184 Fly Fishing for Grayling. 



who came running after me to see the fun. Well, 

 various conjectures were at once raised. " What 

 could it be ? " " What a big trout it must have 

 been ! " 



" Well/' I said, " if ever there was a salmon in the 

 river, I should say I had one on." "Oh, impos- 

 sible ; they can't get up the Weir at Worcester." 

 " I can't help that ; that fish never was a trout ; it 

 certainly was not a pike." However, the next 

 morning the miller above the bridge found a 

 salmon in his eel-trap a nice fish of 9 Ibs. Could 

 this have been my friend ? 



In the Teme a 2 Ibs. or 2\ Ibs. grayling is a 

 big fish. The taking fish with the fly on a good 

 day generally run from I Ib. to i^ lb., though 

 larger are occasionally caught. I have taken in 

 one day three or four fish over 2 Ibs. with a small 

 Tag ; but these fish are lazy risers, and are gene- 

 rally taken with the grasshopper or maggot. The 

 first year I fished this river I stood in an open 

 space below the weir, at the lower part of the deep 

 pool, and landed three grayling weighing over 

 5 Ibs., and lost another quite 2 Ibs. That day I 

 landed twenty-four fish, averaging nearly \\ Ibs. 

 each ; and put back many more. 



In fishing for grayling, as Mr. Francis says, 

 " never despair." They will often rise when least 

 expected ; but if you watch a river you will soon 



