44 MODERN SEA FISHING 



and at Port Erin is a breakwater from which amateur sea fish- 

 ing is carried on in fair weather. At Douglas there is a break- 

 water at the mouth of the harbour, which can be tried when 

 the weather is too bad for boat work ; and fish are sometimes 

 taken from the Victoria Pier. There is also a little fishing 

 from the breakwater at Port St. Mary, and last, but not least, 

 the mackerel fishing is excellent. 



The Manx names of fish and bait are somewhat puzzling 

 to people who come to the island for the first time. Like the 

 Irishmen of Dublin, they call bream carp ; the pollack is 

 callig ; coalfish, blockin or blocken ; herring, scadder ; dog-fish, 

 gobbock ; wrasse, bollen ; cuttle-fish, sea-cat. That invaluable 

 little bait, the ragworm, is termed by the Manx fishermen 

 pellic. There are plenty of big fish round the island, and very 

 strong tackle is required for use in the deep water. 



Let us now cross over to the north-west coast of England 

 and work southward. In shallow, sandy Morecambe Bay flat 

 fish afford some sport, and shrimps are very abundant ; but, so 

 far as I know, the seaside resorts in the neighbourhood of 

 Liverpool do not offer first-rate fishing. Towards and on the 

 coast of Wales we begin to get among the haunts of bass. I 

 should look upon this coast as most useful for summer fishing 

 mackerel, bass, and flat fish, with whiting in places. Bass are 

 plentiful in the Menai Straits. In the small shallow lagoons 

 of the Crigyll River mullet are found ; but they are most diffi- 

 cult to fish with a rod, the water being shallow and clear. 

 There is no shelter on the bank. Bass enter most of the tidal 

 rivers and creeks of Anglesea in August and September, parti- 

 cularly in the estuary in Malldraeth Bay, where there are many 

 mullet, these fish also frequenting the river Cefni. Large 

 plaice are caught in the mouth of the river Ffraw. Boats can 

 be obtained in Aberffraw Bay, which is also a good place for 

 bass. Soft crab is considered the best local bait. Aberffraw is 



