24 THE PIKE. 



pike was " out of season," the capture was unsports- 

 manlike. 



1894, April, 32 Ibs., caught trailing with "Blue 

 Devon," in Lough Conn, co. Mayo, Ireland, by 

 Mr. E. H. C. Smith, of Clifton College. Note! 

 More flagrantly unsportsmanlike than the previous 

 instance. 



1895, December, 21 Ibs., caught with livebait, in 

 Barratt's Pool, Moire, Leicestershire. 



1895, December, 25 Ibs., caught with snap-tackle 

 in the River Dove, near Tutbury, Staffordshire, by 

 Mr. J. C. Wright. 



When Whittlesea Mere was drained in the early 

 part of this century in order to reclaim the land 

 and place it under cultivation, as the waters 

 receded a huge pike was left nearly "high and 

 dry," and captured ; it weighed 49 Ibs. 



Curious experiences sometimes happen to 

 anglers when pike-fishing, in the shape of singular 

 captures. As an instance of this, two friends 

 were fishing in a lake at Amersham, Buckingham- 

 shire, when one of them had his livebait 

 dents taken, and almost immediately the other 

 in pike had a " run " from a good fish that took 

 line rapidly off his reel ; but the two lines 

 seemed to draw together, and at last converged to 

 one point, when it became evident both anglers 

 had hooked the same fish. The pike was gaffed 

 and landed ; it had taken both baits and was 

 hooked by both tackles. It was a handsome fish 

 of 21 Ibs. I saw it in the evening, when it was 

 christened "The Union Jack." A similar incident 

 occurred twice on the same day to myself and a 

 companion when fishing the Dorset, Frome. One 

 of the pike weighed 17 Ibs., the other 9 Ibs. 



