62 FEBRUARY 



obtrusive little smelt was to hold an exalted place 

 among that haute noblesse of scaly creatures the 

 Salmonidce to share all the benefits conferred on 

 these by the wisdom of Parliament, and to entail 

 on the unwary all the penalties enacted against 

 unlawful fishing. 



This discovery spread dismay among certain quiet 

 estuarine communities. For generations the fisher 

 folk had netted the smelts in their passage to and 

 fro, believing them to be just as legitimate quarry 

 for the white fisher as haddocks or flounders. Sud- 

 denly the lessees and owners of salmon fisheries 

 asserted their right to the smelts as 'red fish,' 

 whereby some stormy feelings have arisen among 

 the dwellers at the mouths of rivers frequented by 

 this dainty little fish. 



Londoners have no idea of the real excellence of 

 smelts. To be eaten in perfection, the fish should be 

 carried from the nets into the kitchen and served 

 forthwith. There comes to mind a quiet fishing 

 village on Solway shore. It is early on a winter 

 morning, but the air is still and warm. The small- 

 meshed seine is coming slowly to shore, filled with 

 a shoal of pearly 'sparlings.' As they are drawn 

 from the muddy water of the estuary, a fragrance 



