Outfit The Gaff. 73 



With this arrangement the point is on one side of the 

 shank of the gaff, while the handle rests upon the opposite 

 side. Thus the whole width of the gaff is available, and 

 there is less danger of touching the fish with the staff 

 when placing the gaff in position for use. 



It is usual to make the point-side of the gaff flare away 

 from the shank, on the theory that when the staff is in 

 the usual position, the point will be nearly horizontal and 

 thus pass directly through the fish. This seems to me a 

 mistake. The less the direction of the point departs from 

 the direction of the force applied to drive it home, the 

 more easily and more surely it will penetrate. The mar- 

 gin that intervenes between a saved fish and a lost fish, is 

 often very small. As long as the gaff enters on one side 

 and emerges on the other, embracing the backbone of the 

 fish in its course, whether the two wounds are mathemati- 

 cally equidistant from the upper or lower margin of the 

 fish, would seem quite immaterial. If the gaff is suffici- 

 ently wide across the bend, there is not the slightest need 

 to set the point outward. It serves no useful purpose, 

 while it does make the blow oblique, rather than direct 

 as it should be. 



Again: for the same reason that you would not use a 

 bright-scarlet landing-net for trout, do not use a polished 

 or nickel-plated gaff. The best course is first to rust the 

 steel thoroughly with vinegar and salt, then to dry it and 

 smear it well with oil. After allowing the oil to soften 

 the rust for twenty-four hours, rub it as clean as possible 

 with a rag. This gives the steel the brown color of a 

 gun-barrel, which is as good a color as it can have. 



Nothing makes a better gaff than a tooth from a spring- 

 toothed horse-rake. The taper and size of the wire are 



