v FLY-FISHER'S AFTERMATH 73 



sixty-three dozen trout in one day, " a 

 cartfu' the kintra-folk thought it was a 

 cartfu' o' herrins." 



But this is digression. I admit that it is 

 a pleasant thing to have a good basket of 

 fish, but an inordinate basket does not 

 materially add to the angler's satisfaction, 

 and it does materially injure the stream on 

 which he fishes. Many good fly-fishermen 

 have a private limit of size, below which 

 they never retain a fish, and this is an 

 excellent method of being sure of not 

 taking too many, though for different 

 streams it is necessary to fix a different 

 standard. It would naturally be absurd to 

 return everything under a pound in the West 

 Country, for instance, where a fish of that 

 weight is a great rarity ; but in such rivers 

 as the Kennet a pound and a half would not 

 be too high a limit, at any rate in the May- 

 fly season. And, as a matter of fact, on 

 some waters it is possible to take as many 

 fish as one can carry with the May-fly. I 

 have known one rod on the Teme to catch 

 over two dozen trout up to two pounds and 

 a half, and none of them under a pound, in 

 one day, but that is somewhat exceptional. 



