THE RAIL AND THE ROD (2024)

The contents of the following pages are practical in the strictest sense.They deal alone in particulars, and avoid all generalities.
Each resort to which the angler may go is given, as near as it is possible, to a foot superficial upon the banks of the waters mentioned, and the depth of each individual swim is particularised by actual measurement.

With this work in hand, or a few memoranda culled therefrom, the fisher may trace his way on either side the streams-stop here or there to fish for roach or chub, for jack or perch, for dace or gudgeons, and even for bleak or minnows, with a degree of certainty and a saving of time, which no book has ever endeavoured, in the slightest degree, to approach.

This attempt, indeed, is one of a very bold nature, but it has been done carefully and conscientiously, step by step, and day by day, revised, reconsidered, referred to this and that owner of fisheries, scrutinised by many anglers, and, again, to make assurance doubly sure, compared with the actual places spoken of in all their phases and details.
In a word, it is confidently believed to be as near perfection as it is possible to attain; but its author would have the reader bear in mind that the mean height, or what is termed the customary volume of the waters-not in floods or in dry seasons-has been taken as the standard of measurement of the depth of holes, swims, & c.,while the character, kind, and weight of the various fish to be found at the many localities indicated, are gleaned from a long experience and the knowledge of others, who have been familiar with these places for many years.

We are proud to acknowledge our obligations to J.Hooper, Esq., of Hoddesdon; C.W.Tyler, Esq., of Ware; Mr.Baugh, the eminent photographer; Mr.Gant, of Paternoster row; Mr.Pelton, the zealous and intelligent secretary of the River Lea Angling Protection Society; Mr.Shilling, of the Amicable Brothers Society of Anglers, and others, who have all liberally rendered the experience of years for the one single and unselfish object of contributing to the instruction and pleasure of their brethren of the angle.
Nor may we neglect to express our thanks to the directors, secretary, manager, and officers of the Great Eastern Railway Company, for the facilities afforded us for obtaining information from the stationmasters and others, at the several places on the line.
The latter have, in turn, been most courteous and obliging.
Indeed, it is equally pleasurable to add that after travelling up and down for very many months, in search of the material of which this little work is composed, we have not heard of an act of incivility, a murmur from the humblest engaged, or the shadow of a complaint from a passenger on the line.

OUR railway bookstalls possess almost every description of "Guide" -from the numerical complexity of Bradshaw, to the special Time Tables of each individual line.
Their necessity having been generally recognised, public attention and patronage are accorded to them, and their permanence is secured.
The man of pleasure seeking to shake off ennui, or the invalid or over-worked, in search of health by change of scene, is equally cared for by "Murray" and the swarm of hand-books to the sea-side and places of inland resort, which repose upon the stalls at our railway stations.
But we look in vain for any reliable information regarding the character or contents of the streams, or a knowledge of the names of the owners of the fisheries, whether private, free, or subscribed, or the desirability or otherwise of that class of hostelrie near or upon the banks of the rivers which the permanent-way either crosses, coquets with, or directly follows.
A few stereotyped words at the most, in reference to these matters, are all that meet the eye, and even local residents have the power to impart but little that is acceptable to the angler, and the true admirer of the picturesque.

An attempt is made in "The Rail and the Rod", free from guess-work, hearsay, or conjecture, to supply this want, by one who has fished or visited every spot alluded to; and if the common-place predominates over poetic metaphor and word-painting, it is hoped the reader will accept "Truth without garniture", rather than a banquet of sauce with an absence of viands.

The facts in reference to the fish to be met with near the respective lines of railway - say for about two miles on either side - and how to catch them ( the experience of more than half a century ) have been condensed into the smallest space consistent with perspicuity, and the information afforded with regard to public accommodation obtained direct from the actual charges in bills and memoranda in the author's possession, and other accredited channels.

How many persons are there, besides anglers, who, when a morning proves auspicious, would devote the day to a ramble within a moderate distance of the metropolis, yet are deterred from starting forth in quest of fresh air and rational enjoyment by the natural fear that their funds may fall short ere they return home, or the expense they may incur will not be warranted by their means; and thus the opportunity is often lost before they have made up their minds, or obtained-if it be possible to obtain —a guarantee that their expenses need not exceed a prudent outlay.

In "The Rail and the Rod" will, however, be seen at a glance how one or more persons, desirous of a trip of thirty miles or less down the several railroads out of London, may effectively carry out their purpose, and it will, moreover, if upon a piscatorial excursion, tell them what to provide before starting, and afford them a most bounteous choice of places to which they may go, the nature of the streams or rambles in the neighbourhood, and what the whole will cost per diem or week.

In this way each railroad will have its especial tourist and piscatorial guide, and where any line does not present sufficient objects of interest to those for whose delectation the text is designed, two or three railways near or approximating to each other in the prescribed radius will be grouped in one part, and all the parts will be printed in a uniform style, so that they may be bound in one or more volumes.

The rivers minutely described within the pages of this series will of course include, wholly or in part, the Thames, the Lea and its tributaries, the Wey, the Mole, the Wandle, the Colne, the Brent, &c., together with most of the ponds or lakes, whether private or public; a description of the fish which inhabit thewaters, and the popular, as well as the most scientific, modes of their capture.
Parks and pleasure-grounds removed somewhat from the precincts of London, whether open altogether to tourists, or occasionally and by tickets or private cards, will likewise be dwelt upon in a manner which will assist the visitor to seek for what is picturesque or worthy of notice; and, indeed, nothing will be omitted that will tend to render the work one of a strictly sterling and permanent character.
At the same time, as it is confidently anticipated that so desirable a contribution to a public want will necessarily pass through several editions, it is earnestly requested that should any errors or omissions be detected in the first or succeeding issues, a communication to that effect may be made to the editor- " Greville F., FIELD Office, 346, Strand "-the most apparently trivial of which will be gratefully acknow- ledged and accepted.

Much in the following pages will be recognised by the readers of the Field newspaper as having appeared week by week in the columns of that journal.
But so far from this fact deducting from the merits of the book as a whole, it is humbly urged that, as the greater portion of our labours have been of a practical and statistical nature, the crucial test to which it has been subjected and so favourably passed will be now an additional recommenda- tion to its issue in a cheap, portable, and concrete shape.
It may be further stated, that in order to bring " The Rail and the Rod as close to the day of its publication as possible, visits have been paid up to the last moment of going to press to the various places mentioned therein, to render its entire information as perfect as time and assiduity would permit.

THE advantages which the Great Eastern Railway present to the angler-tourist are manifold.
The facilities it affords for viewing the country upon both sides are equal to any other permanent This arises from the total absence of tunnels; the course of its main lines and branches being invariably carried through valleys in which rivers naturally flow, and the consequent contiguity of the stations to the waters and quarters of which the fisherman is in quest.
Thus the landscape can be seen from the carriage windows as uninterruptedly as was the case in the days of old coach travelling.
The Great Eastern Railway,under the title of the Eastern Counties, acquired a name of no enviable kind, from the confusion and irregularity which arose from limited resources insufficient to cope with an unanticipated large amount of traffic; but, as far as the sacrifice of life is concerned, the charge of its being a dangerous line was grossly exaggerated, as all Parliamentary returns show a singular immunity from such casualties, and prove that it is as safe as any other railway in the kingdom.
Indeed, whatever may have been its shortcomings in times past, it is generally admitted that there is now no railway in Great Britain on which the comfort and safety of passengers is more considered, or the officers in general are more civil and attentive to all, irrespective of classes ( vide Measom's "Great Eastern Guide".) The truth is, the east end of London has always held a prejudicial comparison with other approaches to the metropolis, and, as a matter of course, the country and all around has come in for a portion of its contumely.
Essex, for instance, has for years suffered under a proverbial imputation of being particularly unhealthy; but this character can only apply with any force to a small part of it, as the middle and northern districts are justly noted for a fine dry soil, with a wholesome clear air.
Essex, again, by those who know nothing of it, is reputed to be almost universally flat.
Such a notion is preposterous, and can have arisen only from the reports of persons who have followed its marshy lands, and have never looked up from their toes to the hills everywhere around them.
To tell such buzzards that there are hundreds of lofty sites, for miles and miles, from which the North Foreland, the coasts of Western Flanders and South Holland, seaward, are clearly visible on a fine day to the naked eye; and that, inland, from some half-a-dozen elevations, three and four counties can be overlooked, would be an appeal to their credulity.
Such, however, is the fact.
Every landscape artist knows there are spots of extreme rustic beauty, and a large grasp of picturesque material in the greater portion of Essex; but such is the prevailing notion that the county is as flat as those that believe the fact, he dare not append the locale from which his store of sweet Nature has been drawn, for fear of the charge of having taken more than a poetic licence with his subject.
And Essex is as equally varied in its soil as it is in its undulatory phase.
Messrs.
Grigg, in their " General View of the Agri- culture of Essex, " say:
" Almost every species of soil is to be found within the limits of the county, from the most stubborn tothe mildest loam. From this fact it is totally impossible to preserve one uniform system of farming."

The importance of the Great Eastern Railway system may be arrived at by a glance at the maps of the counties through which it goes; and although we do not purpose at present following it down more than thirty or forty miles from London, it will be seen that it opens up the greatest facilities to approach both on or close to the following rivers:
The Alde, Blackwater; the Cam or Granta, the Coln, the Chelmer, the Deben, the Lea and its branches, the Larke, the New River, the Nen, the Little and Great Ouse, the Orwell, the Stour, the Thet, the Wensom, the Waveney, and other Norfolk rivers, & c., & c., & c.

We trust, ere long, to render additional service to the angler-tourist by extending the experiences of our rambles, and the operations of our pen, by another thirty miles or so beyond the sphere of our present literary labours.

The Lea anglers have acquired a very high name in piscatorial art.
Their intelligence, perseverance, and quietude of habit, together with their modes of fishing, have won for them throughout the whole fraternity the enviable reputation of amiable manners and redoubtable skill.
It is not surprising, therefore, that with such a combination of qualities their success as fishers is commensurate with their tact and experience by the side of any river to which accident or design may carry them.
They are doubtless fortunate in the possession of streams, and more particularly the Lea, so near to the metropolis, which are of an extraordinary prolific nature, yielding fish in singularly great quantities, even in parts where the net frequently enters the deeps, and anglers of every grade have almost a free access.
This is an advantage which few denizens of cities possess to the full as does the Londoner.
Perhaps Nottingham, renowned for its fishermen in the ranks of both high and low, is nearly on a par with the east end of London in this respect; but in the size of the fish and their abundance the Lea is immeasurably superior to the Trent, at least over those portions of the latter which may be fairly compared to the Hertford and Essex streams.
In former times-such was the love amongst the rodmen for their favourite " silvery Lea " -- that it was no unusual thing for half a dozen youngsters, and even men far advanced in years, to meet at some appointed place on the previous evening and cheerfully trudge down throughout the night to Hoddesdon, Broxbourne, St.Margarets, or even Hertford, timing their walk so as to get to the water's edge just as the mists were clearing off the river, and the first upshooting beams of the sun gave the signal of the coming morn.
The writer of these lines has, many a time, been of these zealous and sober lovers of the Lea, and should accident, or unforeseen occurrence have detained one or more of his companions from the trysting-place, the others would start forward gaily with pannier over shoulder and rod in hand to do the distance mayhap in utter darkness, or with the light of the glorious moon over head, with no tinge of regret beyond that occasioned by the knowledge of the disappointment the absent were then enduring from the deprivation of a treat as precious as their unambitious minds were capable of imagining.
Those were happy-happy days ! The Haunch of Vension at Cheshunt, was then a snug little fishing-box, kept by one Whittenbury, and his cleanly, ever willing and obliging wife.
Here they would pull up, some to stop to fish the New River at the back of the house, or the Lea river to the fore-others merely to partake of a glass of rum and milk, "to file down the rough edge of the morning".
The good folks were ever ready, for if they had not turned out of bed, a gentle knock at the door, or a little gravel thrown up at the lattice, or a tap from a fishing rod, purposely put together, upon the diamond paned window would be followed instantly by the sound of the tinder-box-no lucifer matches then ! —and if it were light enough, the thickset and short dumpling of a landlord would, although only half dressed, almost roll like a Dutch cheese down stairs, with a respectful and hearty welcome.

Then the ambrosial recollections of that nectarian draught ! Each man having taken his tumbler in hand with " a bottom of rum " reflected in its crystal depths, would follow the host through the garden and over the dewy grass, when a whistle would call Jess ' out of the early mists of the meadows to her master's hand, and then incontinently the lacteal jets would, by the artful manipulations of the dairyman, soon beat old Jamaica into a brown and creamy syllabub ! Alas ! the after-history of this once happy couple was dire and sad, and when last we saw The Haunch of Venison, it looked indeed literally, as though it had been kept not only too long, but too loose.

The Lea produces fish of almost every variety that fresh water affords:
Trout of a splendid character; pike, strong, powerful and crafty; perch as handsome as ever delighted the gaze of anangler-naturalist; chub, which have made the fishermen's eyes of the midland counties dilate again; roach, which frequently turn the scale at 2lb. and upwards; dace in the upper waters which would vie with those of the Dart; bream, of 3lb.to 7lb.in weight; and gudgeons which would shame the Thames.
The eels we will say nothing of as their excellence is world-wide, although the proper place to stop our mouths upon such a gustatory theme would be at the table of Teale at the Rye House, Beningfield, at the Crown at Broxbourne, or Noakes, at the Ferry Boat, at Tottenham, at which places their habit is to swim in a rich appetising sauce, or to repose on crisp fried parsley, very much cut up from being obliged so recently to quit their silvery sandy beds.
Of the advent of salmon we cannot say much at present.
Mr.Frank Buckland and others are sanguine enough to believe that when the grand trunk river is restored to its pristine purity, we shall have salmon again in the upper waters of the Thames.
If this "consummation so devoutly to be wished" should ever arrive, the Lea anglers, possessing almost "the first turning to the right on the silent highway", may expect to be the earliest to see his glittering sides in their favourite waters.
There is much, however, that has altered the Thames since the palmy days of salmon; and although sewage and its attendant evils may in time be partly banished ( with a floating population equal to a large town, it cannot be wholly so ), there are still the ever revolving wheels of countless steamers which have been introduced during comparatively late years, continually beating and banging the tidal stream in a manner sufficient to drive away a shoal of impudent sharks, not to say the timorous salmon.
On the other hand, we are disposed to make every allowance for the well-known perseverance of the salmon to return to its first bed, and shall indeed be glad to find that our notions are erroneous.

The methods of angling in the Lea differ from those of the Thames and Trent.
In the Lea the angler for roach, the principal fish he seeks after, fishes with a light line of single hair, keeping the point of the rod as much as possible over the float, and seldom uses a punt, but fishes well out from the bank; rod is as long as a roach rod is used in any other stream in England; 21ft. to 24ft., straight and stiff, with the ply only in the last few inches of the top joint.
His hooks are of a medium size, mostly short in the shank, and his float as light as is consistent with the water he fishes.
His basket is generally of asquare form, to be used as a seat as well as a depository in different divisions for his spoil, his book of lines, & c., his ground bait, worms, and gentles, and perhaps a snug corner for a pocket pistol, and a bit of cold meat and bread.
He seldom or never essays a fly, and generally takes his pitch, plumbs the depth, ground baits his swim, and sits unmoved intently watching his float from morn until eve.
It is extraordinary what a keen eye the Lea roach fisher possesses.
What to a looker-on would be the motion of a zephyr upon the float is to him a bite — the wrist is turned, the fish hooked, and in less than half a minute's clever play, the roach or chub is secured and in the basket.
As jack fishers, the Lea rodmen seldom excel as spinners.
Trolling is mostly their hobby, or what seems more in accordance with their somewhat lethargic disposition, live-bait fishing appears to have the greatest charm.
Nine-tenths of the Lea anglers are men of sedentary habits, and they bring these habits out with them.
The walk from the rail to the river, and when there to seat themselves before some 6ft.
or 7ft. of water, is the extent of their ambition, and whether they take from 15lb.to 40lb.weight of white fish home or not, they appear ever contented and thankful for the opportunity of getting out into the fields and inhaling the sweet air of heaven.
As a body they are remarkable for their sober industry when at their various trade avocations, and, when following their darling pursuits by the stream, for their unobtrusive manners and almost taciturn disposition.
It is only when we follow them to their clubs, or when waiting at the railway station for the up train, that we find them loquacious and communicative, and then they will enter most warmly, if not eloquently, into the details of the sport of the day, and it is both interesting and remarkable to listen to the hair breadth escapes this large fish has had — how the other broke the line or rod, and how another nearly pulled in the would be puller out.
Some of our most pleasurable recollections are derivable from the chance gossip of these worthy Waltonians, and it is our fervent prayer we may live to have many more.
That they may live, let them wrap up well and keep their feet dry.
There are few parts of the Lea which are not accessible from the banks; but after floods, and for a time while they are settling, the marshes which lie low will continue to hold a good deal of water.
In many cases, although the grass may show itself above the surface, appearances are treacherous, concealing probably sufficient to immerse the pedestrian knee-deep in slush, and thus, if not prepared for such a misadventure, render the day wholly comfortless, and perhaps leave a lasting memento, in the aches and pains of rheumatism, of the occasion when the sufferer unwillingly plumbed the depth of the morass with his legs.
The most independent course in such circumstances is to don a pair of Fagg's hip-boots, which are not only defiant against these accidents, but permit the angler to kneel upon the damp banks out of sight of the fish, and to get into crooks and corners well down amongst weeds and reeds full below the tell-tale sky-line, which otherwise makes his every movement observable.
In the mere survey of the Lea and its tributaries, and that of the Thames and the Trent, we found a pair of Fagg's mocassins all that was requisite; and from the studious way in which these half-boots were fashioned to the anatomy, shape and play of the foot, we were enabled to walk all day with ease and comfort, and scarcely sought the relief of slippers at the close of our evening rambles.
But with the hip-boots, when actually fishing, we have got to many a sly hole and likely scour, more particularly when the water has been low, that would otherwise, being unapproachable, have left us on the margin of the river to look at with admiration, but with longing only, and mortified helplessness as our reward.

The charges of the inns down the Great Eastern line vary but little.
A bed is seldom more than 1s.; and at the best of inns does not exceed 1s.6d.
Of course we except the hotels, of which there are but one or two.
Breakfast, without meat or eggs, 1s., and with eggs, & c., 1s.6d.
An excellent plain dinner may be obtained from 1s.6d. to 2s., and less than this at most inns, if the hours that the landlord and family dine are observed; and tea, without meat, & c., from 9d.to 1s.
Many anglers of limited means take cold meat down with them, or bread and cheese; while others find a saveloy and penny roll sufficient to stay their appetites for the day until home or tavern quarters are reached.
A few figs, and more especially a date or two, will be found a surprising arrester of the claims of hunger.
There are fishermen, however, who aspire to large home-made pigeon or rump-steak pies; and we have known a joint or fillet admirably cooked at a lock-house, with a pot of steaming potatoes.
But these expedients are seldom resorted to excepting where the fishing-ground is far from the inn attached to the waters.
[We] would earnestly advise the absence of all strong spirit while angling.
It mars the best of sport, and destroys the pleasure of the most promising day.
Smoke, if you will, in moderation; but do not take your grog until your work is done.
I have heard many an angler repent the presence of a full pocket-pistol after it was emptied, but never heard a word of regret escape in the evening from those who had left it behind.
Of course there are exceptions to this rule - extremely severe weather, for instance — but even then ale will warm the system more effectually than spirits, and it is not attendant with that dangerous chilly reaction consequent upon the uses of alcohol.

Distance from London, 2 Miles.
FARES:
-First-class 4d., Second 3d.; Return-First-class 6d., Second 4d.
WHATEVER the angling may be by-and-by at Old Ford, in the river Lea, when the legislative sanitary enactments are carried out in their full force and integrity, there is little at present worth the attention of the ambitious angler.
A few flounders and eels may be occasionally caught, but such "small deer" are altogether unworthy the aim and object of a sportsman, who moreover at his elbow possesses such facilities as are afforded by the Great Eastern Railway at the cost, to most of the places, of but a shilling or two.

To the antiquary Old Ford has its attractions, the place having been named after the old road, which was here crossed by a ford into Essex.
Lysons alludes to the old bridge which succeeded the primitive mode of wading or swimming horses across:
"At an inquiry taken before Robert de Retford and Henry Spigurnell, the King's Justices in the year 1303, the jurors decided, upon their oath, that at the time when Matilda, the good Queen, lived, the road from London to Essex was by a place called Old Ford, where there was no bridge, and during inundations was so extremely dangerous that many passengers lost their lives, which coming to the good Queen's ears, she caused the road to be turned where it now is, namely, between the towns of Stratford and West Ham; and of her bounty caused the bridge and road to be made."
This bridge was allowed to go to decay, and became almost as dangerous as was once the old ford, when another good Queen Elinor, "of her bounty ordered it to be repaired, committing the charge of it to William de Capella, keeper of her chapel."
Bow Bridge had a "hog-back", so much so that Stratford, Saddle-ford, or Straddle-ford is said to have arisen from this peculiarity in the configuration of its construction.
From drawings extant it would seem to have been a quaint old pile, and, being narrow and without a footpath, the perils of the passage were afterwards provided for by a wooden foot-gallery attached to one side of it.
The present bridge is of a plain device, and constructed of granite.
The East London Waterworks have extensive reservoirs here, in which are vast quantities of coarse fish.
It is needless, however, to seek the permission to angle in these or indeed any other of the water companies ' basins around London, as the directors are greatly opposed, and very properly so, to the intrusion of strangers, the managers with much truth alleging, that " anglers break down the banks and cast into the water nauseous compounds termed ground baits, which decompose and tend to corrupt the purity of this element, while some will wash their dogs therein, and many in summer's excessive heat have stript and made a bath thereof.
The once celebrated Clare Hall Tea Gardens, then "out of London", is near this, and the visitors were attracted to them, and amused when there, by a mill erected in the grounds by its proprietor, which "ground old people young".
This was done by a piece of mechanism composed of two endless bands; upon the one figures of boys and girls, upon the other old men and women; and the mill being set in motion, had the appearance of taking in the old at the top of the receiver, and producing them young at the other end.

Bow Church is an ancient edifice, well worth a visit; but the whole neighbourhood is too savoury to induce the lover of fresh air to stay longer than will suffice to satisfy his curiosity.

Distance from London, 3 Miles.

FARES:
-First-class 4d., Second 3d.; Return -- First-class 6d., Second 4d.
THERE is little or no angling in the tidal way of the Lea until we reach Temple Mills; yet occasionally, by very persevering ground- baiting, a few bream and roach, and, at periods when the impure water has not been thrown back upon this district, a few barbel and flounders, have been taken.
The White Hart at Temple Mills is kept by William Beresford, who will point out thechannels said by Hawkins, Spelman, and other authorities, to be the courses formed by Alfred to divert the waters of the Lea, and thus leave the Danish fleet, which had ventured up to Ware, almost high and dry.
Similar courses are to be seen at Waltham, and it is possible that both sets of artificial ducts may have been made by Alfred at the same time and for a like purpose.
In the garden of the White Hart is an enormous pollard poplar tree, in the branches of which a platform has been erected, to which access is obtained by a set of steps, capable of accommodating sixty to seventy persons with ease and comfort.

LEA BRIDGE.

Distance from London, 53 Miles.

FARES:
First-class 8d., Second 6d.; Return-First-class 1s., second 9d.
THE White House in the Hackney Marshes is situated between Stratford and the Lea Bridge.
It is kept by George Beresford.
The fishing here is somewhat artificial, as the stock is brought periodically from other waters.
The supply, however, is liberally kept up, and as it just gets the end of the influence of the tidal flow, the fish are generally healthy, and those anglers who watch "time and tide" derive a reward beyond the non-observant, commensurate to their knowledge of the moon's influences upon the rise and fall of the waters.
It is said, however, that with regard to the revigorating influences at work to keep up the stock of jack, that the proprietor gets them in all parts of the Barge River upwards, and in this respect is the only lessee of waters on the Lea who is in direct antagonism to the preservation movement recently inaugurated.

At the new Tumbling Bay, where Salter's Swim formerly stood, quantities of barbel are caught every season, fifteen sixteen a day to a single rod, and they have been but recently taken as heavy as 1041b., and but a year or two since of 131b.in weight.

Hardy's Swim is the first from the Tumbling Bay, in which 60lb. of roach have been taken by one rod in four consecutive days.
Jones's Swim is about 6ft. deep, a clay bottom, and is full of roach and bream; several of 61b. have been caught.
The Small Tree Swim is 6ft. deep, and a favourite resort for jack.
Mr. Snow's Swim is about 6ft. deep, and good for roach.
About 150yds. down there are three other roach swims; one, known as Frith's Swim, holds plenty of gudgeon when they are not on the shallows.
Johnson's Swim is 7ft. deep, a hard gravelly bottom, and shows bream, barbel, and roach.
The Tree Swim is famous for heavy roach, occasionally of 12lb. in weight.
After this, a long stretch of gudgeon scour succeeds.
It may be known by the boys ' bathing place, from which it extends for about 75yds. either way.
Clark's Ditch Swim is another celebrated pitch for roach and bream; bottom at 5ft., and gravel.
After this, there is about 100yds. of average jack water; and then Potatoe Hole, followed by another 150yds., where jack abound; and then the Last Swim, on the Essex side of the Horse and Groom Water.
Two hundred yards along the bank before the Point is reached, there are plenty of jack.
Here a boat is to be found near the White House, and the angler can cross over and accompany us back on the other side.

There is only one roach swim from the Point to a spot opposite Clark's Ditch, but it abounds in jack, as before said; and close in, if the angler approach the river noiselessly early and late, very large carp may reward his skill and caution.
A little beyond this is still better for this sly fish, and this is called the Carp Swim.
Then 150yds., for jack and gudgeon, opposite the boys ' bathing-place.
Then a great place for more jack between this and the Horse Bridge.
Clay-hole Swim succeeds this for roach; the Friends, well noted for its bream; and next to it an even roach stream.
We now find several excellent scours for the fly, and the chub here are really monsters, some having been captured of 71b.
in weight.
The Kirby Swims are full of roach, chub, and bream.
They are opposite the Tree Swim, and the angler need be wary with his tackle, as the barbel, which lurk in these deeps, will often take his gentle or worm, to the destruction of single hair if not of the gut lines.
This swim is full 7ft.
in depth.
There are most sorts of fish in the Long Swim, which obtains its name from being 130yds.
in length; it varies from 3ft.
to 10ft.
And now we approach the Tumbling Bay again, the space we passed being covered with gudgeons in warm weather.

We now return to the Point, and have a careful survey of another section of the White House Fishery.
Crossing over from the Essex to the Middlesex side, we follow the river, which is on our right, down stream.
The Point Swim is 7ft.
deep, with a gravelly bottom, and bounteous in roach.
For some hundred#30 (p.14)14 THE RAIL AND THE ROD; OR,yards after this, several swims may be found between the bushes, and the beetle, grasshopper, small frog, black slug, snail, & c., may be essayed by dibbing, with astonishing effect on a hot sunny day.
The Barbel Swim is 7ft.
in depth, and gravelly.
It holds besides barbel, roach and chub.
The Bush Swim, of the same depth, boasts the same description of fish.
The Oven's Mouth is a capital roach and barbel resort.
The Small Swims are of a like depth and bottom, with jack fishing between the two.
The Royal George Swim is better than it looks.
Three roach swims follow this, all averaging a similar quantity of water; about 6ft.
The Corner Swim is highly estimated, as is likewise a swim next to it down stream.
Tinker's Hole holds 5ft.
of water, with a good gravelly bottom.
It is the cover for large roach and chub.
The two Collier's Swims have the same character as the last.
The Deep Swim plumbs full 10ft., and isa celebrated home for barbel.

We now pass the White House again, and through its garden.
Just below the latter is the Rounds or Bends, where dace may be picked out with a gentle, worm, or fly, to the heart's content, and of 6oz.
to lb.
in weight.
The Rise from the Bends to the High Bank is admirable for its chub and dace, and the High Bank for its roach.
The Parritch Pot, near the White Bridge, is famed for its barbel.

Pass we now over the White Bridge, and turn to the right, and we find the Bush Swim, about 4ft.
in depth, and of a fine sandy bottom.
Then 100yds.
of jack-fishing, and Bottom Corners afford three roach swims.
Then more than 100yds.
of rippling water for chub and dace with the fly, and perhaps a heavy and luscious trout.
Land Mark Swim, for barbel and dace, is succeeded by 130yds.
of good fly water.
Opposite the Rounds there are three roach swims; then shallows again appear where gudgeons, now so scarce elsewhere, are comparatively plentiful.
And opposite the Garden Swim, barbel and roach, and now right away to the house, gudgeon on the shallows.

Passing the house we come to a superb roach swim-the Angler's Home, and swims for barbel.
Then 100yds.
of trolling and spinning stream, and then the Old Roach Swim, about 7ft.
in depth and an even bottom.
A hole made by the burrowing of a screw-like eddy is termed the Tub Swim.
It successively scours itself and partially fills, but seldom averages more than 7ft.
in depth.
It is, however, always prolific in roach, as a great deal of chance food whirls round into it and takes a turn or two, if itA#31 (p.15)TOURIST-ANGLER'S GUIDE.
15does not actually settle.
The Hospital Swim is of interest to the angler-naturalist, as herein are to be found scarcely any but fish that have been maimed --mayhap by jack, perch, or by accidents of mill-wheels, & c.
Indeed, scarcely a fish is taken out of this remarkable spot but has in some way or other received a wound.
But the physicians of fish — the tench — are here to wait upon their patients.
After the Hospital comes about 90yds.
of jack run, and Smith Swim follows.
Then Ansted's Swim, 5ft.
deep and full of roach.

The subscription to the united waters of the White House and Horse and Groom is 15s.
per annum and 1s.
per diem to non- subscribers, but the latter are not permitted to fish for jack.
Many hundreds of jack, it is said, have been turned into these fisheries during the last three years.

A choice collection of the British birds which frequent these marshes is to be found at the White House, and the room appro- priated to subscribers possesses many handsome examples of pis- catorial taxidermy, the fish being all taken from these waters.
Trout, for instance, of 11lb., 74lb., & c.; chub, 7½lb.; barbel, 13lb.; jack, 25lb.; perch, 4lb.; carp, 11lb.; bream, 5lb., & c., & c.
There are about a hundred lockers in all throughout the house, the rental of which per annum ranges from 5s.
and upwards.
The refreshments are very reasonable and good, the dinners being served hot, skilfully cooked, and remarkably clean.

The views around looking over Leytonstone are very pretty, particularly in summer, and as the spot can be reached by Victoria-park Station, from whence it is three-quarters of a mile; from Stratford or Lea Bridge, both one mile and a quarter; and from Stratford Bridge Station if from Woolwich, and is moreover approachable by the North London Railway, its access and advan- tages are rendered facile to the greater part of the metropolis and its suburbs.

Besides the water of which we have spoken, there is about three miles of mill-stream.
Plenty of bait may be had through- out the year, and eels are ever ready to the hand of the cook.

Duck guns and other small arms of long range are tried in these marshes.
The London Orphan Asylum is on a gentle rise near Lea Bridge at Lower Clapton, the children in which gene- rally exceed three hundred.

#32 (p.16)16 THE RAIL AND THE ROD; OR,TOTTENHAM.

Distance from London, 72 Miles.

FARES:
-First-class 8d., Second 6d.; Return-First-class 1s., Second 9d.
FROM Lea Bridge to Tottenham Mills there is little angling to be had, the rollicking and too often outrageous conduct of the " roughs, " who frequent this part of the stream, rendering sport out of the question, if it does not entail the wilful destruction of the angler's tackle, who is bold enough to attempt to fish.
Near the site of the Tottenham Mills, and between the latter and the Copper-mill Stream, is the well known Ferry Boat House.
Its landlord, Mr.
Joseph Noakes, as the steward of Epping Forest, is an enthusiastic lover of coursing, and an admirer of legitimate sport in its every phase.
The house and its surroundings are picturesque, and have not been altered in any way for perhaps a century and a half, if not for two hundred years.
A pretty vignette of the house and bridge may be found in Bohn's edition of Walton and Cotton.
This water embraces about two miles of good fishable stream-Old River and Copper-mill Stream inclusive.
The house contains ample rooms for its visitors, and the garden is a great attraction to the numbers who resort from London to this pretty spot-so easily got at, the rail being but a stone's throw from the river's bank.
In the kitchen — a goodly sized and comfortable apartment, made use of with thankfulness by the regular subscribers after a cold or wet day's angling — are some excellent preserved specimens of fish taken in the waters.
There is one, a barbel, especially noticeable from its singularly sym- metrical form, the head being unusually small, and the lines of the fish altogether exceedingly graceful, and therefore much opposed to the generally ungainly outline of this fish.
It was taken by Mr.
Newbon.
It weighed 94lb.
when taken.
A pike, likewise well stuffed, of 15lb.
is here.
The largest stuffed chub is 4lb.; they do not grow in this water much above that weight.
There are some bream in the water, but they are few, as this fish confines itself mostly to the tidal stream.
Yet large bream are taken at Digby's, the Flanders Weir Fishery, and, last autumn, exceeded in size the products of most former years.

There are twenty-two lockers in the house, and a cheerful room above, which will hold fifty persons to dine with comfort.
Boats may be had a little lower down the river, from J.
Shearman, at 1s.
for the first hour, and 6d.
each succeeding hour.
The#34 (p.18)#35 (p.19)#36 (p.20)#37 (p.21)#38 (p.22)#39 (p.23)#40 (p.24)#41 (p.25)#42 (p.26)#43 (p.27)TOURIST-ANGLER'S GUIDE.
27the opposite side indicates the boundary of this part of the water, and the Mar Dyke bars the progress of the angler any further.
Here Digby's Water commences.
Returning to the house, we pursue our course up the navigable part of the water by the mill and locks.
The cut is for a time straight, but offers many swims of average excellence.
The chub and roach quarters on the oppo- site side, immediately facing the house.
are well esteemed; and right away from what is known as Baugh's Swim, past Hancock's Pitch, to Tyas's Swim, is all good, with a depth of 7ft.
10in.
when average water.
The same impression prevails here that used to be entertained on the Thames, that the passage of a barge was productive of bites.
Just before we get to the lock there is a back-water, which is crossed from the railway by the East London Waterworks Bridge to get to our little inn; but to reach the swim called The Timbers one of the punts must be used; always at the service of the subscribers.
Very large takes of roach have been recorded here lately, many of which average 1lb.
Another swim is noticeable for its goodly sized roach, off Mr.
Newsham's garden, who being a subscriber and a worthy fellow withal, grants ready permission to those who fancy the spot.
From the lock upwards to the first bend there is no stream, the mill taking the current above.
The water is heavy, and good for jack and perch.
At the point where the mill-stream enters is another well-known place for the same description of fish.
A little above this, where a dock exists for the construction of barges, is the Bush Swim, so often made mention of by river Lea anglers.
The bush by which it was known is down, but it may be found by a gate at the marshes at the upper end of the stone causeway.
Then the Crab Bushes Swim, opposite the barge lock, is often contended for by anglers, who have to secure it from others before daylight shows itself.
After this there is not a yard but what is fishable.
The opposite meadows are owned by a gentleman who delights to see contemplative man following his innocent recreation.
The good wishes of every honest angler be with him ! The Osier-bed Swim next presents itself, and may be intersected by a straight line drawn from Sewardstone-hill on one side of the water, and Durance Harbour on the other, an ancient residence, once inhabited by the notorious Judge Jeffrey.
Just below the haystacks-and one or more has been here from time immemorial — is the chub scour, par excellence, of this water, which may be fished to a nicety by a nick in the bank above, showing some old wharfing.
The" "the#44 (p.28)28 THE RAIL AND THE ROD; OR,towing-path here is peculiar, having all the phases of a hard and wide country road, with high hawthorn bushes on the one side, and the river on the other.
It was in former times much sought after, before railways distributed anglers to the four quarters of the world.
This locality is in parts very pretty, and being screened by high hedges from the winds that sweep over the marshes, and the water being of great depth, was doubtless a favourite from its picturesqueness and quietude.
Just above the haystacks-say 60yds., going up stream-Mr.
I.
Rich once took in one day a jack weighing 10lb.
6oz.
and a trout 6lb.
10oz., besides other fish.
Mill Marsh-lane, which still shows the traces of having been a road from Enfield highway to Sewardstone, but is now disused-the last remains of the old bridge having been carried away by the bargees, who look upon all such local struc- tures as base impediments to progress should not be neglected by the troller without very careful fishing; nor should the perch fisher skip this reach, as it abounds in his proud and prickly- backed prey.
The Upper Gate Swim is now close to us; and after this is all good but heavy water.
A brook enters at the opposite side, termed " No Man's Water, " which is the ancient Enfield wash.
Perch and jack are taken at its mouth.
The old river now falls in to the navigation.
Just above the bridge, in the rough water of the Small Arms Factory, three bream were caught by Mr.
Gant, weighing 14lb., the largest being 6lb., and a trout 4lb.
4oz.; they are to be seen in the parlour of the Anchor and Pike.
There is likewise a jack in this room of 10lb.
2oz., which is worthy of notice as having been taken with a tight gut line ( that is, a line without running tackle ) and No.
7 hook, and which, after a desperate struggle between angler and fish, was landed by the lock keeper with a shovel.
In this case spade, angler, and man were indeed trumps.
We now arrive at the Swan and Pike, which bounds Jewison's Water.

It is curious that few anglers fish this stream with a fly, although much of it is most admirably adapted to that elegant and poetic branch of the art, and trout, chub, and dace are in sufficient numbers to court the graceful wand.

To get to Digby's Water, the opposite side of the river, below this water, must be gained; the angler will then have to re-cross the stream at the cottage to follow us still lower down.
The fall bounds Digby's, just below where the Chingford Mill Stream leaves the main river, where the top of Wickes's Water commences.
There are some very handsome fish here.
We now work back#45 (p.29)#46 (p.30)#47 (p.31)#48 (p.32)#49 (p.33)#50 (p.34)#51 (p.35)#52 (p.36)#53 (p.37)#54 (p.38)#55 (p.39)#56 (p.40)#57 (p.41)#58 (p.42)#59 (p.43)#60 (p.44)#61 (p.45)#62 (p.46)#63 (p.47)#64 (p.48)#65 (p.49)#66 (p.50)50 THE RAIL AND THE ROD; OR,WARE.

Distance from London, 24 Miles.

FARES:
-First-class 4s.
6d., Second 3s.
3d.; Return-First-class 6s.
9d., Second 5s.

66THE Amwell Magna Fishery, of which we were compelled to speak under the head of St.
Margaret's Station, as it is likewise near to that alighting portion of the Great Eastern Railway, commences in the upper part, at Ware Flour-mill.
The mill- pool is somewhat circumscribed in its extent; but from its being surrounded by gates and hatches, leading only to pri- vate grounds, and jealously looked after, an amount of desirable quietude is obtained for both fish and fisher, highly con- ducive to the propagation of the fish and the comfort of its catcher.
The deepest spot in the pool, dependent upon the amount of water, is about 18ft.
to 20ft.
The bed is of a fine gravel, not so clean of late as one might wish, or if so, there is no reason why the thirty and forty trout which used to be seen on this scour at a time in the act of spawning, " should not be there in similar, if not in increased numbers, every season.
A very pretty back-water follows upon the pool, with not more than 3ft.
of depth in places, but should it be, a little coloured chub of a formidable size may be taken by bottom fishing, in this comparative shallow, and when it is clear they may be seen rushing off into the deeps in splendid style, and in no con- temptible numbers.
An eel of 84lb.
was taken out of this water.
At the corner where the mill-tail meets the backwater and joins Mr.
M.
H.
Gosselin's private grounds, passing under a rustic bridge and thus again into the navigation by some detached pleasure grounds, there is always a concourse of fish waiting for fly or bottom bait.
Returning up the mill-tail, we find 5ft.
of water beneath a handsome weeping willow.
Seats and stages are erected all along this stretch of water, the better to fish the swims, which are always kept clean for the paste and gentle fisher.
The troller and live-baiter, for an hour or so, would do no harm in preceding the roach angler, if the swim of the former has been ground-baited in anticipation, as several jack, induced by the herds of fish attracted by the ground-bait, are generally lurking about.
We now turn our back upon Ware, and proceed along the towing-path in the direction of Hert- ford until we arrive at the Red House-the gauge-house for#67 (p.51)TOURIST-ANGLER'S GUIDE.
51measuring the water drawn from the Lea, to augment the supply from the Chadwell spring, or as it is more commonly called, the New River-head.
The Red House is situated about half-way between Ware and Hertford, and the Amwell Magna Fishery extends therefrom down to St.
Margaret's, where it joins Teale's Water.

The New River is an artificial cut, forty-two miles long, for the supply of London with water.
It was commenced in 1609, and finished in 1613, when the projector, Sir Hugh Myddelton, was knighted by James I.
Myddelton was a citizen of London, and died very poor, being ruined by his immense undertaking.
So little was its benefit understood, that for above thirty years the seventy-two shares into which it was divided netted only 5l.
apiece.
Each was sold originally for 1007.
Within the last few years they were sold for 90007.
a share, and some in 1847 for 10,000l.

We turn to the left of the circular basin of this far-famed spring, the which and some extent of the New River is included in the Amwell Magna Fishery.
There is a noticeable fact con- nected with this head; the basin, in the extreme depth of winter, is generally full of fish, which take refuge from the inclemency of the river water, while in summer the opposite fact is observable, the comparative coldness of the spring driving the fish elsewhere.
At the junction of this portion of the New River with the canal- like cut from the Red House, large quantities of jack and perch congregate.
The former are seldom taken above 7lb.
or 8lb.
in weight, and the latter about 1lb.
to 21b.
On an arch spanning this cut is erected a monument to Sir Hugh Myddelton.
When it was made known that so large a supply of the London water was derivable from the Lea, the verses written upon the monu- ment were waggishly interpolated: -Amwell ! perpetual be thy stream, Nor e'er thy springs be less:
Thousands who drink them never dreamWhence flows the boon they bless.

Too often thus poor silly manBlind and unconscious lives;Enjoys some company's cunning plan, Nor thanks the Lea that gives.

We again head back to the Gauge-house, an hydraulic arrange- ment in case of floods, regain the navigation, and skirting the weir and over the meads, pass Dye's Tumbling Bay.

There areE 2#68 (p.52)52 THE RAIL AND THE ROD; OR,fat and heavy trout in this pool, which is from 9ft.
to 10ft.
deep, with a gravelly bottom, well protected with ponderous stones brought here and elsewhere in the bed of the Lea from the father of the father of the present Blackfriars Bridge.
From the lower part of this pool the view is very artistic.
A timber yard forms one side of the subject; the old bay the middle distance; the tops of a few gaudy coloured barges and masts give an eye to the tableaux.
The church, malting cowls, and quaint houses filling up the background in a tone of quiet grey, contrasting with the foaming waterfall, as we observed it, in deep and sombre shadow.
From this pool down to the cottage of Browne, the head-keeper, the stream looks most likely for chub, and perhaps for barbel, but we are told that it is not much coveted by the subscribers.
We get back to save time and distance to the navigable portion of the Lea, and inhale, as we turn towards the town, the aromatic and grateful odour of the many malt-houses of Ware.
We have now an opportunity of looking around, and find plenty of additional evidences to redeem the valley of the Lea from the charge of being of a flat and un- interesting character.
A little below the first lock from Ware on the right, and overlooking the town, is Pierdales, the handsome residence of Mr.
C.
Cass, a gentleman well known as a follower of the Puckeridge hounds; and past the grove of fir trees is the residence of the Rev.
C.
Barclay Bevan, of Amwell Bury, who, at his sole charge, built a church and parsonage on Hertford Heath, an outlying hamlet which will be recalled by old Haileyburians, from its proximity to the late East India College.
About a mile south-west of this stood the East India College, at Haileybury, which was founded in 1806, for the education of civil officers for the Government of India; and one mile south is the pretty village of Amwell.

How picturesque the view, where up the side Of that steep bank, her roofs of russet thatch Rise mixed with trees, above whose swelling tops Ascends the tall church tower, and loftier still The hill extended ridge ! How picturesque, Where slow beneath that bank, the silver stream Glides by the flowery isle, and willow grovesWave on its northern verge, with trembling tufts Of osier intermixed !Again, below the well wooded heights of Great Amwell, is the snug and healthy perched vicarage of one who sleeps above his steeple.
To the right of this house a column will be observed,#69 (p.53)TOURIST-ANGLER'S GUIDE.
53rearing itself above the sky-line with no little pretension; but well as this looks, and admirable as it serves as a land-mark, it is merely one of the supports of the piers of the ancient bridge before referred to.
There is a pond under this spot well stored with chub, from which it may be inferred that there is either a spring therein or it has a connection with running water.
There is likewise some remains of a dam once a portion of the old river, but now cut off from the canal which is beautiful from its perfect pellucid contents.
To the left of us is Easeney Wood, once of very great extent, but fast falling under the axe.
The river Ash runs up the valley, and empties itself close to Browne's cottage, in Amwell Marshes.
St.
Margaret's Church is on our right.
It is both a " donative " and a " peculiar.
" A mill tail is now in view, and courses nearly half a mile before it reaches the river.
We here catch sight of Netherfield Hall, the seat of Mr.
Charles Booth, the eminent distiller, and Cat's-hill, the residence of Mr.
James Baraud, a first-rate angler and general sportsman.
But here is Browne's Cottage, the fishing-box, and enough of flood-gates, tracings of big trout and pike, and scraps of wit upon its walls with sundry curiosities here and there to engage the attention for half an hour or so.
A jack of 174lb.
is pencilled upon the panelling by Rolfe, the celebrated fish painter, it being caught in these waters, and drawings of fish and other appropriate pendants are likewise met with.
We leave these, cross over the well-kept water-gates, and find ourselves on the Stanstead mill-stream, between which and the old river we now make our way.
There are very fine roach and jack in this water, and plenty of stones of a large size as shelter for the trout, so much wanted in the Thames.
There are two falls from the mill-stream into the old river, the second one " The Five Gate Pool, " a superb deep of some 14ft.
The most likely place we have yet commented upon for trout is a tumbling bay erected by the club, about 5ft.
deep at the deepest place, with a dashing scour well protected with large flints and other stones.
Passing through a gate and leaving a very sly looking cut out of the mill head on the opposite side for jack, we find the old river joining the navigation just above the St.
Margaret's railway station, and here ends this admirably kept and much coveted fishery.

Although Ware is sensitively alive to the fact that Bishops Stortford is fast treading upon her heels as a commercial rival in the production of malt, singularly enough there is perhaps no other town of the same size, that can make the inglorious boast#70 (p.54)54 THE RAIL AND THE ROD; OR,of the possession of such execrable ale ! This circumstance is well known amongst the regular angling frequenters of the place, most of whom keep a well-stored locker of bottled porter, & c.
brought down from town.
For the most part, the vile decoctions obtainable at the taverns would puzzle the whole college of analytical chemistry to determine their constituents; and those who have swallowed a few sips have tasted most persistently the nauseous compound for the rest of the day.
The best plan, under these circumstances — which the casual angler out for many hours will fully realise-is to take a bottle of draught ale down from the second-class refreshment-bar at the Shoreditch terminus, where a tap of sound, clear, and exquisitely flavoured Romford " malt " is always on draught, of Ind, Coope, and Co.'s brewing, which will keep its own head and out of the man's that drinks it, throughout the day.
Saving this, the principal hotels, inns, and minor houses of a public nature, are for the most part respectable, and moderate in their charges.
From above Ware to the Red House Engine-room, the water, although included in the lease of the Amwell Magna Fishery, may be said to be open to all, as the keepers have no orders to interfere with anglers thereon.
It is in appearance almost of an uniform character, the plummet and actual fishing can alone determine its qualities.
Water of this description is very capricious-here for a good pitch, and there for a bad one — and the fish will shift and change about both with the seasons and the alternations of the weather to the filling of a bag to-day, and the result of a blank to-morrow.
The alterations which the bottom is subjected to by the dredger, and the cessation or passage of barges, moreover, affect, for good or ill, the efforts of the best angler.
Many heavy baskets of jack, perch, chub, roach, and a heavy trout now and then, have been taken from this part of the river, more particularly when the up-country water has given the fish from above and in the tributaries, a chance to escape from their aristocratic boundaries.
At any other time than during a fresh, the likelihood of doing a remarkable amount of bagging is very doubtful, as the whole district is most scandalously overrun with poachers, who look upon it as their own by custom and immemorial usage.
If it were stocked and protected it would prove a splendid pisca- torial reservoir and feeder to the preserves both up and down.

The church at Ware is very old.
It is cruciform, and once contained some fine bronzes, which have been purloined with other curiosities.
At the Saracen's Head Hotel may still be seen#71 (p.55)TOURIST-ANGLER'S GUIDE.
55the great bed of Ware.
It is 12ft.
square.
" Neither the use nor the origin of this piece of furniture has ever been well authenticated, although said to have been the state-bed of Edward IV.
" The remains of an ancient priory are also here.
Ware is said to owe its origin to King Edward the Elder, who built it on the site of a weir formed on the river by the Danish army, from whence it derives its name.

HERTFORD.

Distance from London, 26 Miles.

FARES:
-First-class 4s.
9d., Second 3s.
4d.; Return-First-class 7s., Second 5s.

MR.
JAMES WILLMOT, of the White Swan, an unpretentious inn, opposite the Town-hall, is the lessee of a fishery at Hertford.
The water is the property of the Marquis of Salisbury, and begins above at the Town-mill ( Mr.
Ilott's ), and finishes at the Red House Engine-room in the King's Meads, between Hertford and Ware.
The town mill-tail is a large, dark and mysterious- looking pool, said to hold trout of enormous proportions, and certainly in appearance it does not belie the reports current of its finny stores.
Trout, indeed, of 1lb.
to 12lb.
have been taken out of its depths.
It, and its surroundings, must be likewise a perfect haven for the coarser kinds of fish, as malt-houses everywhere overhang its approaches, and barges are lading and unlading grain, which, with all the care possible, must escape, however infinitesimally, to feed and fatten the expectant fish below.
For some distance downward from the mill the river is shut in by these warehouses and wharves; and consequently a circum- bendibus must be described, either by passing the Great Northern Station, and entering the town-lands of Hartham, or in the contrary direction, round by the Folly Bridge.
If the latter route is taken, we find ourselves on the banks of the navigation close by a fork in the stream.
Leaving the main river, spanned by the bridge above named, we take the left- hand branch, which is a large piece of water that ought not to be passed unnoticed by the troller, spinner, and perch fisher.
extends past Gripper's Wharf, and ends at the Flood-gates by Finch's Cottage, to which point we should have come had we taken the other route to Hartham.
At the foot of the Flood-It#72 (p.56)56 THE RAIL AND THE ROD; OR,gates we find Finch's Hole, which is 5ft.
to 6ft.
in depth, and extends some 50ft., in which jack are often met with, and one of nearly 12lb.
was killed there last year.
A long sweep of very shallow water follows, till a junction is formed with the Beane at the eastern extremity of Hartham.
The next spot of note is the Mill Field Hole, named after a second mill, that of Mr.
Harry Inskip, who is an elegant fly-fisher.
( Mr.
Inskip's mill-tail is exclusively private.
) This hole is nearly opposite a conical-shaped, straw-roofed cottage, that looks like a large summer-house, a little to the left of Bengeo old church; and again above this hole is a rare scour for trout, where a chain crosses the stream to keep the cattle within bounds.
Some very pretty water, babbling over a half- sandy half-gravelly bottom succeeds, clearly a trout scour, and then the first osier island, at the top prong of which is a hole of 5ft.
The near branch of the river is eminent for trout, the further branch for white fish.
Now all down for some distance are shal- lows, with a deep sand-bed, which have a reputation for trout.
The willows here and there obstruct the full use of the fly until the White Bridge is reached, and then the water is pretty free from impediment to the full exercise of the poetry of the art.
Immediately past the White Bridge is an excellent chub-hole, and it extends almost to the commencement of the second osier eyot, where there is a perch hole indicated by a piece of dead water, which was formerly a pretty little stream supplied from the lock on the navigation, but which is now being rapidly and purposely filled up with the superfluous ballast removed from the cuts.
Going a little round the dead water, we find a long and handsome stretch of the stream, opposite Ware Park and its magnificent rising grounds.
Here five or six slight bends follow each other, and at the confluence of the stream with the navigation is a fine chub-hole.
Amazing quantities of craw-fish are produced in this river, and are taken with a common round drop-net, baited with any description of garbage, which being left quiet for awhile is drawn quickly to the surface, and in this way three or four are taken at a time.
We are now opposite Ware Park Mill ( Mr.
Shephard's ), under which the tributary stream, the Rib, enters the Lea, and the navigation bars our progress.
There is an excellent swim on the other side by the mill-tail, where trout and chub are both heavy, and perch abound.
The water all around is well adapted to the spinning bait, and looks excellent for most kinds of angling.
By following the navigation back to the lock, the angler can cross to the towing-path, and then he may either#73 (p.57)TOURIST-ANGLER'S GUIDE.
57get down below to the Red House, or by going up stream, return to the town by the main river, which, it will be remem- bered, we quitted at Folly Bridge.
The White Swan Fishery is very accessible from the north and east of London, by the Great Eastern Railway, and from the West-end or the centre of London by the Great Northern line.
The subscription for non-residents is 5s.
per annum; the number not limited.
Baits must be taken from London.
Hertford is a capital town, and sends two members to Parliament.
It is laid out in the shape of the letter Y, between the upper projections of which an ancient castle used to stand, dating from the Tenth century.
A few traces of it yet remain; one round, some angular towers, and a portion of the outer walls.
Royalty frequently satisfied the natural, if not the vulgar cravings of appetite here, and it has been in turn the scene of both luxury and woe to crowned heads, it holding a conspicuous place in history as the prison of the Kings of France and Scotland in the reign of Edward III., previously to which, in the reign of John, it was besieged and taken by the Dauphin of France.
Hertford has fallen off in the number of its churches; All-Saints and St.
Andrew's only remaining out of five, of which the town formerly boasted.
One of its principal attractions arises from its being the seat of the preparatory education of the pupils of the Blue-Coat School, belonging to Christ's Hospital; and 500 children are often to be seen there at a time.
Buckenden Bury is near, and situated in a fine park, ornamented with water.
Bragbury House has likewise the attractions of water-a stream running through the vale which joins the river Beane at Frogmore, and which has been extended near the house into the importance of a lake.
Ware Park is another lovely spot, beautifully varied by wood and water, the rivers Lea and Rib adding much to its beauty.

The Marquis of Salisbury claims the fishery of the Lea for about a mile, it may be, above Hertford.
It is very pretty beyond the Town-mill.
where it runs in a graceful parabolic curve through the old Castle grounds now occupied by Mr.
Longmore, and is equally picturesque for some distance past the quaint cottages whose gardens come down to its margin.
Here and hereabout the rod may pursue its affectionate desires without challenge right away up to The Poplars, and the fishing is not, at certain periods, to be despised.
The trout, indeed, which are in too great a plenty in their noble quarters above stream, where there is but little feed for the many, get down very often in numbers to this and the waters below, where the hungry vassals#74 (p.58)58 THE RAIL AND THE ROD; OR,may be at once detected by their sooty complexion, their large heads, and attenuated forms.
But amongst the shoal of minnows they here meet with, they soon lose their inky hue, grow sleek, fat and handsome jowled; and thus these chance escapes from the overstocked domains of a refined starvation are conducive to the health of the fish, make the food to their fellows whom they have left more perspicuous by their absence, and greatly con- tribute to the sport of the angler.
At the Poplars there is a division of streams; the one being the Mimram or Maram which flows through Lord Cowper's grounds at Panshanger, the other the Lea from Bayford Bury, W.
R.
Baker, Esq.'s, of which we shall have a few words to say.

We are now fairly out of Hertford; but although against the plan we had laid down, to keep close to the railway of the Great Eastern, we cannot resist the temptation of making our account of the Lea as complete as it is possible by summarising the upper waters under the head of Addenda, and thus led we find our- selves tracing the river upwards through grounds of a more or less exclusive character.
The Poplars are now observable from the elevated road which passes through Bayfordbury, Essenden, & c., and we become almost suddenly conscious that we have abandoned the commerce of the Lea for the retirement of a purely pastoral life, so musically still is the repose of all around.
There to the right is the kyanised black wooden railway bridge of the Great Northern branch to Luton, stretching over the Mimram, and here on the left the picturesque domain of Herting- fordbury, with its private lodge and hatchway bridge, forming altogether a very pretty view.
The Lea, which now presents itself from hence to the Horns-mill, together with the mill-head and backwater, has produced many jack of from 12lb.
to 15lb.
in weight.
The head for, say, 150yds., runs without fence, close to the road, and therefore is doubtless free to the angler.
Looking now up stream, before we get to the splash and foot- bridge which crosses a small brook on our left, we get a charming bit of rivulet scenery, the back of the Hart Horn Inn, with its careless out-door premises, and the said splash, with now a team passing through it, forming one of the many exquisite and homely landscape groups which continually arrest the observation and engage the pencils of a Birket Foster, a George Chester, a Hulme, or a Creswick.
Meadows, although narrow, separate us from a long stretch of the river, which, albeit banked high, is visible from the road, which in its turn is charmingly wooded.

#75 (p.59)TOURIST-ANGLER'S GUIDE.
69 59Crossing a stone bridge, and by one of the lodges of Bayfordbury Park ( we shall enter this anon ), we follow the river, which now widens out, looks deep, and gives elbow room, with a graceful bow, to a withy bed, affording here and there likely lagoons for jack.
Again a sweep to the right, as if the stream were seeking the shelter of an abrupt and green knoll fringed with larch and other trees, and the river is lost to the eye.
We hurry on and meet it again, but not until it has crept quietly behind Rober- son's farm, which it appears to take protectively in its embrace, as though to guard it from the intrusion of trespassers in its rear, and then it emerges from beneath a handsome arch into the broad light of expansive meads.
W.
R.
Baker, Esq.
has devoted himself with untiring zeal and perseverance to the breeding of salmon, trout, grayling, & c.
on his fine estate, Bayfordury Park.
The upper pond, in which there are nearly 150 salmon smolts in their third year, is a handsome piece of water of two acres in extent.
It is beautifully clear, with a gravelly and sandy bottom, 12ft.
in its deepest, and fed by springs.
The smolts therein, which would in a state of freedom, having run to the sea, be now probably 15lb.
in weight, are here but of 1lb.
They are, however, extremely lively, and apparently in the best of health and condition, rising freely to a fly.
The trout and grayling in the same water appear to be doing equally well.
Mr.
Baker turned into the Lea some 1500 grayling during the summer of 1864, two only of which as yet have been captured with the hook.
The mansion of Bayfordbury contains the celebrated portraits of the Kit-Cat Club and many fine marbles.
Three miles of the Lea are claimed by this gentleman.
It is beset with chub of 3lb., roach of 1lb.
to 14lb., perch 14lb., pike in abundance, and shoals of dace of lb.
apiece; but trout and grayling are the great objects of increase upon which Mr.
Baker sets much value, and certainly his efforts to get up a large stock and thus do his neighbours a great amount of good are untiring and praiseworthy.
Taking up the Lea at a little above Roxford Farm, where we left it, the stream gets more sharp, affording trout of 3lb.
and 3lb.
which, however, are seldom in season here until after the appearance of the May-fly.
The Lea throughout the whole course of Woolmer Park is exceed- ingly fine, and admirably adapted as a trout preserve, it having long stretches of wide sharp shallows over a beautifully gravelly bottom, with swirling pools, well protected by natural barriers and local surveillance.
It possesses occasional deep holes, overhanging#76 (p.60)60 THE RAIL AND THE ROD; OR,re-banks and gnarled roots for harbour and winter quarters for fish.
We are indebted to its courteous proprietor, Herbert Wodehouse, Esq., for a most delightful ramble along the well wooded banks of this charming piece of the Lea, which won upon us at every step by its pastoral grace.
The estate between Woolmers and Hatfield is the property of the co-heiress of the late Lady Braye, but the right of the fishery belongs to Lord Salisbury.
The Lea enters this nobleman's seat a little below Hatfield Mills, Wood Hall and Farm, and Bush Hall.
The park is of considerable expanse, and is splendidly endowed by nature.
It contains some markably ancient timber, said to have reached 1000 years in growth.
The Queen's Oak reported to be the termination of the walk permitted to Queen Elizabeth, when a prisoner at Hatfield, is now a mere grey lifeless trunk.
Many important political and poetical events have rendered the mansion eminently historical.
The original style of this unique old pile has been scrupulously kept up.
The task of artistically redecorating the whole interior previous to her present Majesty's visit was entrusted to the celebrated architect painter Frederick Sang.
This portion of the interior is grand and harmonious, graceful in conception and masterly in execution, and looks as brilliant and fresh at the present day as it did eighteen years ago on the occasion of the royal visit, when we first, upon an angling tour, had an oppor- tunity of enjoying the splendour of this noble mansion, and joining the gifted artist and his talented staff in serenading Her Majesty in full chorus from the groves beneath her private apart- ments.
The Lea in Hatfield Park is too artificial in configuration to please the ardent lover of river scenery, and in this respect it is in marked contrast to Woolmers, so comparatively close to it, where nature appears to revel in glorious wantonness, and to be as conservative in her bowers, banks and bosky dells as though it were a liberal slice cribbed from Eden.
The water, however, in Hatfield Park is stocked, perhaps overstocked, * with pike, perch, & c.
No permissions whatever are now given to fish it excepting to his lordship's immediate friends, this courtesy having been more than once shamefully abused by strangers.

A walk of about three miles along the banks of the Lea brings us to Brochett Hall and grounds, which are very charming, our stream adding great grace and beauty to all that surrounds it.

* There exists a rumour that this preserve has been let as a subscription water to the landlord of the Salisbury Arms; but at the period of our going to press there was not time to ascertain its truth.

#77 (p.61)TOURIST-ANGLER'S GUIDE.
61The lake, which is of a considerable expanse and fed by the Lea, contains enough to satisfy the angler, but it requires a boat to fish it well, although many heavy bags have been occasionally made from its banks.
Near the upper bridge is the deepest and best place for jack.
After quitting Brochett Hall, we follow the course of the Lea, passing many places of mark upon our way, more particularly Luton Park or the Hoo, in which is a long stretch of fine and wide water, and here almost at its rise we must pause as we are trenching upon a district which will justly fall under the group of another railway.

TRIBUTARIES OF THE LEA.

( For Fares, & c., see recapitulation of Stations, Distances, & c., ante, p.
iv.
)THE STORT.

WE pass the spot where the Stort joins the Lea near Hoddesdon, and taking the towing path find a portion of the old river running to our right and the navigable river to our left as far as the Stort Junction Lock, and passing Field's ( or the lower lock ) about two furlongs from Brick Lock, and after about a mile more reach Roydon Lock, the fall of which is about 7ft.
At Roydon, Mr.
Roe, the postmaster, is a lover of the angle; Mr.
F.
Torrington, the station-master, likewise possesses some knowledge of the water, and both will give any information to the angler.
Roydon is the first station on this branch of the Great Eastern Railway, and thus far the Stort is attached to the Rye House Fishery.
Three miles further is Hunsdon Mill ( Mr.
Thomas Garrett's ) with the lock.
About a mile beyond this Parndon Mill ( Mr.
Westrop Death's ) and lock are gained, and then a mile further, Burnt Mill Station, which is the second station on the Bishops Stortford line.
It is so called from the mill being twice destroyed by fire.
The proprietor of the present mill is Mr.
William Death.
A lock is close by.
The scenery about this is exceedingly lovely, and the fishing still continues good.
Gilston Park, the seat of J.
Hodgson, Esq., is extensive, and a ramble therein will well repay the tourist.
The mansion is a stately structure, approached by two entrances into the domain.
The one from the west is full a mile and a half from the lodge to the house, and is a remarkably fine avenue of ancient trees, extending the whole of this distance.
The park contains an expansive lake, said to be tenanted with large#78 (p.62)62 THE RAIL AND THE ROD; OR,jack, perch, roach, & c.
The eastern approach is about half a mile from Burnt Mill, and the walk there likewise presents some charming little bits and nooks of artistic landscape scenery.
Terlin Park, the property of J.
Hill, Esq., ` is another noteworthy place as it looks over the Stort, is but five minutes ' walk from the station, and a broad piece of water therein is supplied by the river, and considerably adorns the estate.
An additional mile from this gives us Latton Mill, the property or leased by Mr.
Edward Glascock.
There is likewise a lock.
Then follows Har- low.
There is a mill here, the property of Mr.
R.
Barnard, in the tail of which are some good chub, roach, and a few pike.
There is likewise a lock close by.

Harlow Bush fair, which is held September 9th, for horses and cattle, is known throughout England.
There is average fishing, open to the angler from Roydon all the way to Stort- ford so long as the towing-path is kept; but where the waters are diverted to supply the mills, there the river is strictly private, and not to be trespassed upon without the full sanc- tion of the proprietors.
There can be little doubt but that for most kinds of fish the mill-tails, weirs, tumbling bays and waste water sluices are the best, and therefore the most desirable to the angler.
Knowing this, if the fisherman desires an hour or two, let him ask for it courteously, and he will find it seldom refused without good and sufficient reasons.
Heavy pike are occasionally taken from the towing path.
Perch are likewise plentiful, but not large.
This river has a reputation for fine tench, which are captured in the season with lobworm well on the ground.
There is a Railway Inn, with beds, at the railway station.
The next lock beyond Harlow is Feakes, and is reached by a walk of a mile and a quarter.
Three-quarters of a mile now gives us Shearing Mill, owned by Mr.
John Barnard, with a lock.
Then an additional third of a mile finds us at Sawbridgeworth Mill, but a little distance from the station.
It is likewise the property of Mr.
John Barnard, who, having a kindly sympathy for anglers, rarely refuses an application for a few hours ' fishing.
Mr.
Hull, the station-master, is likewise devoted to the art, and would assist a brother angler in any way that lies in his power.
The Bell and Feathers is an excellent inn, and the visitor will find there all he may reasonably desire in refection and charges.
We trudge on now nearly a mile and a quarter, when we hail Tednanbury Lock.
Then, putting another five-eighths of a mile behind us we arrive at Bishops Stortford.
Here the angler#79 (p.63)TOURIST-ANGLER'S GUIDE.
63or rambler will do well to consult the intelligent and obliging station-master, Mr.
W.
J.
Anstee, whose knowledge of all around is complete, and whose disposition to impart it no less deserving of our thanks.
Mr.
Walter Gilbey's ( of the eminent London wine firm ) portion of the Stort which he holds from Mr.
Hawkes the brewer, is private.
It extends from a short distance below Stanstead down to Stortford.
The kind and hospitable proprietor is taking every pains to keep it free from the net and night line, and has turned in a liberal supply of fish from time to time.
It is a very pretty bit of the stream, and will doubtless ere long well repay its generous lessee, by the pleasure it will afford to anglers to whom Mr.
Gilbey ( being a thorough sports- man himself ) indulgently inclines.
The water abounds in pike, perch and roach, but there are no chub, and the gudgeons of late years have quitted it.
It is however the intention, so soon as the late legislative sewage enactments can be brought to bear upon Bishops Stortford, to introduce gudgeon again, together with trout and grayling, which are known to be to some extent migratory fish, and would be at present affected unto death by an excursion into the foul pollution of the river below.
It is an important town, principally relying upon its malting for dis- tinction.
There are several ancient monuments in the interior of the church, which is an old gothic edifice with chancel, nave and aisles, a tower and spire.
Sir John Brograve, Attorney- General to the Duchy of Lancaster in the time of James I.
built the Manor-house, the grounds of which are admirably arranged, and afford much delight to the admirer of landscape scenery.
T.
F.
Salter says, in his " Angler's Guide, " dated 1815, " I was once roving for perch on the banks of the Stort, I met a brother of the angle trolling on horseback.
From the singularity of the case, I inquired the cause of his being on horseback, suspecting that he had become indolent, but found it arose from weakness of a broken leg.
By a little practice he managed his tackle very well, and killed many good fish without dismounting.
The best part of this river, " adds Salter, " that I am acquainted with for jack, pike and perch, is between Harlow and Sawbridgeworth.
"It may not be generally known that " At Hallingbury, within a mile of Stortford, Mr.
Sutton, the founder of the Charter House, intended to build the hospital, and had actually fixed upon a field south of the manor-house, near the road leading from Ongar to Stans-street, for that purpose, and had even obtained an Act of Parliament in 9 James 1; but he altered his intention much for#80 (p.64)64 THE RAIL AND THE ROD; OR,the better, and fixed it where it is.
" Vide " History of Essex, " by a Gentleman, Chelmsford, 1771.
This meadow still belongs to the institution, and as it has now been determined to move the Charter House from Goswell-street, it is probable the first inten- tion of its benevolent founder, nearly a hundred years after his munificent bequests, will be carried out.

THE MIMERAMRises in the parish of King's Walden, and passes through " the Hoo " ( not the Luton Hoo ) and Codicote Mill to Welwyn, and by Lockley's and Digswell Water to Tewin, and thence through Panshanger ( Earl Cowper's ) to the Lea above Hertford.
From Tewin down to Tewin Mill there is excellent fly-fishing, many of the trout weigh 5lb.
and 61b.; but most parts in the season, although wide, are weedy.
Below Tewin Mill and down to the entrance of Mr.
Thornton's park, about half a mile, there are also fine trout.
Mr.
Thornton's park is well stocked with trout, and that gentleman will give a day to any true angler, provided the latter is properly introduced and accredited, and the water is not previously occupied.
Not so the Earl Cowper, who is chary to a degree of his trout, many of which repay this noble proprietor for his fond indulgence much after the fashion of spoiled and pam- pered children-by growing up sickly and ill-conditioned.
No one can carry the breeding of trout beyond a certain limit; beyond that, it is a crowded house, and the finest aqueous pisca- torial residence assumes rapidly the uninviting characteristics of a hospital, without its curative virtues.
Lord Cowper's domain stretches down to the Lea, a small portion of it bounding Hertingfordbury-park, one of the estates of W.
R.
Baker, Esq., of Bayfordbury.

THE BEANE OR BENEFICIANRises in the parish of Yardley, near Lufen Hall, from two sources, skirts Cromer, passes by Walkern, and between Aston and Bennington.
In the grounds of Frogmore it receives a small stream called the Broadwater, which rises in the parish of Stevenage, and then passes by Watton village.
At Watton the Beane runs through the park of Abel Smith, Esq., at Wood Hall, and here contains many large trout, but permission to fish is difficult to obtain.
This property extends to Stapleford.
From Stapleford Bridge, Bulls Mill, down to Waterford Mill, some good fishing water presents itself, trout varying from 1lb.
to 4lb.
being#81 (p.65)TOURIST-ANGLER'S GUIDE.
65often taken.

Above this the trout are, however, for the most part bad in colour, and only come late in season.
After Water- ford Mill for about half a mile there is a piece of open water on the marsh which is wide, but being mostly shallow, the trout are wary and difficult to capture; a southerly wind and a cloudy sky should be chosen.
From Waterford Marsh down to the Mole Wood Mill the water is known as the Cut, and is an artificial millhead, which is good, From this down to Hertford are the Sele Deeps, which no one but the best and steadiest hands need essay.
The fish are large, and when in season very excellent in game and flavour, but they are as shy as a school-girl and as wild as a mallard.

THE ASHRises in the parish of Little Hadham, passes a short distance from Moor Place and Hadham Mill, and Much Hadham-where there is a station on the Buntingford Branch of the Great Eastern Railway, 27 miles from London; Widford Station, 25 miles, four miles east from Ware; Blakesware and Mardocks Station, 242 miles, where perch abound-and falls into the river Lea at Stanstead Abbott.
The Buntingford line turns off from the Hertford line at St.
Margaret's.
The Ash contains jack, but a good bag is seldom made.
Edward Calvert, Esq., the great brewer has taken pains to stock portions of it with trout, having first killed down the coarse fish, but this gentleman's efforts have, we are sorry to say, met with but slight success.
Still the late Sir Joseph Paxton was very fond of fishing the Ash, and as he was well content with the sport he met with, and had the entrée of most of the exclusive trout preserves in the neighbourhood, we may have drawn a prejudiced account of this tributary.

THE RIB.

;Rises at Corneybury, a mile north of Buntingford, thence by Coles ( Somes, Esq.
) to Aspeden, where trout of goodly size abound, even in rivulets with water scarcely sufficient to cover their dorsal fins.
Thence the stream runs to near Buntingford Station, 35½ miles from London; West Mill Station, 344 miles and on to Braughing Station, 32 miles; where it is joined by the Quin, a small stream rising on the Cambridge and Ware-road, near Biggin, between Ainstree and Widial; then passes by the Hormeads, Braughing, and joins the Rib, which goes on past Gatesbury Mill to Standon Station, 31 miles from London,F#82 (p.66)66 THE RAIL AND THE ROD; OR,Latchford, Berwick, Thundridge, Wadesmill, and skirting Ware Park, falls into the Lea under Ware Park Mill.
Above Standon, for about three miles, there is very fair angling, the trout are large and full of bounce; the stream is well preserved by Colonel Tower, and again beyond by Miss Mellish, of Hamel's Park, for some distance.
The trout lie at the bends, and are more than usually solitary in their habits; so if the fish rise well the angler may make a capital basket.
It will not be found of any use to thrash the water all over, only at the likely parts, which are always palpable to the initiated eye.
Below Standon the trout are scarce; jack, perch, chub, dace, and roach, in plenty.
Mr.
Chapman, the farmer at Latchford, is partial to anglers, and would be found willing to give a stray rod an opportunity of distinguishing itself.
Above and below Barrack the angler will meet with plenty to do, if he gets leave, in clearing off the jack; opposite Barrack farm there are always a few four and five pounders.
All about Sawtress farm likewise jack abound, and one was caught there in recent days, of 13lb.
There are also plenty of small jack, and lots of large perch of 2lb.
each in Youngsbury Park, above Wade's Mill, the seat of A.
G.
Puller, Esq.
W.
Parker, Esq.'s property, of Ware Park, runs nearly up to Ware West Mill.
From thence Robert Hanbury, Esq.'s park and lands extend to the site of the third ( Wade's ) mill, recently burned down.
The neighbourhood, indeed the whole of the country through which the Rib flows, is exceedingly lovely, and for the most part all that an artist, if not all that an angler, could desire.
The dace at Standon are remarkable for their weight and pluck.

-The river Rib runs through Standon within twenty yards of the railway station.
The land, and doubtless the water, belongs about here to-Foster, Esq., the banker, of Cambridge, and some to the Duke of Wellington.
The farms are occupied by various tenants, who are courteous to anglers, provided they are ap- proached in a proper manner.
There are trout, jack, roach, dace, and perch in the Rib at and near Standon in ample numbers for sport.
There are two respectable inns in the place that make up beds for visitors, and they are in close proximity to the river.
will be well to ask Mr.
Barker, the worthy station master, as to private quarters, who has likewise every information anent the stream ready for the inquiring piscator.
The church of St.
Mary possesses a fine Norman arch, and the edifice itself is in the deco- rated style of architecture.
In the chancel are some ancientIt#83 (p.67)TOURIST-ANGLER'S GUIDE.
67marble monuments to Sir Ralph Sadleir, Bart., who was of the Privy Council in the reign of Henry VIII., Edward VI., and Queen Elizabeth; also of Thomas Sadleir, Bart., son of the above and his wife; here are also the remains of the Aston family.
The Roman Catholic College of St.
Edmund's is about one mile west, and was founded on the expulsion of the Roman Catholics from Douay.
An iron bridge spans the Rib here.

SNARESBROOK STATION ( near Wanstead ).
Distance from London, 7 Miles.

FARES:
-First-class 1s., Second 9d., Third 7d.

THE river Roding runs near, but there is little or nothing in it so low down as this.
The Eagle Tavern at Snaresbrook possesses pond, but it has long since ceased to be classed as a fish pre- serve.
The same may be said of the once famous ponds in Wanstead-park.

GEORGE-LANE STATION.
Distance from London, 84 Miles.

FARES:
-First-class 1s.
2d., Second 10d., Third 8d.

THE river Roding is still within a few minutes ' walk of us, but the same observation applies to this place as we made of the last.

WOODFORD STATION.

Distance from London, 94 Miles.

FARES:
-First-class 1s.
4d., Second 1s., Third 9d.

THE river Roding gets a little better here, but its small bulk does not allow of any particular cover for fish.

perch sometimes are taken.

A few dace andBUCKHURST-HILL.

Distance from London, 103 Miles.

FARES:
-First-class 1s.
5d., Second 1s., Third 9d.

THERE are small portions of the river Roding hereabout, which, after rains, contain a fish or two, but it is as a fishing station wholly unworthy of the angler's attention.

#85 (p.69)#86 (p.70)#87 (p.71)#88 (p.72)#89THE RAIL AND THE ROD;OR,TOURIST-ANGLER'S GUIDEΤΟWATERS AND QUARTERS AROUND LONDON.

No.
II.

GREAT WESTERNRAILWAY.

BY GREVILLE F.
( BARNES ),PISCATORIAL CORRESPONDENT TO THE " FIELD " JOURNALLONDON:
HORACE COX, 346, STRAND, W.C.

1867.

#90LONDON:
PRINTED BY HORACE COX, 346, STRAND, W.c.

#91ΤΟROBERT BARCLAY, Esq.,IN GRATEFUL RECOLLECTION OF THE AMENITIESSO FRANKLY, HOSPITABLY, AND FRATERNALLY EXTENDEDBYHIMSELF AND MRS.
BARCLAY,AT THEIRCOTTAGE AT STREATLEY, BERKS,TO THEAUTHOR DURING HIS THAMES RAMBLES,THIS WORKIS RESPECTFULLY INSCRIBEDBYTHE AUTHOR.

#92No text on pageThis page does not contain any text recoverable by the OCR engine.

#93PREFACE.

IN submitting No.
2 of " The Rail and the Rod " to the public, it should be stated that the subject of the Thames with its many attractive accessories has so grown under the pen, that the author has found it necessary to carry the reader with him as far as Oxford, more than sixty miles from London, and, consequently, twice the distance originally assigned to the sections of this work.
It is, however, modestly submitted, that the writer is not altogether responsible for this truantcy, as the encouragement given to the sale of No.
1 of " The Rail and the Rod " ( The Great Eastern Railway ) most plainly evidences that the want of a work of this nature is fully appreciated, and that any extension of liberality upon the part of the author will be proportionately recognised.

#95 (p.1)#96 (p.2)#97 (p.3)#98 (p.4)#99 (p.5)#100 (p.6)#101 (p.7)#102 (p.8)#103 (p.9)#104 (p.10)#105 (p.11)#106 (p.12)#107 (p.13)#108 (p.14)#109 (p.15)#110 (p.16)#111 (p.17)#112 (p.18)#113 (p.19)#114 (p.20)#115 (p.21)#116 (p.22)#117 (p.23)#118 (p.24)#119 (p.25)#120 (p.26)#121 (p.27)#122 (p.28)#123 (p.29)#124 (p.30)#125 (p.31)#126 (p.32)#127 (p.33)#128 (p.34)#129 (p.35)#130 (p.36)#131 (p.37)#132 (p.38)#133 (p.39)#134 (p.40)#135 (p.41)#136 (p.42)#137 (p.43)#138 (p.44)#139 (p.45)#140 (p.46)#141 (p.47)#142 (p.48)#143 (p.49)#144 (p.50)#145 (p.51)#146 (p.52)#147 (p.53)#148 (p.54)#149 (p.55)#150 (p.56)#151 (p.57)#152 (p.58)#153 (p.59)#154 (p.60)#155 (p.61)#156 (p.62)#157 (p.63)#158 (p.64)#159 (p.65)#160 (p.66)#161 (p.67)#162 (p.68)#163 (p.69)#164 (p.70)#165#166#167#168#169#170#171 (p.1)#172 (p.2)#173 (p.3)#174 (p.4)#175 (p.5)#176 (p.6)#177 (p.7)#178 (p.8)#179 (p.9)#180 (p.10)#181 (p.11)#182 (p.12)#183 (p.13)#184 (p.14)#185 (p.15)#186 (p.16)#187 (p.17)#188 (p.18)#189 (p.19)#190 (p.20)#191 (p.21)#192 (p.22)#193 (p.23)#194 (p.24)#195 (p.25)#196 (p.26)#197 (p.27)#198 (p.28)#199 (p.29)#200 (p.30)#201 (p.31)#202 (p.32)#203 (p.33)#204 (p.34)#205 (p.35)#206 (p.36)#207 (p.37)#208 (p.38)#209 (p.39)#210 (p.40)#211 (p.41)#212 (p.42)#213 (p.43)#214 (p.44)#215 (p.45)#216 (p.46)#217 (p.47)#218 (p.48)#219 (p.49)#220 (p.50)#221 (p.51)#222 (p.52)#223 (p.53)#224 (p.54)#225 (p.55)#226 (p.56)#227 (p.57)#228 (p.58)#229 (p.59)#230 (p.60)#231 (p.61)#232 (p.62)#233 (p.63)#234 (p.64)#235 (p.65)#236 (p.66)#237 (p.67)#238 (p.68)#239 (p.69)TOURIST-ANGLER'S GUIDE.
69trees; the depth of the first 4ft.
to 5ft., the second about 5ft.
All is deep, varied, and lovely now, until we get to the shallow old fording-place near Hythe End Bridge.
This bridge is of one iron arch, of a light construction, with stone buttresses.
There is a humble beer-house near this-the Feathers, kept by George Harris, where the malt is respectable.

After this bridge is left in our rear we come upon a most promising expanse of water, divided into two channels by two aits, the one ait succeeding the other.
This large piece of the fishery is bounded on every side by withy beds, which render the pursuit of angling a task of no little difficulty and patience; but when the osier rods are cut it is all open, and a more tempting place for jack it is difficult to imagine, it being a mixture of lurking holes and basking shallows.
There are several acres of this water terminated by the second mill, the tail of which extends to the Thames.

Josiah Heath, of Longford, whose name is associated with many interesting facts in reference to natural history, has been appointed superintendent of the waters; and as he is perhaps one of the best practical men we have amongst the coarse kinds of fish, as well as trout, he may succeed, by close attention and watchfulness, in keeping this beautiful stretch of the Colne as attractive to the angler as any within the same distance from London; its immediate contiguity to the station at Wraysbury rendering a visit to it scarcely a sacrifice of time involving much consideration.
The mill that heads the river is a millboard manufactory, but pits of ample size having been provided for the reception of its bleaching-now no longer a " waste, " but brought up eagerly by neighbouring farmers-there can exist no fear that the river will ever be affected by this once common cause of piscatorial destruction.
But one thing is manifest, that with the esparto coffee-coloured liquid running into the stream the quantity of fish appears to be enormous, and I am almost afraid to add that after watching from the bridge for nearly an hour the run of this stuff where it enters the main river, it was here, and here alone, the dace and chub were seen to rise, as if a something came down with it to which they had an attachment.
The fish, indeed, at this point could be plainly seen darting from and into the well-defined esparto water without any apparent knowledge of the difference.
Ex- periments have here been made by the confinement of roach and dace in a solution of esparto, and others in perfectly clean#240 (p.70)70 THE RAIL AND THE ROD; OR,water, and after ten days no apparent difference was manifest between the fish in the two carboys of water.
I am fully aware that this does not agree with the experiences of others, but the facts may be reconciled by the difference of the volume of clean water the esparto washing meets with in various places.
A pint of raw brandy is very good tipple when mixed with a gallon of water, but there are many men it would kill in its potent integrity.
The experiments referred to will be, there- fore watched with great interest, and the hint here thrown out may, perhaps, induce others to ascertain how far and at what strength esparto washings become injurious.
There can be little doubt but that its introduction into rivers is far from beneficial in one sense; that, by depositing the minute fibres, & c., detached from the esparto grass, in the bed of the river, it forms a fertiliser for all descriptions of aquatic weeds, which in their turn die, and gradually change the bottom of the stream from a pure gravelly or sandy nature into one of mud.
But even this serious conse- quence has been hitherto provided against at Wraysbury, by the constant dredging in parts, which is exercised as a right by the parish authorities.

The Wraysbury Fishery Rules are:
-Angling with one rod and line only allowed.
Jack season, 1st August to 1st March, inclu- sive.
Perch, & c., 1st June to 31st March.
Size of fish same as Thames Conservancy Rules.
Tickets not transferable.
Sub- scribers may bring one friend and any attendants, but no paid attendants to use rod or line.
The owner of the fishery reserves the right to cancel all or any subscriber's ticket at any time, on repayment or tender of a proportionate share of the subscription money for the future time during which the ticket would other- wise be available for fishing.
The keeper will at all times provide baits, if required, at 1d.
each.
Subscription two guineas a year from date, payable in advance.
Day tickets 10s.
each.
Owner and friends ' right of fishing reserved.

There is a beer-shop-the Paper-makers ' Arms-within a short distance of the Wraysbury station; and an inn — the Green Man, J.
Phillips, has a bed or two to let.
Farther on, and in the village, the George, another comfortable house, kept by H.
Bunnin, is strongly recommended to me by several friends.

The canal in Ankerwycke Park, the property of Mr.
Simon G.
Harcourt, now occupied by Mr.
Anderson, is connected with the Thames, and well supplied with jack, but in summer and autumn is very foul from the want of a continuous flow of water.
Indeed,#241 (p.71)TOURIST-ANGLER'S GUIDE.
71the whole of this back water, more particularly in the village, is in a deplorable state from the scum arising from rotten aquatic vegetation, and, if not looked to by the parish authorities, may occasion a more expensive clearance of the remains of Death's doings than the most thoughtful of the guardians can anticipate.
Opposite Bell's ferry, and close to the lock ( fall 4ft.
9in.
), which is thirty-eight miles and three furlongs by water from London Bridge, is the Angler's Rest-neat, clean, and homely quarters, with charges suited to the pockets of the middle-class fisherman.
The landlord ( Dickinson ) is civil and obliging, and, should the four extra beds he makes up under his own roof be occupied, he can always get a clean chamber for an angler close at hand.
J.
Keen, the one-armed fisherman, may be met with here, and, although armless, he is known to assist very often in the murder very heavy bags of barbel, his favourite swim being near the weir on the Wraysbury side.
Harry Collins, another civil and experienced puntsman, is likewise within hail, and baits may be found ready at hand.

ofThe most scientific way to fish for barbel is practised here— with roach tackle, by which more sport is obtained, and greater skill required, than by the barge rope and pully-hauly system of the ledger.

Having opened the lock with a silver key-the fee being a six- pence we are away through scenery of exquisite beauty- Cooper's Hill and Englefield Green rising high above us, and backing up a landscape in which the ever-constant river forms the foreground.
Roach-fishing and trolling all along this stretch to the Bells at Ouseley.
Bough-fishing for perch may be gone into and for chub, when the reed and weed are not too heavy.
Runnymede and its racecourse indicate capital swims, and the Chalk Hole, which holds 14ft.
of water, is now under our keel.
This hole is opposite the new paraffin works, and should any doubt exist as to its exact whereabouts, the plumb must be used.
There is every likelihood of another attractive hole being found nearer the Wraysbury side, as much ballast is being removed from thence for the foundation of the works in question.
I went ashore here and minutely inspected the tanks, and am still of opinion that little fear need be entertained respecting its effect upon the river, whatever may be the odours that may arise therefrom.
From this the water is of the best the whole of the way up to Ankerwyke and Magna Charta Island.
On the right there is capital angling from the banks, but the land#242 (p.72)72 THE RAIL AND THE ROD; OR,is private, and the residence of Mr.
Anderson, a tenant under Mr.
Simon Harcourt, who, possessing the privilege of netting, has not, I am told, exercised his right for the last two or three years.
The magnificent trees upon the banks will not fail to arrest the atten- tion of the angler, and not less so the sharp and sudden turns the river takes, affording depths and shallows inexpressibly delightful to the fly or bottom fisher.

We are now off " the Roll, " an exceedingly deep hole in a corner near the high road.
It is called " the Roll, " from an upright roller which used to stand there, and against which the tow-rope ran, the better to bring the barges round this acute angle of the river, and from this a reach of surpassing loveliness bursts upon the view, which defies description, the lower foliage of the graceful and lofty trees kissing the water, while the upper branches, apparently jealous of those beneath them, strain with pendulous gracefulness to reach the flood, and mix their leaves in the artistic entanglement of their fellows.
Amidst this sylvan banquet we get a peep of the bit of mouldy wall behind which the barons made King John make a sign and press the signet down of liberty.
Look out for a clump of firs near the next boathouse, for off there some superb perch have been taken, and near this, where the bank shelves, a few dozen dace may be whipped up with the black gnat or gentle-fly.
Here is a fine piece of back water- " Private.
" This is succeeded by a sharp stream, which eloquently woos the fly.
The Wraysbury bucks add their share to the landscape, and the pretty women on the lawn of the picturesque cottage, towards whom we look slyly askance, civilise and refine the semi-wildness of the scene.
There are famous perch all along the boughs just beyond this cottage and the old Ferry-house; but the stream is sadly choked with weed in the autumn, which being, however, a cover for fish, yields its harvest of fins to the rod in due season.
The back water of which I spoke before as " private, " ends just opposite the beginning of a well-clipped long hedge on the towing-path side.

Old Windsor peeps forth, and we have the Bells of Ousley in our eye.
A sign we hail.
How deep the gloom of the water now ! —the tall trees obscuring the sun's rays, and altering the temperature of the air full two degrees.

The old and eccentric landlord of the Bells has gone, and with him the post-office, but the new comers appear to do their best to keep up the reputation of the house.

#244 (p.74)#245 (p.75)#246 (p.76)#247 (p.77)#248 (p.78)#249 (p.79)#250 (p.80)#251 (p.81)#252 (p.82)#253#254#255#256#257#258#259 (p.1)#260 (p.2)#261 (p.3)#262 (p.4)#263 (p.5)#264 (p.6)#265 (p.7)#266 (p.8)#267 (p.9)#268 (p.10)#269 (p.11)#270 (p.12)#271 (p.13)#272 (p.14)#273 (p.15)#274 (p.16)#275 (p.17)#276 (p.18)#277 (p.19)#278 (p.20)#279 (p.21)#280 (p.22)#281 (p.23)#282 (p.24)#283 (p.25)#284 (p.26)#285 (p.27)#286 (p.28)#287 (p.29)#288 (p.30)#289 (p.31)#290 (p.32)#291 (p.33)#292 (p.34)#293 (p.35)#294 (p.36)#295 (p.37)#296 (p.38)#297 (p.39)#298 (p.40)#299 (p.41)#300 (p.42)#301 (p.43)#302 (p.44)#303 (p.45)#304 (p.46)#305 (p.47)#306 (p.48)#307 (p.49)#308 (p.50)#309 (p.51)#310 (p.52)#311 (p.53)#312 (p.54)#313 (p.55)#314 (p.56)#315 (p.57)#316 (p.58)#317 (p.59)#318 (p.60)#319 (p.61)#320 (p.62)#321 (p.63)#322 (p.64)#323 (p.65)#324 (p.66)#325 (p.67)#326 (p.68)#327 (p.69)#328 (p.70)#329 (p.71)#330 (p.72)#331 (p.73)#332 (p.74)#333 (p.75)#334 (p.76)#335#336#337#338#339#340#341#342#343 (p.1)#344 (p.2)#345 (p.3)#346 (p.4)#347 (p.5)#348 (p.6)#349 (p.7)#350 (p.8)#351 (p.9)#352 (p.10)#353 (p.11)#354 (p.12)#355 (p.13)#356 (p.14)#357 (p.15)#358 (p.16)#359 (p.17)#360 (p.18)#361 (p.19)#362 (p.20)#363 (p.21)#364 (p.22)#365 (p.23)#366 (p.24)#367 (p.25)#368 (p.26)#369 (p.27)#370 (p.28)#371 (p.29)#372 (p.30)#373 (p.31)#374 (p.32)#375 (p.33)#376 (p.34)#377 (p.35)#378 (p.36)#379 (p.37)#380 (p.38)#381 (p.39)#382 (p.40)#383 (p.41)#384 (p.42)#385 (p.43)#386 (p.44)#387 (p.45)#388 (p.46)#389 (p.47)#390 (p.48)#391 (p.49)TOURIST-ANGLER'S GUIDE.
49been taken to garnish it, and thus every public-house-a matter of no little importance to the wanderer without a compass or guide-is distinctly marked.
Thus we have, as we have said, the Jolly Anglers, and beside this, the Wheatsheaf, Crown Public House, the Chequers, the Plough, the Windmill, the Three Horse Shoes, the Dog and Duck, & c., & c., denoted with an accu- racy which is a guarantee that the wayfarer need not be lost upon the fens, or sink for the want of sustaining malt.

66There is a feeder of the Cam which enters from the south- east, a little below Waterbeach, at Bottisham Locks, which most topographers appear to have ignored.
It is called the Bottisham Load, which rises at Shardelow's Well, near FULBOURN, and passing east, under the Newmarket Railway, takes in a streamlet at Hawk Mill, which flows from The Temple " ( seat of Edward Hicks, Esq.
), between Little and Great Wilbraham.
It then joins the Caudle Ditch, near Quywater Bridges, works Quy Mill, and passes Quy Hall ( seat of Clement Francis, Esq., and then to Anglesea Abbey ( seat of Rev.
J.
Hailstone ).
Here are the remains of the old abbey, the Priory of Anglesea, founded by Henry I.
— the remains consist of a vaulted room and graduated corbel table:
the room now forms the entrance hall.
It joins a brook from Bottisham Village, which skirts Bottisham Load, turning its mill-wheel on its way, and goes straight off to the Cam, which it enters by Bottisham Lock.

A second feeder, named Swaffham Bulbeck Load, still lower down the Cam, rising at Spring Hall, receiving Whiteland Springs to the south of Bottisham Hall, through the grounds of which it passes, after which it visits Swaffham Bulbeck and its mill and Abbey grounds, and thus on by Hop-corner, enters the Cam at Swaffham Bridge and Lock.
There are pike in plenty through- out the above, with large quantities of other coarse fish.

THE OUSE.

STATIONS:
Buckingham; Sharnbrook; Wolverton; Bedford; Lidlington; Ampthill; Oakley; Temsford; St.
Neots; Offord; Brampton; St.
Ives; Swavesey; Somersham; Huntingdon; Denver; Stretham; Ely; Little- port; Manea; Black Bank; Lynn; Market Downham.

As we shall have much to do with this river, it may be well to trace its course through the counties of Northampton, Oxford, Buckingham, Bedford, Huntingdon, Cambridge, and Norfolk.

E#392 (p.50)50 THE RAIL AND THE ROD; OR,Thus, in touching upon most of our railways west, north-west, and east of the Metropolis, it cannot well be disentangled or dis- associated from them.

We shall give, however, as we proceed, the stations, and their respective lines, which are nearest to the different parts of the river; and it will be observed that, in some instances, two, or even three, means of conveyance are offered to the angler-tourist to get from or to the same place-no slight advantage !The Ouse traverses a very considerable part of the Midland shires of England, and, though its stream is lazy, and neither gives nor receives much beauty in the great tract through which it passes, it is in many respects an interesting river to the angler.
It flows through the largest extent of level country, and has the most tortuous course, of any river in the island.

The Ouse rises in the south-western part of Northampton- shire, at Ouse Well, a spring in Ouse Close, adjoining the turnpike-road, at the foot of the hill descending eastward from the village of Farthingho.
It skirts Steane Park, and directs its course to Brackley, a town whose principal street is particularly wide, " and goeth up upon a pretty hill.
" In this vicinity is the seat of Everley Hall.
For a short space the Ouse divides the county of Northampton from that of Buckingham, and it then separates that of Oxford for a longer distance from Buckinghamshire.
Penetrating into this latter county, it proceeds.
by a rambling course, and with a sluggish stream, to the unattrac- tive town of BUCKINGHAM, leaving the princely territory of Stowe at some distance on the left.
Buckingham is nearly surrounded by the Ouse; and two miles below it the river is joined by the Padbury Brook.
This tributary rises in Oxfordshire, to the west of Ardley Castle, and within a mile of the bed of the Cherwell, a feeder of the Thames.
From Thornton Hall, below the junction of the Padbury, the Ouse again divides Buckinghamshire from Northamptonshire, till, having passed near the town of Stoney Stratford, it receives the river Tove, or Tow, from the north, when it once more intersects the county of Bucks.
The Ouse, however, is considered by some map makers to rise in two branches, one of which is this river Tove, Tow, or Weedon, which gives its name to the town of Towcester, through which it passes.
The Ouse, down to this point, and the Tow-which takes its course from the same vicinity as the Ouse-form two corresponding bends, inclosing a considerable oval tract of country, in the centre of which rises the high land of Whittlebury Forest.

#393 (p.51)TOURIST-ANGLER'S GUIDE.
51Robert Bloomfield, the poet, alludes to Whittlebury Forest, in the following lines:
When morning still unclouded rose,Refresh'd with sleep and joyous dreams, Where fruitful fields with woodlands close, I traced the births of various streams.
From beds of clay here creeping rills, Unseen to parent Ouse, would steal; Or, gushing from the northward hills, Would glitter through Tove's winding dale.
But, ah ! ye cooling springs, farewell ! Herds, I no more your freedom share; But long my grateful tongue shall tell What brought your gazing stranger there.
" Genius of the forest shades, "Lend thy power, and lend thine ear; Let dreams still lengthen thy long glades, And bring thy peace and silence here.

From the Tove Junction, near WOLVERTON, the Ouse flows onward, south of Haversham, in a wide stream which is some- times swollen into a large river, and thence proceeds by Little Linford House, to the town of Newport-Pagnall, where it receives the tributary waters of the Ousel, from the south.
In its approach to, and departure from, Newport-Pagnall, it makes some very remarkable turns, running towards every point of the compass within the course of a few miles.
About three miles and a half below this town, the Ouse flows between the.
demesnes of Tyringham and Gayhurst; and, lower down, on the left, is the pretty village of Weston, with its woods; its little church-tower overlooking the valley of the Ouse.
Here dwelt the poet Cowper, enjoying the friendship of the Throckmorton family, and ranging freely over their delightful park and its neighbourhood, whence he drew much of the imagery of his poetry.
Further on, between Weston * and Olney, may be observed the " eminence " where his " pace " oftentimes " slackened to a pause, " that he might gaze upon the scene below.

Here Ouse, slow winding through a level plain Of spacious mead, with cattle sprinkled o'er, Conducts the eye along his sinuous course Delighted.
There, fast-rooted in their bank, Stand, never overlooked, our favourite elms That screen the herdsman's solitary hut; While far beyond, and overthwart the stream,* W.
Hayley's Account of a Visit to Weston.

E 2#394 (p.52)52 THE RAIL AND THE ROD; OR,That, as with molten glass, inlays the vale, The sloping land recedes into the clouds.

Vide Cowper's " Dog and Waterlily.
"The town of Olney, where Cowper lived nearly twenty years before he removed to Weston, lies to the east, upon the same side of the river.
Its situation is flat, and the country is by no means striking.

The bridge here over the Ouse consists of four arches, with upwards of twenty land arches across the meadows, rendered necessary by the increased size of the river after rain.
Cowper alludes to it as the structureThat with its wearisome, but needful, length Bestrides the wintry flood.

The Ouse next passes on the west of Clifton Reynes-the attempt to walk to which, when the paths were in a bad state, forms the subject of Cowper's humorous piece of “ The Distressed Travellers.
" Flowing onward, the river skirts the pleasure grounds of Brayfield, and then for a short distance separates the shires of Buckingham and Bedford, having the Bedfordshire village of Turvey, with its gentlemen's seats, on the right.
The course of the Ouse within, or upon the verge of, the county of Bucks is nearly fifty miles.

The windings of our river, in the former part of its progress through the county of Bedford, are still more remarkable than those about Newport-Pagnall and Olney.
They were peculiar to escape the notice of Drayton, who tells us, in his " Polyolbion, " that OuseIn meand'red gyres doth whirl herself about,And this way, here and there, back, forward, in and out, And like a wanton girl, oft doubling in her gait,In labyrinth-like turns, and twinings intricate,Through these rich fields doth run; till lastly, in her pride, The shire's hospitious town she in her course divides.

tooThe river in its progress to the " hospitious " town of BEDFORD passes, besides Turvey already mentioned, Charlton, Harrold, Odell, Felmersham, and nearly touches upon SHARNBROOK, on the Midland Railway, when the river suddenly turns back and threads the Midland Railway for seven miles of its course down to Bedford.

Although this portion of the water is exclusively private, it deserves especial mention, there being no very great difficulty, with a proper introduction, to get a day or two's permission to fish, from the proprietors or farmers.

TOURIST-ANGLER'S GUIDE.
53 333From Felmersham we come down to Bletsoe, and then to Melton Ernest, pass Stafford Bridge, and round by Stevington, back to the Railway, and to Clapham.
Between the first and last of these three places is OAKLEY.
Near to Oakley station, and likewise close to the water, is the village of Hall Cross.
The Ouse then passes by Bromhall Hall ( Lady Dinover's, whose agent is Mr.
Golding ) and Bridge, three miles from Bedford, where there is an excellent and commodious hotel, the Swan, kept by Mr.
Harrison; and the superb water of Captain Bringham New- land commences, and runs for about three miles to and below Kempston.
At Kempston there are three public houses:
Half Moon ( Titus Cherry ), Crown ( Thomas Dewberry ), and Three Fishes ( W.
Francis ).
The acute angle which this piece of water makes incloses Beddenham in its embrace.
After passing Cald- well Priory we reach Bedford.

From Bedford to the sea the Ouse is navigable; but, although there is little or no interruption to the angler, it must be borne in mind that generally where private rights exist, if there be a careful supervision, you find the best fishing; but where no trouble is taken for the preservation of the fishery, poaching by the net will be most at work, provided always there is anything to take worth a poacher's while-which again argues there may be enough for the rodster.

The county town of Bedford, with its fine parish churches and other public buildings, stands principally on the north bank of the Ouse, in the midst of the rich tract of land called the Vale of Bedford.
It is a place of great antiquity, and is remarkable for its ample endowments.
The greatest name connected with it is that of Bunyan, the prince of allegorists.
Here, for preach- ing the truths of the gospel, John Bunyan was imprisoned upwards of twelve years, partly in the town gaol on the former bridge over the Ouse, and partly in the gaol of the county; and it was during his imprisonment, with a library consisting of but two books, the Bible and Fox's Martyrs, that the glorious dreamer composed the Pilgrim's Progress.

At Bedford, the Ouse becomes navigable for small boats.
Below that town it passes Newnham Priory and Goldington; then near Howbury House, or Hall; and before it gets to Wil- lington is joined by the stream of Hyzz, which takes its rise in Brogborough Park, about eight miles below Bedford, and follow- ing the course of the railway by LIDLINGTON and AMPTHILL, passing Marston, receiving the mill brook which flows by Elstow#396 (p.54)54 THE RAIL AND THE ROD; OR,-Bunyan's birth-place, although this is much questioned-falls into the Ouse.
The river now starts off at another angle to follow almost due north the St.
Neots line of railway, passing Great Barford; but, ere it gets to TEMPSFORD and its Hall, it is caught up by the navigable river Ivel.
Thus augmented it passes Little Barford, near which it borders Huntingdonshire-at Little Barford was the birth-place of Rowe, the poet-and Eaton Socon, and on to ST.
NEOTS.
St.
Neots is a considerable place.
The town is seated on the eastern bank of the river Ouse, which is crossed by a handsome bridge, with three low towers, and is about three-quarters of a mile from the station.
The Ouse is here pretty wide, and, gently meandering through the meadows, forms, in combination with the surrounding objects, some very beautiful scenes.
The name of St.
Neots recalls its monastic origin, being derived from St.
Neots, a learned Christian mis- sionary, who died about 880, and whose remains were transferred from Cornwall to this place.
In the church-a fine specimen of the later English style of architecture, and considered the noblest building in the whole county of Huntingdon — is a beautiful timber roof and ancient scroll work.
Paper is manufactured at St.
Neots to a considerable extent.

Below St.
Neots the Ouse penetrates the shire of Huntingdon, at the point where its waters are joined by those of the river Kym, which comes down from the town of Kimbolton, Kimbolton Castle is the seat of the Duke of Manchester, and is celebrated as the resi- dence of Catherine of Arragon, after her divorce from Henry VIII.
until her death.
It is surrounded by a spacious and beautiful park.
The parish church is very ancient, and has castellated battlements, deep buttresses, and a lofty spire.

Thus increased, our river passes on by Paxton-place, Great Paxton, and the two OFFORDS-Offord D'Arcy and Offord Cluny.
The church of the former displays some remains of Norman architecture in the columns and arches of the north aisle.
The Ouse then, as it approaches " goodly Huntingdon, " flows near BRAMPTON and its picturesque park.

For about a mile above and below Brampton Mill ( Brampton station, and about a mile from Huntingdon station, G.
N.
R.
) is, perhaps, the most " fishy " looking water to be found in the Ouse, and is as good as it looks.
For some distance above the sluice gates, at the back of Brampton Mill, the west side of the river is shallow, gradually deepening to nine or ten feet, or more on the east side, where it is fringed with reeds and rushes.
Here lurks#397 (p.55)TOURIST-ANGLER'S GUIDE.
55many a monster " pike, fell tyrant of the watery plain; " one was caught a few years ago that weighed upwards of 26lbs., trolling with a gorge dead bait.
The sluice-pit is a large piece of water, a gravelly shallow, a forest of rushes in summer, shelving down to a large deep hole.
There are, surrounding Brampton Mill, three large pits-the mill-pit, the old mill-pit, and the sluice pits-containing some fine specimens of pike, perch, and chub; a back-water, flowing round Portholme ( the Huntingdon racecourse ), from this mill-pit to Huntingdon, con- tains fine chub.
The fishing between Brampton and Hunt- ingdon is hired by some gentlemen of Huntingdon, in order to stop the netting; the angling is free, and no respectable person would be grudged a day's pike-fishing.

The village of Godmanchester, formerly a Roman station, is close at hand.
Huntingdon stands on the north side of the Ouse, on gently rising ground, and is nearly connected by a bridge of three beautiful arches with Godmanchester, " whence, " says Camden, " it sprang.
" It was the birthplace of Cromwell, and here also he received his education, first under a Mr.
Long of Huntingdon, and then with the learned Dr.
Beard, master of the grammar school, whence he proceeded to Sidney-Sussex College, Cambridge.
His boyhood seems to have been marked more by mischievous daring than by studious contemplations; and on his father's death, having spent fourteen months at college, he removed to St.
Ives, lower down our river, and stocked a grazing farm in the skirts of that place, and subsequently went to reside at the Glebe House, in the city of Ely, still further down the Ouse.
About half-a-mile westward of Huntingdon, on elevated ground commanding views over a fine expanse of country, and particularly the rich vale fertilised by the Ouse, stands Hinchin- brook, once the seat of the loyal Sir Oliver Cromwell, uncle and godfather to the Protector.
It is now a residence of the Earl of Sandwich.
Sir Oliver Cromwell here entertained James I.
onhis royal progress from Scotland to London.
The grounds are skirted by a small tributary of the Ouse, that comes down from the Giddings, one of which grew into much notice in the time of Charles I., from being the religious retreat of Nicholas Ferrar.

From HUNTINGDON the Ouse flows past Hartford Church, wash- ing the churchyard wall, at which point some fine perch are to be found, and through the villages of Witton and Houghton ( mill and sluice ), the water between Hartford and Houghton is wide and very deep.
Heavy pike are to be taken in what is#398 (p.56)56 THE RAIL AND THE ROD; OR,called Houghton Wale, and any number of " grandfather " bream.
It then turns Hemingfield Mill.
In this mill-pit several sturgeon have been caught, one ( in a cast-net ) weighing over 112lb.
At Holywell Ferry there is an inn kept by Metcalf, who hires a part of the water, and would supply bait.
Good pike fishing is to be had for about a quarter of a mile above Swavesey gravel or sheep-wash.
Also at and near Over Cote, where is an inn, and bait may be obtained ( little more than a mile from Swavesey station ).
A pike of over 25lb.
weight was caught near Over Cote with a spoon bait.
Just above Over Stanch the water is very deep, immense quantities of bream are caught here in the autumn, over eighteen stone weight have been taken by three rods on one evening, many fish being above six pounds in weight.
The tide flows up to Over Stanch or Sluice.

Below this the Ouse divides the county of Cambridgeshire for some miles, till at Earith it wholly quits Huntingdonshire.
In the neighbourhood of ST.
IVES, the Ouse after flowing between Holywell and Fenny Drayton, and leaving Swavesey to the south, and Over on our right, enters the great level of the fens, and at Earith, three miles from SOMERSHAM, commence the two well known parallel drains called the old and new Bedford Rivers ( or Levels ), both extending in straight lines for upwards of twenty miles across that part of Cambridgeshire called the Isle of Ely, and into Norfolk, where they terminate at DENVER on the Ouse.

The Ouse, from Huntingdon to St.
Ives, extends about seven miles, and is for the most part a tame river running pretty straight, with here and there a greater width, a few sedgy islands, and some two or three locks, with as many flour mills upon its banks.
The mill-tails are shallow now ( October, 1870 ), and can scarcely be termed deep pools even in their full condition-at least according to southern notions of such places.
The water was clear in the main stream, and offered more temptations for spinning than for trolling, as the total absence of bends or holes did not give those facilities for the exercise of judgment in finding fish, so grateful to the troller.
There are, however, some " lurky " old back waters running from the main stream, offering in their skulking way little temptation but to an angler, to whom they suggest at every turn the harbours of goodly pike, and many of these sly places really are the coverts-more particularly in the deeper water-for heavy jack.
As these old and pic- turesque water courses of the Ouse are supplied from above when water is abundant in the main channel, and are thus roused into#399 (p.57)TOURIST-ANGLER'S GUIDE.
57life, and set in their active career to join again the navigation below, the best time to fish them is when sufficient spate is on, and not too much, to bring their tenants out to feed.
The water in the comparatively shallower pools of these now quiet streams, in contrast to the navigable river, where a turbid condition might be looked for from the passage of barges, is remarkable, as it is much coloured and indeed much thicker than in the " cuts.
" This is an evidence of the presence of fish, which by a natural instinct rout about at the bottom partly in search of food and partly to hide themselves from their natural enemies.
The chub here run to an enormous size, one was taken by a net on the Saturday previous to our visit which weighed 641b., and was sold for sixpence.
Bream are of an average size, from two to three pound, and are literally taken with rod and line by the bushel.
There are but few gudgeons in this district, but what there are are large.
Perch seldom reach more than three-quarters of a pound, but perch of a quarter of a pound are plentiful.
Dace are exceedingly handsome, and many of seven to ten ounces are often taken while roach fishing; the latter fish are plentiful, but do not attain so large a size as in many other parts of the Ouse.

66The remains of ancient Roman fortifications are to be seen at Earith.
The entire plan of one large work, called The Bul- warks, " is still to be clearly traced.

The New Bedford River is navigable the whole distance, and thus enables craft to avoid the great bend which the river Ouse makes in its course from Earith, by Ely, to Denver.
The natural river-termed the Old or West river-which is still navigable, proceeds from Earith in a channel northward of the villages of Willingham and Cottenham, and southward of those of Had- denham, Wilburton, Cottenham, and STRETHAM.

Good pike and perch fishing may be had at Lockspit Hall and Twenty-pence Ferry.
Not far from Cottenham and Willingham was a Roman station.

Cottenham deserves especial mention as the birthplace of Archbishop Tenison.
Below Stretham the river is joined by the classic Cam, and then flows onward to the city of ELY, whose interest arises from its venerable cathedral.

The fishing between Ely and LITTLEPORT is preserved by the Ely Angling Association.
A subscription of five shillings obtains a right to fish with rod and line for one year.

The Ouse afterwards receives the tributary Lark, passes Little- port, and enters the shire of Norfolk, having in its course from#400 (p.58)58 THE RAIL AND THE ROD; OR,Earith to this point in part formed the boundary of, and in part intersected, the Isle of Ely.
On account of the circuitous course of the river below Ely, a cut of about four miles and a half long, called Sandy's, or Sandell's, Cut, was made.
This is a very fine stretch of water, and, as its width allows two eight-oared boats to row abreast, it is the course usually chosen to row the Cambridge University Trial Eight-oared Race.
This cut contains some fine pike and perch, and absolutely swarms with roach and bream.
It is preserved by the Ely Association.
The river between Little- port Bridge and the mouth of the Little Ouse is free, and is netted daily in season and out of season; and, notwithstanding this, we are informed by one who frequently angles in this water that he can catch more perch here than in any other part of the river.
Hilgay Fen is one mile from the river:
-" Hilton " station in the ordnance map.
Ouse Bridge and Hilgay stations have ceasedto exist.

As the Ouse leaves the Isle of Ely for Norfolk, its waters are increased by those of the Lesser Ouse, or Brandon river, and, passing Southery, it receives the Wissey or Stoke river, then meets the old and new Bedford rivers, at Denver Sluice.
Below Southery Ferry are some fine broad deep reaches, having that " fishy " look which delights the heart of the angler.
This water is strictly preserved by the lord of the manor, and contains some very large pike, perch, and bream.

Sam's Cut flows into the river Ouse, at Hunt's Sluice, about a mile above the mouth of the Wissey.
The wash having passed between the two stations of MANEA and BLACK BANK, on the Ely and Peterborough Railway, flows on near to MARKET DOWNHAM, which is beautifully situated eastward of the Ouse, and commands an extensive prospect over the fens.
From Market Downham the Ouse proceeds in a straight course of about thirteen miles to the flourishing town and sea port of LYNN REGIS, where the tributary Nar falls into it.
At this place the visitor finds two fine churches, and the country to the east side of the town rises in gentle swells, presenting a pleasing contrast to the flat alluvial district on the opposite or western side of the river.
The " New Walk, " at Lynn, also deserves notice-an avenue composed chiefly of limes, beeches, and horse-chestnuts, lofty and embowering trees, forming a promenade of great beauty.
At Lynn, the Ouse is a broad river, and below this place the waters of this important stream lose themselves in the shallow estuary of the Wash.
Formerly, it is believed, the Ouse#401 (p.59)TOURIST-ANGLER'S GUIDE.
59found its way to the Wash by Wisbeach, and not by Lynn, which latter was then watered by the Little Ouse merely.

Our river, the " plenteous Ouse, " of Spencer's " Faery Queen, " is not less than 150 miles in length; and the direction of a line drawn from its source in Northamptonshire to its mouth in Norfolk, would be north-eastward.
Indeed, the river Ouse is remarkable for the slowness of its motion, and for the many turns it takes in its short course as the crow flies.
In wet seasons it is subject to sudden and great inundations.
In the year 1256, the town of Bedford suffered great injury from the overflowing of the river, and again in 1570.
The Cambridge- shire proverb of " the Bailiff of Bedfordshire is coming, " mentioned by Fuller, alludes to the inundations of the Ouse, a most rapacious distrainer of hay and cattle.
Spelman tells us that the lower part of it is remarkable for its extraordinary swell at the two equinoxes, and especially at the full moon of the autumnal equinox, when a vast heap of waters or " bore " comes in from the sea upon it.

The Little Ouse or Brandon river at its lower end is full of fish, and the whole of the water is deserving of scrupulous protection.
There is an excellent inn at the junction of these two streams.

THE NAR.

STATIONS:
Swaffham; Narborough; Lynn.

THE Nar, or Setchy, is a tributary of the Greater Ouse, and has the reputation of holding trout in some places in its upper course in considerable numbers.
It rises near Litcham, a large and well- built village, and then flows by East Lexham Hall, the residence of the Rev.
W.
Arnold Walpole Keppel, B.A., lord of the manor.
The Chequers ( W.
Smith ).
Then by West Lexham ( Red Lion, Thomas Bailey ), and on to Newton and Mill ( George Inn, Sarah Palmer ), and Newton Mill to Castle Acre ( four miles from SWAFF- HAM ), where the Nar is still an insignificant stream, although at one time it was considerably broader and easily navigable for small craft.
Castle Acre is a large village, and is distinguished for the remains of its once impregnable castle, and the venerable ruins of its magnificient priory.
There are five inns in the village.
At West Acre, an ancient village lying in a secluded dell lower down on the north side of the Nar, are the ruins of another wealthy priory.

#402 (p.60)#403 (p.61)#404 (p.62)#405 (p.63)#406 (p.64)#407 (p.65)#408 (p.66)#409#410#411#412#413#414#415 (p.1)#416 (p.2)#417 (p.3)#418 (p.4)#419 (p.5)#420 (p.6)#421 (p.7)#422 (p.8)#423 (p.9)#424 (p.10)#425 (p.11)#426 (p.12)#427 (p.13)#428 (p.14)#429 (p.15)#430 (p.16)#431 (p.17)#432 (p.18)#433 (p.19)#434 (p.20)#435 (p.21)#436 (p.22)#437 (p.23)#438 (p.24)#439 (p.25)#440 (p.26)#441 (p.27)#442 (p.28)#443 (p.29)#444 (p.30)#445 (p.31)#446 (p.32)#447 (p.33)#448 (p.34)#449 (p.35)#450 (p.36)#451 (p.37)#452 (p.38)#453 (p.39)#454 (p.40)#455 (p.41)#456 (p.42)#457 (p.43)#458 (p.44)#459 (p.45)#460 (p.46)#461 (p.47)#462 (p.48)#463 (p.49)#464 (p.50)#465 (p.51)#466 (p.52)#467 (p.53)#468 (p.54)#469 (p.55)#470 (p.56)#471 (p.57)#472 (p.58)#473 (p.59)#474 (p.60)#475 (p.61)#476 (p.62)#477 (p.63)#478 (p.64)#479 (p.65)#480 (p.66)#481 (p.67)#482 (p.68)#483 (p.69)#484 (p.70)#485 (p.71)#486 (p.72)#487 (p.73)#488 (p.74)#489 (p.75)#490 (p.76)#491 (p.77)#492 (p.78)#493 (p.79)#494 (p.80)#495 (p.81)#496 (p.82)82 THE RAIL AND THE ROD; OR,there all chance is over, for then they would be at once stifled on deck and in the hold by the superincumbent mass of captured fish.
The herrings, in fact, are drowned in the meshes, their convulsive struggles working the lint into their gills, and the water rushing in depriving them of air.
If the herring slips its head through the mesh, it will remain alive many hours in the net; and, as sometimes happens, when the herring strikes the lower end of the net, whilst the upper is being hauled in, the bulk of the catch is brought on board alive, flapping energetically on deck and in the hold.
We have ourselves fully confirmed the substance of these views while out with the smacks in Scot- land in 1866, and expect the original simile was as dead as a red herring.
"66We have often enjoyed the animated sight presented by the departure of a fleet of herring boats as they have been rapidly towed down the narrow channel of the harbour, with a concourse of the children of the fishermen running and tumbling over each other after them, singingHerrings galore, Pray master ?Gay masterLuff the little herring boat ashore.
Pray God send you eight or nine last-Fair gains all,Good weather,Good weather.

All herrings, no dogs;Sing up-Fair gains all.

This ditty is kept up until the greeting of their noisy escort has been acknowledged by the crew throwing them biscuits, which it is considered prejudicial to their voyage at sea not to do.

Some of the older fishermen and fishwives still believe in " Old Shack, " or " Shuck, " a spectre dog, much connected with the Danes, who is said mostly to walk the Cromer Coast Road, and was last seen at North Repps, 1853 ( A.S., Scucca, Satan ).

Fishermen do not look upon sprats as the young fry of the herring.
The young herring has a smooth belly, the sprat a rough, serrated one.
If a young herring be held up by the middle fin of the back, he will hang head down; if a sprat, tail down.
We may add that pilchards, which bear a great resemblance to herrings, may be distinguished by the same test.
The dorsal fin of the pilchard, being placed more forward than on the herring, if held up by it it balances.
This is also#497 (p.83)TOURIST-ANGLER'S GUIDE.
83said, by some Scotch writers, to be the test of a well-fed Loch Fyne herring.

The dog-fish is the most common of all the sharks, and found in every part of the British and Irish Seas.
As many as twenty thousand are said to have been taken at one time, in a pilchard sean, off Cornwall.
It measures from three to four feet, its upper part slate grey, its under yellowish white.
In the Orkneys and Shetlands they are salted and dried for winter food.
Like the shark, it turns on its side when it seizes its prey, and greatly resembles that ravenous fish in many respects; and whenever it finds itself entangled in the net, disengages itself in a few seconds by making a large incision and passes through.
In attacking the herrings, they devour them to repletion.
They then disgorge what they have swallowed with such voracity; which being completed they lose no time in recommencing, seizing, and swallowing the herrings with as much avidity as if it had been their first repast after a long abstinence, till they are again full, when their stomachs are again speedily relieved, and this filling and empty- ing has continued with such perseverance as to exhaust the patience of the most curious observer.
This process occasions a white, shining appearance on the surface of the sea, accompanied with a smoothness, as if a quantity of oil had been strewed on it, emitting a rank, oleaginous smell, which may be detected at some distance.
These insatiable fish are assisted in their ravages by the sepia, or cuttle-fish, which, with their hard mouths, re- sembling parrots ' bills, cut up the mackarel and herrings with great adroitness.

An exquisite appreciation of the delicate flavour of fish is, perhaps, the truest and most genuine distinction between the epicure and the glutton.
Lacépède observes that there is this difference between the chase and the fishery:
the latter is the pursuit of the most civilised races.
The Egyptians had a cat-like propensity for fish.
It was the favourite diet of the Athenians; and, later, of the wealthy and refined Roman patricians.
Nothing more amusing has come down to us from classic times than the records in Athenæus of their opsophagy, which attained an insane pitch under the Lower Empire.
Zeno, founder of the Stoics, dining with a great fish epicure, on a noble dish being set before him, seized it, and, marking the glum looks of his host, exclaimed, " What opinion do you think your guests here must conceive of one who cannot indulge his friend for a single day in his well-known weakness for fish ? " Plato, censur-#498 (p.84)84 THE RAIL AND THE ROD; OR,ing Aristippus for his passion for fish, he replied he had given but a small sum for it.
" But why even a small sum ? " remon- strated Plato.
" Because I am as fond of fish as you seem to be fond of money, " was the retort.
Demosthenes denounced, in public, Philocrates as a profligate, debauchee, and fish-eater.
The epigrams of Martial abound in allusions to this weakness of his contemporaries in these respects.

It is curious to observe how the tastes for eels differ in various districts.
In Scotland they are looked upon with uncontrollable leathing.
We have seen a stalwart Highland keeper, who would fearlessly face a bull, quail and shiver at the bare sight of an eel when we have asked him to remove it from our hook.
If compelled to approach the obnoxious cause of his detestation, he has done so with extreme reluctance and protestation, and, taking out an empty shot-bag from his pouch, as if thoughtfully prepared, has handled the upper portion of the fishing-line most gingerly, dropped the writhing creature into the open mouth, hurriedly screwed up the entrance, and banged it, with its living contents, against a stone, amidst a shower of Gallic invectives which it would be almost superfluous to bestow upon the author of all evil.
In Norfolk, although eels are highly estimated, " lampreys were accounted poisonous, especially so far as the holes extend on either side from the head.
" This prejudicial opinion once prevailed on the Thames, but now that a lamprey is seldom taken, its flesh is much sought after as a dish for an epicure.
Lamperns have, however, escaped their share of aversion, and appear to be a favourite food in many places, especially when potted.
If the angler is bothered with the eel tribe while in the pursuit of other kinds of fish, he should not hold the fish by a tight line, which invariably induces it to twist and entangle the line; but let it lie on the ground, when, although it may move, it will do so in a pretty straight course, which affords the opportunity of giving it the coup de grâce by a smart blow with a stick or switch upon its tail-as vulnerable a part as any about it-and then it may be removed from the hook with ease and without danger to the tackle.

HORACE COX, Printer, 346, Strand, London.