Bait Angling for Common Fishes 



bait, especially if it be worm fishing. 

 Many an angler has been perplexed on rais- 

 ing his line to find the hooks stripped clean 

 when he has not felt a nibble. The fish will 

 advance in a leisurely manner, then about 

 an inch from the bait he will stop, open- 

 ing his mouth very wide, make no effort 

 to touch the bait, but by suction will draw 

 it toward and into its mouth without clos- 

 ing the mouth; that is a favorable time to 

 hook it. Sometimes it rejects the bait after 

 drawing it in, and the bait is often pushed 

 up on the gut snell. But this only happens 

 occasionally, mostly with large sized fish. 

 One of the pleasures of smelt fishing is that 

 they may often be seen in the clear water 

 soon after the bait is overboard, swimming 

 round and fighting who shall get the worm 

 first. They are a swift-moving fish, and 

 when once located a good catch is always 

 the result. If smelts are cooked within a 

 short time after being caught they are 

 most delicious eating; the large fish have 

 an oily taste not so agreeable as the smaller 



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