THE CHUB. 141 



Chief haunts General weight. 



out of season, full of small hairy bones ; the roe 

 however, is very good, and this fish, stewed as 

 carp will, it is said, deceive a connoisseur. Its 

 name is derived from the shape of the head, cop 

 being an old English word for head, and the 

 French and Italians know it by a name synony- 

 mous with ours. 



The haunts of these fish are rivers whose bot- 

 toms are of sand or clay, or which are bounded by 

 clayey banks; in deep holes, under hollow banks, 

 shaded by trees or weeds. They are also found 

 in the Esk, a river noted for the chrystalline 

 clearness of its waters, flowing over a rocky bot- 

 tom. These fish often float on the surface, and 

 are sometimes found in deep waters, where the 

 currents are strong. In ponds fed by a rivulet 

 they grow to a great size. They seldom, how- 

 ever, exceed the weight of four or five pounds: 

 though Salvianus speaks of them as encreasing 

 to eight or nine. 



They deposit their spawn in April ; and are in 

 greatest perfection during the months of Decem- 

 ber and January. 



The chub does not afford the angler so much 

 diversion as the trout ; when he seizes a bait, he 

 bites so eagerly, that his jaws are often heard to 

 chop like those of a dog. He, however, seldom 

 breaks his hold, and when once he is struck, is 

 soon tired. The time of angling for chub is from 

 August to March, but best in the winter months. 

 In mild cloudy weather the chub will bite all day j 



