THE riKE.j 



AiNGLlNG. 



[tiik cahp 



sometimes in tolerable plenty, by trollinfj, and 

 occasioimlly it rises to a Uy. Tlio dilU'reiit 

 states ami varit'tioa are known in Knf^land ns 

 Case cliarr, (iilt cliarr, lu'ii eharr, Silvor cliarr, 

 &c." Keturninfito tlio Grtat Lake Trout, wo 

 tind it stated, by Mr. Wilson, in his article on 

 " Anf^lintx," in the last edition of the Encyclo' 

 fxediii Bntannica, that " the ordinary lut'lhud 

 of tisliing tor this king of trouta is with a 

 powerful rod, from a boat rowing at the rate 

 of from three to tour miles an hour — the lure 

 a common trout, of from four to eight inches 

 in length, baited upon six or eight salmon 

 nooks, tied back to back upon strong gimp, 

 assisted by two swivels, and tiie wheel-line 

 coarse and f*trong." Yet all this, he adds, is, 

 in the first impetuous eflorts of the tit;h to 

 regain its liberty, frequently carried away for 

 ever into the crystal dejiths of Loch Ane ! 



THE GRAYLING. 



In tlie Salmonica of Sir H. Davy, an opinion 

 is expressed that the grayling has been intro- 

 duced to our rivers; but it is not a common 

 fish in some parts of this island. In the Sal- 

 monica its localities are stated to be the Avon, 

 in Hampshire; the Severn and its tributaries, 

 in North Wales ; the Wye and its tributaries ; 

 the Lug, in Herefordshire ; the Dee, Dove, 

 Trent, and Blithe; the Kibble, Erne, Wharf,! 

 Huinber, Derweut, and Kye, in the north of 

 England ; and in the Esk and Eden, in Cum- I 

 berland, it is also occasionally caught. These | 

 are considered its most northern localities on ' 

 the mainland ; but Lowe affiims that it is 

 very frequent in the Orkney Islands. It has 

 neither been found in Scotland nor in Ireland, 

 notwithstanding that it is common in much 

 colder parts, being abundant in Lapland. Mr. 

 AVilson, also, says that he has killed it readily 

 in Switzerland, with a moor-fowl wing and hare- 

 ear body. 



THE PIKE FAMILY. 

 The representatives of this family in the 

 British favour are the Pike, Garfish, Savory 

 Pike, Half-beak, Flying Fish, and the Great Do. 

 The common pike is designated by Lacep^de 

 as "the shark of the fresh waters;" and by 

 Walton as "the tyrant of fresh waters." 

 The voracity of this fish is enormous ; and one 

 which was kept in the preserve of Eusliy 



Park, ISfr. Jesse tolls us, possessed an appe- 

 tite almost insatiablo. Hi* threw to him o\w 

 morning, otm after anothor, fivi* roach, «'nch of 

 about lour itu-lu's in ItMigtli, four of which he 

 swallowed, kee|)ing the (ilth in iiis mouth for 

 ub tut a quarter of an hour, when it uImo dis- 

 appeared. In this preserve there were eij^ht 

 pike, of about live pounds each ; and, out of 

 800 gudgeons which were counted into the re- 

 servoir, there were, at tlie end of three weeks, 

 hardly any to bo seen, though some barbel 

 and perch probably had tlieir share. The tish 

 is in season from May to Februarv, and is 

 angled tor by trolling with a stnjiig-topped rod. 

 The fresher and cleaner the bait is kept for 

 this fish, whetiier for trolling, snap-fishing, or 

 line-bait, the more likely is the angler to 

 succeed in taking him. The fish delights in 

 the bends of rivers and the bays of lakes, 

 where there is no great depth of water, and 

 where reeds, weeds, and water-lilies are plenti- 

 ful. In trolling for him, it is advisable to 

 keep as far from the water's edge as possible, 

 and to begin by casting close by the near 

 shore, with wind blowing against the bank ; 

 but when the weather is bright, and the water 

 clear, there are some anglers who prefer fish- 

 ing against the wind. It is said that the 

 largest pike ever taken in Britain was done 

 with a peacock-feather fly, in Loch Ken, near 

 Xew Galway. Its weight was seventy-two 

 pounds. According to Mr. Colquhon, the 

 most deadly way of catching the pike is bv 

 set lines; and the best time "is on one of 

 those delicious evenings with scarcely a breath 

 of air, when the shadow of the mountain 

 becomes more imposing on the unrippled 

 loch, and twilight begins to steal over the 

 scene." 



THE CARP FAMILY. 

 This is a numerous family, but it has not a 

 large number of representatives in the British 

 fauna. Among these are the Common Carp, 

 the Bream, the Tench, the Chub, the Barbel 

 the Eoach, the Dace, the Bleak, the Gudgeon 

 the Minnow, and a few others less geni-rallv 

 known in this country. To each of these we 

 will devote a few lines. 



THE COMMON CARP. 



To angle for this fieb, old Isaac smvs a very 



1007 



