THE GRAYLING, AND BAIT-FISHING FOR. 435 



constantly occupied ; especially throw in gentles every time 

 after catching a fish, or even when one has been hooked or lost. 

 Indeed, if you are sufficiently nimble to accomplish the feat, 

 it is a great element of success in making a bag to throw in 

 ground bait while the fish is actually being played a plan which 

 I have also adopted with success in roach fishing. 



By following out the above method, the grayling fisher 

 may often catch nearly every fish in the hole or swim, and 

 sometimes very heavy specimens. Half a pint of gentles are 

 enough for one day and one rod, but I think half a quart is 

 still better. 



For this style of gentle fishing the Nottingham method is 

 particularly deadly, and I have been assured that Worcester 

 fishermen lower down the Teme, by Tenbury, and so on, make 

 large takes of grayling in this way, using a float almost big 

 enough for jack ! For an account of the Nottingham style of 

 fishing see Vol. II. 



Ludlow was the head-quarters of the old school of ' gentle 

 fishers,' but of late years this method has dropped much into 

 disuse, although still occasionally practised. The masters of the 

 art of grayling fishing with gentles always preferred hair to gut, 

 as being finer, less visible, and longer in the strand, also because 

 it never * frays or frets,' however much it may be used. It 

 also floats, which is better for some reasons for the play of the 

 gentle, and probably makes it less likely to catch in the ground. 

 Its use, however, is confined to gentle fishing, being unsuitable 

 both for the fly and grasshopper ; in the latter case not being 

 strong enough, and in the former its ' flotation ' being an objec- 

 tion, inasmuch as many grayling take the fly under water, as 

 I have before pointed out. Gut, of course, sinks instead of 

 floating. 



The hair for the purpose indicated should always be taken 

 from an entire horse. 



These notes on grayling fishing with the natural bait would 

 be incomplete without a reference to a somewhat local, perhaps, 

 yet as practised by its professors, apparently a very deadly 



