30 ANECDOTES OF FISHES 



February ; in many rivers it would commence in 

 August, if the grounds and entrances were left 

 unmolested. In Sweden the salmon spawn in 

 the middle of summer. The seasons also have 

 much influence. In the North of Scotland, the 

 common earth-worm are a deadly bait for a clean 

 salmon ; sand eels are also used for baits ; and in 

 the Transactions of the Royal Edinburgh So- 

 ciety, the food of salmon has been examined from 

 their stomachs, when taken from the sea, and 

 said to contain small monoculi, and entomo- 

 straced with the ova of starfish. Common salmon 

 are said to feed on small fish, and various small 

 marine animals. Sir William Jardine on the 

 Common Salmon, Edin. New Phil. Journal. 



Angling for Salmon is not more a masculine 

 than a delightful sport, and is pursued with ardour 

 and success in the northern rivers of our island. 

 Some very spirited and lively sketches on this 

 subject are to be seen in Blackwood's Magazine, 

 No. 208209, 1833. Whilst fishing in Loch 

 Awe, amongst other sport, is mentioned, catching 

 a salmon of twenty-eight pound weight. Loch 

 Awe seems to be a delightful place, and good 

 accommodation there for brothers of the angle. 

 The disciple of Walton who has once indulged in 

 salmon fishing, will feel little satisfaction in the 

 more common pursuits and lesser pleasures of the 

 gentle art. But it requires an expert practitioner 



