EXTRAORDINARY CAPTURE. 215 



body part of it, instead of pewter, consists of a piece of 

 unpolished iron, about five inches in length, by one in 

 breadth, and one-eighth of an inch in thickness. The 

 lower extremity of the iron is armed with four or five hooks, 

 which branch out horizontally to a distance of about three 

 inches, whilst at its upper end, which is rounded, and to which 

 the line is attached, is a small feather-spring to retain the bait. 



The Sot-krok is introduced into the water through a Vak 

 made for the purpose. The bait consists either of a strip 

 of the immature milt of the burbot, usually enveloped in a 

 piece of fine gauze for its better protection, or of a young 

 smelt, or other bright-coloured fish. If of a strip of milt, it 

 is affixed by one end ; and if of a fish, by the tail ; and as the 

 Sot-krok, by lifting it up and down in the water, is kept in 

 constant motion, the bait, from being loose, is perpetually 

 swaying to and fro, and thus presents a very attractive lure. 



Under favourable circumstances, one's sport with the con- 

 trivance in question is at times enormous. The friend just 

 mentioned, informs me that on the 5th of January, 1839, he 

 himself in about an hour and a half that is, between seven 

 and nine o'clock in the evening captured one hundred and 

 sixty pounds weight of burbot by this device. And he 

 stated, moreover, that on one occasion, his fisherman was 

 still more successful, having in the course of a long winter's 

 night, taken by the same method no less than three hun- 

 dred and forty pounds weight of burbot. 



It might be supposed that the fisherman would have 

 difficulty in procuring baits in the winter; but this is not 

 always the case, for if the Sump be exhausted, he has only 

 to ground-bait a Vak the one day, which has the effect of col- 

 lecting the small fish together, and on the following day he may 

 generally take any moderate number with the hook and line. 



