55 



which I found to be aa much as I could carry, and I went home 

 quite satisfied with my three hours' fishing. Some Barbel 

 fishers who may read this may say that if I had given them two 

 hundred worms at first, and followed it up in twenty minutes 

 with as many more, I would have killed all my fish in the first 

 hour, and saved a deal of trouble besides, which I readily admit, 

 but I did not know that there had been about two or thi ee 

 hundred Eoach, Dace, and Chub swimming five or six feet from 

 the surface, and eating up the worms as I threw them in, not 

 blowing a bit to go to the bottom. Had I known this, by 

 throwing in a good dose at first, and following it up with another, 

 I should have satisfied the small fry, and the Barbel would have 

 come on to bite thick and fast. But, as I said before, it is im- 

 possible to know what is going on under the water. If we could 

 see everything from the surface to the bottom, then angling 

 would become very simple ; but as we cannot see what we would 

 wish to see, we must try and do the best we can. And as such 

 swims as this I have described are few and far between, I 

 would recommend the Barbel fisher to adopt the plan I have 

 already mentioned, and I am satisfied he will not be doing wrong 

 if he will abide by it, namely, by throwing in a few worms when 

 commencing, and finishing by casting in as many as he likes. 

 Some Barbel fishers have a very bad system of ground baiting 

 the place while fishing. They get the fish on the bite, and every 

 fish they kill, in goes a lot more ground bait. " My word," they 

 say, and I have heard them say it, " they are biting first-rate 

 this morning ; give them some more worms — let us keep them 

 together — we have plenty of worms, don't spare them — there is 

 any quantity of fish here, and large ones too — give them plenty, 

 I am sure they can do with it." And this game they repeat 

 every fish they catch. O, you Neddies ! don't you know what 

 you are doing ? Does not common sense teach you that each 

 fish can only eat a certain quantity, and by throwing the worms 

 in to them as you do, you satisfy five fish for the day for every 

 one you kill. Tou spoil your sport by the very means you took 

 to preserve it; for in an hour you have perhaps filled the stomach 



