OO ANGLING FOR PIKE. 



But enougli of tackles; let us now pass to the important 

 question, 



How to Troll. — Tlie rod should be rather long, for, as a 

 general rule, anything in the nature of a long cast is not 

 advisable when trolling. Taking, then, his rod, baits, &c., the 

 angler strolls along the river bank, and drops his bait in every hole 

 — even those not more than 1ft. in diameter — which he can see 

 among the weeds. To reach points more distant than the rod is 

 long, the angler should hold a couple of yards of slack line in his 

 left hand, swing out his bait as if it were a pendulum, and, as it 

 reaches a point in the air about 1ft. above the hole into 

 which he wishes it to drop, he should both lower his rod-point 

 and release the slack line. The bait will (or, rather, it should, 

 for beginners invariably make a great splash) then dart, head 

 foremost, into the water, and go at considerable speed nearly 

 to the bottom, when the rod-point should be lifted, rather 

 quickly than slowly, about a foot, and then be quickly de- 

 pressed to allow the bait to again dart down a short distance. 

 On its downward journey the bait should on no account be 

 checked, as it will most certainly be if the rod-point is not 

 lowered quickly and far enough. If a pike sees the bait, and 

 is hungry, he will take it almost at once, and it is never 

 worth while to sink the bait more than twice in one place. 



"When fishing from a punt or boat it is usual, on the Thames, 

 to drift very slowly down stream, checking the punt with the 

 pole, if necessary, from time to time, and searching each hole 

 and corner as you pass along. Mr. Cholmondeley-Pennell says, 

 troll up stream, and with this I quite agree, if the stream is 

 considerable; but otherwise, it is not necessary, and it is by 

 no means an easy task to work a punt noiselessly, and without 

 disturbing the fish, against a strong stream. Trolling with 

 the dead gorge in a swift current is not by any means pro- 

 fitable. More often than not, the force of the water on the 

 line pulls the bait out of the jack's mouth after he has 

 seized it. 



When trolling in water free from weeds, the bait may be 

 cast out as if it were a spinning bait, and worked in by draws 

 of the rod, the rod being pointed in the direction of the bait 



