50 BARBEL AND BREAM. 



first examining the bait to see if some part of the hook may 

 not be exposed. 



I have practised this style of fishing with great success in 

 parts of the Thames where it would have been extremely 

 difficult to use a " traveller," owing to the rough state of the 

 bottom ; but where, nevertheless, I picked out some heavy 

 Barbel with the Leger ; ground-baiting with the clay balls. 



Greaves is sometimes a good bait and may be used either 

 with float or Leger, in either case the stream should be slow 

 to allow the bait to lie on the bottom. Greaves should first 

 be broken in pieces with a hammer and requires soaking some 

 time in water ; some recommend that it should be boiled a 

 short time, constantly stirring it, to prevent it burning. To 

 bait with it : select the whitest and put four or five small 

 pieces or a long narrow strip on the hook, so as to cover the 

 bend up to the point ; the hook should be smaller than that 

 used with a worm. Ground-bait with the rougher pieces but 

 use very little. 



Cheese is used in a similar manner. The stream must be 

 very slow ; before you commence, throw in several pieces cut 

 to the shape of dice, for ground-bait. It is used in the follow- 

 ing style with the ordinary fixed float : plumb the depth, 

 setting the float about two feet deeper, so that the bait and 

 shots may lie on the bottom straight down the stream, and then 

 proceed the same as for legering ; the float will show the bite. 



Barbel are also angled for, with the ordinary fine roach 

 tackle baiting with gentles; and are sometimes taken of 

 great weight. They are frequently caught foul when fishing 

 with the Leger, through swimming over the line ; the angler 

 supposing it to be a bite, strikes, and often hooks the fish. 



- r F Bream, there are two sorts, the Silver Bream and the 

 Gold or Carp-Bream ; the first of these gradually loses 

 its brilliancy after it exceeds the weight of a pound and 



becomes of a dark smoky hue ; this being the common 



one most found in ponds and deep rivers. The Bream is a 

 very broad, flat fish, the head and mouth small, the eyes 

 large, and the tail exceedingly forked. It spawns towards 

 the latter end of May ; the best months for angling for them 



