296 FISHING IN AMERICAN WATERS. 



ty pound bluefish, would make the line hum some. But how 

 would it be with a hundred and twenty pound bonetta ? I 

 have taken large striped bass by trolling for them on the Se- 

 connet River with a bone- squid covered with white linen, out 

 of which I formed the tail. The squid played by means of a 

 brass swivel. All swivels should be of brass or copper, even 

 if silver-plated afterward. Steel swivels rust. The leathern 

 satchel for carrying hooks, screw-driver, pincers, porpoise-oil, 

 and all the appliances necessary for use in mending rod, reel, 

 or any part of tackle, should be framed with brass. Water- 

 proof canvas satchels are better than the leathern, and in 

 them hooks and other anglers' implements will take no in- 

 jury. Water-proof canvas is also preferable to leather for 

 gaiters, and for boat-fishing they are preferable for shoes. I 

 prefer Russia leather boots for wear when trolling off the 

 coast, as the spinous dorsal and pectoral fins of some fishes 

 are sharp and strong enough to pierce any kind of cloth. 



Foreigners have frequently swindled the anglers of this 

 country by attaching hooks of inferior quality to spinning 

 baits; but the domestic competition in the fishing-tackle 

 business has become so strong that first-rate tackle of all 

 kinds can be had at home ; and the Buel feathered trolling- 

 spoon, and those of M'Harg, are the best in the world for 

 taking the principal fishes of our lakes and rivers. The sam- 

 ples which I submit for the use of anglers on American wa- 

 ters are supposed to be the best in use. Those just referred 

 to I know are. If a plain spoon is used, it should be of sil- 

 ver outside and copper on the concave side. 



HACKETT'S SPINNING-TACKLE, COKK, IRELAND. 



This piece of spinning-tackle was noticed in the London 

 FIELD, and I think it a very good rig for trolling with a live 

 minnow for maskinonge, glass-eyed pike, black and Oswego 

 bass, pickerel, and the numerous lake and river fishes which 

 delight in spoon victuals or captivating artificial lures. 



In baiting, put the large hook in at the mouth, and run the 



