235 



those flies which are taken by the dace ; but they do not 

 rise so well as that fish. 



Your tackle for the roach should be remarkably fine j 

 for though it is a silly fish, it will not readily take when 

 the line is coarse. Your hook should not exceed No. 7, 

 and generally a smaller will be preferable. Your gut 

 should be coloured, with only one shot about six inches 

 from the hook ; if you want more, let diem be at about 

 six inches higher up : a light float is indispensable, 

 for their mouths are very small, and their bite very deli- 

 cate, whence it will be advisable to keep your line ready 

 to strike. 



In rivers., they often draw the float down until diey get 

 to the bottom ; when this happens you must not be in a 

 hurry ; for it is almost a certain sign, that they have only 

 laid hold of the worm's tail, and want time to complete 

 the bite. 



You will find it proper to bait die hole where you fish, 

 with oatmeal, a little browned over the fire, and then 

 made up into balls with a small quantity of treacle : this 

 draws them together far better than any other ground- 

 bait I ever heard of. Throw such a ball, about the size 

 of a marble, now and then, where your hook lies : it 

 will gradually be dissolved, and attract numbers, 



When the roach lay in die tide's way, you must only 

 expect them to bite when the flood comes in ; especially 

 at the first of it, when they commonly are very keen. 

 If there is a fresh in the water, diey will bite during the 

 latter part of the ebb : at such times they lay chiefly on 

 the flat gravels and sands, on the sides of streams, espe- 

 cially below bridges. 



As you seldom have occasion for a reel when angling 



for 



