I have some sympathy for the Environment Agency staff; many of them are committed to the environment and work very hard. Unfortunately the agency itself suffers from all the problems of state bodies, especially those built up during the Blair years to see there role more as propagandists and empire builder than enforcers of legislation,
This however is a real give-away, a questionnaire designed to see if you are the sort of person who can work for the EA.
I scored only 1 correct answer and this was because I thought it a good idea to use the telephone rather than having endless meetings about nothing very much. Unfortunately in reality the EA loves endless meetings about nothing very much, see my previous posts for good examples.
To score well on the quiz you need to know that the EA would never, ever, no never expect anybody to accept any sort of responsibility for their own actions. We must understand the polluter, work with them, encourage them and be nice to them. After spend ages doing this and failing we may then (and only after a few more meetings and discussions) serve and enforcement notice or actually fine them. In the meantime we can see the results. Companies who repeatedly pollute and get away with it. Companies who make huge profits fined peanuts.
This attitude must come to an end. People should accept responsibility for their own actions. Statutory bodies should stick to doing what taxpayers pay them to do and stop building empires. Most of the EA’s functions could be handed over to the voluntary sector who could do these things a lot better.
Close them down I am afraid is the only answer.

Nothing to do with angling, but pure self publicity for my present exhibition

This poem was distributed in 1797, during Britain’s long war with first revolutionary France and then Napoleonic France.

It addresses the hated Game Laws and deals with the infringement of what are seen as the ancient liberties of freeborn English men to hunt and particular fish.
Angling had not in the past been seen as hunting for game and therefore was a pastime open to ordinary people not only those who owned large amounts of land. However the enclosure of land by the rich and powerful through parliament lead to more and more rivers being “preserved” for gentlemen anglers.
The ideology of the time also discouraged ordinary people from such wasteful pursuits as angling, they should be working in the fields, in the new factories and fighting in the army and navy; angling should be reserved for gentlemen of leisure and not the masses.
The poem eloquently expresses the widespread opposition to these laws and the ideology of both the Whig and Tories in government at the time. Continue reading “Lovers of Freedom -Poetical Remarks on the Game Laws-1797” »

There is nothing like a cup of tea when out fishing.

Tea time on the bank

and here’s my brewing up kit.
As well as a trusty Kelly Kettle to ensure that you have freshly boiled water, I can recommend the Zero Tea Pot as the best and quickest way of making the brew. Not great on the bank side, so I use a stainless steel one.

Zero Tea Pot

What tea you choose is obviously a matter of personal taste and I like to try different leaves dependently on the time of year. Summer is Darjeeling time. My favourite refreshing brew and a tea that goes well with shortbread chocolate biscuits.

Hill Station Darjeeling Mid is presently a bargain through High Teas an on line supplier of quality teas I can recommend.
I must say I see far to many people using flasks these days. Fine for whisky, but not for tea…even worse than using tea bags I am afraid.

George Morland ( 1763 – 1804) was an interesting painter. During his life time his work was very popular and prints of his stuff sold in great numbers. Morland spent the money wisely, on wine woman and gambling, ending his life as a pauper.
His images of country people were remarkable for often hinting at a certain darkness in the lives of ordinary people of the time. Some of his original paintings were doctored somewhat to avoid controversy when making prints. Peasants in his prints smile, where as in some of the original they don’t. Some images such as this one are blatantly political (this one to such an extent it was never made into a print.

The painting shows a hunter drinking in a country pub, whilst two locals look jealously at his catch.
Why political? The game laws in the eighteenth century were one of the most divisive issues for the people of England. Only those owning land with a value of over £150 ( a very large sum) were allowed to hunt for game and only those allowed to hunt game were allowed to own weapons. These laws prevented those in the countryside to having access to fresh meat and disarmed them. The disarming of the people of England led to the creation of a standing army to defend England, rather than England being defended by its people.
That Morland should allow this issue to be shown as a potential for class conflict in a painting is really quite remarkable. However many of the patrons of the arts, including many rich landowners themselves, saw the Game laws as divisive and particularity opposed the blanket disarming of the population; so Moreland did have patrons who would appreciate this portrayal.
This image

Is more in keeping with the official view of the English countryman and was sold widly as a print. here the landed gentleman is showing off his catch to the locals, who show due reverence and respect for his status.
The game laws did not directly prevent the landless poor from angling, one of the few pleasures and sources of protein. Howeve in the late eighteenth century enclosures of land and preservation of parts of rivers, did start to prevent ordinary folk from fishing. Campaigns inspired by puritanical religious groups, such as the Methodists and some non conformists also opposed hunting and fishing, especially amongst the poor. The idea of pleasure and particularly the combining of pleasure with obtaining food was seen as sinful. An attitude mirrored today by large parts of the middle classes.
Morlands work is often seen as a little “twee” these days, but close examination reveals a social history of the time