Every Boy's Book: A Complete Encyclopaedia of Sports and Amusements Part 13

Each person is at liberty to purchase as many cards as he may think proper.

The dice are then to be thrown by the players alternately, beginning with the holder of the white horse, any one being allowed to dispose of his throw to the highest bidder. When all blanks are thrown, each of the players pays one to the holder of the white horse, and he pays one to the inn. If with the blanks the bell, or hammer, or the bell and hammer together are thrown, the possessor of the card so thrown pays one to the white horse.

When numbers accompany the bell, hammer, or bell and hammer, the cashier is to pay the counters, to the amount of numbers thrown, to the holder of such card, from the pool; but if numbers are thrown unaccompanied, the cashier then pays to the thrower.

When the pool is nearly empty there arises an advantage to the inn, for if a player throws a figure greater than the quant.i.ty contained in the pool he pays the overplus to the inn; thus: suppose 4 are in the pool, if the players throws 10, he is to pay 6 to the inn; and if 2 are thrown, those 2 are paid to him from the pool, and so on till a figure is thrown which clears the pool, and so concludes the game.

If all blanks are thrown after the inn begins to receive, the players pay nothing, but the owner of the white horse pays one to the inn; and should the bell, &c. be thrown with the blanks, the holder of that card pays one to the inn; and if numbers accompany the bell, &c. the holder of that card must pay to the inn the number thrown above those remaining in the pool. Nuts are sometimes used as counters, and the players keep their winnings. Sometimes the cashier receives a halfpenny or a penny a dozen for the counters, and when the game is finished the receipts are divided among the players according to their winnings. Those who do not hold cards frequently find themselves richer at the close of the game than their speculative companions, whose winnings do not always exceed the price paid for their cards.

SPELICANS.

Spelicans are made of thin pieces of ivory cut into different forms, some being like spears, others saws, bearded hooks, &c.; of some of the patterns there are duplicates, whilst of others only one. Each pattern has a value a.s.signed to it, the lowest being five, and the highest forty; the numbers do not run in regular succession--as five, six, seven, eight--but irregularly, as five, sixteen, twenty-five. Hooks, made of bone, are used pointers.

The game is played as follows:--One player should take up all the spelicans in a bundle, and holding them at a little height from the table, let them fall down in a confused heap on it; each player must then try alternately to take away a spelican from the heap without moving any of the others, and this it is generally very easy to accomplish at the first, for the top ones are mostly unconnected with the rest, but as the players proceed it requires some tact to jerk them out, with the help of the hook, made pointed for that purpose. The player who, at the entire removal of the heap, has the greatest number of spelicans, wins the game. Should any of the spelicans, while being removed shake the others, they must be put back into the heap again. It is usual in some places, instead of each player removing a spelican alternately, for one to continue lifting up the spelicans until he happens to shake one, when another player takes his turn until he in like manner fails, when another tries his fortune; and so the game continues, until all the spelicans are withdrawn.

PART II.

Athletic Sports and Manly Exercises:

INCLUDING

ANGLING, ARCHERY, BOXING, CANOES AND CANOEING, CRICKET, CROQUET, DRIVING, FENCING, FIVES, FOOT-BALL, GOLF, GYMNASTICS, HOCKEY, RACKETS, RIDING, ROWING, SAILING, SKATING, SLIDING, SWIMMING, TRAINING.

[Ill.u.s.tration: ATHLETIC SPORTS.]

[Ill.u.s.tration]

ANGLING.

"When I was a mere schoolboy, Ere yet I learnt my book, I felt an itch for angling In every little brook.

"An osier rod, some thread for line, A crooked pin for hook; And, thus equipp'd, I angled In every little brook.

"Where sticklebacks and minnows Each day I caught in store, With stone-roaches and miller's thumbs:-- These brooks afford no more.

"But I a little angler, With crooked pin for hook, Would shun each noisy wrangler, To fish the little brook."

What can be more delightful than angling? Not indeed so much on account of the fish we may catch, but for the pleasantness of the recreation itself, for the cool streams, the shady trees, the little sunny nooks, the tiny or gigantic cascades, the meandering rills, the still pools, "with sedges overhung;" the picturesque mill-wheels, the deep mill-ponds, "smooth sheeted by the flood;" and above all, for the hair-breadth escapes, for the duckings, for the hazards, for the triumphs. We do not wonder at boys being fond of angling, it is almost an instinct with them, and has long been a favourite amus.e.m.e.nt with boys of all degrees, ages and const.i.tutions. Therefore we shall be somewhat comprehensive in our notices of this interesting sport, that every boy who can bait a hook and hold a line may be an angler if he will.

A WORD ABOUT FISH.

First, however, let us say a word about fish in general, before we come to fish in particular. Fish or fishes are, to speak scientifically, a cla.s.s of vertebrated animals (having a backbone) inhabiting the water; which breathe through the medium of that fluid by means of branchiae or gills, instead of lungs; which swim by means of fins, and are mostly covered with scales. They are also generally furnished with a white membraneous bag close to the backbone, called the air bladder, by the dilatation or compression of which it is supposed they can rise or sink in the water at pleasure. All parts of their bodies seem to aid them in swimming in the water; their fins, their tails, and the undulation of their back-bones a.s.sist progression, and their whole structure is as much adapted for swimming as that of a bird is for flight.

The fins of fish consist of thin elastic membrane, supported by bony rays, and are denominated according to their position--_dorsal_ on the back, _pectoral_ on the breast, _ventral_ near the vent, _a.n.a.l_ that between the vent and the tail, and _caudal_ the tail fins. The dorsal and ventral fins appear to balance the fish, and the pectoral to push it forward; while the tail fins are the grand instruments of motion, and enable the creature to dart forward almost as rapidly as the bullet from a gun.

With regard to the senses of fishes, the eye holds the first place; but this is best adapted for seeing under water. Of the organ of hearing there is no outward sign. The organ of taste is thought to be very unsensitive, and the sense of touch but slightly developed. To preserve their own existence, and to transmit it to their posterity, seems to be their only enjoyment; they move forward in pursuit of whatever they can swallow, conquer, or enjoy, and their insatiable appet.i.te impels them to encounter every danger, whilst to their rapacity there seems to be no bound. A single pike has been known to devour a hundred roach in three days. The fecundity of fish is prodigious. The number of eggs in the codfish often amounts to more than three millions; those of flounders are above a million, of the mackarel 500,000, of the sole 100,000, and of the lobster 20,000; but the sturgeon is far more productive than any of these, as it has been known to have more than twenty millions of eggs!

Without saying any more about "Fish in the abstract," as the angler called his "catch," when he returned without one, we must go to the art of "catching fish;" and the first thing to be attended to is the necessary fishing apparatus, which may be increased to any extent; but the _young_ angler would be wise to limit his stock as much as possible.

We have fished many a hundred miles of water, and killed many a thousand of fish, with no better equipment than this:--One rod of about fourteen feet long, with three tops,--one stiff top, for bottom fishing and trolling, and two for fly-fishing. Two reels or winches, one holding a silk and hair line of thirty-five yards in length for fly-fishing, and the other holding a similar line, of forty yards, but much stronger, for bottom fishing, trolling, &c. One moderate-sized creel or fishing basket. One tin bait-box for worms or gentles; one tin live-bait can for carrying pike baits or minnows; and one strong _bag_ for carrying ground-bait. A landing-net; some shoemaker's wax in a piece of soft leather; a large clasp-knife; a pair of sharp-pointed scissors; a pocket-book, the centre filled with leaves of flannel to hold flies, and the remainder fitted up with gut, hooks, silk, baiting-needles, a pair of small pliers, split shot, floats, &c.

[Ill.u.s.tration]

ABOUT THE ROD.

The rod is a material article in the young angler's catalogue, and much care should be taken to procure a good one. The fishing-tackle shops keep a great variety, made of bamboo cane, hazel, hickory, and other kinds of wood. Rods are of different lengths, some fitted as walking-canes, and others made to pack in canva.s.s bags; the latter are preferred, because you may have them any length, and they are more true.

Those made of bamboo cane are the best for general angling; but the rods made of the white cane much superior for fine fishing, particularly for roach, being very light in weight, but stiff.

CHOOSING THE ROD.

In choosing a rod (not a school rod, for no one likes to choose that), observe that it is perfectly straight, when all the joints are put together and that it gradually tapers from the b.u.t.t to the top, and is from twelve to sixteen feet long. A bad rod is likely to snap in striking a heavy fish. Rods fitted with several tops are at once the best and most convenient. Some anglers have one rod for trolling, another for barbel, perch, or other heavy fish, as well as one for fly-fishing--which boys may have when they become men--but a thoroughly good rod will suit the juvenile for all purposes. We have now one with which we can fish for anything, from a bleak to a pike, by only changing the top and second joints.

A good trolling rod should be made of the choicest stout and well-seasoned bamboo cane, from fourteen to sixteen feet in length. When trolling with the gorge, or live-bait fishing, a long rod is necessary, to enable the angler to drop in his baited hook over high sedges, rushes, &c. as also when the water is bright, for he should then keep as far away from it as he can, which a long rod enables him to do while dipping, casting, or spinning his bait. If either a jack or pike see him, it is very rare indeed that he will take the bait; and again, with a long rod you will be able to drop your baited hook in some very likely place for jack or pike, such as a small hole, division, or clear place among a bed of weeds, in a river or any other water where there are any weeds.

There is some difference of opinion among anglers about the number of rings necessary for _trolling rods_: those who have their line on a thumb winder, or on a bank runner, seldom place more than two or three rings on their rod, and others have only one large ring at the top; but if a winch is used, there should be a ring to every joint including the b.u.t.t; make each ring of double twist wire, fixed so as always to stand out, and nearly large enough to admit the top of your little finger; the top joint should have two rings, the top one nearly three times the size of the others; this prevents any obstruction of the line running, which is of material consequence. When not in use, rods should be kept nicely stowed in a moderately dry place, and they ought to be well sc.r.a.ped and revarnished every three years; should the joints become loose by shrinking, they should be slightly moistened. Should any accident befall a rod while fishing, and you should not have a spare top with you, your only remedy will be to splice your rod. To do this the ends of the broken pieces for about two inches must be laid parallel to each other, and then tightly bound together with waxed silk, or very strong yellow hempen twine.

LINES OR BOTTOMS.

Next to the rod the line is of the utmost importance. Good lines should be well twisted. The twisted lines should be made wholly of silk, or silk hair, but those made of gut are the strongest and best for young anglers; the twisted hair are the cheapest, and the single horsehair the finest. The young angler will find a line of about four yards in length the most useful. A single gut line, with a small porcupine float, is commonly useful for general fishing; the plaited silk lines are the best for trolling, and are less inclined to break or tangle than the twisted.

SHOTTING THE LINE

The line must be shotted, that the float may partially sink in the water; and in putting on the shots, place them all together within three inches of the bottom loop of the line; to which loop fix the loop of the hair or gut to which the hook is tied. When you make a line of silk, gut, or hair, remember it must be always finest at the bottom, where the hook is fastened, very gradually increasing in thickness to the top.

THE FLOAT.

There are various kinds of floats, each adapted for different kinds of fishing. The princ.i.p.al are: 1. Tip-capped floats; 2. Cork floats; 3.

Plugged floats. The tip-capped floats are made of several pieces of quills, or of reed for the middle, and ivory or tortoisesh.e.l.l for the top and bottom, and narrow at each end, gradually increasing in circ.u.mference to the middle. They are superior to all others for angling in waters which are not very rapid, particularly in roach fishing, as the least movement or fine bite sinks them below the water. The tip-capped float is also best for pond fishing for carp and tench, as it requires but few shot to sink it, and consequently disturbs the water but little when cast. The young angler should note that the caps which fix the lines to the float are not rough at the edge, as this roughness chafes and weakens a fine line; should this be the case, he should smooth them before use. The best caps are made of gutta-percha.

[Ill.u.s.tration]

_Cork Floats_ are generally made of quills at the top, with a piece of cork, which is burned or bored in the middle to admit the quill, and then filed or ground down smooth and painted. The bottom is plugged with wood, and has a ring to let the line pa.s.s through. Cork floats are well calculated to fish in heavy or rapid streams, as they require a great many shot to sink them, which weight of shot prevents the baited hook from pa.s.sing too rapidly over the bottom. Cork floats are made of various sizes and forms; instead of common quills, some introduce the quills of the porcupine, which make an excellent strong float. Except for live-bait fishing a tapering cork float is preferable to a round one.

_Plugged Floats._--These kind of floats are the cheapest, and made of indifferent quills, some of them of one goose quill with a wooden plug at the bottom, from which they take their name: they are very apt to loosen by the plug coming out. They are often used by the young angler, because they are cheap; but we may say in the words of the ancient Roman, "Bad is the best."

REELS OR WINCHES.