ACTION OF THE LEGER-LINE. 303 



being devoured by them. They delight in deeps, 

 weed-beds, in hollows surrounded by shelving 

 sides, in the strong, deep currents of bridges ; and 

 piles, weirs, and locks are favourite resorts of 

 theirs. They chiefly feed during the night, and 

 you cannot, in fine summer weather, angle too 

 early or too late, for them. 



The lob-worm is the best bait for barbel ; next, 

 gentles, prepared greaves, and cheese and bullock's 

 brains and pith. The latter are autumn and early 

 winter baits. The most amusing and successful 

 way of angling for barbel in the best rivers for 

 them, such as the Thames and the Trent, is with 

 the leger-line. The leger-lead should not be a 

 perforated, flat piece of lead, but a perforated 

 bullet, placed between two knots on the bottom- 

 line, about two feet from the hook. The knots 

 should be an inch or two apart, and the piece of 

 line between them should be of strong gimp, 

 which will resist better than gut the attrition of 

 the constantly moving bullet. The bullet enables 

 you to cast your bait to any reasonable distance, 

 and, when it sinks to the bottom, it keeps rocking 

 there to the motion of the water, and the hole in 

 it allows the worm to work away a little and 

 wreath itself about, so that the bait is continually 

 in attractive action. When the barbel takes it 

 and moves off with it, he gets checked by the 

 resistance to the bullet of the upper knot on the 



