VII 

 BAITS, AND SEA-FISHING 



A S a sphere for the rod, the ocean has no great 

 ~*-*- attraction on this side of the Border. Trained 

 by the loch, and the stream-side ; accustomed to 

 handle delicate tackle and dainty lures ; Scotsmen 

 are disposed to regard the methods of deep-sea 

 fishing as coarse, and the skill required of inferior 

 quality. We have serious trout anglers, and still 

 more serious salmon anglers, men who take the 

 pleasures of life somewhat gravely ; but to discover 

 a serious haddock angler, one would have to cross 

 the Tweed. 



On the sea lochs of the west country, a little 

 mixed fishing may be indulged in, and a few 

 marine forms may find their way into the basket. 

 The grey mullet (Mugil capito), which comes up 

 with the tide, and lies basking in the pleasantly- 

 heated shallows until the ebb, may take the fly 

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