FISHING TACKLE AND HOW TO MAKE IT. 459 



The following are good dressings also, and I have used 

 them all with success at different times. (The secret of 

 keeping lines in good shape is to put little dependence on 

 dressings, and more on drying the line, each time after using. 

 Never omit this attention. Those reels on the market that 

 profess to obviate the necessity for this, are a delusion and a 

 snare. A perforated reel-plate is a good thing to aid in dry- 

 ing off the line, but the latter should always be unwound on 

 a chair before the fire or stove, and thoroughly dried.) 



1. Boiled oil and best coach-varnish, equal parts; mix at 

 blood heat, and immerse line twelve hours. 



2. Boiled oil and gold size, equal parts. 



3. Boiled oil, one pint; beeswax, one-fourth pound. Put 

 the oil in an earthenware jar and stand this in a pan of water, 

 kept boiling. Add the wax in small shavings. Immerse 

 line when the dressing is still hot. 



4. Half a pint boiled oil; three-fourths oz. beeswax; one 

 and one-half ozs. Burgundy pitch; one tablespoonful copal 

 varnish. Raise the heat of this mixture a little above the 

 heat necessary to make a complete solution. Allow the line 

 to remain in it at least twelve hours, keeping in a warm place 

 all the time. 



5. One-fourth oz. beeswax; one-half pint boiled oil; one- 

 fourth pint gold size. Immerse line a few hours, keeping 

 the dressing hot; stretch and dry. 



6. Paraffine wax, I pound; yellow resin, one-fourth pound. 

 Melt and immerse line. Rub off superfluous wax with a damp 

 cloth. The line requires to be drawn from the hot mixture 

 through a hole in the lid of the receptacle, because it cools 

 so fast. A beautiful surface can be obtained by using this 

 dressing, but it is not a very lasting one. Of course the 

 dressing can be renewed at will and therefore it is an entirely 

 valuable one to take in the woods, when camping. 



All the above dressings are applied by soaking, and, with 

 the exception of No. 6, all are then taken out and stretched 



