PIKE AND OTHER FISHING 



on any forked stick, all your line, except half a yard of it or 

 rather more ; and split that forked stick with such a nick or 

 notch at one end of it as may keep the line from any more of 

 it ravelling from about the stick than so much of it as you 

 intend. And choose your forked stick to be of that bigness 

 as may keep the fish or frog from pulling the forked stick under 

 the water till the Pike bites ; and then the Pike having pulled 

 the line forth of the cleft or nick of that stick in which it was 

 gently fastened, he will have line enough to go to his hold and 

 pouch the bait. And if you would have this ledger-bait to 

 keep at a fixt place undisturbed by Avind or other accidents 

 which may drive it to the shore-side, for you are to note, that 

 it is likeliest to catch a Pike in the midst of the water, then 

 hang a small plummet of lead, a stone, or piece of tile, or a turf, 

 in a string, and cast it into the water with the forked stick to 

 hang upon the ground, to be a kind of anchor to keep the forked 

 stick from moving out of yom* intended place till the Pike 

 come ; this I take to be a very good way to use so many ledger- 

 baits as you intend to make trial of. 



' Or if you bait your hooks thus with Hve fish or frogs, and 

 in a windy day, fasten them thus to a bough or bundle of straw, 

 and by the help of that wind can get them to move across a 

 pond or mere, you are like to stand still on the shore and see 

 sport presently, if there be any store of Pikes. Or these live 

 baits may make sport, being tied about the body or wings 

 of a goose or duck, and she chased over a pond. And the like 

 may be done with turning three or four live baits, thus fastened 

 to bladders, or boughs, or bottles of hay or flags, to swim down 

 a river, whilst you walk quietly alone on the shore, and are still 

 in expectation of sport. The rest must be taught you by 

 practice ; for time will not allow me to say more of this kind 

 of fishing with live baits.' 



Touching those methods of angling (if angling it be) with 

 bough or bundle of straw or with the pressed service of goose 

 or duck, at a later date these were known as ' Huxing.' The 

 latter, according to Daniel, was formerly practised ' in the 



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