AND HOW TO CATCH THEM. 43 



white ; scarlet ibis and white gull's feathers are good 

 for the purpose. Place one duckshot about four 

 inches from the fly to take it just below the surface, 

 where the herring will take best, and troll with it, so 

 to speak. Boat fishing is by far the most successfully 

 practised where four or five rods may be easily used, 

 taking care that the lines are just a trifle shorter than 

 the rods, which may be about twelve or thirteen feet 

 long, and made of spliced hazel wands, well seasoned. 

 The butt ends should be sharpened, to admit of their 

 being thrust into a long compactly-made faggot of 

 twigs or reeds, which should be fastened under each 

 thwart of the boat ; the rods are thus always at hand, 

 and are not liable to be lost overboard, as sometimes 

 three or four fish are on at a time. No reel is required, 

 but a loop of strong line spliced to the top is used to 

 loop the line to ; two feet of strong gut casting line 

 will be sufficient, and no shot used, merely allowing 

 the flies to float with the current. 



The evening is the best time for this fishing. 

 Herring are also to be taken in some places by 

 fishing with small pieces of mud- worm from rocks and 

 piers, exactly as in fishing for Atherine. Such of my 

 readers as may visit the JS"orth American coast will 

 find most excellent herring fishing, if they like to 

 pursue it. 



