GRAYLING FISHING. 8/ 



so as to make a bunch and partly cover the bend 

 and point. The trace should consist of three 

 yards of fine stained gut. 



The grasshopper is worked by " sinking and 

 drawing," as it is termed : that is, the bait is thrown 

 in and allowed to sink till it touches the bottom, 

 and is then steadily drawn up again about a foot 

 or a foot and a half, and allowed to sink as before. 

 The stream is usually strong enough to shift the 

 bait as much as is desirable, but if the water is too 

 still for this, the result can be arrived at by " draw- 

 ing" the bait a little to right or left with the rod. 

 The great point is to be quite sure that the bait 

 touches the bottom before drawing up, and in order 

 to assist the eye in judging this point, it will be 

 found of the greatest advantage to have a small 

 moveable white mark on the line, placed a foot or 

 a foot and a half higher up the line than the highest 

 point which ought to be submerged. It is, in fact, 

 a miniature float, always kept out of water, and the 

 most convenient form is this. Take a small white 

 feather, and cut off about half an inch of the hollow 

 quill, and three-quarters of an inch of the solid 

 white part of the feather-stem, just thick enough 

 to fit neatly into the hollow quill cap (A), as shown 

 in the engraving, figure 2 ; the cap passes over the 



