GUDGEON, BLEAK, (fee. 71 



the ground bait. The young fly-fisher when whipping for 

 Dace with a very small red palmer or black gnat, on the 

 shallows, may take any quantity during the warm summer's 

 evenings. If angling for them, it is a good plan to have four 

 or five No. 10 hooks, tied on very fine gut about five inches 

 in length, and attach them to an ordinary Roach line, like a 

 paternoster so as to fish all depths at once, using a very 

 small quill float and baiting each hook with a single gentle 

 or very small piece of paste. I have known them caught five 

 at a time. 



[HE Loach or Stone Loach is a very small fish, seldom 

 exceeding five inches in length ; with a dark round 

 body ot a muddy colour, with six wattles at its mouth ; 



the colour of the fins somewhat resembles that of the 



fins of a Gudgeon. They lie at the bottom like Barbel 

 routing the gravel and may be taken occasionally with 

 a piece of red worm, on the shallows near Milltails. 



JINNOWS, Pricklebacks, and BuUheads, or Miller's 

 Thumbs are too well known to need description. The 

 first are valuable as a bait for Trout, Jack, &c., for 

 which purpose the second is sometimes used, but 

 requires the prickles to be removed. As regards the third, 

 Salter says that " he has known seven dozen taken in a day 

 in the New Eiver near Ware," and that "it is fine eating 

 when fried, if the head is cut off,'* but unfortunately the fish 

 itself is only about three inches in length and even that is 

 nearly all head. 



