THE THIRD DAY. 



(Continued.) 



CHAPTER XII. 



OF ANGLING IN THE MIDDLE FOR TROUT OR GRAYLING. 



Pise. Angling in the middle, then, for trout or grayling, 

 is of two sorts ; with a penk or minnow for a trout ; or with 

 a worm, grub, or cadis, for a grayling. 



For the first ; it is with a minnow, half a foot, or a foot, 

 within the superficies of the water. And as to the rest that 

 concerns this sort of angling, I shall wholly refer you to , 

 Mr. Walton's direction, 1 who is undoubtedly the best angler 

 with a minnow in England : only in plain truth I do not 

 approve of those baits he keeps in salt,- unless where the 

 living-ones are not possibly to be had (though I know he 

 frequently kills with them, and, peradventure more than 

 with any other, nay, I have seen him refuse a living one for 

 one of them) and much less of his artificial one ; 3 for 

 though we do it with a counterfeit-fly, methinks it should 

 hardly be expected that a man should deceive a fish with a 

 counterfeit-fish. 4 "Which having said, I shall only add, and 

 that out of my own experience, that I do believe a bull- 

 head, with his gill-fins cut off (at some times of the year 

 especially) to be a much better bait for a trout, than a 

 minnow, and a loach much better than that : to prove which 



1 See Part I. Chap. V. page 135. 



2 76. page 136. 3 /&. page 137. 



4 Artificial fish are now so well made, that in spinning they are by many 

 preferred, especially in slightly discoloured water. They spin better, and 

 will take a great many fish before they are injured, which is a great con- 

 venience. KD. 



