BAITS FOR TltOLLINTr. 



out of the trunk, three or tour Jacks, or rn.r^; for a 

 fish that bites greedily and swallows the bait presently, 

 does not tear it so much as one that plays with it in his 

 mouth and then leaves it ; a bait is not much worse for 

 being chopt and full of holes, provided it hangs well 

 upon the hook, and the lead is not seen ; for one Pike 

 will feed very well after another, and the bait will be 

 still the sweeter the more it is bitten, if not used so 

 long as to be water-sopt: the scales of a Roach or 

 Dace, are a great preservation to it, as also light and 

 perspicuous , which render it more visible to the eyes of 

 the great devourers : as to the definitive number af baits 

 it cannot be easily determined : two or three, if fresh, 

 will last long enough, if you have not very ill luck with 

 him ; for sometimes the first fish that bites will tear the 

 bait, so that it will make it unserviceable and yet not 

 take the Pike ; but the weeds are most destructive to 

 your baits, especially when they are strong and tough, 

 so that if you are not careful in tying the tail of the 

 bait fast to (he joint of the wire, the weed will consume 

 it before the Pike comes. Some fish will hold better 

 than others; a Dace is one of the hardest, and will 

 endure the longest : but a Gudgeon is but a tender fish, 

 and will soon burst. One fresh bait will wear out two 

 or three stale ones : besides these natural bates, there 

 are a sort of artificial ones which are made so exqui- 

 sitely to resemble the other, that they will delude the 

 eyes of some men, much more the fish ; if they only 

 look, and not feel or touch with the finger, there is no 

 doubt to be made of the reality of the fish. Some pre- 

 tend to fish at Pouch with these artificial baits, though 

 it is more probable they were designed for the Snap; 

 for a Pike is endued with a perfect sense of tasting, and 

 therefore will scarcely be courted to gorge and digest 

 that which he can neither taste nor smell. There are 

 indeed some of those artificial baits made after the 

 Pouch fashion, whether for sight or service, I cannot 

 conceive ; for I more admire the curiosity and ingenuity 

 of the artificer, than any extraordinary excellency or 

 usefulness i* the thing. A Pike must be very hungry 



