226 MY LIFE AS A NATURALIST 



twenty-six pounds, and the two largest Brown Trout eight 

 pounds, and seven and three-quarters. These three fish are 

 now in Letchworth museum. 



When the late Madame de Falbe resided at Luton Hoo, fishing 

 in the lake formed there by the River Lea was strictly preserved, 

 but, on the late Sir Julius Wernher coming into possession of the 

 estate, I was, with my father, one of the first to fish there. I 

 have no definite record of the number, or weight, of the fish we 

 caught, but I remember that, in addition to a number of Pike 

 (one of thirteen pounds, a finely-marked specimen, is now pre- 

 served in Letchworth museum), and large Perch up to four pounds, 

 in one sw r im, just over the rushes close to the shore, my father 

 caught fifty-nine large Roach and Rudd, and sixty fell to my 

 own rod. We fished within half a dozen paces of one another, 

 and, perhaps, that was the greatest day's angling I ever had. 



Fishing stories are always regarded, and perhaps rightly so, 

 with suspicion, but I shall never forget Groom, the river keeper, 

 trudging to the station ahead of us with a wheelbarrow full of 

 fish, perhaps a couple of hundredweight in all ! 



PIG. 93. ROACH. 



We had another memorable day at the Hoo later on, and secured 

 a big haul, but, when the lake was cleared of its coarse fish, and 

 Trout were introduced, our fishing days there came to an end. 



I have caught Rudd up to four and five pounds in weight, 

 fishing without a float, and baiting with dry bread. I shall never 

 forget the beautiful bronze sheen upon the broad flat sides of 

 this handsome fish as it was brought to land, nor the large 

 Roach (up to two pounds) which fell to my rod in other favourable 

 retreats. 



Kingfishers have dashed down stream and hovered over my 

 large jackfloat, mistaking the white upper part for a silvery 

 fish at the surface ; Swallows and Dragonflies have perched upon 

 my rod, and, on one excursion when fishing at the pondyards, 



