The Timaru Herald. TUESDAY, 14th JANUARY, 1908. MODERN TROUT-FISHING.

Timaru Herald, Volume XIIC, Issue 13492, 14 January 1908, Page 4

The Timaru Herald. TUESDAY, 14th JANUARY, 1908. MODERN TROUT-FISHING.

It. is with a fueling of regret that wt» direct Uie attention of alt interested in the favourite sunin.r-T .spoil of angling to ;i, paragiaph in our news columns describing the discovery of tin illegal appliance for the taking of trout. In this instance a, representative of the " Herald " was present when the appliance was given to Mr Piiliiser. and can personally testify that it- was a, most deadly weapon to hook trout with. The unfortunate part is, that this incident is not a solitary one, for we have it on the authority of -tollable witnesses that- other appliances have been found which are quit* as deadly. The use of these things is becoming as common us the seasons, and our readers will no doubt remember that a visitor to the rivers of South Canterbury drew aUentioil to these illegal practices in our concspon-denc-c column laiil (•itmuier. The taking of trout by illegal methods is coincident with the dry seasons, for the streams Ixdng then very low, the big tish drop into the de.-p pools in hundreds, and thus become an easy prey to any '" loaded" appliance. The taking of fish in such a, maimer i<-> deliberate poaching; and an Mr Palliiicr intends to produce his exhibit at the next meeting of the Acclimatisation Society, the whole question will no doubt be thoroughly gone into. Some people may contend that the matter is one for the ranger. . If the reports of the common use of. leaded baits are only half true, however, it would take an army of rangers .to -watch the pools on the rivers. As matters now Aland, almost every angler in isuspicious of his neighbour, and wcrs the ranger to tackle one nian, only to find that he was fishing in a thoroughly sportsmanlike manner,, word would rapidly pas*' along the river, and the man who was using illegal bait would simply cut adrift. ;uid' fch fair while the ranger was moving about. The matter is one. for the Society to deal with in -earnest, and' we arc sure that -they will take such bleps as will either bring offenders to book, or put an end to what has within the past dry seasons ibecome a .scandal in the angling world of South Canterbury.