Bait Angling for Common Fishes 



should be stout and well built, with a strong 

 silk or fine cuttyhunk line ; the hooks should 

 be snelled with gimp or piano wire, because, 

 like the pickerel, their sharp teeth easily 

 cut through the stoutest gut. Have a sinker 

 dropped down to find the proper depth to 

 adjust the float, three or four shots should 

 be placed on the snell to keep the minnow 

 down in deep water. Some anglers use two 

 hooks, but I do not see the advantage of 

 it, except the extra excitement of landing a 

 double, which is sometimes very incon- 

 venient and often leads to serious loss of 

 tackle as well as patience. Certainly more 

 fish are caught on dull, cloudy, windy days, 

 and in the evenings. In minnow fishing 

 quite a large hook is advisable size Nos. 

 2\o to 3|o, if the fish run a good size. 

 The method of hooking a minnow is the 

 same as for pickerel that is, place the 

 point through the under lip, coming out of 

 the upper lip near the tip of the nose. 

 When a wall-eye takes the bait he makes no 

 rushes or runs with the line, but swims 



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