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BAIT FISHING LINE CARE The Kind to Use and What Thoy Need to Make Them Xast XastA A line is i lino anil that is all there is ont sayti tliu uninitiated thinking only of strength and ilurabilty Xow the fact of the matter is a well made fishing line is a work of art I can well re ¬ ft supply of liair lines the first lines were made of horse hair and how the Mack bass worked JIHTOC with them writes Minnow ill Outdoor Life Then came the silk and hair line but they were not strong nor smooth enough It was but a stop to cotton and linen twisted then braided those who could afford it using silk of course Ve have today lines such as our fathers never even dreamed about Hard braided and soft braided oiled waterproofed and enameled Of a size tex ¬ ture and strength to suit any water need or whim of angler It would be pleasant and profitable to spend onr half hour discussing the manufacture of lines but that may not be for we are fishermen fishermenSTRENGTH STRENGTH OF BAIT LINES LINESFor For the bait fisherman all will depend upon the i particular use to which he intends putting his line If lie is going casting live bait then his line will I that of the lure caster preferably softbraided filk breaking tension say at eighteen or twenty pounds there will IMS little need for a heavier lino I am convinced that in the hands of a careful ang 1r Midi a Uni will play and land any freshwater fish that swims Why not take a hazard There is rare sport in bait fishing for punkin seeds if you use a Xo 00 cotton thread Try it The live bait caster should not vary his line from that em ¬ ployed by the handler of artificial lures Of course if he is casting young suckers for muskie and I have seen men using nineinch minnows then Ills line will have to be considerably heavier Personally I agree with O W S that little is triiiM even in inuskie fishing by using such large live baits baitsK K r stillfishing the bait man can employ almost any line from enameled silk down through the list r up as tin case may In The twisted line is of course always a delusion and a snare it will snarl and kink under the least provocation and without any provocation at all Consequently if I were advising 1 would urge the braided silk line for the service 1 have tried out the linen and must say that I do nut like it The oiled silk is good but I am under the impression that it manifests a ten ¬ dency to rot more quickly than does the undressed line perhaps the reason is that the latter will dry out more quickly and thoroughly thoroughlyFor For some varieties of bait angling I prefer the regular enameled line such as is employed by the fly artist I refer to reeling for trout Where one is fishing swift trout brooks using earth worms or salmon eggs for bait the line should be allowed to travel ahead in unobstructed streams from 150 to 100 feet Employing such tactics the angler is always out of sight of his game and will catch fisli where others will fail utterly Any line other than the enameled will loop and knot twist about snags and rocks to a greater or less degree I have come to the use of the enameled almost ex ¬ clusively for such angling It is the only variety of ha it fishing however where I would recommend the enameled line lineFINE FINE LINES EASILY SOTTED SOTTEDOne One should not fail to emphasize cure of the line Without care even flic best of lines will not last over one or two fishing trips Never leave any line on the reel to dry it will rot An ordinary silk line can be coiled on the floor where no care ¬ less foot will disturb or wound about the backs of two chairs stretched between two trees in fact almost anywhere The wise angler will never place his line in the sun to dry the sun has a deleterious effect upon the silk as well as causing the colors to fade The careful bait fisherman can usu a single line for a whole scaspn By the way the caster of live bait should not fail to remember that the section of line next the lure rots rapidly and should be tested out before each trip All the line that can be broken easily with the hands should l e thrown away To fail to do this will result in losing many a good minnow not to mention hook anil leader leaderIn In still fishing the color of the line is something the fisherman should bear in mind Let the color harmonize with the water I have fished brown waters there the line should be brown Where the bottom is black a black line can be employed with advantage Probably the black and white mottled or saltandpepper color is the best all around one to use A little experimenting will prove to the curious that such a line will blend with almost any colored water and bottom indeed at only a few feet distant it is almost impossible to distinguish it Perhaps as some aver the color of the line is not of great importance but I have not so found it Select a line that will harmonize with water and lx ttom HunterTraderTrapper
