ANCIENT ANGLING AUTHORS 135 



to the Troller, excepting the time of Spawning ; " 

 the fish are said to be then rather fastidious in 

 feeding, and are apt to leave the bait and not to 

 gorge it ; they are therefore better then taken with 

 snap tackle. " April will make him amends for his 

 former sufferings; and is a Month so inviting to 

 Sport, that it is both pleasant and profitable. . . . 

 The beginning of May is likewise very seasonable, 

 especially if it hits with the Proverb to be Cold 

 and Windy ; towards the latter end of it the Weeds 

 spring up, and are very offensive to the Hook ; 

 then begins the Trollers Vacation, which continues 

 till the latter end of August or the beginning of 

 September." The author considers October the best 

 of the autumn months ; November is also good, if it 

 is not too cold. 



The sixth chapter deals with the " Feed of a Pike 

 and when he is fattest," while the seventh treats 

 "Of the Baits for Trolling," and here Nobbes 

 enumerates a variety of baits, but gives the prefer- 

 ence to a roach or a dace for thick water, and to a 

 gudgeon for bright and clear water. 



There are still many old Thames fishermen who 

 have a hankering after that form of angling, now 

 illegal in the Thames trolling with the dead gorge ; 

 they would probably agree with the reasons given by 

 Nobbes for preferring this method to fishing with 

 snap tackle : 



I never admired this way of Snap, as thinking it 



