14 Poachers and Poaching. 



sometimes succeeds. Many of the older 

 poachers, however, discountenance this cowardly 

 method, for by it the destruction of fish is whole- 

 sale, irrespective of size. The old hands use an 

 old-fashioned net, to work which requires at 

 least two men. The net is dragged along the 

 quiet river reaches, a rope being attached to each 

 end. The trout fly before it, and are drawn out 

 upon the first bed of pebbles. In this w r ay great 

 hauls are often made. To prevent. this species of 

 poaching, stakes are driven into trout stream 

 beds ; but they are not of much avail. When it 

 is known that a "reach" is staked, a third man 

 wades behind the net and lifts it over. A better 

 method to prevent river poaching is to throw 

 loose thorn bushes into the bed of the stream. 

 In trailing along the bottom the net becomes 

 entangled, and long before it can be unloosed 

 the fish have escaped. This wholesale instru- 

 ment of fish poaching is now rarely used. The 

 net is necessarily large and cumbersome. Wet, 

 it is as much as two men can carry, and when 

 caught in the act, there is nothing for it but to 

 abandon the net and run. This is an effectual 

 check for a time, as a new net takes long to knit 

 and is expensive, at least to the poacher. When 

 salmon and trout are spawning their senses seem 

 somewhat dulled, and they are taken out of the 

 water at night by click-hooks. In this kind of 

 river poaching a lighted tar brand is used to show 



