THE RIVER DEVERON 199 



writer's opinion on any subject connected with 

 Angling or Natural History must carry great 

 weight, although in this instance running counter 

 to the experience of Sir Herbert Maxwell, as 

 given above. 



To leave the Salmonidae for the moment, 

 and to turn to the pike, it seems to have been 

 long generally held that a ' bit of red ' about the 

 bait often proved enticing. We have all seen 

 the tuft of red wool so frequently tied round the 

 end triangle of a spoon. In corroboration of 

 this theory a friend recently related the follow- 

 ing instance to me. During a visit to Loch 

 Awe, trout fishing being 'off,' it was resolved 

 to make a raid in the loch upon the pike, of 

 of which there are only too many for the well- 

 being of the nobler species. Two rods were 

 equipped, the one with an ordinary brown 

 phantom, the other with a red one at one 

 time, if memory serves, esteemed to be 'good 

 medicine ' for salmon in Loch Tay. 



The pike proved to be in taking humour, 

 and the result was something like nine or ten 

 of good average weight. But every one of 

 these was caught on the scarlet bait ; the other, 

 with exactly the same chance, did not elicit so 

 much as a casual 'offer.' It is, perhaps, worthy 

 of notice that a pike following a spinning bait 



