456 SALMON AND TROUT. 



The stomachs of very young trout have been opened, and found 

 to contain quantities of shrimps, snails and larvae, and a]so 

 the fry of such coarse fish as may happen to be in the same 

 water. 1 



PONDS. 



The construction and maintenance of rearing ponds are 

 matters of careful study, and often require considerable en- 

 gineering skill in obtaining levels, so as to lose no space and 

 economise labour. It is also to be observed that whilst the 

 quantity of water and its ' reliability ' are matters of the first 

 moment, it must also be of the quality and temperature suited 

 to the growth of the best natural food, and of the weed upon 

 which ' the food ' lives, and further, that it is not subject to pollu- 

 tion or uncontrollable floods. My own ponds are constructed as 

 close to springs as possible, in fact, at the springs themselves, 

 that 'is to say, either over the springs, or within a few yards of 

 them. Here they are safe from any risk of pollution or floods. 



If under the above conditions the quantity and ' unfailing- 

 ness ' of the springs are established, there is scarcely any limit 

 to the number of ponds that may be made, depending on the 

 fall of the land, and the extent of the holding. If, on the 

 contrary, the springs have been known to fail, even in the 

 driest season, I should turn my back on the place, however 

 tempting in other respects. 



It is a popular error to suppose that trout will thrive only 

 in streams ; they often grow far more quickly in ponds. It is 

 not the current they require, but a constant supply of good 

 water, with plenty of food. The majority of streams, however 

 small in their normal condition, are occasionally subject to 

 floods, and cannot, on account of the great body of water then 

 coming down, be effectually fenced. 



1 At the proper season, large numbers of small coarse fish can be procured, 

 including pike, perch, gudgeon, roach, dace, chub, minnows, &c. , and these 

 make excellent food for young trout, The writer has frequently hatched the 

 ova of these fish for the express purpose. 



