A foot in length, and the same width as the seats round the stern of the boat, will be found the most convenient dimensions for a small boat of fifteen feet length and under, but for a larger craft a tray of eighteen inches in length will be more advantageous-in fact, if three or four are provided, so much the better for cleanliness.

On one side (the right) a sheath for a knife should be nailed, and on the other a second for a sharpening stone.

The tray should be of deal and painted, to prevent the slime penetrating the pores of the wood.

The Fish Basket (fig. 65).-These baskets are of an oblong form, and framed on a stout stick 1 inch in diameter, of unpeeled osiers, and pro

tected on the bottom outside by four or five stout rods or bars projecting beyond the wickerwork; they are known in Guernsey as Paniers à coup,' and are provided with a piece of rope untwisted at its ends, and woven into the sides of the basket, by which it is carried over the left shoulder.

They are the most convenient baskets I

have met with for boat

FIG. 65.

fishing, as they stow well in the side of a boat, are not easily upset, and are withal comfortable to carry, even up a rugged cliff path. I am told that a similar kind of basket or creel is in use in the northern part of the kingdom. For an amateur, they might be made of peeled osiers, and painted straw colour if desired.

A useful size I find to be eighteen inches in length at the bottom and a foot in width, and on the top fifteen inches in length and nine inches in width; depth of the basket, includ

ing the thickness of the back stick, eleven inches in the inside ; length of the back stick, eighteen inches, through which holes are bored to receive the D-shaped rod which forms the edge of the basket, at right angles to which two other holes are bored to receive another rod of similar shape, forming the back of the basket. These baskets are not provided with covers, which are unnecessary for sea-fishing. Price, from 2s. 6d. to 35.

The Nossil-Cock, or Fisherman's Spinner (fig. 66).—This simple little machine has been in use amongst fishermen from time immemorial, for the pur

pose of laying up

FIG. 66.

The Nossil-Cock, or Fisherman's Spinning Machine.

their twine or shoe thread snoodings for Whiting-catching, or those of silk for Mackerel, before gut had come into general adoption. It consists, as here shown, of an oblong frame of ash or other strong wood with four hooked spindles within it, which are made to revolve rapidly by the aid of an endless cord passing through each end of the frame, with a single turn round

each of the spindles. Two nossils or snoods can, as shown in the cut, be spun at one time, but it cannot be used single-handed, as one man is required to pull on the endless cord, whilst the other,

either with a piece of stick or his finger, prevents the too rapid twisting of the strands.

The man pulling on the cord ceases immediately he perceives the strands have twisted up as far as the spread of the hooks will allow, but the leads continue to revolve until the momentum is spent, when each man should seize one of the leads and rub the nossil down with a piece of upper leather provided for the purpose. The weight of these leads should be two pounds each. Should the man pulling on the cord not cease doing so when the strands have twisted as far as the spread of the hooks permits, the nossil will at once cut itself in two and its twist become irregular, and therefore useless. Previous to being used, these pieces of line are termed nossils, but after hooks are bent to them they are commonly termed sids or snoods, in the vernacular of Dorset, South Devon, and Cornwall.

These nossil-cocks are usually a foot long and about six inches in width, and the wood-work about one inch in thickness by two in width.

When in use, they are commonly fastened to a beam by two three-inch screws through the holes in each end of the frame. For amateurs' use, the little brass jacks, to be bought at most tackle shops, will be found more convenient, as they can be worked single-handed for spinning short snoods or horse-hair lines. I have, however, thought it best not to omit this primitive affair, as it may probably be useful to some emigrant, if this work should perchance fall into such hands.

In the chief seaports of the kingdom good snooding is to be purchased at so reasonable a price that it is simply absurd to spin it, but where it cannot be obtained the few hints I have given may, I hope, be useful, as by following them it may be made out of either shoe-thread or ordinary thread at a short notice. The Shrewsbury thread spun double makes good snooding for Whiting and Pout-fishing on rough ground (Nos. 25 and 18-25 is the finer). To any intending emigrant taking an interest in fishing I strongly recommend the purchase of a small jack or twisting machine, the cost of which is only a few shillings.

The finer cotton lines make excellent snoods.

The Lester-Cock Trot.-The Lester-Cock is a piece of board about three feet long, a foot wide, and an inch in thickness, fitted with a mast and sail, which must be stepped onethird from the fore end; this being launched from the beach when the wind is off shore, drags after it the trot or long line with baited hooks at intervals, which will probably be taken by either Bass or Pollack. Best bait, Squid or Cuttle in long strips, or Mud-Worms; also living or dead Sand-Eels. This mode of fishing is much followed by the Greeks.

The Sunken Lester-Cock.-This is useful for ground fish, and is formed of two zinc cylinders eighteen inches in length and two and a half in diameter, connected by two slips of flat wood, about four inches from each end, to the middle of one of which a mast and sail are attached. Each of these cylinders has a small hole on the upper and under side, consequently the whole affair sinks after the cylinders become filled with

water.

These sunken Lester-Cocks are useful for towing out a trot for ground fish, and will sink more rapidly by attaching a bag of sand (if necessary) to overcome the buoyancy of the slips of wood and mast.

The Otter. The otter is a piece of light wood, of say two feet length, one foot depth, and an inch and a half thickness, provided with sufficient weight in the shape of a lead or iron keel to cause it to float perpendicularly, and is used to convey a trot-line seawards, but has this advantage over the two preceding methods, that it can be used without wind, provided you have some little extent of coast or beach available to walk along as you tow the otter.

To use a nautical term, it is slung on the 'sheer' by a double bridle, to which the end of the line is attached.

For an illustration, the reader is referred to the Otter Trawl (fig. 73, p. 240), which is provided with two of these so-called

otters.

A great improvement on the above would be to fasten the line to the end of the otter itself, and afterwards connect it with the bridle with a piece of fine twine; when a fish is hooked

you will by the act of striking the fish break the twine, and the strain coming on the end of the otter you will easily haul it on shore.

The Lester-Cocks and Otter are useful aids to a person unprovided with a boat; and it oftens happens there is excellent fishing where the shore is too wild or iron-bound to keep

one.

The Sunken Lester-Cock is probably the most killing of the three, and once submerged may be left to itself for some time.

It has been used with much success in the Island of Alderney.

Neither of these methods is available if there be much floating weed, and recourse must then be had to leger-fishing, for which see under 'Bass,' p. 139.

Crabs, Lobsters, and Cray-fish.-These are taken in the beehive-shaped baskets or pots, which are some of the first objects usually meeting the eye on the shore of almost every watering-place or fishing village.

These pots are weighted with stones, and then being baited with pieces of Ray, or other fish suspended in the interior, are lowered by buoy-lines on or close to rocky ground in various depths and distances from the coast, sometimes even as far as ten miles from the land. On some parts where the bottom is not too rough a kind of drum net trap or pot is used, extended on a hooped framework. Crabs prefer fresh bait, the other crustacea, such as Lobsters, &c., stale.

Clothing. All clothing should be of wool, or of material chiefly consisting thereof, as it absorbs perspiration and prevents catching cold.

A Crimean flannel shirt, coat, trowsers, and waistcoat of blue serge, angola or woollen stockings or socks, and early or late in the season, or whenever additional warmth is needed, a short Guernsey or Jersey frock is recommended.

All the above can be freed from salt-water, &c., by washing, and kept clean and sweet.

If caught in bad or wet weather, a suit of waterproof, with a sou'wester hat, will be found very comfortable, which should