26 THE PRACTICAL ANGLER 



carried in the pocket, and so complete in structure, 

 that a whole pool may be almost cleaned of its 

 finny inhabitants at a single haul. Tweed and its 

 tributaries suffer more from netting than any other 

 streams in Scotland, and it is most usually carried 

 on in the neighbourhood of towns or villages, where 

 the poachers can find a ready sale for their trout. 



There are three remedies which might be adopted 

 to prevent netting. The first, and undoubtedly the 

 most efficacious of these, is to have the rivers watched ; 

 but this is so expensive as to render it quite im- 

 practicable. Another way is to drive stakes into 

 the principal pools and streams, which would pre- 

 vent nets being drawn through. During the last 

 few years this has been tried, and we understand with 

 great success, in some streams in the neighbourhood 

 of Hawick. Gala Water was also staked a few years 

 ago, and an association formed for the protection of 

 the river, called the Gala Angling Association, which 

 every angler who visits that stream should join. It 

 is, however, too soon yet to speak of the effects of 

 this upon Gala, but we have no doubt it will prove 

 highly beneficial. Stakes, however, are liable to this 

 objection, that they interfere with the angler while 

 landing a fish, or when using the worm. The last 

 and most feasible plan is to put large stones in the 

 water, which would have the same effect as the stakes, 

 and would not, like them, interfere with the angler, 

 and would also afford shelter to the fish. The last 

 reason we shall assign for the decrease of trout is 

 the enormous increase of anglers of late years ; there 



