280 SALMON-FISHING 



the gentle art I am acquainted with. Thus, to insure 

 success, one must have the water at a certain reduced 

 state to act upon ; he requires to be favoured in general 

 with a clear sky, none the worse of there being a dis- 

 position in the air towards frost. The streams, also, to 

 which he has access must possess that degree of depth 

 and rapidity which are necessary both to conceal the 

 fish and assist the play of the bait; moreover, it is 

 essential that, notwithstanding one and all of them may 

 have been angled over repeatedly with the salmon fly, 

 they shall not previously, during the decrease of the 

 river, have been disturbed with the worm itself; if so, 

 should the angler impatiently have resorted to it before 

 they were in order, every fish then descrying it would, 

 at its re-appearance on a favourable occasion, hold it in 

 distrust. 



The most approved of tackle for this description of 

 angling consists of a large hook of the round-bend 

 shape, Nos. from 14 to 16 of Adlington's. It requires 

 to be tied upon picked salmon-gut, fresh and round; 

 the shank-end of the wire in tying ought to be left bare 

 to the extent of nearly a quarter of an inch thus 



The single gut or foot line, from the hook upwards, should 

 extend at least six feet, and terminate with a loop, so as 

 to allow of its being readily annexed to the higher cast- 

 ing line. It should also be furnished with a box-swivel 

 fixed below the uppermost length. 



"With regard to the leads or plummets, these ought to 



