HINTS ON FISHING 161 



fish is out and back again so quickly and the natural 

 spring of the rod ordinarily prevents the fish from 

 getting any slack. 



When a very heavy fish, like a muskellunge for 

 instance, leaps, the rod is raised as he goes out of the 

 water just enough to keep the spoon on a level with 

 the hook. One can tell when a fish, especially a 

 fish that is fighting deep, is going to leap by the amount 

 of slack the angler is getting, and he can prepare for 

 it, meanwhile taking up the slack as fast as possible 

 with the reel. 



When fishing from a boat, much of the success in 

 landing fish depends on the man at the oars. As soon 

 as a big fish is hooked he should move the boat so as 

 to give the angler every possible advantage. Par- 

 ticularly when fishing over a weed-bed should he head 

 the boat toward open water. Very often in playing 

 a fish he will dash straight at the boat and go under, 

 and this requires some fast reeling and quick thinking, 

 The oarsman should raise his oars to pre- 

 vent the line tangling on them and the angler should 

 pass his rod around the end of the boat and fight the 

 fish from the other side. 



Landing fish properly also is an art in itself. When 

 a net is used it should be submerged and the fish led 

 over it instead of trying to scoop the fish into the net. 

 Big fish should be landed with a gaff hook. The hook 

 should be struck into the fish from below, well back 

 toward the tail and the fish should be gaffed, lifted 



