TROUT-FISHING 269 



to learn these ! It is one of the puzzles besetting the subject 

 of intelligence in the lower animals that successive generations 

 of trout evince progressive suspicion of man and understanding 

 of his devices. There seems to be a complete bar to the trans- 

 mission of intelligence from parent to offspring, for not only 

 does the spawn lie neglected in the bed of the stream for many 

 weeks, but the fry remain completely apart from the older fish 

 for months and even years after hatching. Indeed, it is difficult 

 to imagine young fish receiving instruction from their elders at 

 any period of their growth, inasmuch as a fingerling trout in 

 the vicinity of a hungry three-pounder runs a parlous chance of 

 being snapped up as part of the larger fish's breakfast ; and at 

 all stages it may be seen how jealously greater trout resent the 

 approach of smaller ones. The trout is essentially solitary in 

 habit ; for, although there may be many trout in a single pool 

 of a river, each one has its chosen station, from which it drives 

 off every smaller fish which may attempt to share it. 



In spite of this isolation, trout of very tender age are able 

 to distinguish between man and quadrupeds from which they 

 have nothing to fear. I was particularly impressed by this 

 power of discrimination one day when fishing a stream in 

 Hertfordshire. I discerned, from a safe distance, several trout, 

 large and small, rising in a certain reach of the river. Two or 

 three heavy young cart-horses were galloping about the meadow, 

 thundering along the bank close to these trout, which mani- 

 fested no alarm, but continued rising in the most alluring way. 

 I took up my rod and prepared to approach these fish with all 

 the craft I knew. The keeper, before whose door I was stand- 

 ing, thinking to do me a service, sent his little girl, a tiny 

 mortal of about seven years old, to drive the horses away. 

 This she did effectually, running along the bank, but she also 

 put down every trout. Now, by what power did these fish, 

 which had shown themselves perfectly indifferent to the great 

 cart-horses, discern danger in this light-footed atom — an 

 immature female specimen of the arch enemy Homo sapiens } 



