1769 



FISH HOOKS 



155 



the most glossy that can be got, the inner or naturally 

 bright side being put undermost. In Fig. 2, & is a tuft of 

 white dog's or hog's hair, which serves, maybe, to imitate 

 the tail of a fish. These hooks require no bait : they are 

 used with a fishing-rod of bamboo. The people having 

 found by the flight of birds, which constantly attend shoals 



Fig. 2. 



of bonitos, where the fish are, paddle their canoes as swiftly 

 as they can across them, and seldom fail to take some. 

 This Indian invention seems far to exceed anything of the 

 kind that I have seen among Europeans, and is certainly 

 more successful than any artificial flying fish or other thing 

 which is generally used for taking bonitos. So far, it 

 deserves imitation at any time when taking bonitos is at all 

 desirable. 



The other sort of hook which they have is made likewise 

 of mother-of-pearl, or some hard shell, and as they cannot 

 make them bearded as our own, they 

 supply that fault by making the points 

 turn much inwards, as in the annexed 

 figure. They have them of all sizes, 

 and catch with them all kinds of fish 

 very successfully, I believe. The manner of making them 

 is very simple ; every fisherman makes them for himself. 



