26 THE FRESH-WATER TROUT. 



come to an ignominious, Tinhonoured, but not un- 

 niourned-for end ; but now that valuable property 

 in the salmon-fishings is imperilled, there seems 

 some prospect that the powers of Parliament, which 

 have been so pathetically appealed to, may interfere. 



Another of the most fruitful causes of the 

 depopulation of our streams is netting, and it has 

 greatly increased of late years. The rivers are now 

 so exceedingly small during summer, that they 

 afford every facility for the successful practice of 

 this illegal method of catching trout. The net used 

 for this purpose is what is usually called " the harry- 

 water net." Nets of this kind are made so light 

 that they can be carried in the pocket, and so com- 

 plete in structure, that a whole pool may be almost 

 cleaned of its finny inhabitants at a single haul. 

 Tweed and its tributaries suffer more from netting 

 than any other streams in Scotland, and it is most 

 usually carried on in the neighbourhood of towns 

 or villages, where the poachers can find a ready sale 

 for their trout. 



There are three remedies which might be adopted 

 to prevent netting. The first, and undoubtedly 

 the most efficacious of these, is to have the rivers 

 watched ; but this is so expensive as to render it 

 quite impracticable. Another way is to drive stakes 

 into the principal pools and streams, which would 

 prevent nets being drawn through. During the 

 last few years this has been tried, and we understand 

 with great success, in some streams in the neighbour- 



