DISPLAYING THE TKOLLING BAIT. 191 



and left ; this done, proceed somewhat further in, 

 but avoid making either much noise or much 

 splash in the water, by the cast of the bait. Try 

 every spot, but do not dwell long in any; once or 

 twice showing the bait in likely places is usually 

 sufficient. Success in trolling depends much on 

 the method of displaying the bait, which, of 

 course, should represent the natural actions of the 

 fish, and is best effected by first giving to the 

 bait a slanting direction on its entering the 

 water, and then drawing it towards you to make 

 it resemble a running-away, as it were, fish, or, 

 at any rate, a frightened one. Never allow the 

 bait to be still, but keep it ever in moderate 

 motion, yet never in a violent one, as some 

 trollers improperly do ; which practice, we sus- 

 pect, is more detrimental to sport in trolling than 

 is imagined, for we have had runs by trolling 

 more slowly over the same spots which others 

 had but just quitted without one, in consequence 

 of having given too rapid motion to their bait. 

 A little habit will enable the angler to vary his 

 methods of throwing his bait, according to the 

 extent and nature of his water. Where there are 

 large weed-beds, intersected by open water be- 

 tween their waving masses, or where large 

 aquatic plants rise up in patches, there the bait 

 must be carefully dipped directly down, to avoid 

 entanglement ; and then the angler must be pre- 



