322 BROADLAND SPORT 



preaching the place as gently as possible in his boat, which 

 must be small, light, and at the same time steady in her 

 bearings, he keeps her motionless with his pole, and, lying 

 down with his head over the gunwale and his right arm 

 bared to the shoulder taking advantage, in his search, of light 

 and shade he gently, with his fingers, displaces the weeds, 

 and endeavours to descry the tench in its retreat. If the 

 fisherman can see part of the fish, so as to determine which 

 way the head lies, the certainty of capture is much increased ; 

 if he cannot, immersing his arm, he feels slowly and 

 cautiously about until he touches it, which, if done gently 

 on head or body, is generally disregarded by this sluggish 

 and stupid fish ; but if the tail is the part molested, a dash 

 away is the usual consequence. Should the tickler succeed in 

 ascertaining the position of the fish, which, under favourable 

 circumstances he generally does, he insinuates one hand, 

 which alone is used, under it, just behind the gills, and raises 

 it gently, but yet rapidly, towards the surface of the water. 

 In lifting it over the boat side, which, it need not be said, 

 should be low, he takes care not to touch the gunwale with 

 his knuckles, as the very slightest jar makes the captive 

 flounce and struggle. On being laid down the tench often 

 remains motionless for full a minute, and then begins ap- 

 parently to perceive the fraud practised upon it. The 

 fisherman then, if he " marked " more than one tench when 

 the shoal dispersed, proceeds to search for it. If not, he 

 endeavours to start another, by striking his pole against 

 the side or bottom of the boat several are generally close 

 at hand. The concussion moves other fish, when the same 

 manoeuvres are repeated. In this way fifteen or sixteen 

 good-sized table tench can be taken in a short space of time. 

 And in the course of a favourable day one good tickler will 

 easily secure five or six dozen. 



However, " tench tickling " does not seem so pusillanimous 

 a proceeding as " trout tickling," for it is a well-known fact 

 that the former are very difficult fish to induce to take bait 

 of any description, and the only period that they are 



