THE BARBEL. 25 



a twelve-foot swim with a ten-foot rod, and fix 

 your float, you will most likely meet with 

 difficulties before the line is in the water, the depth 

 being greater than the length of the rod ; and when 

 a fish is being landed, you will find it more 

 difficult still. 



In legering, especially in very fast water, I 

 much prefer a bullet, or a rounded lead, to Bullet in 

 flat leads. Although a bullet may roll a legering 

 little, which may be a slight disadvantage, the flat 

 leads give more trouble, as they catch the water in 

 sinking or in being drawn up, so much so that it is 

 sometimes difficult to get the lead down to its 

 proper place, especially in the top ends of weir 

 runs. As in the case of chub, the corner back 

 eddies in weirs are often excellent for barbel ; but 

 obstructions and undertow must be learnt, and that 

 generally means lost tackle at first. The stumps 

 in some weirs must be simply festooned with 

 tackles of all sorts. 



I once caught a few barbel in a peculiar way. 

 After baiting a pool, I had a throw or two with 

 leger-tackle on the shallows below, throwing fai 

 out at right angles to the bank and letting the 

 bullet roll along in the quick stream. In this way, 

 I soon got four or five fish of about three pounds 

 apiece, and the method is well worth trying where 

 the bottom is of fine gravel and without obstruc- 

 tions. 



