29 



( ' 



As I said before, wterever your ground bait goes you mast fish, 

 else you will nave no success. I will explain my plan of ground 

 baiting. I select a likely place, and then ascertain the proper 

 depth, taking care not to be deceived by anything foul on the 

 bottom, such as sticks, large stones, or branches of weed, by 

 trying above or below to avoid such rubbish, and having got a 

 level bottom I throw in a quantity of ground bait — but not 

 sufficient to satisfy all the fish in the neighbourhood, as I have 

 often seen done, and which results in the fish refusing to bite 

 the bait on the hook, — and I calculate how far it will swim be- 

 fore reaching the bottom. If this does not take efiect 1 throw 

 in a little more higher up or lower down, closer in or farther 

 out, as I think most desirable. If this takes effect, I stick 

 to the spot, throwing in but a little of the ground bait at a 

 time, but doing so often. Then your want of success 

 may have arisen from your not fishing the right depth ; probably 

 your float keeps going down in one particular place, and you, 

 believing it to' be the bottom, alter your float, whereas it has 

 only been a large stone, or a lump of something standing under 

 the water, so that, having altered your float, your bait may per- 

 haps be a foot and a half from the bottom. It is impossible to 

 have good sport unless you keep an eye on the bottom as well 

 as on the top. 



Tou may Worm fish for Trout when there is a rise in the 

 water, and it is discoloured, and get better sport than in clear 

 water, but you must then fish in the shallows. "When the 

 water rises Trout leave the deeps and take to the shallows. 

 Where you can find two or three feet of water, with a gravelly 

 bottom, you will most likely find Trout. Fish in the manner 

 I have already described, but you can keep nearer the fish as 

 they will be less likely to see you when the water is dis- 

 coloured, and you can catch them quicker and better than you 

 eould having a long swim. 



