BILLY BISHOP. 



23 



bobs straight down," said he; "but we won't need 'em 

 here. You see, you want to let your bob down till it 

 touches the bottom and then raise it a couple of inches, 

 for eels they swim near the bottom and hit the bob just 

 right/' 



"But you didn't put any hooks in my bob, Billy ; how 

 can I catch 'em when they bite?" 



His back was to me and he was looking upward. He 

 smacked his lips, put something in his pocket, and said: 

 "I have to take a little sassferiller fer my lungs, the doctor 

 told me. Oh, no! we don't want no hooks; the eels just 

 gets their teeth tangled in the threads and comes up, if 

 you bring 'em easy, then when they are just up to the 

 surface of the water lift 'em quick and gentle inter the 

 boat and they drop off theirselves; but if you jerk 'em 

 they're gone, er ef you hit the side of the boat with 'em 

 they're gone. Drop yer bob over easy, so," and he low- 

 ered his bob in the water without a splash. Soon I felt a 

 jig, jig, very sharp, and said to Billy, "I've got a bite." 

 "Pull up !" said he ; "never let 'em more'n touch it," and he 

 landed an eel in the boat. I tried it, but Billy said I was 

 too quick, for the eel left. He took several before I 

 boated one, for what with jerking the line and slapping 

 them against the side of the boat they dropped back into 

 the water, if they even got fairly started on the way up. 



It was easy after once getting the hang of the thing, 

 and it soon came natural to haul up slowly to the surface 

 and then swing them into the boat. Good fun this is in 

 shallow water, when no better fishing offers, and many a 

 night have I rowed from Albany down the Hudson to 

 Van Wie's Point some six miles below Albany, more or 

 less with a friend or two and spent a pleasant evening, 

 in later years, fishing behind the dyke and just above Van 

 IWie's light, and then rowed back to the city about mid- 



