To people who are interested in the piscatory art, it may be of some interest to learn that certain regulations as to trout fishing in the Wellington District have been published in a Government Gazette issued on Tuesday.
In the first place, disciples of Izaak Walton, who desire to fish for trout in the River Hutt and its tributaries, except the Pakuratahi and Wainuiomata, must take out a licence to do so from the secretary of the Wellington Acclimatisation Society and pay for it the sum of £1. Provided with such a licence, the fisher may take their rod or line and fish in the rivers aforesaid, using, however, only artificial flies as bait.
They must only fish for trout between 29 January and 31 March 1881, so that intending anglers have not much time left for their favourite pursuit. Poachers after trout who fish without a licence are liable to be arrested by the police and fined any penalty up to £20.
Then anglers who catch trout of less than eight inches in length are bound, under a penalty of £20, to gently remove the hook from their jaws and put them back into the river. Finally, “the unforgivable sin” on the part of anglers is to use dynamite or other explosive substances to destroy the fish in the rivers mentioned. The miscreant who does that is liable to a penalty of £100.
Subject to these conditions, the lovers of the piscatory art may sling on their creels, shoulder their rods, and go trout fishing with light hearts.
Tags: Fishing Newspaper
