"Ifn these flowery meads would be, So wrote honest old Isaack Walton, and so thinks every urchin who, on some long-wished-for holiday, sports his rude fishing-tackle, albeit, of his own con triving, and wends his way to where "The murmuring brooklet tells its babbling tale, pondering in his mind the havoc he is prepared to make amongst the finny tribe. The most sparkling visions of success, however, often end in bitter disap-. pointment, and the young, unskilled angler has frequently to experience a tolerable share of vexa-. tions; now watching the gaily painted float as it rides gently upon the rippling surface of the water, obedient to all its impulses, without having the satisfaction of seeing it disappear for an instant; now observing risings in all parts of the stream, but where the bait holds out its delusive temptation; now be-. ing warmed through by the sun, and anon as comfortably cooled by a smart shower of rain, he waits→→→ a complete personification of patience-until his few brief hours of relaxation have almost waned away; yet even this accumulated load of petty miseries disappear when a throw proves successful, and the pleasure attending it wonderfully enhances the beautiful shape and silvery colours of the prize. —-090. TACKLE FOR ANGLING. RODS. The rod being the staff upon which the angler's sport depends, we shall proceed to give some particulars respecting the choice and manufacture of that essential article. The rod should, when put together, taper gradually from the butt end to the top, and be perfectly straight and even. For general purposes, a rod of about twelve feet in length is the most convenient; but in wide rivers, fifteen and eighteen feet rods are sometimes required. A bamboo rod with several tops of different degrees of strength, is exceeding well adapted for general purposes, and a cane rod surpasses every other for fine fishing. If the young angler, wishes to turn rod manu-. facturer, he may use ash for the butts, and lancewood for the tops, and so make extremely good two piece rods; or crab tree for the stocks, with hazel or yew switches for the tops. A whalebone top is an extremely good, although not an indispensable article; it should have a strong loop of horse-hair whipt on it. It is a good plan to have a rod for each kind of fishing, as by such an arrangement they can be kept in complete order, and ready for immediate service. The rods should be ringed to guide the line from the reel. -000 LINES. The best and most serviceable lines are those made of horse-hair, for such as are composed of hair and silk, from retaining the water, soon become rotten. Good lines should be perfectly twisted, round, and even, without any little irregularities, and in point of colour those which are of a light grey, or brown, or white, are perhaps the most useful; some anglers, however, prefer a light serrel tint. The bottom, or casting line for fly fishing, which is affixed to the line on the reel, must be of gut, at the top, and very fine at the dropper, or bottom, and before any flies are made upon it, it should be picked and tried to see that it is of an uniform thickness throughout. It is never worth a lad's while to attempt manufacturing fishing lines, as they may always be purchased more neatly fabricated, and even at a much cheaper rate than he could possibly contrive to make them. When fastening the line on the rod, the loop of the line should be passed through the ring at the end of the top joint, carried over the ferrule, and then drawn up to the top again, by which plan the loop will be secured. FLOATS. Floats can always be procured ready-made, of all sizes and every variety of shape. For small fish and slow streams, porcupine, swan, goose, or Muscovy duck quill floats, will be found the best; and in strong and rapid rivers, or for the larger kinds of fish, cork floats must be used. If the young angler prefers exercising his own ability in making cork floats, to purchasing them ready made, he must procure a piece of extremely fine-grained sound cork, and bore a hole through it with a small red-hot iron, then put in a quill which will exactly fit the aperture, and afterwards cut the cork into the shape of a pear. When this is finished, he must grind it smooth with pumice-stone, and paint and varnish it. As it is essentially requisite that the float should swim perpendicularly in the water, that it may betray the slightest nibble, it must be carefully poised by fastening a few shot on the line. -XX WINCHES. A winch is one of the most useful additions to your angling apparatus which you can procure. With its assistance you may reach parts of a river you could not otherwise attempt. -00 HOOKS. Of hooks there are four knds, the Limerick, the Kendal, the Kirby, and the Sneckbend; which fashion or shape is the best, is a question very difficult to settle, as almost every angler has a predilection in favour of one sort, to the prejudice of all the others. --00 BAITS. The ash-grub is found in the rotten bark of a tree which has been felled some time; it is an excellent bait for grayling, chub, dace, or roach, and may be used all the year round. It should be kept in wheat bran. The brandling, or gilt-tail, is found in old dunghills, tanner's bark, rotten earth, and cows' dung. It is an admirable bait for perch, tench, bream, gudgeon, and indeed for almost any kind of fish. The cabbage worm is a good bait for chub, dace, roach, or trout. The caterpillar also is employed for the same fish as the cabbage worm. The locality of the crab-tree worm is indicated by its name. It is a good bait for roach, dace, trout, and chub. Flag or dock worms inhabit the fibres of flag roots in old pits or ponds. They are excellent baits for tench, bream, bleak, grayling, carp, perch, dace, and roach. Gentles, or maggots, are bred by hanging up a piece of meat until it putrefies; they should be kept on flesh, and when they have arrived at their full size, a little bran and damp sand may be put in the vessel in which they are immured, for the purpose of scouring them; they will be fit for use in a day or two, and are tempting bait for all kinds of fish. When putting a gentle on the hook, you must insert the hook at one end of it, and bring it out at the other, and then draw the gentle back until it completely covers the point of the hook, The meadow or marsh worm is found in marshy places or on the banks of rivers. Oak worms may be gathered on the leaves of the oak tree. Palmer worms, or cankers, are found on herbs plants, and trees. The tag-tail may be procured in meadows or. |