EXPERIENCES & REMINISCENCES. 23 



then, when Mr. Hopper had got some of his line in, made a 

 determined rush under the boat. The tackle was, however, too 

 good, and after a good fight he found himself in the meshes of 

 the landing net, and pulled down the scale at lilbs. He was 

 not a large specimen, as chub in the Trent occasionally run up 

 to five and six pounds weight, but he was a remarkably game 

 fish and gave no end of play. 



Mr. Hopper's first grayling also weighed lilbs., he captured 

 it with the fly in the Withern stream below Tickler's mill. 

 Grayling have very tender mouths and require very careful 

 handling. They offer a strong and obstinate resistance not 

 like the fiery rush of the trout, but a long and steady pull. 

 It was nearly dark when the writer hooked the one he has 

 referred to and he gave nearly a quarter of an hour's play, 

 and Mrs. Hopper, who was staying overnight at Withern, 

 successfully brought him to bank in the landing net. 

 The dorsal fin of the grayling is spotted, the spots 

 being arranged in lines across the fin, which when pressed 

 is very pretty and makes a very presentable memento of 

 one's capture. Mr. Hopper cut the fin off the grayling in 

 question and still has it in an excellent state of preservation, 

 it measures 14! inches in circumference, and the various 

 colours are as well defined as when caught six years ago. 

 When newly caught grayling have an odour very much 

 resembling that of wild thyme. It is greatly esteemed for the 

 table, and there is a prevalent supposition (how far supported 

 by any reliable evidence Mr. Hopper cannot tell) that it was 

 brought to England by the monks, who it is pretty well 

 known were partial to good feeding. The writer has known 

 grayling caught in the Withern stream up to 3lbs. weight. 



As a rule trout and grayling do not thrive well together in a 

 stream, the latter have the reputation of being rather a greedy 

 fish and securing the best feeding pools and deep corners for 

 themselves. Anyhow, in most places where trout and grayling 

 are in the same stream the latter greatly outnumber the 

 former. Mr. Hopper does not know of any stream containing 

 .grayling nearer Grimsby than the Claythorpe and Withern 



