CHAPTER VIII 



HOOKS AND KNOTS 



THE practice of angling with a hook, or 

 hooking with an angle, dates back as 

 far as prehistoric man. We have evi- 

 dence from the caves in many parts of Britain, 

 that during the Palaeolithic period man used 

 rude flint hooks for the capture of fish. Since 

 that time he has devoted much of his inventive 

 skill to the improvement in material, strength, 

 and shape of hooks employed in fishing. 



When it is considered what an important 

 factor the hook is, and that all the angler's 

 labour is lost if it does not perform its part 

 in a satisfactory manner, we are led to a full 

 appreciation of the necessity of employing only 

 the very best which the age affords ; and this 

 is a subject so important and interesting, that 

 a short account of the manufacture may be 

 instructive. 



Steel wire from which hooks are made is 

 generally round in section, but lately a patent 

 was granted for an "oval" section. This wire 

 is received from the rolling mills in round 



