RIVERS OF THE DISTRICT 29 



are to be found ; but here, except in the best 

 months, they rise less readily to the fly. 



Hackle flies are mainly used on the Lune, these 

 being dressed like those used on the Kent and 

 neighbouring rivers. Special mention should be 

 made of the Willow-fly, which always proves kill- 

 ing here. 



It should be noted that in the upper reaches, 

 during the earlier fishing months, " smelts " 1 are a 

 great nuisance, taking the trout flies at almost 

 every cast. 



So far as trout are concerned, until the present 

 season they have been heavily netted ; but the 

 Lune Conservancy Board has now secured a bye- 

 law which abolishes netting for trout. 



It is, however, as a salmon river that the Lune 

 is famous. Of late years, however, several abuses 

 have existed. It has been over netted ; it has 

 been polluted ; and there have been difficulties 

 in the way of effective administration. The tidal 

 portions of the river are greatly over-fished, 

 and a weir at Skerton, also heavily netted, is an 

 effectual bar to the great majority of salmon 

 ever reaching the main river at all that is 

 beyond the tidal influence. The result of this 

 state of things is that salmon fishing has greatly 

 declined, in some reaches of the river to the extent 

 of ninety per cent. ; and among anglers there is 

 a general feeling of dissatisfaction. The salmon 

 angling along practically the whole of the river 

 has been sacrificed to the commercial interests 

 of a dozen professional fishermen ; and the upper 

 riparian owners, who preserve the few breeding 

 fish that do get up the river, are deprived of any- 

 1 Local name for parr or salmon smolts. 



