THE PIKE. 65 



twenty different days, and successfully landed on that flight 

 79 sizeable jack, to say nothing of the scores put back that 

 were undersized. That was my best season as far as pike 

 fishing was concerned, and the result fully confirmed my 

 previous good opinion of the flight. In the second place, 

 the tackle is cheap, and as these pages are written moie 

 particularly in the interest of the working man, I don't feel 

 justified in recommending an expensive flight or spinner, 

 when one costing about sixpence is as much or even more 

 effective. In spinning over places when the water is shal- 

 low and weedy, and very little, if any, stream at all is run- 

 ning, it will be necessary to spin rather near the surface 

 and a little quicker than in waters deeper and clearer from 

 weeds. It is not the correct thing to spin your bait home 

 like lightning under any circumstances, if it can anyhow be 

 avoided. In a deep and sluggish water which is compara- 

 tively speaking free from weeds and obstructions, let it sink 

 deep down until you think it nearly touches the bottom, 

 and keep moving your rod point at intervals during the 

 process of winding the bait home from right to left, and 

 back again ; and then again let the rod point drop towards 

 the water, raising it again after a few seconds, all the time 

 winding home slowly. These movements of the rod, and 

 varying the pace of the bait, all have a tendency to cause 

 that bait to come through the water in a series of curious 

 curves, dives, and twists, which in my opinion is the main 

 source of attraction. A wobbling bait with an uneven spin 

 I have proved over and over again to be far more deadly 

 than a bait spun home in one long, straight, and glittering 

 line. Just before the bait reaches the end of its joume)% 

 that is, within two or three yards from where you stand, 

 before you lift it out for a fresh cast, it will be as well to 

 lower the rod point to nearly the surface of the water, and 

 fish the place clean out, if you anyhow can; that is, let 

 the bait come as close as possible to the bank on which you 

 stand. Sometimes a good jack will follow the bait from 

 right across the river and take it close under your feet. He 

 probably thought it was trying to escape from him by div- 

 ing under the bank, whereas if the bait had been lifted out 

 when at full length of the rod, he would have turned tail 



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