24 THE ANGLER'S GUIDE. 



impossible for any servant to clean a dish of 

 roach, properly, and in any other way. 



THE WAY TO COOK THEM. 



There are several ways in which roach may 

 be cooked ; they may be boiled, or stewed 

 in vinegar, or baked like any other fish ; 

 but as we consider that frying them is by far 

 the best method, we shall just throw out 

 a word respecting it, knowing that there are 

 many servants quite as deficient in the art 

 of cooking them as in cleaning them. Let 

 then the following plan be adopted. Put 

 your pan on the fire and make it warm, then 

 wipe it well with your cloth, and be quite 

 sure that it is all over as smooth as possible, 

 for if it be not, the fish while frying will 

 stick to it, and having begun to stick, will 

 keep on sticking, until it will be such a 

 sticky affair, that all your roach will be spoiled 

 and be much more fit to put down to the 

 cat than to bring to the table. If your pan 

 be not quite smooth, make it so by rubbing 

 it with sand or ashes. It being quite smooth 

 and clean, put it on the fire, which should not 

 be too fierce, and put into it at least five 



