198 THE ANGLER-NATUEALIST. 



in short, that he can by any means get into his stomach 

 comes amiss to him; and imperial man himself has on 

 more than one occasion narrowly escaped being laid under 

 contribution to his larder. His own species enjoy no im- 

 munity from this universal rapacity; on the contrary, it 

 is believed, and with good reason, that more young Jack 

 are destroyed by their parents than by any, or perhaps all 

 other enemies put together. 



A proof of this omnivorous instinct in the fish may be 

 found in the fact that watches, spoons, rings, and other 

 articles have been frequently taken from the Pike's maw ; 

 and several authors have asserted that it also feeds upon 

 the pickerel-weed, a common species of water-plant. I 

 have often known Pike to run at and seize the lead of 

 a spinning-trace; and on one occasion, at Newlock on 

 Thames, Mr. Francis caught a fish which had thus at- 

 tempted to swallow his lead, and which was entangled and 

 held fast by the gimp lapping round behind the gills. 



Without recapitulating the numerous instances of vora- 

 city cited by other authors, I may mention a few which 

 have come within my own knowledge. 



One of the most remarkable of these occurred during 

 the last few years to Mr. L , of Chippenham, Wiltshire. 

 This gentleman had set a trimmer in the River Avon over 

 night, and on proceeding the next morning to take it up, 

 he found a heavy Pike apparently fast upon his hooks. 

 In order to extract these, he was obliged to open the 

 fish, and in doing so perceived another Pike of consider- 



