16 



flow of fresh water passing through the stew ; carp and 

 tench, on the other hand will keep all the winter without 

 receiving any injury. 



In fishing the ponds, as it is termed, the sluice or flood- 

 gate should on no account be raised too suddenly, but by 

 degrees, so that the water may gradually pass away ; it is 

 much better to take several days, say a week, for the pur- 

 pose, than to allow a rapid discharge, as that would en- 

 danger the next succession pond, and place you in great 

 difficulty to recover the store, and would moreover bruise 

 the stock. By slowly removing the water the whole stock 

 approaches the sluice-deep, and much trouble is spared in 

 collecting the fish ; whereas by suddenly discharging the 

 water, many fish would be left on the mud in various parts 

 of the pond, and cause them to turn sick. When fishing 

 you ought to have several large vats (such as turnips are 

 washed in) filled with clean water, to receive the fish 

 when taken from the pond. The vats must be divided 

 into three sets, and as the fish are taken with the hand 

 nets from the pond, they must be placed in No. 1 to 

 cleanse them ; then after a few minutes removed to No. 2 ; 

 and again after a short time to No. 3. By this operation 

 the fish become clean and fair for the scale, into which 

 they are placed from the No. 3. When weighing you 

 ought always to allow liberal weight, giving good tare 

 and tret ; tare for the fish and tret in consequence of the 



