36 BOTTOM FISHING IN THE NOTTINGHAM STYLE. 



ounce of tallow, and simmer again for a quarter of an hour ; 

 then pour the mass out into a vessel of water, and work it 

 up with the fingers until perfectly pliable. The ball should 

 then be put for several hours in a bucket of cold water ; and 

 when you take it out put it in a tin, and keep it in a cool 

 place out of the air or sun ; it will last an angler two or three 

 years. When he goes fishing he will require to take a small 

 piece with him, and a little flat tin- tack box will be just the 

 thing to put it in. It will take up very little room in his 

 tackle pocket. The small spools of silk could also be kept in 

 that pocket, and also his loose hooks and hanks of gut, for 

 such things are all the better for being kept out of the damp, 

 the sun, or the air ; and as for the wax, I should not take 

 much of that out at once. A bit a little larger than a hazel 

 nut, in the small box just mentioned, would be amply suffi- 

 cient ; keep the larger lump at home in a dry cool place, 

 out of the air. I have just mentioned the tackle pocket, 

 and this is an important article in an angler's outfit. These 

 are made in various designs, and may be bought at any tackle 

 shop. The tackle cases that are generally sold, are made of 

 leather or material so thin, that they afford no protection for 

 the long pelican quill floats that are inside them; I recommend 

 a very useful, strong, and cheap tackle case made on the fol- 

 lowing plan. The leather is very strong and coloured black, 

 and is about two feet long and ten inches wide ; down this 

 long piece of leather is stitched right across it, four more 

 pieces, each about four and a half inches wide, at regular 

 intervals ; the three topmost ones are divided down the 

 middle by a row of stitches, so as to form six separate 

 pockets ; the bottom one of the four is left open for the 

 purpose of holding the tackle winder, which will be described 

 directly. On each of the three top rows of pockets, there are 

 also stitched two strips of leather, which are subdivided by 

 other rows of stitches, for the purpose of forming places to 

 hold the floats. This case is then folded up and fastened 

 round the middle by a buckle and strap, and is then a useful 

 size for putting in the basket ; viz. about ten inches long and 

 five wide, and is a capital case for protecting the quill floats. 

 Or the angler can have, if he prefers it, a home-made 



