SEPTEMBER 141 



flounders in that locality is just as the ebb tide is draw- 

 ing through after high water and for, say, an hour after. 

 However, to return to our expedition. As the tide 

 slackened sport fell off, so we hoisted sail and away to 

 the Billy Boy wreck. When we got out we discovered 

 that it was almost too hazy to see the marks ashore, 

 but after some difficulty we managed to hit the spot by 

 the simple expedient of drifting with the tackle down. 

 My companion struck it first and remained fast. While 

 enjoying his discomforture my joy was turned to sorrow 

 by the hitching of my own gear. As a result of this 

 method of exploration we found our wreck, but lost two 

 swivelled ledger traces, one Clements boom, one Parker 

 boom, eight eyed hooks on gut, and three pear-shaped leads. 

 When we did find the wreck we got about seven large 

 pouting. At 3.30 p.m. we left this spot, as the wind 

 freshened and nothing more was caught, and tried a new 

 pitch inshore. Here we fell amongst the pouting and 

 hauled them out, as our boatman said, ' like one 

 o'clock." Four at a time was frequent, three at once 

 was usual, and we never had fewer than two. The 

 writer, as the fish left off, had a rather curious trio, con- 

 sisting of a dab, a pouting, and a 21b. pollack a very 

 excellent team, which pulled all ways at once, and 

 thoroughly tested the excellence of the single gut trace. 

 When the pouting left off the dabs started and gave us 

 good sport till our bait gave out. At the finish we 

 caught fish with any remnants of worms or mussel lying 

 in the bottom of the boat, while the captured fish fre- 

 quently had to be robbed of its last morsel to bait the 

 hook for its successor. At six o'clock we got into har- 

 bour and turned out on the slip eleven score of fish, 

 eight and a half score being pouting, thirty-seven dabs, 

 eleven sea bream, a pollack, and a small red mullet. This 

 latter fish, it has been frequently stated, is rarely taken 

 on rod and line, although hardly a season passes without 

 some angler reporting such a capture ; on this occasion 

 the hook used was of larger size than needful, and the 

 bait was soft crab. 



So closed the account of an all-too-short fishing 



