The Washington herald., 1908-08-25

4 letter which : have Just received
from an angling friend on the banks Of
the AMMAN speaks Of the frst ruu of
herling TO that deIectabie river Time
was when the word used 70 puzzle me
\ herring conveyed 20 the mind g fsh
Of the migratory order. but that was all;
and a reference 10 bulky dictionary
did not help me n determining the spe-
cies. This was IN the days when the
herring rivers of the North and the SEWN
streams OF Wales were unknown % me-
saws a writer IN the London Evening
Standard and St James Gazette Since
then I have rowed many a day by AMMAN
Water and lured herlings by the score
and during my wanderlngs in Wales I
have learned many things about SEWN
and their ways
A herring is a creature Of JOY aid
mystery. which spends several months
Of every year in fresh water Il Is the
sriise Of the sea trout OF Scotland. vary
ing in weight from half a pound % one
pound. and bearing a close likeness 70
its relative. the salmon This restless
migrant OF the sea IS now making its
adventurous way Up the rivers of DUN
.
Iov-sy. urged by that wander passion
which seizss il in the sumner season
Among fish there IS no greater explorer
than the sea trout. unless We except the
salmon But a herring viii ascend the
smallest burns in tine OF spate. and ven
ture into moorland reaches where
salmon would fear TO swim
When the herring are running at AMMAN
there are always four or i've fishermen
on the town bridge watching the leaps
and Eymnastic antics Of these light-heart-
ed fish. a brown trout is staid in com
parison TO herring. The JOY Of life
I Is svmbolized by this erraut fsh in It's
silver armor. with rainbow CLEANS on the
scales. and not even the salmon in its
! exuberance upon reaching q favorite pool
gambols more playfuIly than the herring
I'd from the estuary
/ As the tide comes up at AMMAN past the
little fleet Of shrimp trawlers and rises
/ 20 within a foot or so Of the weir below
the bridge. the herring swim in shoals
and ascend without showing their forms
I But when in the pool above they be
gin to sport" and here and there they
/ rise 10 the surface. making rings on the
I water. or throw themselves a couple Of
/ feet into the air. Il is one Of the Va
I saries Of the kerling that it will rarely
/ ACCEPT an artificial fly or a bait when
/ the salt food mingles with the fresh
water. As soon as the tide begins 70
! creep up from the Solway every fisherman
| goes above the bridge 10 a point where
I the flow IS not felt.
/ Il has been proved that sea trout ascend
I the river in which they were born for the
process Of spawning after a sojOurn in
tidal waters There is little doubt that
I the herring possesses very complete
I knowledge Of a stream when II has spent
a month or two in its pools. Success il
/ herring fishing depends largely. therefore,
I on the anglers acquaintance with the
| runs and pools TO which the fish chiefly
/ resort. IN time OF spate the case is al
/ tered. for then the herring comes UP the
/ river in big shoals, and while travelling
they are fairly distributed in the stream
i The SEWN. or Welsh sea trout, has been
/ classified by some writer's as a distinct
! species and labeled ~Salmo cambricus-
/ As 7 have never had a herring and a
SEWN in my basket at the same time.
I have been unable to compare one with
i the other The points Of oissimuarity are
not very marked And in their habits
the two fish are much alike both being
restless and adventurous BrithyH V nor
is the native name for the SEWN OF the
| Conway. Cilaslyn. Dovey, and Towy, and
| It ascends nearly every river Of the prin-
cfpality along the coast line.
| Why the SEWN Of the Dee are captured
so infrequently while those OF the Dovey
and Towy take the fly or spinning min
now with eageness is a problem that !
have never been able to fathom- Only
| once have I caught a sea trout from rhe
Dee, and that was il winter, out OF sea