, 1893J 
EASTER FISlIINd ON BRANSIiURY 
COMiMON. 
THE PISHING GAZETTE 
271 
By Major Turle, 
This year the great spriag holiday almost 
heralds in, what I will venture to say is, to many 
in these parts, one of the most important events 
of the year, the commencement ot'trout fishing. 
The innocent fish that for the last few months 
have been living in peace and plenty, already 
scent danger in the air, and are on their 
mettle to try the angler’s skill to the utmost. 
Like the rest of nature they have cast off the 
spell of lethargic King Winter, and are very 
wide awake again. During the last two years 
little had been done for Bransbury Common, 
beyond cutting weeds and keeping the jack 
down, but this year much care has been bestowed 
upon it in the way of alterations and improve¬ 
ments. 
The banks along the Him carrier, an excellent 
piece of water, but somewhat difficult to fish on 
account of its being slow running, have been 
thoroughly and carefully repaired. The many 
blows, caused by the cattle struggling to climb 
from the water on to the bank, in their never 
ceasing search after fresh pasture, have been 
filled up with sedge mats, growing close at 
hand. Chalk of course would have been a better 
material to employ, but the nearest pit is at least 
a mile ofl^, whilst cartage is bad and expensive. 
The banks down the main river have also been 
treated in the same way, and tons of mud have 
been taken out in scoops, and put on the land. 
This is as it should be, and if every riparian 
owner would do likewise, instead of sending the 
unwelcome black mass on to his next fishing 
neighbour down stream, there would be con¬ 
siderably less bitterness and heart burning in 
angling circles. Unfortunately there is a very 
lazy method in vogue just now which I would 
gladlv see done away with, called “river drag¬ 
ging.” It is generally pursued in autumn, after 
the harvest is over, and consists of attaching four 
horses to a mud plough, and dragging it up and 
down the river, until every weed, and most of 
the mud goes rolling onwards, leaving the river 
bottom as bare and clear as a billiard table. It is 
a silly, detestable, and short-sighted pian, as it 
ruins the fishing altogether for the time being, 
seeing it takes quite two years for the weed to 
grow again, and the fish will not stay in water 
without any cover. The larvm also is moved on 
or destroyed outright, and the effect of these 
draggings in the case of May-fly is most fatal. 
A lamentable instance of the utter devastation 
caused by this pernicious practice, has just 
occurred on the best part of the Wherwell Priory 
water, where a mile of fishing has been reduced 
to desolation. Last year it harboured a heavy 
stock of trout; this year very few are to be seen, 
and there is no chance of their escaping detection, 
for the Desert of Sahara is not more destitute of 
vegetation than the bed of this pnrt of the river. 
The lessee is in desf'air at the wholesale destruc¬ 
tion of his choicest fishing, and at his wits’ end to 
know how best to remedy the mischief. I proposed 
he should try an experiment I made myself some 
years ago, which was to drive in numerous piles, 
leaving them about a foot above water, in order 
to catch any floating weed, and so form an 
artificial covering for the fish, who, if any 
encouragement is given them, will be sure soon 
to work up stream again. 
When I expressed my astonishment at his 
permitting his property to be so injured, he 
said it was done entirely without his know¬ 
ledge. It appears some of the tenants on the 
estate had been complaining of the want of 
water for irrigation, mill wheels, &c., and these 
drastic measures had been resorted to in order 
to satisfy their demands. It was an unwarrant¬ 
able thing to do I must say, and I could not 
help thinking that by the exercise of a little 
Christian charity matters might have been 
settled all round, without making a victim of 
my friend. 
But the Priory Estate have been doing things 
in rather a high handed way lately. I found to 
my surprise the other day they had been mending 
Dodmore blows on Bransbury side of the river, 
without so much as asking the riparian owners 
whether they were agreeable to this or no; and 
the matter is rather complex, for Dodmore 
blows—-though ugly gaps in the banks to look at, 
and still more objectionable to flounder in— 
served a very important function, as in case of 
the hatches being all shut, which is sometimes 
done in seasons of drought, these blows formed 
the principal source from which the old river 
(the Test proper) drew its supply of water. 
Therefore to do away with the blows is a serious 
matter, as with blows stopped and hatches down 
the old river must infallibly run nearly dry, a 
prospect no riparian owner could be expected to 
contemplate with indifference. 
Naturally then, they objected in a body at this 
interference with their property, but at length 
agreed to take no action in the matter, as long as 
one hatch was always left open. But should this 
condition ever be violated, they have announced 
their determination to assert their rights to keep¬ 
ing the old river supplied with its fair share of 
water. However, we sincerely trust no such 
occasion will ever arise, for the Priory Estate 
owns one side of the river all the way down, and 
it is hardly possible they would pursue a policy at 
once foolish and suicidal. So we may reason- 
ably hope that peace and quietness will continue 
to reign amongst us for many a day to come. 
The rivers, too, are so very full just now, in 
consequence of the high springs, that there is 
likely to be water enough for some time to come 
in all the streams to satisfy even the most 
exacting. 
As for the small river as we call it (the Bulling- 
ton stream), it is bank high, and requires wading 
trousers for fishing it, stockings are not a bit of 
use. Somehow or other a number of jack have 
found their way into it, not large ones, for their 
top weight is not more than 31b., but the bother 
is that it will be impossible to get them out till 
the water goes down. Twice lately when wiring 
these vermin, my keeper noticed what seemed to 
both of us rather a curious circumstance. He 
always likes to know what these voracious 
creatures have been living upon, and generally 
makes them disgorge their food, principally to see 
what mischief they have been up to, and each of 
these jack had a small fish of their own species in 
their gullets, not that this was by any means an 
unusual circumstance, only in these cases their 
prey had been swallowed tail instead of head 
foremost. This fact I can vouch for, as I saw 
the young ones taken out of the mouths of their 
cannabalistic seniors. I am not so well up in the 
ways of jack as in those of trout, but 1 certainly 
was always under the impression that the former 
swallowed their victims head foremost. 
On taking a survey of the waters the other day, 
I found as usual, that the Bullington fish carried 
the palm, being the very pink of perfection and 
earlier in season than those in the large river. I 
have often been puzzled to know why this should 
be, as there is no appreciable difference between 
the two streams. 
Prom the beginning of March up to about the 
20th, there was a great quantity of fly on daily ; 
it was a large dark olive, which the fish took very 
well, but about that date a severe white frost set 
in, which .still conti' ues, and there is now a total 
absence of any kind of fly whatever. Fishing, 
virtually began on the 25th, but I have only 
heard of two rods being out on that day. One 
came down from town, killed three fish, and went 
back by the four o’clock train. The other, a local 
angler,only captured one, weighing about one and 
a half pounds, and then disgusted at finding his 
further efforts hopeless, turned his attention to 
the jack, of which he killed five, the weight of the 
largest being about four pounds. 
Easter coming so early this year, tempted many 
Test anglers to put off trying their luck until the 
holidays. Last Thursday I had to go to town for 
the day, and on my journey homewards, recog¬ 
nised at Whitchurch station several familiar 
figures well known in the fishing world. As a 
local resident, I was soon assailed by eager 
questioners, anxious to know what chance there 
was for sport, and I felt myself quite a kill joy, 
when I saw how their faces lengthened at my not 
over cheerful report of the lack of fly on the 
river. 
Things, however, mended a little next morning, 
when, on looking out of my bedroom window, I 
was rejoiced to find that our great gilt fish 
weather vane, a recent gift from an old friend and 
excellent fisherman, pointing steadily south-west. 
“ Here’s real fishing weather and no mistake,” 
I thought. But my sanguine hopes were doomed 
to disappointment, f ir even the wind that blows 
the bait into the fish’s mouth, according to the 
old nursery rhyme, failed to bring up the fly, 
which remained conspicuous by its absence all 
day, and I only heard of two brace of fish having 
been killed. Although the wind went back into 
the old quarter on Saturday, it did not entirely 
prevent sport, and one angler caught three 
capital fish, which he and a friend found first-rate 
eating at breakfast next morning. 
Very few of the members of the Chilbolton 
Club have yet put in an appearance, owing to 
various causes, weather being no doubt the prin¬ 
cipal one. Two of the most prominent are, I 
believe, salmon fishing in Scotland, but I have 
not heard what sport they are enjoying. Some 
efforts are being made to patch up the disputes 
concerning Chilbolton water, but only half¬ 
hearted ones, as the compact is being made 
between a favoured few, to the exclusion of others 
who have an equal right to consideration. There¬ 
fore, I feel that it will not do much towards re¬ 
storing peace and goodwill in our small commu¬ 
nity. This water is decidedly improving, the 
stock of fish is good, and has been w'ell looked 
after all winter by a keeper. 
Leckford water has again changed hands, 
and is now rented by a member of the late 
Houghton Club, who hopes to do great things with 
it, in order to put it on a par w'ith other parts of 
the Test. It has certainly, for some years past, 
had a very unenviable notoriety, but, according 
to my private judgment, it never has really had 
a fair chance. It will have one now thoujth, for 
the owner is determined to do his best, and has 
obtained the able assistance of his old friend. 
South West; if anything can be done for the river, 
no doubt they will find it out. I am sure I wish 
them every success in their undertaking. The 
water ought to hold fish, it is a little deep in 
parts perhaps, but there are some very nice 
shallows on it. Five hundred two-year-old fish 
are about to be turned in, therefore we may 
hope to see a great difference in it this time 
next year. Pessimists hereabouts prophesy that 
the fish will not stay there, and are sure to work 
their way up to Chilbolton. I rather wish some¬ 
one would make the experiment of marking a few 
of them in order to see if this sta:e of things will 
actually come to pass. 
The prospects of the season are decidedly 
good. Knowing ones say that the springs are 
likely to keep up for a considerable time. I have 
never known them higher. One traversing the 
road at the bottom of my garden shows consider¬ 
able indications of establishing a small trout 
stream there on its own account. Such an event 
really did occur many years ago, when, so the 
story goes, an old Newtonian caught a 101b. 
jack in an orchard not a hundred yards off. A 
relation of mine, who prides himself in being well 
versed in nature’s calendar, assures me we shall 
have good evening fishing this summer. I hope 
with all my heart his prognostics will be verified, 
for last year the oveiiiiig fishing was an utter 
failure. There was hardly a single evening on 
which the fish took. Spring came to us late in 
1892, whilst this year every thing is very forward, 
most of the migratory birds having already 
arrived. The cuckoo was heard ten days ago, 
swallows are numerous, and warblers dropping 
in daily. ^ 
For years past a pair of grey water-wagtails 
have nested on the roof of our coach house. 
Whether the same pair or a t-uccessioii of mem¬ 
bers of the family we have no means of finding 
out, but we like to imagine they are the self 
same birds, and look out for them regularly as 
the spring comes round. Last season they arrived 
so late we began to fear they had deserted their 
old haunts. This year they are already with us, 
and I see them daily running merrily over the 
lawn. I think they are charming ornaments to 
the garden, for they look so pretty, and do u'^ 
harm whatever. 
But, forward as the spring is in our valley, our 
sister, the Itchen, runs far and away ahead of 
anything we can do, for there, according to a 
writer in the Spectator, a rise of May-fly has been 
discovered in March, and he gives a grnphic 
account of how the insects were taken both by 
birds and fish. If I had only known of this 
wonderful occurrence in time, and—this in parcn- 
