CHAP. XI.] THE THIRD DAY. 439 



it; and no more than one small pellet of shot for, your 

 plumb ; your hook little : your worms of the smaller brand- 

 lings, very well scoured ; and only one upon your hook at a 

 time, which is thus to be baited : the point of your hook is 

 to be put in at the very tag of his tail, and run up his body 

 quite over all the arming, and still stripped on an inch at 

 least upon the hair ; the head and remaining part hanging 

 downward. And with this line and hook, thus baited, you 

 are evermore to angle in the streams ; always in a clear, 

 rather than a troubled, water, and always up the river, still 

 casting out your worm before you with a light one-handed 

 rod, like an artificial fly ; where* it will be taken, sometimes 

 at the top, or within a very little of the superficies of the 

 water, and almost always before that light plumb can 

 sink it to the bottom ; both by reason of the stream, and 

 also that you must always keep your worm in motion by 

 drawing still back towards you, as if you were angling 

 with a fly. 1 And believe me, whoever will try it, shall find 

 this the best way of all other to angle with a worm, in 

 a bright water especially : but then his rod must be very 

 light and pliant, and very true and finely made ; which, 

 with a skilful hand, will do wonders, and in a clear stream 

 is undoubtedly the best way of angling for a trout or 

 grayling, with a worm, by many degrees, that any man 

 can make choice of, and of most ease and delight to the 

 angler. To which let me add, that if the angler be of a 

 constitution that will suffer him to wade, and will slip 

 into the tail of a shallow stream, to the calf of the leg or 

 the knee, and so keep off the bank, he shall almost take 

 what fish he pleases. 



The second way of angling at the bottom is with a cork or 

 float. And that is also of two sorts : with a worm, or with 

 a grub or cadis. 



With a worm, you are to have your line within a foot, or 

 a foot and a half, as long as your rod, in a dark water with 

 two, or, if you will, with three : but in a clear water never 

 with above one hair next the hook, and two or three for 



1 Col. Venables commends this way of night-fishing for a trout, but 

 with two great garden worms, baited to hang at as even lengths together 

 as you can. ED. 



