THE BOOK OF THE PIKE 



they will soon cease to be live bait. A dozen minnows 

 should be sufficient for a morning's fishing, and would 

 not overcrowd the average bucket. Let the bucket 

 be of the largest size possible, the double kind, with 

 inner bucket of wire provided with an air chamber in 

 the top, so that it can be placed in the water without 

 danger of sinking. It is exceedingly difficult to keep 

 minnows alive if the weather be at all warm, and an 

 occasional immersion in the water is a healthful thing; 

 at the same time the water in the bucket can be changed. 

 In exceedingly hot weather a chunk of ice in the upper 

 chamber is a good thing, though the average minnow 

 pail is not built with sufficient room for a very large 

 piece of ice. 



When the angler has located good water, water 

 known to contain fish, and with environment right, 

 he can arrange his line with a float and sit down to 

 invoke his soul. Say the water is twenty feet deep, 

 the float will be attached to the line eighteen or nineteen 

 feet from the hook. The bait then will swim just free 

 of the bottom. The bait should be a large-sized 

 minnow, preferably a sucker, just above which suffi- 

 cient lead is fastened to the line to keep the bait down. 

 The float can be anything, from a plain chip of light 

 wood, sufficiently large to hold up the bait, to an 

 enameled cork. I much prefer the latter, and I want it 

 painted some bright color, so that I can see it through 

 half-closed eyes. The cast should always be with the 

 wind, so that the float will tug away from the boat. 

 It is a simple way of fishing, but highly enjoyable for 

 that very reason. Too much strenuosity in the fishing 

 game these days. 



In fishing along the edges of weed-beds or close in- 

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