130 BOTTOM FISHING IN THE NOTTINGHAM STYLE. 



" Derby Killer " would prove successful when a fly would be 

 utterly useless, although, as the Editor of the Fishing Gazette 

 forcibly put it in a footnote to a letter in that paper a few 

 weeks ago, " the salmon might be educated to it by persis- 

 tent fly fishing," There is something in this that is well worth 

 the attention of our salmon fishermen, because the Trent is 

 a salmon river on which the fly, let it be fished ever so 

 cunningly, seems to meet with little or no success. 



As to the natural history of the salmon, his nature and 

 habits, I shall say nothing in this chapter beyond what I 

 have already hinted in the few remarks above, nor shall I 

 give a single hint as to fly fishing for him ; but as briefly as 

 possible I will glance at the modus operandi of the worm 

 fisher and spinner. 



A diversity of opinion exists even among our Trent men 

 as to the length, the weight, and the pliability of the rod for 

 this business ; but I fail to see the utility of carrying about 

 a rod one foot longer or one ounce heavier than is absolutely 

 necessary to meet the requirements of the case. The 

 ordinary twelve-foot strong barbel rod will do very well for 

 worm fishing for salmon, for it is a patent fact that if a rod 

 will kill a ten or twelve-pound barbel easy, it stands a very 

 good chance of killing a salmon ; in fact, I can remember a 

 light eleven-foot roach rod and one of the finest of drawn 

 gut tackle, killing a very nice fresh run fish of nearly eight 

 pourids in weight, and another of sixteen pounds was got 

 on an ordinary light chub rod ; it would, however, take up 

 more space than can be spared in this chapter to give an 

 account of all the odd salmon that have been killed in the 

 Trent by these rods when barbel and bream fishing, even those 

 that have come under my own observation ; but I must 

 mention the case of the very biggest that ever I saw killed 

 by one of these ordinary barbel rods. Tom Bentley was 

 fishing with worms a short distance above Newark, when he, 

 at twenty minutes past twelve one day, hooked a fish, and 

 at twenty minutes past four or after a struggle lasting 

 exactly four hours succeeded in landing a magnificent 

 salmon; short, thick, and in splendid condition, weighing 

 no less than thirty-two and a half pounds. It was exhibited 



