The Sea-fisherman: Comprising the Chief Methods of Hook and Line Fishing in ...

Front matter

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Preface

TO

THE FOURTH EDITION.

The successive editions of this work have been carefully revised, with many augmentations, both of the matter and in the number of illustrations.

The latter have been done under the eye of the author, by a friend, Mr. G. Le Masurier of Guernsey, in a manner calculated to convey to the amateur faithful representations.

J. C. WiLCOCKS.

Contents

PAGB

Introduction . . . . i

Methods of Fishing ... 8

Appendix

Instructions for Saving Drowning Persons 285

Directions for Restoring the Apparently Drowned 286

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.

KIG. PAGE

Pilchard Bait for Hake, Cod, or Conger . . . Frontispiece

1. Chart of Part of Guernsey, illustrating Marks and How to Take

Them 6

2. a. The Southampton Rig 35

2. b. The Guernsey Rig 35

3. The Kentish Rig 38

4. The Dartmouth Rig 39

5. The Grapnel or Creeper Sinker 40

6. The Newfoundland or Banker's Lead 41

7. Boat-shaped Rig. Lead and Section with brass wire, &c. . 42

8. Mould for Boat-shaped Leads 44

9. ,, ,, Longitudinal Section 44

10. ,, ,. Cross Section 44

11. Illustration of Lines 48

12. Half-Pilchard marked diagonally for cutting into Bait . . . . 49

13. Hook baited with piece of Pilchard, Mackerel, or Herring, &c., for

Whiting. . . 49

14. Mussel Bait, first insertion of Hook 50

15. ,, ,, Hook completely baited 50

16. Living Sand-Eel Bait in tide-way 64

17. „ ,, baited for slack tide (recommended by the late P. le Noury 64

18. Living Sand-Eel Bait ; ordinary method at slack tide . . . . 65

19. The Courge or Sand-Eel Basket 66 xiv LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS,

FIG. PAGE

21. Hook baited with Rag-Worms 68

22. ,, ,, Living Shrimp 68

23. Spinning Machine or Jack 70

24. Knotting Hair-links • • 73

25. Freshwater-Eel (dead bait for Whiffing) 82

26. River Lamprey (dead bait for Whiffing) 82

India-Rubber baits, consisting of—

27. Rubber Band Imitation Rag- Worm 83.

28. Brooks's Double-Twist Spinning Eel or Lug- Worm . . . . 83

29. Hearder's Captain Tom's Spinning Sand- Eel 83

30. Tail part of an Eel (Whiffing bait) 84

31. Rag- Worm when fish are shy 85

32. Earth-worm baited for Whiffing 85

33. Flies and Feather Baits 89

34. Paternoster and Pipe-lead and Trace for Rod-fishing . • • 95

35. Floating Trot 97

36. Mode of spreading Lines round the Boat in Dab or Floimder-fishing 117

37. Flounder Fork 121

38. ,, Fluking-Pick or Pike 122

39. Plummet-lead and Revolving Chopstick 124

40. Baited Hook for Mackerel-railing 126

41. Tobacco-pipe Bait for Mackerel 127

42. Red Sand-Eel, cut in two for bait 135

43. Leger-lead, Trace, and baited Hooks 140

44. Bulter, Trot, or Spiller, for Cod, Conger, &c 142

45. Pater-Noster, for Smehs or Mullet 156

46. Boat-shaped Lead and Trace with Copper Swivels, and Swivel the

actual size 177

47. Conger Hook, with Snood traced over with green hemp . . . 178

48. Hook baited with the tail half of a small Whiting, Mackerel, or other

fish ; for Hake, Cod, or Conger 179

49. Lead and Clot of Worms for bobbing from a boat . . . . 183

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. xv

FIG. PAGE

50 Baited Clotting-Pole 184

51. The Lug- Worm 188

52. The Razor-fish Spear 198

53. The Overhand or Common Knot 199

54. The Bend 200

55. The Bowline Knot 200

56. The Timber Hitch 200

57. Stone Killick or Sling-stone 201

58. a. Eye-Splice commenced 202

58. b. Short two-strand Splice 202

58. c. Anchor scowed 202

59. The Anchor Bend 203

60. Whipping and Bending on Hooks 206

61. Whipping and Fastening off a Hook 208

62. Exeter Round-bend Hooks, Nos. i to 7 210

64. Reel, Gaflfs, and Bait-Tray 213

65. Guernsey Fish-Basket 215

66. The Nossil-cock, or Fisherman's Spinning Machine .... 216

67. Pork-skin bait for Ocean-fishing 221

68. Side View of Trammel-net 224

69. End View of Trammel-net 226

70. Sand-Eel Seine 229

71. The Trawl 237

72. Trawl, with Beam and Irons 238

73. The Otter Trawl 240

74. The Pool Shrimp or Prawn-net 243

76. The Baited Prawn-net 246

77. Midship Section of Beach Boat 251

78. ,, ,, Harbour Boat 251

79. Spritsail Boat with Mizen 254 xvi LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS,

FIG. PAGE

80. Guernsey Spritsail Boat 255

81. Lugsail Boat with Jib and Mizen 258

82. The Yawl or Dandy 259

83. The Itchen River Rig 261

84. Boat Carriage for a flat sandy shore 264

85. Belaying the Main-sheet 268

86 to 93. The Safety Fishing Boat of the Royal National Life-boat

Institution 273, 274

94 to 97. Four Illustrations of Directions for Restoring the Apparently

Drowned 288-291

THE

SEA-FISHERMAN.

Introduction

Amongst all the useful arts, there is probably not one of which the knowledge has been so much confined to those who make it their vocation, as Sea-Fishing. Any detailed accurate accounts of the modes of capture of our best known fish — such modes of capture as the amateur would wish to avail himself of —were formerly unknown, the difficulty of accumulating facts having always rendered the progress of information slow. The requisite practical knowledge cannot be acquired by a short visit to the sea-side and an occasional day's fishing ; neither must it be thought that the methods of one particular locality will suffice for all others : on the contrary, it is only by a long residence at different points of the coast, combined with the practice of sea-fishing as a pursuit, that the required information can be collected regarding the various methods called into action by the varying circumstances of different localities. There can be little doubt that the greater facilities of transit afforded us by the extension of the railway system — inasmuch as they have vastiy increased, and in many cases created a great passenger traffic to the coast — have been the means of causing a demand for information on the subject to which this work is devoted. Sea-side visitors must find some occupation pour passer U temps : the monotony of the marine parade becomes weari-

B

2 INTRODUCTION,

some, notwithstanding the attempts at its alleviation by calling in the aid of the last new novel from the library — but they cannot read all day ; walking in the heat is not agreeable ; everyone is not interested in the study of marine zoology, fashionable as it has become of late years, and deservedly so, although the furore has now somewhat abated ; the common objects of the sea-shore fail to afford amusement ; they have had a complete surfeit of German bands ; mind and body are alike satiated with that fashionable and intellectual amusement so perseveringly followed by beach haunters of all ages, to wit, pelting Father Neptune with the pebbly shingle where there is any to the fore ; even the row or the sail require some additional zest What, then, is there at hand to supply the desideratum'^ Nothing — positively nothing but Sea-fishing, which in its various phases, afloat or from the shore, affords a field of observation and occupation of which the world at large can have but small conception. Considering the variety of sport to be derived from sea-fishing, its votaries have not been many in number until the last thirty years ; latterly they have much increased, and sufficiently to induce a few among them to indite their experiences for the instruction of their fellowsportsmen. The author has frequently observed how very partial is the knowledge of many amateurs of sea-fishing, and how much sport they lose in consequence of their limited acquaintance with the subject ; he has endeavoured, therefore, in this work to supply the desideratum^ feeling he might venture so to do from the life-long experience he has had on various parts of the coast of England and the Channel Islands. Regarding the fishing of these islands, the methods of taking, preserving, and using the living Sand-Eel for bait, are so excellent, and have been hitherto so little known on the British side of the Channel, that the author has given them a prominent position in both description and illustration, and he is happy to say that former residents in the islands are following out these methods on the British coasts, over the whole extent of which they ought to be disseminated, as superior to all other methods of coast-fishing for Mackerel, Bass, and Pollack in particular, and eminently useful when applied to the capture of other fish.

INTRODUCTION, §

The intention of the author is that this work should be found a truthful description of Sea-fishing, and a vade mecum for reference and instruction, both for the British and other seas ; for, rely on it, any man who is practically acquainted with the varieties of sea-fishing round our own coasts will be able to take fish on the coasts of all the world. This is not a mere assertion of the author, but the result of the experience of British fishermen who have found their knowledge available from Newfoundland to the Antipodes ; and in the latter region particularly on the coasts of Australia and New Zealand, where large quantities of fish have been taken by the same methods.

A careful inspection of the gear in the Great International Exhibition of Fisheries held in London in 1883 has quite confirmed the author's views as here stated.

Throughout this work the author has endeavoured to keep before him the necessity of describing and depicting the different kinds of gear and baited hooks, with which, above all things, the sea-fisherman ought to be familiar. Another matter to which particular attention must be paid is the habitat of the fish, as well as that of the various worms, shell-fish, &c. used as bait, which will be of great service in discovering their haunts at any particular locality. By aid of a chart he should endeavour to ascertain the nature of the bottom, positions of rocks &C. which practice has been specially recommended m an article devoted to the subject. In the following article on ^ Marks and how to take them,* accompanied by an illustrative chart, plain directions for fixing the positions of fishing-grounds in order to find them on a future occasion have been laid before the reader. Proficiency in any art cannot be attained without considerable attention and practice, to which Sea-fishing is certainly no exception ; and when to this is added the necessity of an acquaintance with the management of a boat, if one really wishes to go thoroughly into the subject, the reader will perceive he has need to exercise no small amount of forethought, as well as bring into play a not inconsiderable amount of personal activity, if he would' be anything more than a stem-sheet fisherman, an animal guiltless of letting go, or getting up an anchor, spritting a sail, bowang on a tackle-fall, et hoc genus omne,

B 2 added to which he stows himself abaft the after-thwart to eat, drink, and — yes, oh ! climax of effeminacy ! — to have his hooks baited !

Marks and How to Take Them.

Fishermen, from time immemorial, have, in the exercise of their vocation — namely, in trawling, dredging, setting Crab and Lobster pots, hand or long-line fishing — discovered certain * grounds,' as they are termed, frequented by different varieties of fish, according to the nature of the bottom. It was of course desirable that these discoveries should not be lost ; fishermen, therefore, have contrived methods of taking 'marks,' that these positions may be revisited when required. A boat or vessel is placed in any one of these positions by aid of two imaginary Hnes drawn from objects on shore, and crossing each other at the said boat or vessel. Two objects are chosen for each imaginary line, which two objects being seen on with, or over each other in one direction, and two other objects being seen likewise over each other in another direction, the position of any particular fishing-ground may be determined with facility, and revisited as occasion may require. As great precision is necessary in some kinds of fishing, the marks selected should not be too close to each other, neither should the Unes of direction be too oblique. If too close together, their relative positions will not appear to alter rapidly enough to enable you to detect a change in the position of the boat instantly, and the result will be similar if the lines of direction are too oblique, because you will be too long passing the intersection of the cross bearings. Some degree of obliquity is generally unavoidable ; but where a choice of objects exists, select those which will afford you as near an approach as possible to a right angle, or, as fishermen term it, take your marks * upon the square.' By adhering to these cautions, your marks will be * quick marks,' as they are called, and if well selected will alter even by turning your head right or left. The smaller the objects, the nearer they may be to each other ; the larger they are, the greater should be the distance between them. If the distant object be of considerable magnitude.

and the nearer object of small size, it will be necessary for the observer to bring the smaller object in front of the centre or either end of the larger object, in order to attain the necessary precision. The objects most commonly used are of course the most conspicuous which can be rendered available from the position — always remembering the foregoing cautions in selection — and consist of remarkable houses, chimneys, towers, castles, churches, obelisks, windmills, trees, rocks, small islands, points, headlands, hills, mountains, flagstaffs, beacons, or lighthouses. We have, up to the present time, been dealing with theory, but, with the reader's permission, we will endeavour to reduce our theory to practice, that is, as far as we are able to do so on paper.

For this purpose I have appended the accompanying small chart, which will, I think, render my instructions sufficiently clear to those unacquainted with the subject, whilst the experienced will, I trust, therein recognise the practical nature of the instruction conveyed. This chart (fig. i) represents a portion of the sea coast adjacent to the harbour of St. Peter Port, Guernsey, with a set of marks and lines of sight in use for finding a certain fishing-ground, on a sufficiently large scale (four inches to a mile) to avoid confusion of lines. It is required at half an hour before low water spring tides, direction of the stream SW., wind NNE., to place a boat at a certain position according to the following marks. The De Lancey Obelisk, m, its own breadth open east of the breakwater lighthouse, and the gap in the back-land touching the sharp edge of the eastern cliff of the shingle bay. a is the line of direction of the obelisk, m, passing outside the lighthouse on the breakwater, and forming the long mark ; b the line of direction given by the gap in the back-land with the edge of the cliff, cutting the line a at the boat's required position at f. After rounding the breakwater, steer to the southward, getting on the mark a ; keep on this line of direction until the mark b is discovered, which is the cross mark, and shows you to have arrived at the spot indicated The killick, or mooring stone, must not be let go here exactly on the spot, for when any amount of rope were paid out, the boat would of course be much beyond the required

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