lOfi OBSERVATIONS 



BAITS 



Are very numerous, I have recommend- 

 ed those that are natural, and such as fish 

 are accustomed to feed upon, rejecting the 

 amazing farrago, with which many books 

 are crouded; I grant they may catch fish, 

 but the judicious angler will attribute their 

 succefs, more to the resemblance of some 

 natural bait, than any intrinsic merit of 

 their own. Red paste, for instance, is an 

 excellent bait for roach, but it may be taken 

 for a currant or other red berry, or probably 

 for the spawn of salmon. I shall give some 

 instructions for procuring baits, and keep- 

 ing them in a proper state for angling. 



Fish baits must be perfectly sweet and 

 fresh caught; roach, dace, and gudgeons, 

 may be wrapt in a wet linen cloth, and 

 taken to the place you intend to angle in, if 

 not very distant. Minnows must be kept 

 in bran, which dries up the moisture, they 

 will be stiff at first, and consequently not 



