LINE FISHING. 85 



generally carried on within a few miles of the shore. 

 On many parts of the coast of Scotland, however, the 

 larger boats used for drift-fishing, and now mostly 

 decked, are also employed in the proper season for 

 line-fishing. It should also be mentioned, as showing 

 the different customs of fishermen on different parts of 

 the coast, that while the Grimsby "cod-men" keep 

 their smacks before the wind when shooting their lines, 

 and beat up against the wind when hauling them in, 

 the fishermen from Eyemouth, and, I believe, also 

 from the immediate neighbourhood of the Firth of 

 Forth, if not elsewhere, do precisely the reverse, and 

 always keep their boats before the wind when hauling 

 in the lines. 



There is one peculiar method of line-fishing about 

 which I may say a few words. It is called " dandy- 

 line fishing," and in principle is much the same as that 

 with the " paternoster," well known in fresh waters . 

 but the line is mounted in a somewhat different man- 

 ner. The line has a leaden sinker or plummet (B) of 

 about four pounds' weight at one end, and above it, at 

 intervals of eight inches, the line is fastened by an 

 ordinary clove-hitch (c) to the centre of pieces of 

 whalebone or stout wire nine inches long, having at 

 each end a very short line terminating with a bright 

 tinned hook. Eight or ten of these spreaders are thus 

 fastened at right angles to the line (A), and the whole 

 apparatus is lowered into the water and gently moved 

 up and down, the distance to which it is sunk depend- 

 ing on where the herrings are supposed to be most 

 numerous at the time, it may be but little below the 



