I02 THE PIKE. 



good big row by splashingapole right in the middle of those 

 reed beds. Large jack very often lay hidden deep among 

 those reeds, and it is just possible you may startle them out 

 and into the open water beyond, where later on they would 

 have a much better chance of seeing one of your baits 

 than they would while in the middle of that fortress. 

 This dodge has scored more than once during my ex- 

 perience. A live bait can be thrown a considerable distance 

 without injury; a gentle swing from the rod point in the 

 manner described in Chap. 3, being sufficient to get out 

 thirty yards without jerking the bait from the hooks; but 

 a live bait on snap tackle must be carefully thrown. In 

 snap fishing with a live bait the line should always be well 

 gi'eased, so that in still water it will float on the sur- 

 face — many a fish has been lost by having a sunk 

 line between the floats and rod point. Another 

 point of interest to the would-be pike fisherman is 

 whether the live bait should be near the bottom, or nearer 

 the surface; my own opinion and experience favours the 

 former, especially in deep, quiet waters. If the place is 

 twelve or fourteen feet deep, I always found it to be the best 

 to have the bait within a couple of feet of the bottom at 

 the outside, that is if you wanted the larger fish. During 

 the winter time they are, as a rule, much too sluggish to 

 rise up to within three feet of the surface to take a bait ; a 

 few small ones may be got, but the larger ones lie low as a 

 rule, and like the immortal Mr. Micawber, wait patiently for 

 something to turn up. Another point is whether a large 

 bait or a small one is the best, and here again the peculiar- 

 ities of each place must decide the matter. If the jack only 

 run small, then a dace from two to three ounces will be 

 quite large enoungh ; but if the place is a deep, quiet lake, 

 tenanted by very large pike, then taking things all round 

 large baits will stand the best chance. Once I remember 

 getting a fourteen pounder on a dace that only weighed 

 half an ounce ; but the balance of opinion favours the larc^e 

 bait taking one time with another. I had a very curious 

 illustration of these last two points some time ago : A 

 gentleman got a day in a private lake, that was strictly nre- 

 served, and only occasional leave granted ; the lake swarmed 



