THE BRITISH ANGLER'S LEXICON. 155 



but an upward side sweep; and in practised hands it is 

 wonderful the length the bait can be thrown, even against 

 the wind fifty yards or more. The fish generally attack 

 the minnow before it begins to be reeled in at the length 

 of the cast and must be struck well at the moment of 

 feeling the fish. Minnows, w r hen they cannot be obtained 

 fresh, may be pickled by putting them in a jar with a 

 layer of salt between the rows, pouring the brine off as 

 it accumulates. Pickled minnows are not as good bait as 

 fresh ones ; however, they are better than the artificial 

 ones, but they become very tender. When spinning the min- 

 now in flooded w r ater, it can be worked almost any way 

 letting it go down \vith the current and bringing it up with 

 short jerks, or it may be thrown up and brought down 

 quickly, or across and allowed to sweep round. 



Minnow Tpaps are maple by perforating a hole in 

 the bottom of a glass bottle, through which the fish enter. 

 The neck of the bottle is covered by a piece of fine muslin, 

 and some crumbs of bread are placed in the bottle. Turn 

 the neck of the bottle up-stream ; the fish enter by the 

 orifice, and cannot find their way out again. Properly- 

 made traps can be procured from a fishing tackle maker. 

 Minnows may also be taken by the hoop net, or by 

 fastening a fine net to two sticks and attaching lead to the 

 lower part of it, and when this is pushed up to a corner 

 where there is a shoal, any number may be captured. A 

 few broken worms thrown in are useful to collect them. 



Napoleon Boots are made of indiarubber, and can 

 be had either with rubber or leather soles. The latter are 

 -decidedly the best. They are very handy when no deep 

 wading is required, or on the margins of rivers when the 



