< 'ii ait. xvn The Cock-up -fish. L'U 



■■ the Naii fish enter the backwaters, which are then quite thick 



" from tlic inland tl Is. and congregate about the bridges, in com- 



" pany with the Bahmeen ; during the day they seem to take 

 " when the water is most discoloured, coming in with, and fei ■ 

 " on, the flood tide; they have a large and very brilliant eye and 



" possibly ran see well in thick water, while they themselves are 

 " concealed from other fish, whose vision is probably not so perfect 

 " in muddy water, and I am strengthened in this opinion by 

 " having noticed the nocturnal habits of the Nair fish, and observed 

 " them feeding during a good portion of the night. 



" The tackle to use for these tish is the same as that which I 

 " have recommended for Bahmeen, but the gimp should be the 

 " thickest kind, and the hooks rather larger than those used for 

 " Bahmeen, say a size larger than ordinary Mahseer hooks, as the 

 " larger hooks lie better on thick gimp, and the fish, rememlier, 

 " runs to a very large size, besides being very powerful. The 

 " bait should also be larger than that used for Bahmeen, as this 

 " fishing is carried on in thick water, and at night. Bod, line, 

 " trace, snood, and hooks, should all he strong, for when the Nair 

 " fish really finds out that he is hooked, he start- oil' on a journey 

 '• which is a pretty long one before he stops. I allude here to the 

 " large sized ones. I once struck one that must have weighed about 



50 Lbs., and off he started up the river; 1 only had a medium sized 

 np trace, and snood, so dale not check him. I managed to jump 



" into a cai from the hank, and followed him for about 400 yards 



" before he stopped. In a subsequent struggle, he broke my snood 

 " and I lost him. A friend of mine followed a fish, of similar size, 

 •• for about the same distance up the river, before he came to a 



stand-still, a few days before. I mention this incident to show 

 " that, when these tish make their first run, after being struck, they 

 " go far. Let them have their run out, and keep them going after- 

 •' wards if you can. 



" In spinning for the Nair fish, you should spin slowly; he 

 " takes the bait, not with a rush like the Bahmeen, but slowly and 



■ deliberately, as compared to the hurry of the other tish. And 



" sometimes, while fishing rather deep, as the fish does not always 



rush off after taking the- bait, I have not known that 1 had a fish 



" on, till I felt the cheek on chawing in the line, I have known a 



" Nair fish, after taking, mow about at a quiet pace as if nothing 



THE ROD IV I Mil 1. P 2 



