Pike. 



35 



in the pike rod outfit for reach- 

 ing out-of-the-way places. The 

 " Salmo Esox " includes a second 

 joint 9 inches longer, which is 

 intended for salmon spinning, 

 but conies in equally handy for 

 this method of pike fishing. Long 

 casts will have to be made ; this 

 alters the position of the line from 

 the perpendicular to a slanting 

 angle, and may sink the bait too 



THE " HALCYON " SPINNER. 



low in the water. It is easy to 

 right this by adding an extra 

 link of gut to the plummet. The 

 bait will then be adjusted to the 

 right depth. 



Frequent casts are rather severe 

 on the bait, and reduce its vitality. 

 It is a good plan, when intending 

 to search the whole breadth of a 

 river, to throw a plummet well 

 out at first, and in moving to a 

 fresh place to pull the bait nearer 

 in, without lifting it from the 

 water. A live bait that seems 

 exhausted should be replaced by 



a fresh fish. A rest in the well 

 of a punt or a large bait-can soon 

 restores its vigour. 



Closely allied to paternostering 

 is legering. The tackle is similar 

 to that used for roach, the trace 

 consisting of strong salmon gut 

 or gimp. Immediately below the 

 leger bullet a swivel is placed, to 

 which a couple of feet of gimp or 

 wire, ending in the hook, is added. 

 The bait is mounted in the same 

 way as on the paternoster, with 

 sufficient freedom to work back- 

 wards and forwards within super- 

 scribed limits, and in eddies and 

 at the slack of rapids often a 

 very good pike is found by this 

 means. In discoloured water the 

 leger is an excellent device, as it 

 takes the bait close to the bottom, 

 where jack are more likely to find 

 it. The line is kept taut, and 

 when his lordship pays his atten- 

 tion the bullet will be felt dragging. 

 Any slack would prevent hooking 

 when the strike is made. It 

 goes without saying that it should 

 be vigorous, as the leaden bullet 

 offers strong resistance. 



Spinning is the most scientific 

 method of angling for pike. It 

 keeps one on the move, and af- 

 fords healthy muscular exercise, 

 which is an additional advantage. 

 It is essentially a winter occupa- 

 tion, and is not possible during 

 the early season except in occa- 

 sional places. The first essential 

 to spinning is the clearance of the 

 river from weeds. In the autumn 

 the tops of the weeds die off, 

 but the tough, unyielding fibres 

 below the surface catch the 

 flight and obstruct the spinning 

 of the bait. The effect is loss of 

 both temper and tackle. A few 

 days' hard frost rots the weeds, 

 and after a flood most reaches of 

 the river can be fished without 

 obstruction. Of the illustrations 

 given of spinning tackle on another 

 page, I have a preference for 



