ROD & CREEL 47 



CHAPTER X. 

 BAIT FISHING 



COMPARED to fly fishing and spinning, bait fishing is a 

 poor form of sport, nevertheless there are some to whom it 

 has its charms, others who are, unfortunately, physically 

 incapable of the more sporting methods of taking fish. Also 

 there are times when the water is in such a condition that any- 

 thing but bait is hopeless. Personally, and I have no doubt 

 there are many others of the same opinion, I would sooner fish 

 all day with bait for chub or other coarse fish, than not fish 

 at all, and if a person goes out for a day's fishing and finds the 

 water too coloured he can hardly be blamed for resorting to 

 bait. 



Now there are different methods of bait fishing, such as 

 tying on a lump of salmon eggs to your hook, or even a piece 

 of meat, or a small piece of fish arid letting it lie on the bottom. 

 Such methods are too well known and need no further descrip- 

 tion. There is, however, one method of bait fishing which is far 

 more sporting and requires more skill, i.e., worming for trout 

 upstream. 



For this method of fishing your ordinary fly rods will do 

 well. You can use a single hook at the end of a 4-foot cast or 

 a double or treble tackle with small hooks tied as in the illus- 

 trations on pages 31 and 32. 



Such tackle has the great advantage of not injuring your 

 worm to the same extent as a single hook and it also has a 

 much more natural appearance. Lead of some kind is generally 

 needed and the handiest is little thin strips which can be 

 wrapped round the line and put on and off according to the 

 depth of the water and swiftness of the current. It must, how- 

 ever, be remembered that you must not p.ut on enough lead to 

 anchor your bait, but just sufficient to sink it and yet let the 

 current carry it along. 



The worms should always be procured three days before 

 use and placed in clean, damp moss. This will scour them and 

 improve their colour. Be sure to keep them in a cool place with 

 plenty of air, or they will die and become useless. 



The actual method of fishing is almost identical with the 

 way you would use a small spinner, except that you always cast 

 up stream, allow the bait to sink and let the current carry it 

 down to you, taking up the slack line as it comes. 



With the double or treble tackle, you strike a fish as soon 

 as he takes, but with a single hook allow a second or two for 

 the fish to get it properly in his mouth. 



