STOCKING. 



127 



and superior skill on the part of the anglers 

 themselves have fully kept pace with the educa- 

 tion of the fish, so that the total number of fish 

 killed has largely increased, although probably 

 each individual does worse and gets less sport. 



To the proprietors of fisheries who say that 

 their waters do not require stocking, as there 

 are plenty, or even too many, fish already in the 

 stream ; to those who argue that the natural 

 increase is more than sufficient to counter- 

 balance the loss by the fisherman's captures 

 and other causes, I would respectfully proffer 

 the advice not to waste their time by reading 

 this chapter. They have no desire to be con- 

 vinced of the possibility of their being mistaken. 

 To those who consider the question from the 

 view of being desirous to save their pockets, 

 who are generally gifted with the convenient 

 faculty of being able to prove to their own 

 satisfaction the truth of any theory they wish 

 to believe, I would counsel a study of the two 

 following paragraphs. It is barely possible, 

 although unlikely, that they may thereby be 

 induced to believe that, even from a financial 

 point of view, stocking a stream judiciously is 

 likely to prove successful. 



In the year 1890 the Hungerford Club 

 resolved to abandon their old water on the 

 Kennet. After considerable trouble their 



Reply to 

 objections. 



The Wilton 

 Fly Fishing 

 Club. 



