FEBRUARY 43 



the spawning time, it is the old trout 

 that conquers. 



That is to the disadvantage of the tribe. 

 The old trout, though good fighters, are 

 not good fathers. Their progeny, besides 

 being female in excessive proportion, tend 

 to be weaklings. Then, the old male 

 trout are cannibals. Their consumption 

 of the young is enormous. It is with 

 good reason believed that an old male 

 trout is as destructive to the young of 

 his own kind as a pike of the same size. 

 Lake trout rise freely to the fly only when 

 they are young or adolescent. There 

 are exceptions, of which Lochleven and 

 Blagdon are examples ; but the general 

 rule is as stated. Consider the Highlands, 

 in which there are more lakes than are to 

 be found in all the rest of the Kingdom. 

 On favourable days throughout the season 

 the trout there rise freely to the fly ; but 

 the average basket is not better than 

 three to the pound. How is that ? It is 

 not to be taken as indicating the average 

 weight of the fish in the water. As you 



