THE BREAM. 85 



After this punt has been fixed in its position for a week or 

 so, to allow the fish to get used to it, he gives the bream, a 

 preUminary dose of most extraordinary ground bait, consist- 

 ing of half a stone of scratchings, pounded up small and 

 boiled, a couple of bushels of brewer's grains, a stone of bran^ 

 two stale loaves of bread soaked, half a peck of boiled 

 wheat, and the contents of a bullock's stomach begged from* 

 the nearest slaughterhouse, a shovelful or tw^o of good yellow 

 clay completes the ingredients. These are all mixed well 

 together and dropped in a semi-circle in front of the moored 

 punt in balls about the size of oranges, taking care that they 

 are distributed in a pretty considerable space; in fact, as 

 far about as it is possible to reach in every direction with his 

 baited tackle. Twice a week afterwards he renews the bait- 

 ing, but never again in such enormous quantities as at first. 

 A score balls of bread, bran, clay, and grains are, in his 

 opinion, quite sufficient at once. Worms, tail-end of lob, 

 and brandlings were his favourite baits. At times he varied 

 this somewhat by using wasp grubs and sweet paste. Some- 

 times his catches bordered on the man-ellous, odd times it 

 was an utter impossibility to carry the fish home, that is by 

 himself ; and he assured me the last time I heard from, him 

 that last season the bream in the water appeared more numer- 

 ous than ever, judging from the quantities seen on the sur- 

 face during the early summer. 



Before I close this chapter I might say that carp-bream^ are 

 very often taken with the ledger; indeed, I know two or 

 three very good anglers whO' always fish for them, so. In 

 quiet waters they use a bored lead not much bigger than a 

 pistol bullet, while in heavier streams the size of the lead is 

 increased. The gut line should be fine, and not more than 

 a yard in length ; and the lead should be put on a very fine 

 length of gimp. See the instructions in Vol. i for ledgering 

 for barbel, only in the case of breami the leads and tackle are 

 finer, and the hook and bait smaller. Sometimes during a 

 summer or autumn flood some good bream are picked up by 

 light ledgering in the slacks and eddies along the grass slopes, 

 back of bushes or trees, at dyke ends, by the side of a sunken 

 fence ; in fact, almost anywhere out of the rush of the main 

 stream.. Tail end of lob and red-worms are the best baits to 



