132 COARSE FISH. 



salmon-size. Often, in pike-fishing, you want 

 something that really will carry a bulky weight 

 (see p. 224). 



The art of pike-fishing may be roughly divided 

 under two heads, spinning and livebaiting. Live- 

 baiting includes fishing with float-tackle, pater- 

 nostering, and legering. Dead-gorge-fishing is 

 now, and justly, looked upon as a poaching method. 

 The fish were allowed to thoroughly gorge a bait, 

 which mostly necessitated the killing of every fish 

 hooked, no matter what its size or condition. 

 Gorge-fishing, in modern times, has therefore fallen 

 into disuse, and this mention of an obsolete sport 

 must suffice. 



Spinning for pike is the better method. It 

 Spin- affords plenty of change and exercise, and 



nin there is far more enjoyment in it than in 

 watching a float. The whole attention is occupied ; 

 care and observation are required with every throw ; 

 until the bait is out of the water again, the whole 

 tackle is working, and working together. In 

 spinning, a great variety of water can be worked, 

 either shallow or deep ; the bait being skimmed 

 over ground weed or drawn amid channels between 

 weed beds ; the water can be worked across or 

 along the side you are fishing from ; and by raising 

 and sinking the bait, almost any depths can be 

 fished. The spinning motion is imparted to the 

 bait by crooking the tail, or by fans at the head of 

 the bait, the flights (the hook lengths) being tied 

 in many ways. A dead bait is used in spinning, 

 generally a dace, gudgeon or bleak. Of these, 

 gudgeon spin best ; dace, bleak and sprats are 

 bright baits. Bleak are tender, and tear easily ; 

 sprats are also tender, but the preservative solution 



