SPOONS AND HOW TO CAST THEM 239 



concealing them have much value, though perhaps 

 when long and trailing they do attract fish. Again 

 and again, in different waters, I have removed them 

 and taken just as many fish as my companions; re- 

 placed them and taken no more. I know that in 

 certain waters a gold spoon is more attractive than 

 a silver one, while sometimes copper or jet black 

 will prove more alluring than either. Much de- 

 pends upon the particular water and only experi- 

 mentation can determine which spoon to use. To- 

 day spoons are provided with variously colored 

 blades, so that the angler can change at will, though 

 I must confess that for an all-round, every day 

 spoon there is nothing better than silver back and 

 red front. Keep the inside of the blade dabbed with 

 vermilion paint. The pearl blades are very beauti- 

 ful, presenting a showy appearance when seen 

 through the water, however, I have not found them 

 as successful under varying conditions as the old- 

 fashioned nickle spoons. As to the durability of 

 the pearl blades I can only say that I have never 

 broken one and I have used them a great deal in 

 pike fishing, surely a sufficient test for any lure. 



There is a class of lures, a sort of hybrid troll, 

 with a hook attached directly to the blade at the 

 lower end while the leader is attached to the upper, 

 known as "wobblers." Drawn through the water, 

 the lure darts about with an erratic, ricochetting 

 movement which must be discernible for a great dis- 



