24 SOUTH COUNTRY TROUT STREAMS 



chalk and gravel streams — such as those of Surrey, 

 Hants, and Bucks — but in other waters. He 

 attributed the evil to the cultivation of the country, 

 to the draining of bogs and marshes which fed 

 streams and in which the water flies and their larvae 

 were so often to be found. I have myself been sup- 

 plied with several instances of the May-fly greatly 

 diminishing in quantity in rivers and stretches of 

 rivers. In parts of the Dorsetshire Frome it has 

 sadly decreased, so that there can hardly be said to 

 be anything of a May-fly season on the Club water at 

 Dorchester nowadays. On the other hand it has 

 appeared on the head waters of the Lea in immense 

 numbers of late, and — to go outside the country 

 covered by the south country trout streams — on 

 the Derbyshire Wye it has been hatching in at 

 least equal profusion. Yet on the other hand on the 

 head waters of the Lea of recent years there has 

 been such a small quantity of the lesser ephemeridce, 

 of those duns and spinners on which the chalk 

 stream angler chiefly depends, that the Hatfield 

 Fishing Club has just commenced the interesting 

 experiment of breeding water flies in addition to 

 young fish, — a most enterprising step, which per- 

 haps other clubs afflicted with a scarcity of small 

 fly will be following presently. The experiment 

 of transplanting or introducing certain water flies 

 is not absolutely novel, though it has hitherto not 

 been attempted on a considerable scale. The late 

 Mr. Andrews told me that he had been successful 

 in introducing both May-fly and alder on his 

 beautiful fish ponds at Crichmere in Surrey, and 

 had had the pleasure of often seeing the big fish 

 compete eagerly for the insects when hatched. 

 Another fish culturist, Mr. Arrnistead, proprietor 



