Baits:

Pastes, Unguents, &c. and Directions for using them.

In addition to the baits mentioned in the notes, p. 23, and following, old experienced Anglers have made trial of various other compounds, as incentives to decoy the different kinds of fishes, which they pretend to be very successful. It seems, indeed, to be a fact, that, either from the insipidity of the element in which they exist, or of their usual food, fishes are fond of baits pleasing to the eye, strong in the scent, and savoury to the palate. The following unguents have therefore been recommended, either to anoint the baits, or to enter into the composition itself, which latter seems by far the best mode, as less liable to be washed off by the water.

Oil of Ivy-berries, obtained either by expression or infusion; balsam of Ivy, procured by incision into the trunk or lower branches of the Ivy tree; assa

fœtida; camphor; turpentine; spirits of vitriol; oils of lavender, anise, amber, rosemary, spike, myrrh, pennyroyal, comfrey, &c. &c.

Some Anglers recommend to anoint the baits with either of the above articles, or with a mixture of two or more of them;-others to anoint only a foot or two of the line next the bait: and others only to put a few drops into the box along with the baits, which by remaining there an hour before using, imbibe the scent sufficiently. The fact is, the first mode appears to be best with pastes; the second for flies; and the last for gentles, worms, &c.

Various matters are made use of in the composition of different pastes; such as, the boiled flesh of rabbit, fowl, turkey, veal, or any other white meat; sheeps suet and blood, old cheese, virgin-wax, rennet, white bread, dough, saffron, rusty bacon, &c. formed into a proper consistence, with honey, treacle, tar, or any other glutinous substance. No two Anglers, however, agree in specifying exactly the same articles in any of the numerous receipts handed down to us. They appear to use them indifferently, and each individual to be partial to that which he finds to succeed the best. Indeed, when it is considered that the same baits will not take in different

rivers, nor even in the same river at different seasons and changes of weather, it must be concluded that practice can be the only guide, and a change of bait, the best, and surest road to success. But for the more ready instruction of the unpractised learner, we give the following detail as the most approved compositions used by experienced Anglers for the different species of fishes.

BARBEL.

The lob-worm (well scoured); gentles (not so much scoured as to deprive them of their green colour); cheese, wrapped in a wet cloth to make it white and tough, and rubbed with honey, an hour or two before using; sheep's tallow and soft cheese beaten into a paste; a bit of rusty bacon. Fish at ground. See note (i) pp. 45 and 46, for general directions.

BREAM.

A paste made of brown bread and honey; gentles, dock worms: a large red worm, well scoured for three weeks or a month; green flies and butterflies es;

grasshoppers, deprived of legs; sheep's blood, hardened before the fire. Fish near the bottom; and keep as still and much out of sight as possible. See note (g) pp. 43, 44, 45, for general directions.

This species delights in sweet baits: wherefore, whether you use gentles, worms, or paste, the two former should be rubbed with honey, and the latter never fail to have honey, or sugar, in their composition. The best kind of paste is made of the whitest boiled meat shred very fine, the finest flour (bean flour is the best) beaten together with honey or sugar, to render it tough enough to hang on the hook; or for better security, mix a little white or yellow wool (according to the colour of the paste) a precaution that should be observed in all pastes to prevent their being washed off the hooks. See note (d) pages 104-5, for general directions.

CHUB OR CHEVEN.

The best baits for this fish are a grasshopper, a beetle, or any large fly. In March and April, it may

be caught with a large red-worm; in June and July with flies, snails and cherries; in August and September, the proper bait is good cheese worked up with a little butter; some add rusty bacon, and others say the bacon alone will do. He prefers a large bait, and two or three kinds at once on the hook. Minnows, roach, and eels, cut small, ox brains, and the pith of the back, are also recommended in proper seasons. 'The Chub bites in summer from sun-rise till nine in the morning; and from three in the afternoon till sun-set. The following are the best directions for Chub-fishing fish at top, and mid water in warm weather, and at bottom in cold weather. Your rod must be very strong, and your tackle the same; drop the bait near where you see the fish or suppose it to lie, and if he do not see the angler he seldom fails to bite; he is so strong a very fish that he must be played some time after he is struck, or the tackle will be in danger, and it will be prudent to use a landing net. The Chub usually lies in holes

Where directions are not contained in the notes for angling for any particular fish, lest they might be rendered too bulky for the text, they will be added in the Appendix, to render this work as general and useful as possible.