86 THE SCIENTIFIC ANGLER. 



the movable lip hook is used; therefore; up-hill spinning 

 should be avoided. The angler should ever remember 

 that the secret of success lies mainly in the motion of the 

 spinning bait. The theory of bait spinning is founded 

 upon the well-known propensities of the heavy fish for 

 weakly fry, which accounts for the otherwise unaccount- 

 able fact of the well spun bait being seized from the very 

 midst of a shoal of living minnows. The peculiar forms 

 of many substitutes for natural minnows act detrimen- 

 tally as regards hooking fish. Take the old turn-tailed 

 family of artificials for example. Watch the peculiar 

 motions of a specimen as you slowly bring it through the 

 clear water. You observe that it describes a kind of 

 corkscrew motion. This, especially when accomplished 

 rapidly, will entice fish far oftener than it will hook them; 

 long practice dictates that nine "runs" make one cap- 

 ture, through the instrumentality of these curved or turn- 

 tailed " artificials. " What is needed is a perfectly straight 

 bait, when an artificial is employed, no matter whether 

 the spinning propellers or Archimedean flies be at the 

 head or the tail. So far as this is concerned it will then 

 take a direct "pigeon " flight through the water, moving 

 an equal number of fish, whilst being more effective in 

 hooking them. In natural minnow-spinning this is not 

 of so much importance, the fish that "goes" for the 

 natural bait without getting hooked, will more frequently 

 come again, not meeting with so hard a substance. The 

 minnow flight we have found preferable to those generally 

 in use, we give on plate III., fig. 1. The minnow is 

 placed upon the tackle in the following manner: First, 

 the lead is inserted in the mouth of the fish, the lips be- 

 ing closed by the movable lip hook. This done the bait 

 is pierced through from the one side to the other with 

 the large hook, which should be so placed as to keep the 

 lead well up in the minnow's back. Lastly, one of the 

 pair of tail hooks should be made to slightly curl the tail 



