124 THE BRITISH ANGLER'S LEXICON. 



deal of confusion. Their smallest hooks ccmmence No. oo 

 and run up to No. 20, the largest. It has often been dis- 

 cussed amongst the angling world the desirability of having 

 all makes of hooks uniform in number, but as yet no change 

 has been made, and no doubt it would make confusion 

 more confounded to alter, seeing the different makers have 

 their trade catalogues scattered all over the world. The 

 Redditch makers number their hooks after the wire they 

 are made from No. 16 hook from No. 16 w r ire so that the 

 number of the wires would have to be altered as well, if 

 a uniform plan of numbering was to be adopted. How- 

 ever, most catalogues give illustrations of the numbers 

 and sizes of hooks, so that the angler can have no difficulty 

 in procuring the size and shape he wants by consulting 

 them. The manufacture of fish hooks is a very par- 

 ticular business, giving employment to a large number 

 of skilled workpeople, and a description of the various 

 operations through which a hook passes, from the plain 

 straight length of wire until it is papered up for sale, 

 may prove interesting to many anglers. First the wires 

 are cut by shears into the requisite lengths necessary for 

 the particular number of hook that the operator intends to 

 make. The barb or beard is cut by means of a hollow- 

 ground knife, which, being deftly turned by the hand of the 

 workman, opens the fluke to the required gauge, care 

 being taken not to cut too deep lest the barb be weakened, 

 which would give way when used. The third operation 

 consists of filing the points up to the shape required, forming 

 either hollow, Kirby, or Dublin points. All the best hooks 

 are filed by hand, and are given either three or four 

 knife-like cutting edges, which causes the hook to have a 

 particularly good penetrating power to enter the fish's jaw, 



