260 OX SULKY LAKB& 



had in picking out those lines! for I am very particular and 

 choice in my trout casts. I sent for more, but I could 

 not replace those I had lost; and to this day of course 

 I believe that there never were any others equal to them. 

 Some lakes are what are called * free rising lakes ; * 

 others are but moderately so, the fish being more capricious 

 and apparently shyer, and sport, though sometimes good, 

 is less certain in them. These lakes often have better 

 fish than the * free risers.' Some, again, are termed ' sulky 

 lakes,* and are very hard to get fish from at all, though 

 occasionally, but rarely, splendid sport will be had on 

 them. I have dealt rather fully upon the rationale of this 

 in my former work on Fish Culture, and I make no 

 doubt but the reasons I have there given are the correct 

 OHM! It is a question altogether of food and the depth of 

 the water. On many lakes there is but one time in the 

 year when you get anything like good sport, and that is 

 when the May fly is on. The Westmeath lakes, Lough 

 Erne, and Lough Arrow, in Sligo, are excellent examples 

 of this latter peculiarity. In the former particularly, 

 sport to any extent, except at this time, is exceptional. 

 When the May fly is on the sport is often splendid, the 

 fish running very large. At other times the fish do not 

 seem to think it worth while to come to the surface at all, 

 the flies they find there probably not being sufficient in 

 size and number to tempt them up. When these large 

 flies, however, are rising, the fish follow them up to the 

 surface, and are kept there by the plenty they find : at 

 other times, such is the abundance and choice of food 

 in the depths of the lakes that they can fill their bellies 

 with very little trouble, and without the necessity for 

 leaving the bottom. Thus they grow fat, lazy, and large. 

 As an instance of this, I will quote a fact mentioned by 

 Colonel Whyte some time ago in the 'Field.' The Colonel 

 stated that he had a small lake which formerly held a 



