SECTION II. 



Lake and Pond Fishing. 



Although the common trout is usually considered as strictly a 

 river fish, it will thrive exceedingly well in a pond where the soil 

 suits it, and the Water is of a good quality. The best bottom 

 seeras to be a clear gravel, and the worst clay, in the latter of which 

 trout never do well and rarely breed ; nor will they ever get on 

 well in a stagnant muddy water whatever the nature of the soil 

 may be. A trout pond ought to be fed with a running stream 

 sufficient to keep the waters from becoming stagnated during the 

 summer months, and that will become large enough in the latter 

 part of autumn to receive such fish as may be inclined to travel up 

 it, in order to deposit their spawn there ; such places being better 

 adapted for vivifying it than the deeper and more extensive waters ; 

 and even the great grey trout, which as I have before stated is a 

 distinct species from the common trout, and solely an inhabitant 

 of the lake, (being very rarely caught by the angler in any of the 

 streams that discharge themselves into it,) will yet ascend the lat- 

 ter for some considerable distance for the purpose of spawning ; 

 having doubtless some instinctive knowledge that the latter local- 

 ities are better adapted to its preservation and increase than their 

 usual and more extended haunts. 



But notwithstanding the streams communicating with ponds and 

 lakes are better adapted for the breeding of the fish, they are gen- 

 erally found to improve most both in growth and condition in the 

 larger waters; and no idea can be more erroneous, than that trout 

 will not acquire good condition in a pond : in fact I have known 

 instances, far too many to recount, where persons who have con- 

 structed fish ponds, and never taken any trouble to stock them 

 beyond allowing the trout from the rills with which the pond was 

 fed to descend into them, which have in a very short time been 



