SEA FISHING FROM SMALL BOATS 251 



the leads occasionally, or the portions of the line which pass 

 through them will soon rot if left wet and covered. 



The only advantages that horsehair possesses over hemp 

 or cotton are its elasticity and durability, the former doing good 

 service when the fisherman is playing a large pollack ivithout a 

 rod. The two-strand hemp or cotton lines are also very elastic, 

 but very rough to handle. 



It should be unnecessary for me to point out that drift 

 lining can only be pursued in a tideway where there is a 

 sufficient stream to carry out the tackle. Those who go in a 

 good deal for this sort of fishing frequently use five lines from 

 one boat, which must be arranged in the following manner : 

 On each side of the stern two lines with half-ounce leads are 

 let out, and between them one without any leads whatever, 

 the bait of which keeps near the surface by the force of the 

 current. Then there may be two more lines, more heavily 

 leaded than those at the stern, placed on each side of the 

 boat about amidships, and these, of course, will sink to a lower 

 depth than the others. Arranged in this way, three different 

 depths can be fished. Unless the depth is known, it should be 

 ascertained by means of a plumb line or sounding line. One 

 advantage of having light leads placed at a fixed distance of 

 two fathoms from one another is that those who use these lines 

 can tell exactly how many fathoms of line are out and can 

 regulate them accordingly. 



It is a good plan, when more than one line is being used, to 

 remove the tholepins and fix in the holes tell-tales, two-foot 

 pieces of those canes commonly known as * penny canes.' These 

 will project about a foot to eighteen inches above the gunwale, 

 and the spare lines may be fastened to the ends of them. 

 When a fish seizes the bait the cane bends, takes the first pull, 

 and informs the angler of the bite. A little bell is sometimes 

 fastened to the tell-tales. 



