apt to get
an ugly bend from such treatment. The rod for trolling need not be
long--12 to 14 feet is quite sufficient--but it must be stiff; and we
consider that the rings through which the line is led ought to be large
and fixed--that is, standing out permanently from the wood, called by
the trade upright rings. A spare top will be supplied along with it. The
REEL should be of the largest description, and may be got as strong as
possible, lightness being no recommendation to one used exclusively for
trolling. The LINE ought to be at least 100 yards long--120 for
choice--and this suffices for any kind of fish. The material best
adapted for trolling is oiled silk-and-hair. There is a kind of line,
made in America, we believe, which is admirably adapted for the purpose.
It is strong as wire-rope, and does not "kink" under any
circumstances--which latter is a consideration, as sometimes a paltry
trout may come on, and you have only to haul him in hand-over-hand
without running the risk of your line getting into a mess. This saves
the trouble and waste of time in reeling up many yards of line every
time a "smout" comes on. The line to which we refer is somewhat
expensive, but will be found to be cheap in the long-run. An ordinary
silk-and-hair line does well enough, but is apt to twist sadly if the
minnow is not spinning properly, besides the trouble it entails after a
day's fishing of laying out two or three score yards for drying. The
troller will require to provide himself with MINNOW TRACES. These do not
require to be more than two yards in length, but in ordering them take
care that the swivels are sufficiently large to insure the
minnow--natural or artificial--spinning nicely. The angler can easily
procure swivels and make traces for himself; but he will find in this,
as in most things connected with fishing, that he cannot compete with
the tackle-maker, so we advise him to get them made up at a good
warehouse. Retail tackle-makers charge long prices, but in most large
towns there are warehouses which are specially suited for a customer
trade, thus saving the user a long intermediate profit. This is as it
should be. The thickness of the gut used for trolling should of course
be regulated, as in fly-fishing, by the size of fish you expect to
catch, and a few traces made of gimp for pike and _ferox_ should always
be in the troller's stock. By the way, and in case we forget to mention
it afterwards, always be provided wi