]\rAECii 4, 1893] 
THE EISHING GAZETTE 
145 
CON TE NTS. 
N.B.—All rights reserved in articles published in this 
paper. 
Sliillet Fishiii"- and other Sport on tho lilackwater 
River .115 
Scotch Notes .1 to 
Zig-zag Routes to Chicago for Anglers.117 
Notes and Queries .11!) 
George Cole Rainhrldgo’s Dressings of Artificial 
Flies.M'J 
The Lower Thames Trout Preservation Society ... 1 11) 
The Spring Salmon Rivers of Scotland .150 
Lake Vyrnwy .151 
“ First Blood ■’ 151 
A Capital Line Drying Macdiino . 152 
The “ Serpentanio ” Bait. 152 
New Collapsible Fish “ Parcel Post” Boxes. 152 
Waltoiiiana.152 
Correspondence.153 
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SATURDAY, MARCH 4th, 1893. 
MULLET FISHING 
AND OTHER SPORT ON THE BLACK- 
WATER RIVER. 
By Ali’ked Jardine. 
Thi-s estuary, from the town of Maldon, in 
Essex, to where it widens out and joins the sea, 
locally called “ The Main,” at Buxey Sands, is 
about eighteen miles in length ; at high-water it 
varies from one to two miles in width, and from 
three to ten fathoms in depth. 
The Blackwater—known also as “ The Maldon 
River”—affords good sport in the late autumn 
and winter months, for then grey mullet in con¬ 
siderable numbers, and of fair size, seek these 
quiet waters; as they do also the Crouch, or Burn¬ 
ham river, which is some eight miles to the 
south. 
Mullet, although sea fish, frequent brackish 
waters even more than bass, to which fish they 
are closely allied ; and, by “ routing ” on the 
muddy or sandy bottom, find the worms, small 
green crabs, shrimps, &c., and other food they 
fed on. 
In fine weather mullet may be seen basking 
near the surface, and are said (like bass) at such 
times to take an artificial fly; but, although I 
have tried them with these lures, no success has 
hitherto rewarded me. 
Pishing with a light line, fine salmon-gut trace, 
and three or four hooks (No. 7 or 8 in size) placed 
at intervals of four feet apart —hut no leads —from 
a pier-head, wharf, or boat, on a slack-tide, letting 
the line drift, the hooks baited with shrimp, 
minus the skin, or half a mussel, is usually su v 
cessful. Also paternostering wi'h four or five 
hooks, placed two feet apart, on a salmon-gut 
trace, fishing about such places as tidal docks, 
harbours, piers, or gates of tide-mills, throwing 
in occasionally small lumps of ground-bait to 
keep the fish together, the ground-bait composed 
of crushed shrimps, small crabs, or cod’s-roe 
mixed with pounded chalk to make it sink and 
“ clo%id ” the water, is an excellent way to fish 
for mullet; but ground-baiting is only useful in 
slack or still waters, because if there is any cur¬ 
rent to disperse the bai^ the fish will follow in 
pursuit of it, hence the advantage of mixing 
enough pounded chalk with the ground-bait to 
make it sink. 
Other good hook-baits for mullet are red rag- 
worms, found in the sand or shore mud, or raw 
shrimps taken out of the skin and carefully 
placed on the hooks, for, being very tender baits, 
the fish may suck them off without a bite being 
perceived. 
Occasionally mullet feed ravenously, and may 
then be caught almost as fast as the line is baited 
and cast in. 
When staying some years ago, fifteen miles 
east of the lilackwater river—ac Walton-on-the- 
Naze—I took my boys to fish at the old mill on 
the tidal channel of Walton backwater, where, in 
about ten feet of stream, we saw shoals of grey 
mullet, half-pounders. I fitted up my youngsters’ 
rods with paternoster tackle, shrimps for bait, 
and they had splendid sport; this was at the end 
of September, but mullet feed well, as a rule, all 
the winter months up to the end of March. 
The easiest way to reach the fishing of the 
Blackwater, is by rail to Colchester, and from 
thence by conveyance to West Mersea, about ten 
miles distance; this brings you to the best water, 
at the debouchure of the estuary. 
Mersea Island is separated frem the mainland 
by Pyefieet Creek, and communicates with it by 
a causeway, which is dry at low tide. The creeks 
surrounding the island are celebrated for oysters 
of fine quality and flavour. 
There are two inns, the Dog and Pheasant at 
East Mersea, and the White Hart, West Mersea ; 
the latter is the most convenient, and William 
Traveller, the landlord, makes his visitors com¬ 
fortable. The fishermen, James, John, and Harry 
Mussett, are also oyster growers, and, at a reason¬ 
able cost, will provide “ Colchester natives,” to be 
opened and eaten aboard the boat, between the 
intervals of mullet catching, or other sport; the 
delicate flavour of those oysters, fresh from the 
salt water, is worth going to West Mersea to 
enjoy and remember. 
In years gone by, I seldom missed going with 
an old friend to that part of the Essex coaat for 
autumn fishing and winter shooting. We always 
had jolly times—and some very queer experiences, 
of which more anon, if our editor is agreeable; 
but they don’t all pertain to angling. 
My best catch of mullet was with a flowing 
tide, in the six-fathom water between yhinglo 
Head and Bradwell Quay—a score good fish, 
some over 31bs. weight, legering with mussels 
and rag-W’orms, on gut-trace and Nottingham 
tackle; and in the ten-fathom deeps, opposite 
Sales Point, I added a few codling and plaice to 
my capture. 
In the afternoon, on the ebb, we placed wall- 
nets across the large creeks at Wigboro’ and 
Salcott Marshes, and secured a fine lot of fish, 
which were sent to Billingsgate. 
It is the habit of mullet to leap over the cork¬ 
line of a net, like fresh-water carp do ; to stop 
this, we stuck a pole in the mud at each end of 
the net, and stretched another piece of netting 
between the poles, which effectually prevented 
any mullet escaping. Eels are plentiful in the 
djke.B, or “ fleets,” as tho marsh-men call them; 
large quantities are speared, and otherwise 
captured and forw^arded to the London markets. 
Many wide, deep dykes intersect the marsh 
lands situated to the east of Mersea Island 
(across the river Colne); most of them hold roach, 
rudd, and eels. Near the villages of Weeley, 
Thorpe-le-Soken, and Great Holland some capital 
fishing was to be had in the Holland brook, and, I 
believe, is to be had now. Roach were plentiful 
over a pound weight, and at Hangbridge, near 
Little Holland, four-pound carp were not in¬ 
frequent captures; but I am told the farmers 
have, of late years, charged a shilling per day t ) 
anglers, also that the water has been overfished, 
and consequently the fish, though plentiful, aro 
less ill size. 
That uncommon fish, the “ azurine ” or blue 
roach [Leucisciis ccerulins), inhabits this water— 
a fact mentioned by tho late Greville Pennell—• 
and when I frequently visted the Holland brook 
I caught several. They are also to bo found in 
a pond on Dartford marshes; and the river Alt, in 
Lancashire, which also contains a scarce variety 
of dace, tho “ Craiuing.” 
It is five-aud-twenty years ago since my old 
friend, T. R-, and I made our first visit to 
the ([uaint old AVhite Hart Inn at West Mersea, 
in the week following Christmas. Arriving on 
the Monday evening, and being unexpected, our 
dinner was served in a large club-room on the 
first floor; the room was bitterly cold, and tho 
fire only just kindled, gave out no warmth ; it 
was a ‘ keen and nipping air ” outside, in fact a 
sharp frost. A large lumbering screen was 
placed round our door to keep off some of the 
draughts, but we were “perished to our bones.” 
Our table W'as dimly lighted by country-made 
tallow-dips, whilst on the walls of the room were 
tin sconces for candles, decorated with evergreen 
and holly, intermixed with paper flowers of bright 
and various tints. 
We were informed, a “ frolic ” was to lake place 
next night, patronised by the Mersea men and 
maidens; and we resolved to be present, if invited. 
After our meal, we went downstairs to the bar 
parlour, and found a blazing wood fire, and a 
warm welcome from the jolly old landlord, and 
the Mussetts, who had come to arrange with us, 
plans for next day’s sport; then, after a cosy 
pipe or two with some hot grogs, we retired to 
bed, for we had to be up and out of doors by six 
o’clock next morning, and away for Shingle Head, 
to get—if possible—some flight-shooting. 
Next day we were back at the inn by 8 a.m., 
with four couples of duck, and found that the 
landlord’s niece had very thoughtfully arranged 
for us to breakfast with them, in the warm bar 
parlour. How we enjoyed that meal; the walk 
in the keen air, and the early morning sport had 
whetted our appetites, and never before, had 
broiled ham, with eggs poached and boiled, tasted 
half so delicious. 
The fine burly old man (it was before Traveller 
was landlord) asked his niece to pass him 
“a heg.” My friend T. looked at me Liii 
winked; the girl noticed the wink, and said, 
“ Uncle dear, you shouldn’t say ‘ a heg,’ that is 
not correct, you ought to ask me to pass ‘ a neg.’ ” 
“ D-• it,” replied the old chap, “ I’ll take <wo 
‘ Wfgfs.’ ” 
At ten a.m. we were aboard the “Curlew,” a 
half-decked cutter of ten tons, built for either 
fishing or fowling ; she carried a crew of five, i.e., 
ourselves, Jem Mussett, and John and his son, a 
smart youth of seventeen years, who afterwards 
was accidentally shot when wild-fowling, and 
carried ashore to his home, dead. 
The “ Curlew ” had a comfortable cabin amid¬ 
ships, with two sleeping-bunks, various lockers, 
and a small stove for cooking and other pur¬ 
poses ; the forecastle had another bunk ; thus, 
when three of the crew were “ under hatches,” 
two were “keeping watch.” One-third towards 
the stern the cutter was decked close to the keel, 
at the bilge forming a kind of “ cockpit,” in 
which, with eyes peering over the gunwale, the 
“ gunners ” were invisible to the birds. Her hull 
was painted light grey, and with white mainsail, 
jib, &c.,the cutter assimilated so well to winterly- 
surroundings, she could generally be sailed 
within sixty yards of ducks, widgeon, wild geese, 
&c., before they became alarmed, and took to 
flight. There were gun-racks to hold the smaller 
artillery, and, mounted on a “ chock and swivel,” 
a long punt-gun, that carried 1 j-lb. of shot. 
When walking down “ the Hard,” or causeway 
leading to the creek where the cutter lay at 
‘ moorings,” T .fired at a mallard flying past 
at top speed, and missed. I “let go” at it, 
with my twelve-bore, and brought it down at 
fully seventy yards with' a broken wing, a long 
and lucky shot. We secured the duck, it was in 
splendid plumage, and is now in a glass case in 
ray room as I write this. 
On the end of the ebb we sailed down to the Wal¬ 
let channel and set a drift-net, on the clianceof fish 
“filling” themselves; then across to Burnham 
