THE BITER BITTEN. 301 



of the hook at the curve, wind it a few times round the 

 shank, and run it through the hole at the top of the shank of 

 the. hook. This completes baiting ; and with a good swivel 

 at the top of the snell or snood, a few inches (say six) above 

 the upper hook, the bait will revolve in water, and remain an 

 attractive lure for hours while trolling, unless a bite inter- 

 venes, and then the biter is quite sure to be hooked ; for the 

 triangular gang, playing to a ring on the outside of the fish, 

 is generally sure to intercept the fish (which aims at the head 

 of the bait) before it is taken by the tail-hook. 



Francis Francis, in philosophizing upon the superiority of 

 the spinning of artificial baits over natural ones, concludes 

 that it is " because they are stiff throughout ;" and that is 

 one of the reasons why they do not get out of proper shape 

 as do the living ones when not properly impaled and perma- 

 nently fixed on a gang of hooks so arranged as that nothing 

 but a bite will disturb or derange the bait. I have not the 

 slightest hesitation in pronouncing this spinning gang the 

 best arrangement of hooks that has thus far been presented 

 to the American angler. 



Figures 3 and 4 illustrate what is termed the " dead snap." 

 Of course, all gangs for natural baits should either be fasten- 

 ed to single, double, or twisted gut snells, or to the finest pos- 

 sible silver gimp wire. They are generally wound to the lat- 

 ter with fine wire, but fresh-water trolls or spinning gangs 

 should be fastened on silk-worm gut. Regulate the number 

 of plies of gut to the size and power of fish to be trolled for. 

 The present gang, No. 3, may be fastened to single gut, if the 

 gut be round and strong. 



In baiting, insert the tail hook first, then the middle hook 

 just under the skin, and finally slide down the lip -hook 

 and insert it through both lips. Sometimes a baiting-needle 

 is used to insert the snell from the body out at the mouth 

 through the upper gill-cover. The upper hook should always 

 slide on the snell by a hole or small loop of gut at the top of 

 the shank. 



