SMALL FRY 



GUDGEON 



CYPRINUS GOBEO 



German, Der GrUndling; French, Le Goujon 



By R. B. MARSTON 



FRANK BUCKLAND, that delightful man and keen lover of every- 

 thing connected with fish and other animals, tells us that when 

 he was in the 2nd Life Guards, at Windsor, he used to devote 

 much of his spare time to gudgeon fishing in the Thames, his 

 constant companions being the two brothers Reid, the Riding- 

 master and the Adjutant. Fancy these warriors gudgeon fishing ! 

 raking the bed of the river to attract the toothsome, bold biting little fish. 

 He says: 



" The gudgeon's bite, as shown by the float, is a merry one. All 

 on a sudden you see the float dance again, and then disappear under 

 water. You must be very careful to strike very smartly every time 

 the float arrives at the end of the swim, as sometimes the gudgeon 

 coquettes with the bait, and if you are not quick enough when he is 

 making up his mind, you lose him altogether. The gudgeon fisherman 

 has to serve an apprenticeship as to taking the proper depth with 

 the plummet. Unless the worm, which is the best bait, swims exactly 

 right, you will catch no gudgeons, although there may be thousands 

 in the swim." 

 He adds: 



'* The fisherman who goes out in the punt with you must not be 



deprived of his glass of ale for his instructions in these matters. Be 



sure to take a frying pan with you, as gudgeon taken out of the water 



and immediately fried are delicious. Glean, wipe and fiour them, 



then well fry in boiling fat; or, better, in oil, till they are crisp and 



of a light brown colour." 



Buckland says that favourite spots with him for gudgeon fishing near 



Windsor were the deep ballast holes dredged out of the bed of the Thames 



by the dredging barges, from which he often procured, when out fishing, 



many fine specimens of what the bargees call " water bones," i.e., antlers 



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