THE NOSSIL-COCK. 217 



either with a piece of stick or his finger, prevents the too rapid 

 twisting of the strands. 



The man pulling on the cord ceases immediately he 

 perceives the strands have twisted up as far as the spread of the 

 hooks will allow, but the leads continue to revolve until the 

 momentum is spent, when each man should seize one of the 

 leads and rub the nossil down with a piece of upper leather 

 provided for the purpose. The weight of these leads should 

 be two pounds each. Should the man pulling on the cord not 

 cease doing so when the strands have twisted as far as the 

 spread of the hooks permits, the nossil will at once cut 

 itself in two and its twist become irregular, and therefore 

 useless. Previous to being used, these pieces of line are 

 termed nossils, but after hooks are bent to them they are 

 commonly termed sids or snoods, in the vernacular of Dorset, 

 South Devon, and Cornwall. 



These nossil-cocks are usually a foot long and about six 

 inches in width, and the wood-work about one inch in thickness 

 by two in width. 



When in use, they are commonly fastened to a beam by two 

 three-inch screws through the holes in each end of the frame. 

 For amateurs' use, the little brass jacks, to be bought at most 

 tackle shops, will be found more convenient, as they can be 

 worked single-handed for spinning short snoods or horse-hair 

 lines. I have, however, thought it best not to omit this primitive 

 affair, as it may probably be useful to some emigrant, if this 

 work should perchance fall into such hands. 



In the chief seaports of the kingdom good snooding is to 

 be purchased at so reasonable a price that it is simply absurd 

 to spin it, but where it cannot be obtained the few hints I have 

 given may, .1 hope, be useful, as by following them it may be 

 made out of either shoe-thread or ordinary thread at a short 

 notice. The Shrewsbury thread spun double makes good 

 snooding for Whiting and Pout-fishing on rough ground (Nos. 

 25 and 1 8 25 is the finer). To any intending emigrant taking 

 an interest in fishing I strongly recommend the purchase of a 

 small jack or twisting machine, the cost of which is only a few 

 shillings. 



