54 SEA-FISH. 
break under a little additional strain, and should 
bear all that is likely to be put upon it for at least 
six months of continuous fishing ; a line on which 
the sea-water is allowed to dry day after day may 
snap under a 10 Ib. pollack within a fortnight of its 
first outing. It is quite useless to complain to the 
dealer from whom it was bought; for the mishap 
would be no fault of his. Some friction might, 
however, be saved if the dealers would only re- 
member to warn their customers of the necessity 
of the daily washing and drying ; indeed, the cost 
of printing a label with a few words to that effect 
would be so trifling that sea-lines might well be 
stamped with some such legend when sold. The 
materials recommended for sea-lines are excelled in 
number only by the dressings. I propose leaving both 
to the taste of the purchaser, the only essential con- 
ditions being that the line shall be strong, fine, and 
not given to kinking, that abomination of nine lines 
out of every ten. It is, of course, possible to use a 
much finer line with a rod than when hand-lining ; 
for in the latter method, as practised at least in this 
country, a very fine line would cut the finger-joints. 
Moreover, unless an expert, the hand-liner is very 
likely to get too fine a line snapped by the sudden 
rush of a pollack or large mackerel, which is, to a 
great extent, counterbalanced by the elasticity of 
the top joint of the rod. The hooks figured 
on the opposite page are the average sizes 
in use for the chief fish. 
Having rigged up the rod, reel (the handles of 
Bottom. Which should face the angler’s /-/#, as the 
tackle reel is to be used beneath the rod), and line, 
the next consideration is the particular fine tackle, 
or combination of gimp or gut, hooks and leads ; 
and the remarks which follow may be applied with 
Hooks 
