, catching it lightly 

 with the hook in a couple of 

 places. It lives longer and at- 

 tracts more attention mounted in 

 this fashion. When the worm 

 dies a fresh one should be sub- 

 stituted. Stale baits catch no 

 tench. The bite is very similar 

 to a bream's, the float rising to 

 the surface of the water then 

 going under and moving off in a 

 slanting direction. When this 

 happens the strike should not be 

 long delayed. 



A condition favourable to the 

 capture of tench is slightly dis- 

 coloured water. After a night's 

 heavy rain the mud is stirred up 

 in ponds, and fresh food is borne 

 into the deep river holes. The 

 angler on the spot under such 

 conditions is not likely to go 

 home with an empty basket. A 

 strong wind that raises a wave 



