272 



RECREATION 



f!mmmmim~. 



FIG. I. 



from you, and draw it tight. Repeat this 

 tie for the sake of security, and you have a 

 neat knot known as two half hitches, which 

 will never get loose. Now snip off the end 

 of silk close to the knot and finally varnish 

 the binding, let it dry at least twelve hours 

 in a warm place, or in the full rays of the 

 sun. 



HOW TO ATTACH THE EYED HOOK. 



The hook termed the "Pennell" has an eye 

 turned down modestly or turned up boldly* 

 according to the make of the hook These 



fig. 2. 



hooks do not need snelling with silk and 

 wax, but when the gut is softened by the 

 water bath, a snell is taken and passed 

 through the eye of the hook and thence 

 round the shank and through the loop, made 

 as shown in Fig. 2. This is a very conven- 

 ient improvement in hooks, and when the 

 gut is worn out near the hook it can be cut 

 off and retied without difficulty. Of course 

 the knot in Fig. 2 must be pulled tight and 

 the free end snipped. This knot will never 

 draw out. 



A HOOK THAT WILL HOLD. 



Take a hook of fairly large size — say No. 

 4 — and snell it as directed. Now endeavor 



fig. 3. 



to get from your watchmaker all the little 

 springs that are broken in his business and 

 which as a repairer he replaces with new 

 springs. Carefully, with a pair of tweezers, 

 break off a piece long enough to tie as shown, 

 Fig. 3, and you now have a hook which 

 will catch and hold a fish at least 20 per cent, 

 better than the ordinary make of hook. This 

 hook, of course, is only to be made for pick- 

 erel or bass fishing. It cannot be made in 

 small sizes, but is an excellent device to re- 

 tain a large fish on the hook. 



XEl£l-N& tlSH ALIVE* 



Editor Recreation^ 



It fa seldom that 'the dweller in the city is 

 So fortunate &s to eat fresh fish. While the fish 

 may fto't be actually stale, yet they have been 

 kfept on ice, with the result that the i&i 

 flavor which is so seductive te till palate' oi 

 the epicure is, conspicuous by its absence-. 

 Even at the seailior^, the fish that are served 

 at the hotel tables have sometimes been ©ul 

 of their, natural 'element iomfer thari &ft 

 guest suspects-. It is aft open .secret that., a. 

 great portion— k WbmM be safe to say the 

 greater 'portion— of 'the fish supply of Atlan- 

 tic C^ty.anxi other large Watering places is 

 shipped from cities rhdre or less distant. This 

 is tinaVoidabie', as $o\ enough of the pisca- 

 torial ifoo'd fean be obtained from the waters 

 contiguous to the seaside resorts to supply 

 tft% tables of the hotels when the great 

 throngs of summer visitors invade those 

 places. 



It is well known to fishermen that th@ 

 smacks which are engaged jn the busing 

 keep their catch alive tmtil they reach their 

 market— notably New York, which is one of 

 the greatest fish markets in the world. Their 

 method" of doing this is by having a well in 

 the vessel, into which the fish — codfish in 

 winter and sea bass in summer — are thrown 

 as fast as they are caught. This well is an 

 oblong space with a capacity for holding §§¥= 

 eral thousand fish» and Is located flg&fiy 

 amidships. It reaches to the bottbni of the* 

 vessel, through which numbers of holes are 1 

 bored which give access to the sea water. By 

 this means a constant circulation of pure 

 water is kept up, and no matter how long the 

 cruise lasts the fish are alive when the ves- 

 sel arrives at her destination. 



At the seashore it is often the custom to 

 keep fish alive in a "car," as it is called. This 

 is a sort of a box of any size required, but 

 instead of being tight, the bottom and sides 

 are formed of narrow strips of wood nailed 

 on about an inch apart. In the top, secured 

 by a lid, is a square opening into which the 

 fish are thrown when caught, and out of 

 which they are scooped with a net when 

 wanted. This contrivance is anchored where 

 there is a depth of at least two. feet at low 

 water. 



Sea bass, blackfish and sheepshead are the 

 principal kinds of fish kept alive in this man- 

 ner. These fish always frequent the bottom, 

 and are naturally very quiet. After weeks, 

 and even months of captivity, they are in as 

 good condition as when caught. Weakfish 

 and bluefish, on the contrary, which seek 

 their prey nearer the surface and are nearly 

 always in motion, when confined, will soon 

 show the effect of their imprisonment ; their 

 bodies will become chafed and scarred and 

 they will eventually die in the car, 



