The sea, estuaries, rivers, lakes, brooks, and ponds often yield an acceptable supply of food to the explorer, who usually adopts the most effective means of securing his prey, without troubling his head much as to whether the mode of capture is strictly sportsmanlike or not. The inhabitants of little known waters are not, as a rule, particularly shy in taking a bait; but some investigation will at times be needed to discover what description of fish are procurable before a successful plan for capturing them can be put in force. Sea fish are generally to be taken with small fish, pieces of fish, fish entrails; shellfish, such as mussels, clams, limpets, cockles, &c.; small strips of salt pork rind, the lug worms from the sand, and the rag worms from beneath stones and drift wood. Artificial baits, too, are often used with much advantage. The bowl of a common pewter spoon, mounted with a pair or three strong hooks, tied back to back, is an extremely killing lure for most predatory fish in both fresh and salt water. To mount and prepare one of these, it will be requisite to cut off the handle of the spoon close to the bowl. Drill a small hole just inside the point from which the stem has been taken off, and another at the small end. Loop through the hole at the large end a piece of strong fine line, about 4ft. long, and to this attach a swivel; then loop on 3ft. more line of the same description to the first swivel, and to the end of this attach a second swivel. A loop fastened to the end ring of this serves to attach the trace and spoon to the main line by. Gut or gimp may be used, instead of ordinary line, when it is desirable to fish “fine.” The hooks, either in the form of a “triangle” or simple pair, must be of size proportioned to the description of fish they are intended to catch; and, when securely attached to a 3-in. piece of very strong double gut, should be fastened to the hole in the small end of the spoon. When used with a rod the spoon is spun with, after the manner of any other spinning bait; but when used from a boat or canoe a lead of sufficient weight must be attached to the trace, in order to keep it some considerable distance below the surface, when, as the boat is urged onwards, its rapid revolutions and glittering, flickering play prove most fatally attractive. Many of the pearl-shell baits used by the South Sea Islanders are much the same in principle, only that the hooks they use are usually of shell, wood, or bone.
Boneta and albecore are at times taken in considerable numbers by making use of a rude imitation of the flying fish; and the form of this contrivance (represented at Fig. 4 in the accompanying illustration) will show that one need not despair of catching fish because he has no fish hook. Makeshift hooks. A piece of oak or other hard wood, about 7in. long, is procured. This is cut slightly tapering towards the tail, like the body of a fish. About 1in. from the tail a hole is bored, and through this a strong sharp nail, such as carpenters use, is driven obliquely. A few turns of twine round the wood and nail serve to prevent shifting or splitting. The “head” end of the stick has a notch cut round it to fasten the line to, and secure a couple of strips of white rag in, so that the free ends may represent the wings or fins of the fish. This affair, when finished and attached to a strong line, is cast into the sea, and kept leaping from wave to wave, when it is greedily seized by the pursuing boneta or albecore, who discovers when too late that, instead of securing a rich and palatable flying fish, he has swallowed a nail instead. The Esquimaux make an excellent substitute for a fish hook by scraping a strip of whalebone round and fine, and then binding on a piece of hard, finely-pointed bone at an acute angle, with a strip of sinew or split ground willow, as shown at Fig. 3. A sail needle may be made to do duty for a hook by attaching it to the line, as shown at Fig. 2.
The albatross can be conveniently taken when following a ship at sea by the use of a baited sailmaker’s hook. The point holds in the curved portion of the bird’s beak, whilst the swivel at its looped end prevents the line from twisting and becoming entangled. Fig. 1, p. 586, represents the manner in which this hook is formed.
The shanks of horse-nails make very good fish hooks. These, when filed down to the proper thickness, must be laid, one by one, in a narrow groove made in a piece of hard wood, and the barb struck up with a chisel or the sloped edge of a knife. One smart, well-directed blow on the instrument usually effects this. The point is now to be filed up sharp, the wire gently heated in the fire, and twisted with pliers—or, in the absence of these, a split stick—into proper hook form, when it is to be subjected to the case-hardening process. (See “[Case-hardening].”) Hooks of any size may be made in this way, merely taking care to use good tough iron for the purpose.
Stout, large-sized needles may be used straight for the capture of eels and some other kinds of fish. When so used, the line is firmly secured by waxed thread or silk to the centre of the needle, which is baited by drawing a large worm or other bait over both needle and line, which, when so prepared, lie in a line with each other. On the fish swallowing the bait and the line being drawn tight, the needle at once becomes fixed across the throat, and thus holds the captive until dragged to the shore. The needle is then easily withdrawn by pressing back one end with a bit of stick.
Tackle, to select.