208 BROADLAND SPORT 



which leads up to the seven-mile carr, is a large reed-bed on 

 the left-hand rand, which is worth beating out, provided one 

 has a dog to do it with. Many are the ducks, mallard, rail 

 and moorhen that it has given shelter to in past days, whilst 

 it is seldom drawn blank in the present. 



This neighbourhood is also fair for bream. Rounding the 

 bend before mentioned we come to the seven-mile carr, a very 

 good fishing station for all kinds of coarse fish. It was here 

 that a London angler (about 1890) hooked and landed a seven- 

 pound salmon trout when fishing for perch, and he was 

 perhaps as much surprised as the fish itself. Pike can nearly 

 always be taken in this reach, and it is a pretty place to 

 anchor for a short visit. 



Leaving the carr, the river winds away more southerly, 

 towards Barnby Mill. To the left lies Barnby Broad. At 

 one time this broad must have been of considerable size, but 

 lately it has grown up to an alarming extent. Before the 

 Great Eastern Railway made a junction at Barnby, the water 

 harboured fowl of all descriptions, but now their numbers have 

 materially decreased. However, it is not an uncommon 

 thing to see some hundreds on the wing together during the 

 month of November. Snipe and water-birds are numerous at 

 times, but they confine themselves entirely to the hovers in the 

 secluded recesses of the broad. The shooting is, of course, 

 preserved, but there is a long marsh wall bounding the broad 

 to the westward, about a quarter of a mile from the water, 

 and here a few villagers collect at flighting time. Barnby 

 Broad also contains pike, and one hundred ^pounds in weight 

 has not been an uncommon bag. A large number of otters 

 also find a home in the innermost swamps surrounding 

 the open water. They are very difficult to exterminate, 

 and to hunt them with a pack is impossible. In fact, the 

 only chance one has of routing them from their lairs, and 

 at the same time following them with any success at all, 

 is during the winter when a hard frost has blocked the 

 water and frozen the swamps; then a hunt can be organ- 

 ised with a scratch pack of hounds, which, however, is 



