BUSTARD FISHING AND MINNOW SPINNING. 45 



The tying may appear as a disadvantage in the minds of 

 some anglers, who object to any delay on the river's bank, 

 but if about 30 strands of ordinary black sewing thread are 

 cut to about 5 inches in length, and laid lengthwise, and 

 then bound in a faggot with paper and thread, you can 

 draw out a strand as you require it without any trouble. 



In spinning a minnow in a falling fresh you may fish 

 almost anywhere, but particularly near the edges of streams 

 and dubs, and about old walls and other places where trout 

 are likely to take shelter. You will find it an excellent 

 plan to make a long throw into the river a little above 

 you, and then drag your minnow quickly straight across 

 the river towards you. You need not be afraid of over- 

 doing it in speed if you are careful not to bring your bait 

 out of the water. Trout are all lying with their heads 

 up stream in from two to three feet of water, and no ex- 

 planation is necessary to show that a brilliant bait rushing 

 across the river is likely to be visible to more trout than 

 one rushing past them from before or behind ; and you 

 will miss fewer fish in this way, because in spinning a 

 minnow up or down you are commonly dragging it away 

 from a fish ; in spinning it across you maintain it upon a 

 tolerably straight line which a fish is much more likely to 

 strike. So in clear-water fishing, drag your bait across the 

 water if the size of the river will admit it, and fish the 

 roughest streams. Fish all about the edges of eddies 

 and streams ; and in very thin water upon flats throw 

 obliquely up stream and drag your bait quickly round 

 almost to your feet. Give a trout which strikes a spinning 

 minnow and the same rule will apply to every other case 

 in which a fish takes a natural bait a couple of seconds 

 before you strike him. It may be worth while to mention 

 that a trout will take a loach or a small bull-head quite as 

 well as a minnow ; and in fishing either of these fish, there 



