THE BOOK OF THE PIKE 



a live minnow, then let him use sea tackle, and be 

 done with it. 



For casting average-sized minnows and frogs, I use 

 and recommend the regulation split-bamboo and steel 

 rods, than which nothing can well be better. The 

 tendency these days is toward lighter tackle in every 

 department of angling. When salt-water fishermen 

 essay the capture of denizens of the deep with cotton 

 thread, it behooves the fresh-water angler to reduce 

 the caliber of his line and the weight of his rod. Do 

 not fasten to the hook a minnow so large that the rod 

 will be jeopardized. A six-inch minnow in the proper 

 spot from a distance with utmost finesse is going to 

 bring results more often than the noisy "plop" of a 

 large bait. All my experience has gone to prove that 

 "distance lends enchantment," in 'lunge fishing as 

 well as in some other things. It is well for the angler 

 to remember that muskellunge are not in the habit 

 of having their fish food come sailing to them through 

 the air. In casting for 'lunge the ideal toward which 

 the successful angler strives is lack of commotion, 

 silence, naturalness. 



I presume that every fisherman has his favorite 

 bend of hook. I know that I have, and have had, any 

 amount of fun poked at me by anglers who have a 

 fancy for other makes. My hook of hooks is the 

 square bend or "Sneck," as it is named in the cata- 

 logues. The hook should be quite large, 5-0 or 6-0, 

 and provided with an eight-inch wire leader or gimp. 

 It is unnecessary to add that the hook must be well 

 made, hand forged, and "built on honor." A poor 

 hook is always a poor investment. Sometimes a two- 

 hook frog or minnow gang is used, which holds the 



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