DIRECTIONS FOR SPINNING. 75 



twenty jack and pike, within the hour, spinning. 

 At Downton, Ri^gwood, and some other places are 

 "open" waters, which can be fished by the 

 payment of a daily fee. The Frome, Dorsetshire, 

 is another capital river for the pike-spinner ; and 

 where and when permission can be obtained, is 

 easily to. be fished from either bank. In the first 

 years of my acquaintance with this river, I had 

 many fine fish out of it, some of the pike exceeding 

 20 Ibs. each, but I am informed it has been much 

 overfished during the past ten years and every 

 small jack retained, to the depletion of those fish 

 in the river. If all jack under 4 Ibs. were 

 carefully unhooked and returned uninjured to the 

 water, the Frome would again become one of the 

 best pike rivers in the West of England. (See 

 page 3 1). 



Spinning has its charms and advantages, for 

 with no sloppy bait-can to carry, but a couple or 

 three dozen selected baits instead, packed Direc 

 in bran, tackle case and flask in pocket, tions for 

 rod in hand, gaff and fish-bag in sling, s P innin & 

 warmly clad, and well booted, nothing can be 

 more enjoyable than to wander beside a " pikey " 

 river, spinning all the likely places, and catching 

 fish here and there. 



When a pike seizes the bait, instantly give a firm 

 and decisively determined draw of the rod top 

 (rather than a strike) by smartly moving the rod 

 point to either the' right or the left, i.e., contrary 

 to the direction in which the fish may be running. 

 Or it may be necessary to elevate the rod top 

 smartly ; but any way it is the decided draw, and 

 the firm hold on the fish for a second or two, when 

 it is making its first efforts to escape, that will most 



