THE BOOK OF THE PIKE 



habits of the fish he seeks, all the tackle in the world 

 will not make him a fish-getter. While Fate, Luck, or 

 whatever it is that does such things, may present the 

 veriest novice with a record fish on the first day out, 

 she is not going to continue her unreasonable gifts 

 day after day. It is the angler who knows his fish, the 

 water, and how to handle tackle that continues mak- 

 ing large catches. 



Much might be written upon the way of the mus- 

 kellunge with a spoon, without exhausting the topic, 

 for it is one of utmost interest to fishermen. As a rule, 

 the spoon or lure is taken with a rush, from the rear, 

 though now and then a seldom fish will steal upon the 

 lure and "mouth" it carefully. I have seen a 'lunge 

 follow a spoon right up to the boat without offering 

 to touch it; even lie in plain sight for some seconds 

 after the lure has been lifted from the water. Such 

 fish are hard to hook. At times it is possible to tease 

 or exasperate them into biting. Simply retrieve the 

 lure with short, sharp jerks; make the fish believe that 

 unless it strikes at once, the glittering tidbit will 

 escape. Nevertheless, some fish cannot be made to 

 bite. I have seen a good-sized muskellunge follow a 

 lure curiously here and there, eyeing it malevolently, 

 but never offering to touch it. I am not just clear as 

 to the reason for the action. Perhaps the fish is not 

 hungry, or perhaps it has had some sore hook experi- 

 ence, though that would be attributing memory and a 

 rather high grade of intelligence. 



There is little necessity for the angler's "setting the 

 hook," once a muskellunge strikes the lure, though 

 some good fishermen do swing the rod sharply to right 

 or left, as the case may be. A taut line should be main- 



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