i8 COARSE FISH. 



rod-top very slightly and let the clay slide a foot 

 or two further away. It is no good throwing far 

 out into the stream and letting the clay lump roll 

 over and over. There is an excellent spot for clay- 

 balling from the bank at Bell Weir, near Staines, 

 and some of the swims in Penton Hook are suitable 

 for this kind of work. Many years ago I saw a 

 fine catch of barbel at Kingston ; the fish were 

 taken by legering from the bank, just over the 

 edges of weeds, so that it is useless to say that 

 barbel can only be taken by punt-fishers, though I 

 have often heard the remark. A triangle is better 

 than a hook for clayballing, it holds more gentles, 

 and the fish see the bait better. The gentles 

 should be hooked on by the skin of the blunt end 

 (of the gentle), and not threaded on. 



Walton says that " none did ever over-bait the 

 Ground- place .... for a barbel." Though it may 

 baiting jjg rank heresy to contradict this, I am not 

 of that opinion. I think judicious baiting always 

 produces the best sport. I have known anglers 

 to bait a pool or weir with 5,000 or more lob- 

 worms, all thrown in during a few minutes, loose 

 or enclosed in clay balls, in places where, by the 

 action of the stream, nearly all the worms remain 

 in the pool ; then to fish some ten or twelve hours 

 afterwards and catch nothing but a few miserably 

 small barbel. The only conclusion I can draw is 

 that the fish were thoroughly sickened and glutted. 

 In places where the lobs can spread and draw the 

 fish up from very long distances, a heavy baiting 

 does good, and sport is almost certain to follow ; 

 but before baiting a swim a little consideration is 

 advisable as to the amount of bait that swim will 

 reasonably take. Special care should be observed 



