CH. II.] SPIN SLOWLY STRIKE JACK SHARPLY. 19 



(and which had, by the bye, been fished over 

 and over again the same season, and several 

 times the same day,) when my line, which was a 

 new one, becoming kinked, I ceased pulling in 

 altogether whilst clearing it, at the same time 

 raising my rod almost to the perpendicular, to 

 keep my bait off the bottom. Having been in this 

 position some little time for the kink was rather 

 a complicated one I felt a tug, but concluded it 

 must have been a weed floating down stream, and 

 took no notice of it. It was, however, almost im- 

 mediately repeated, when I instinctively struck, 

 and found to my surprise that it proceeded from 

 " no waiter, but a Knight Templar," a good Trout 

 of over three pounds, which I got safely into the 

 landing-net. 



You will not often err, when spinning, in 

 striking a Jack too sharply. He gets the bait 

 across his mouth with his big teeth well into it, 

 and nothing short of a good tug will move it so 

 as to get the hooks into him. And the bigger 

 the fish, the more this applies. You feel the fish 

 come at you. You strike him lightly, as you 

 would a Trout, feel he is on, and think all is 

 right. However, just as you begin to think of 

 playing him, and draw him towards you, you have 



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