COMMON BREAD PASTE. 259 



between clean fingers, coloured sometimes with a 

 little vermilion, and for sharp running streams 

 having a little raw cotton worked up with it to 

 prevent its washing off the hook. This paste, 

 varied as above, is the best general one, and when 

 fish will not take it, wish them a good morn- 

 ing, or try the gentle or worm. In order that 

 the learner may not be deprived of any chance 

 resource, I will give him a list of several sorts of 

 pastes. 



Common bread paste is made either of new or 

 stale bread, according to circumstances; and as 

 those, in the opinion of the best bottom-fishers, 

 are somewhat important to the success of different 

 anglings, I shall detail them separately. New 

 bread paste is made by intimately kneading to- 

 gether in the hands for a few minutes three 

 fourths of new with one fourth of stale bread, 

 without dipping in water. This working will 

 bring it into a very glutinous adhesive paste. 

 It is particularly fitted, therefore, for angling in 

 strong eddies and powerful streams ; but it does 

 not apply so well to the finer fishings of roach 

 and. dace in moderate streams and still deeps, since 

 it will not separate so readily from the hook in 

 striking as the paste made from stale bread ; and 

 this peculiar property of separating to allow the 

 easiest egress for the point of the hook when the 



