THE TENCH. 253 



well stocked with them, though strangely enough there 

 are none, I believe, in the prolific waters of Dagenham 

 Gulf, beloved of London anglers. A few years ago there 

 were many in the canals throughout the country, but the 

 bargemen with their destructive drag-nets have thinned 

 the stock down to a mere nothing. They are found in the 

 Lea, where they seem to have been thriving of late years, 

 heavy bags having been made by fishermen from time to 

 time. There are a few in the Stort, the Colne, the Mole, 

 the Brent, and some of the sluggish streams in Essex. 

 The finest carp, in the south at least of England, I should 

 say are in Virginia Water — some veritable monsters ; but, 

 as far as experience goes, it seems a perfectly hopeless 

 business to fish for them there with rod and line. The 

 royal fisherman occasionally takes a few with nets, and 

 they are sent to the Castle for the royal table. I have 

 understood that carp first got into the Thames at Wey- 

 bridge, through an overflow of Virginia Water some forty 

 or fifty years ago ; but doubtless they have been intro- 

 duced into the river from time to time, though in very 

 small numbers, at other spots. Weybridge is still their 

 favourite haunt, and some heavy fish are occasionally 

 captured here, ranging from 6 lbs. to 8 lbs., and even 

 larger. They are also taken lower down, in the Shepper- 

 ton, Sunbury, and Hampton waters, and again higher up ; 

 but the stock does not appear to increase. Tench, on the 

 contrary, seem to have been showing up more plentifully 

 of late years. The Oxford waters, especially in the neigh- 

 bourhood of Kennington Island, have been unusually 

 prolific of tench during the last two seasons. There is a 

 fair stock of them in the sluggish waters of Wallingford, 

 and they seem on the increase at Weybridge. At this 



