218 FISHING GOSSIP. 
DEESIDE JOTTINGS. 
THE influence of habit is so powerful in reconciling 
us to the evils of social arrangements, that it requires 
no small effort to break the spell. The process is 
never agreeable ; and often exposes the best motives 
to be misunderstood. It demands us to reconsider 
customs consecrated by time; to call in doubt the 
wisdom of those who preceded us; and to measure 
the utility of their acts by a comparison of the good 
produced with the evils intended to be removed. If 
man had not counteracted the intentions of nature by 
the excess of his greed and the nullity of his laws, 
there can be little doubt the Dee would be a pleasant 
and prolific river to fish. But the savages who once 
roamed the neighbouring woods probably drew more 
food from its bed than do now the civilised communi- 
ties dwelling on its banks. This is merely to say, 
in other words, that each successive link in the chain 
of protective legislation yielded in time to the pres- 
sure of the circumstances which it was framed to 
amend, 
Nor is it very difficult to understand how sterility 
has totally blighted some of our streams, and re- 
