30 BOTTOM FISHING IN THE NOTTINGHAM STYLE. 



be three pieces of flat wood, about half an inch broad, fas- 

 tened about an inch and a half from each other by thin 

 round pieces ; this, when finished, should be about five 

 inches long and three wide. It is a very useful article for 

 keeping the tackle straight ; hang the hook upon one of the 

 thin cross-pieces, and wind the tackle round the entire con- 

 cern. When the whole of that tackle is wound on, hang 

 another hook in the loop of the first, and go on again until 

 the whole of your tackle is wound on. By this means you 

 can keep the different sorts of tackle separate ; roach, chub, 

 or barbel having a separate coil to themselves. This plan is 

 a deal better than coiling them up separate and stowing them 

 in envelopes. The long leaf of the book, with the floats, &c., 

 on, can be folded up inside the covers, and then closed and 

 fastened with either a tongue and loop, or a buckle and 

 strap. The angler will also require a cocoa-nut shell and a 

 pair of scissors for the purpose of clipping up worms for 

 ground bait, a drag-hook and cord, and a clearing-ring will 

 also be very useful articles ; this latter is used in clearing 

 the tackle and hook from weeds, roots, sticks, or any encum- 

 brances occasionally found in the bed of the river. It is 

 made of iron, and need not weigh more than an ounce or so ; 

 there is an eye at the top end for the cord to be knotted to, 

 and it is bent in a circular shape until it nearly touches the 

 other side, leaving only a small nick for the line to pass 

 through ; it need not be above two inches and a half inside. 

 "With the cord this is guided down the line, over the float, 

 and down to the obstruction, when by pulling the cord the 

 hook and tackle may be saved. A landing-net is also re- 

 quired in the outfit of a Nottingham angler, and the frame 

 of this should be made of jointed brass, so that it can be 

 folded up and the net itself wrapped around it, that it may 

 lie snugly in the basket when not in use. It should be 

 made to screw into a brass socket, which latter is fitted on 



