DAYS STOLEN FOR SPORT 215 



when others fail. The Natural Spin is very successful 

 in deep water and on dark days. 



The four days that followed our Sunday fishing 

 were bright and sunny, and the sea so calm that we 

 were rowed, as we desired, in different directions on 

 each occasion, so as to try fresh ground. On the 

 third day I asked our host to join us and take my 

 rod, and it was then that he really learned that what 

 tended most to give us sport was a knowledge of the 

 depths. To surprise him, I kept the secret of how 

 I had become possessed of this advantage so long as 

 my early morning's reading of a chart answered, and, 

 aiter that, showed him a rough copy of the portion 

 we were travelling over, no bigger than my hand, 

 that told me all the depths for six sea-miles. 



M'Cabe is quite a sportsman and quick-witted, so 

 I was not surprised that he asked how I knew when 

 the bait was at the proper depth. I prefer to give 

 a fuller answer here to this than was necessary to 

 him while he was fishing. The speed of the boat 

 is a matter of much moment; it should be such as will 

 cause the passing water to spin the lure and make it 

 appear to be in a hurry to escape. To effect this 

 the water needs to be travelling past the boat at two 

 miles an hour; the boat may be making little progress, 

 or perhaps none; I sometimes anchor in rapid, desirable 

 spots. When M'Cabe asked his question, I answered, 

 *\Ve are in four fathoms and we have twenty yards 

 of line out that have six-ounce leads to sink them, 

 which I have no doubt brings them to within half 

 a fathom of the bottom ; pay out six yards more of 

 line and see what will happen.' He did, and got the 

 expected pull, and, when he wound in, there was 

 a piece of weed on the hook in proof that we had 

 been fishing at the depth desired. I will give a letter 

 of his to show how our success moved him to a desire 

 to give up his hand-lines in favour of a rod and fine 

 tackle. 



