VAEIOirS METHODS OF PIKE-FISHING. 17 



bites from perch, but hooked and landed several jack, all 

 about the same size — 31b. to 41b. Meanwhile, my dace on 

 ordinary, or, rather, very fine, jack-tackle was utterly ignored. 

 The following day I went to the same spot, and exactly the 

 same thing occuiTed. I went again on the third day, caught 

 one more jack, and hooked another which bit the gut, and 

 apparently broke the spell, for not another jack could I catch. 

 During these three days the dace on the ordinary jack- 

 tackle was untouched by the fish. Now, was this mere chance 

 or accident ? I think not. I forget the exact number of jack 

 I took — about eight or ten, I fancy. It was a most remarkable 

 thing catching so many jack running on a small hook mounted 

 on gut, without being bitten through ; but I have not told the 

 story to call attention to that point, but to show the advantage, 

 or, rather, the necessity, of fine tackle. I may add that, though 

 this occurred in winter, the water was fairly clear. 



Jack, as I have already said, feed for the most part on fish, 

 and fish, dead or alive, are the baits generally used by jack- 

 fishers. Live-baits are commonly used either suspended in 

 mid-water by means of a float or attached to a pater- 

 noster, which is a length of gut with a weight at the end of 

 it, and a hook, on a few inches of gimp, sticking out at right 

 angles to the gut, 1ft. or more above the lead ; or they may 

 be placed on a leger, a tackle in effect much the same as the 

 paternoster, but with the bait at the end of the line, and the lead 

 above it. Dead fish-baits, of course, have to be worked to 

 give them some semblance of life, and are either spun or 

 trolled. To make them spin, they are fixed into such a shape 

 that they revolve when drawn through the water, or have a 

 piece of mechanism attached which has the same effect, and are 

 then either cast out long distances and drawn back to the 

 angler, or simply trailed after a boat, which latter process is 

 known on the Thames as trailing, but on Irish and Scotch lakes 

 as trolling. Strictly speaking, the word trolling should be 

 limited to the use of a dead-bait in quite a different manner. 

 A trolling-bait does not spin, but is merely dropped into the 

 water, when — containing a lead^ — it shoots to the bottom, and 

 is drawn up by the angler. 



DIV. II. O 



