16 LONDON ANGLER'S BOOK, 



Says Peter then look to your rod for relief 



And here take a drop of my brandy, 



You know I'm an old one, now mind what I say, 



And when out to fish you are strolling, 



Leave your sweetheart at home till some other day, 



Or else never think about trolling. 



Tol de rol, &c. 



The Minnow being the smallest of all fishes of any 

 consequence to the angler, has no scales, the back 

 darkish, and the sides white and silvery, with a shade 

 of purple ; this fish, when in season, is very beautiful, 

 and is considered equal in taste to any of the finny 

 race. If fried with eggs and crumbs of bread, first 

 taking out the gut, and clipping off the heads and tails, 

 they make a most excellent dish. When full grown, 

 in some rivers they are 3 inches and more in length, 

 and are a thick broad fish for their size; you may fish 

 for them with two or three hooks on your line, they 

 should be very small, and baited with a small piece 

 of red worm, but they will bite at every bait, 

 and feed at almost any depth below midwater. The 

 Minnows in the river Ravensborne, near Southend in 

 Kent, are the largest I have ever seen. This fish is a 

 most excellent bait for every fish of prey, but in warm 

 weather they are very difficult to keep alive. 



