FISHING FROM PIERS AND HARBOURS. 137 
rocks a mile or so from shore, where the fish 
average a pound, the undersized specimens that 
furnish the greater part of the catch from piers are 
hardly such as should entice the more practised 
angler. Those who wish to secure a large bag of 
pout should use a light rod, gut paternoster with 
four hooks, mussel or peeled shrimp, either raw or 
boiled, for bait, and a ground bait of crushed 
mussels, shells and all, the latter being lowered 
in a net, which may be tethered close to the fisher- 
man. A light lead, just sufficient to keep the 
bottom (2 oz. should suffice, but it depends on the 
tide running at the timc), is used, and should be 
allowed to rest on the bottom, the rod top being 
very slightly lowered so as to slack the line. If 
there are pout about, and particularly if the tide is 
rising—an hour after low water is about the best 
time to start fishing—bites should soon come, the 
whole secret of success lying in striking quickly 
enough. You should stand with the rod in your 
left hand, the fingers of the right hand grasping 
the handle of the winch, and your attention so 
concentrated on the motion of the rod-top, the 
twitching of which plainly indicates what is going 
on below, as to strike instinctively during the 
moment of time, literally a second, during which 
the fish is endeavouring to worry the bait off the 
hook. Now and again, this pout-fishing is no bad 
sport, especially as few fish make a better dish 
when properly fried in egg and breadcrumb ; and I 
once took thirty-nine in half an hour, quite half of 
which time must have been occupied in unhooking 
and baiting. When your boat gets over a “splat” 
of pout on the rocks, it is no uncommon feat for 
every one to pull them up three at a time until the 
supply is apparently exhausted. So local is their 
