SMALL HOOKS FOR LARGE TROUT OBJECTIONABLE. 279 



fig. 1, p. 104. It is very seldom indeed that more than 

 three triangles and a lip-hook are used, and of course the 

 flight of hooks is tied upon gut, and not gimp; and 

 being intended to take a smaller bait, the hooks are 

 smaller and tied on closer together. Some use a single 

 hook at the tail. This hook being a size or two larger, 

 is hooked into the tail, so as to make the bend of the 

 hook form the crook. I prefer this plan, as it strengthens 

 the hold on the tail and makes the bait last longer. The 

 great difficulty, however, which I have always experienced 

 in fishing for Thames trout, has been that the hooks are 

 all so small that they take a bad hold on the bait and a 

 worse one on the fish ; and nine trout out of every ten 

 get off after being hooked, solely because we have fished 

 for a fish as large and powerful as a salmon, and often in 

 water as rough and heavy as that whicli salmon are found 

 in, but with roach hooks to hold him when hooked. Can 

 anything be more absurd? The fish runs, is hooked, 

 gives one turn over in the stream, or perhaps is hauled 

 about for five minutes or more, and then off he goes, with 

 a very strong reminder that a bait which conducts itself 

 in the fashion which a spinning-bait does is not safe 

 feeding. I could almost venture to assert that there is 

 not a trout of seven or eight pounds and upwards in the 

 Thames but has been served in this way half-a-dozen 

 times ; and then we marvel that Thames trout should be 

 such shy fish and so difficult to catch, whereas the only 

 wonder is that they ever run at a spinning-bait at all, so 

 * well educated ' as they are. The ordinary tackle used 

 for Thames trout is the common three-triangle pattern 

 shown in Plate IV. fig. 1, p. 104. I, however, much prefer 

 my own pattern, shown at fig. 4. It shows less hooks, keeps 

 on spinning better, and I think has a better chance by far 

 of holding the fish. I do not think there is any better 

 form of tackle than this for Thames trout. 



