PERCH. 
35 
(Sw. leker = plays) in a manner impossible to describe 
exactly, in order to give the hook a certain motion 
which entices the Perch to bite. When a fish bites, 
it is landed by winding in the line between the ice- 
shovel and the rod, the former being held in the fisher- 
man's right hand and the latter in his left. To bait 
the hook he makes use of a bit of bacon 
as large as a pea, or the eye of a Perch 
just caught; the hook may also be a so- 
called ‘bright hook’ (Sw. blankkrok ) and 
without any bait at all. This hook 
should be of the right shape, and must 
be kept bright. The fisherman looks 
Fig. 9. ‘Bright hook’. for the in the following way: he 
tries a hole here and there, each hole 
being from 10 to 13 yards away from the others, until 
he finds one or more fish in a hole. Then he begins 
to try holes close to the same spot, sometimes not more 
than two yards apart. We may see how little the Perch 
moves about at this season, from the fact that the fisher- 
man often takes several in one hole, but does not get 
a single bite in another close by. 
The ‘slinging rod' ( stimspo ) may lie employed with 
a fair amount of success. This must be in summer, 
however, the season when the Perch collects in shoals; 
and the best time of day is from 6 p. m. till sunset. 
The day should lie calm and warm. The angler must 
have a boatman with him, and should be rowed out to 
the reefs in the bights of the lake where the Perch 
has taken up its abode. When the shoal approaches, 
the hook should be cast and trailed along the surface 
of the water. The boatman should be skilful enough 
to steer the coble after the shoal without any noise or 
splashing. The bait should consist of a, bit of dried eel-skin 
(Sw. stimlapp) cut in the shape of a bleak or a smelt, or 
a triangular strip of skin cut from the belly of a Perch. 
Another mode of fishing is practised in some places. 
The tackle employed is known as 
‘striking hook' (Sw. Jwggkrok , fig. 10). 
The autumn, beginning at the middle 
or the end of August, is the only 
season for this fishing, and the spot 
selected should be in shallow water, 
or near shore and close to the edge 
of the reeds, where the water is fairly 
deep. The tackle used consists of a 
piece of lead about 3 inches long and shaped like a fish, 
on each side of which is a large steel hook. The angler 
Fig. 10. ‘Striking hook’. 
should be alone in his boat, and when he lias reached 
the place where he intends to fish, he keeps the boat 
still by plying his oars in a certain way: he holds them 
with his left hand, while with his right he drops the 
hook to the bottom and quickly jerks it up again as 
soon as it has sunk. The Perch, mistaking the piece 
of lead for a real fish, darts forward to seize it and is 
caught on the point of one of the steel hooks. As soon 
as the fisherman feels that he has struck a Perch, he 
must drop his oars without a, moment’s delay and draw 
up the fish into the boat. He should never slacken the 
line, for then the fish may easily slip off the hook. 
Another mode of fishing, suggested by the voracity 
and greediness of the Perch, is the night-line (Sw. Idng- 
ref— long line). The season for this is the same as 
that for angling. When setting the line, one should 
remember that if it is to be set only for Perch, it ought 
not to be placed in deep water, but nearer shore, around 
rocks or shoals, etc. Small fry or lobworms are used 
as bait, and in baiting the hooks one should follow the 
advice already given under the head of angling. The 
line should not be set before sunset, so that the bait 
may not be eaten by small fishes, which swim about in 
the water during the daytime. It should not be left 
unexamined until late in the day, for in that case a 
number of fish manage to escape, and others die and 
thus lose flavour. In order to facilitate the setting of 
the line, when dead bait is used, a box (Sw. refldda ) 
is employed, in which the line is placed ready for setting 
and measured in fathoms. Every three or four fathoms 
a loop with a hook ready baited attached to it is 
fastened to the line. The upper edge of the box has a 
number of notches cut in it, into which the hooks are 
inserted. When the line is to be examined, it is only 
lifted up from the bottom of the water, the hooks, from 
which the bait has been taken, are baited afresh, and 
those on which a fish is found, are unfastened and other 
hooks set in their place. When the line is taken up, 
it is coiled in the box and the hooks are placed in the 
notches. When the line is examined or taken up, the 
fisherman must have a small landing-net ready, in which 
to lift the fish out of the water and get them into the 
boat. Some persons use a gaff for this purpose, which 
they strike into the belly or gills of the fish, and 
then lift it out of the water. This method is, however, 
not so sure as the former. The line must be examined 
daily, and ought not to be left in the water more than 
three or four days without being taken up and dried. 
