496 GUT AND GIMP TRACES. 



special attention. Whether of single or twisted gut, 

 it is in all cases essential that they should have every 

 length knotted; never depend upon lappings only by 

 doing so, probably more fish are lost than from any 

 other cause. Tackle makers may sometimes raise a 

 protest, because traces look a little less neat when knot- 

 ted than when merely lapped. But those who desire 

 to have reliable tackle should insist upon all gut traces 

 being knotted, no matter what anyone may say to 

 the contrary. 



It is also as well to remind anglers that gut traces 

 made up with swivels are very subject to injury, when 

 steel ones are used, if the traces have to be carried 

 about for any length of time, by the rust eating into 

 the gut and rendering it rotten. Consequently brass 

 swivels are in our humble judgment always to be pre- 

 ferred to steel ones, for travellers' use. Personally we 

 can say that we have never known an instance of the 

 fish being lost through the swivel breaking. 



Gimp is apt to turn black and stain, if exposed to 

 the influence of damp, and in some waters is said to 

 become rotten very quickly. This was alleged as re- 

 gards some of the Russian waters ; so far as his expe- 

 rience went however, the author did not remark any 

 peculiar effect upon the gimp used by him there. 



Cheap and capital substitutes can be made for gimp 

 by using either ordinary copper bell wire, or thin brass 

 snaring wire twisted. A vast improvement upon this, 

 and even upon gut, is however suggested in Mr. 

 Thomas's book. It is inserted here entirely upon Mr. 

 Thomas's authority, as the author of these pages has no 

 personal experience of it himself, though he has been 

 much impressed by the probable value of the idea. 



