170 MINNOW AND PARR-TAIL FISHING. 



numbers of anglers do not reside at the water-side, 

 and when engaged in a day's trouting cannot afford 

 to spend half of it in catching minnows, they should 

 always be provided with a plentiful supply of salted 

 ones, which will be found much more deadly than 

 the best imitations that ever were made. As min- 

 nows shrivel up considerably when salted, a size 

 larger should be selected for this purpose than those 

 intended to be used fresh. If meant to be used 

 within four or five days, they should be put in the 

 strongest pickle, and they will be almost as good as 

 fresh ; but if not used in a few days, they become 

 soft and quite useless. For keeping they should be 

 placed in a jar, with layers of salt between them, 

 and the brine poured off as it accumulates. 



The great objections to salted minnows are, that 

 they dry into mere skins, so that it is exceedingly 

 difficult to get them to spin properly ; and that they 

 are very tender, requiring great care in using, and 

 even with the greatest care they will not last long ; 

 and the angler, if possible, should always be pro- 

 vided with a plentiful supply of live ones, as they 

 are undoubtedly the best. For containing them 

 when angling there is nothing better than an oblong 

 tin box (the invention of a very ingenious angler, 

 the late Mr. Darling of Edinburgh), which can be 

 strapped rpund the waist, and is so constructed that 

 the shaking of the box does not spill the water. 

 Five or six dozen minnows may be kept alive in 

 one of them for a whole day by changing the water 



