TRAP.
Suspended from a float, it impales fish from any direction.
A central rod carries two open circular frames, each ringed with barbed impaling hooks, held apart by a hinged trigger bar bearing a bait hook. The trap is lowered into the water and suspended at the desired depth by a float. The fish enters between the frames and pulls on the bait; the trigger bar folds outward and a coiled spring drives the upper frame down. The fish is impaled between the two rings of hooks.
“It will be noted owing to the circular construction of the trap the same may be approached from any direction and by arranging the impaling hooks or pins to project radially around the entire circumference of the jaws, that the animal will be caught no matter in which direction it attempts to retreat after the trap has been sprung.”— Samuel M. Cole, from the specification
And the world did not beat a path to his door.