PIKE, PICKEREL, MUSKELLUNGE, PIKE-PERCH. 163 



employed. A line tested to the pull of forty pounds should 

 be used. An excellent line for this purpose is the No. 21 

 Cutty hunk, or No. 24 of tht same brand, one hundred or 

 more yards long. It should have a steel wire leader with a 

 swivel or two on the end and a spoon bait of most any kind, 

 large and strong. This is simply trailed behind the boat 

 and when a musky strikes he is simply hauled in by main 

 strength. It is productive of fish all right, but lacking in 

 sport when compared with the use of a rod. 



For trolling with a rod, a short heavy bait-catsing rod 

 should be used. A steel bait-casting rod with trolling tip to 

 use in place of the ordinary tip is all right, and the Bristol 

 people make an excellent muskellunge rod, 6 feet, 6 inches 

 long, weighing thirteen ounces. The latter is preferable if 

 you want to try casting, and it is best if fitted with agate 

 lined first guide and tip. The advantage of a steel rod for 

 trolling is that the continued strain does not warp the tip. 

 A large casting reel, the kind used for surf casting, is best. 

 It should hold several hundred yards of line. It should be 

 fitted with a leather brake or handle drag. The line men- 

 tioned above will do for trolling but is no good for casting 

 and if you want to do any of this kind of fishing get a raw 

 braided silk line, tested to a pull of thirty or forty pounds 

 E. J. Martin's Sons make a fine line especially for muskys, 

 tested to stand a strain of forty pounds. The longer your 

 line the better as you can give that much more to the fish if 

 need be and the more nearly full the spool of the reel pro- 

 vided it is not crowded, the better you can reel in a slack 

 line. The same wire swivel and spoon are used as for 

 hand-line fishing. 



Trolling should be done over water from eight to twelve 

 feet deep, and you should not go too fast. The rod should 

 not be stuck out over the side of the boat, as the strain is 

 too severe; it should stand straight out behind. You must 



