Angling with the Live- Bait. 311 







attached to the line about a foot from the hooks. 

 One end served by the float is to inform the fisher 

 of the moment when a pike has taken his lure, but its 

 chief purpose is to prevent the live-bait from sinking 

 deeper than may be deemed advisable. The leads 

 are added to keep the line in proper position under 

 the float, and render it impossible for the bait to 

 swim up to the surface. The buoyancy of the float 

 and the weight of the sinkers must therefore be 

 proportioned to each other, and both to the size of 

 the bait. The position of the float on the line will 

 be determined by the depth of the water, but some 

 regard must be had to the temperature of the sea- 

 son. It is a good general rule that, in water three 

 feet deep or so, the bait should swim about mid- 

 water, and in deeper pools about a third from the 

 bottom. But it must be remembered that, though 

 pike generally keep near their peculiar haunts at 

 all seasons, they swim nearer the surface when the 

 weather is fine and warm than they do when it is 

 cold. 



The rod required for this and other kinds of 

 pike-fishing is a stout one of 16 or 18 feet in 

 length, very similar to that used in salmon-fishing. 

 There are two ways in which the bait may be cast. 

 The first is by throwing from the reel. According 

 to this method the angler winds up the line till the 

 bait is close to his side, and imparting to it a slight 



