42 BOTTOM FISHING IN THE NOTTINGHAM STYLE. 



to the groundwork of my proceeding. If Mr. Francis sees 

 this, I hope he will accept this explanation, and also my 

 acknowledgments of the great help I found his book in 

 compiling this treatise on Nottingham fishing. 



Now that the float is cast to its destination, the angler 

 changes his rod to the left hand, and with the finger and 

 thumb of his right he takes hold of the line close to the reel, 

 and pays it off gently and continuously so that it shall run 

 freely through the rings and never check the swim of the 

 float. By this means the line between the float and the rod 

 point is tight (but not too much so, or the float would lay 

 nearly flat on the water), and enables him to strike the very 

 moment he perceives a bite. Failing in getting a bite, he 

 allows the float to travel down stream until he has completely 

 covered the space where he supposes the ground bait to be, 

 when he winds up the line and repeats the cast. Sometimes 

 the hole to be fished is from twelve to twenty, or even more, 

 feet in depth ; and when this is the case, it is difficult to fish 

 it with the ordinary floats, and for this purpose a float called 

 a " traveller, ' " slider," or " running float " is used. As may 

 be supposed from its name, this float slides or runs up and 

 down the line, and can be easily made from one of the 

 ordinary swan quill or cork floats. A small upright rod ring 

 is whipped about half an inch or so from the top, and a very 

 small ring about an inch from the bottom. This ring can be 

 made out of a piece of very thin copper or brass wire, as 

 follows : Wind the wire two or three times round a small 

 knitting or stocking needle, and then draw it off; cut off 

 each end to within three-eights of an inch, which must be 

 left for the purpose of whipping it to the quill ; this small 

 ring will just allow for the passage of the line. Thread the 

 line through the rings on the float, and when you have got 

 the exact depth, knot a little bit of line or wood or straw in 

 the line above the float. When the float is out of the water 

 it drops down to the loop of the tackle, and when it is thrown 

 in the water, the shots or sinkers carry the line through the 

 float rings until it is stopped by the little bit of wood, &c., 

 mentioned above. If the Nottingham bottom fisher uses a 

 cork float and a heavier tackle, he mostly throws his bait 



