204 COARSE FISH. 



underside of the fingers ; this causes the winch to 

 revolve with great speed, tearing the tackle through 

 the water. This method will save a slack line 

 when a hooked trout heads up stream towards the 

 weir with all his force. 



A fine plaited or twisted silk line should be used, 

 and it must be well dressed with vaseline, 

 to keep it as much as possible on the surface 

 of the water. A thick, solid dressed, or enamelled line 

 is comparatively useless for fishing very far away, as 

 it sinks and is swallowed up in all the whirl and 

 tumult of the weir runs. It is most difficult to 

 work with a thick line, the pull of the water on it 

 being so great that the play of the bait cannot be 

 properly felt. Striking a fish hard with a very 

 heavy line in a long swim will probably break 

 your rod, while a thin line floats better and rips 

 through the water, assisting the angler to strike his 

 fish properly. 



The trace for both livebaiting and spinning, 

 Trace, must depend on the power of stream and 

 or cast ro^ th e weight of leads and the size of the 

 bait. Heavy rods require stouter traces than light 

 rods, and a dace must have a stouter trace than 

 that used with a bleak, small gudgeon, or minnow. 

 Very fine traces will not properly carry heavy leads 

 or baits. In unobstructed weirs, with low water, 

 really fine traces may be used, but line and rod 

 must correspond ; it is no good trying to strike or 

 play fish with a heavy rod and very fine tackle. 

 If the trace is very fine, the hooks must be small, 

 very keenly pointed, and not grossly barbed ; the 

 rod must be light and pliable, and the bait small, 

 with hardly any or no lead on the trace ; and, if 

 livebaiting with very fine tackle, it is best to 



