CASTING THE 

 MINNOW 



THE BLACK BASSES 



hackles, and such winged flies as coachman, pro- 

 fessor, grizzly king, polka, Montreal, oriole, 

 Henshall, and red ibis. 



The only line for fly fishing is the enamelled, 

 braided-silk line, either level or tapered. A click 

 reel should be preferred, as being lighter and more 

 suitable, though a small multiplying reel with 

 adjustable click answers very well. 



Casting the minnow for 

 black bass requires special 

 tools and tackle. These 

 are a light, short, and plia- 

 ble rod, not exceeding eight and a half feet in 

 length, nor eight ounces in weight ; a rapid mul- 

 tiplying reel ; a braided, undressed-silk line of 

 the smallest calibre, and snelled hooks, Sproat 

 or O'Shaughnessy, sizes No. i to No. 3. As 

 the minnow must be reeled up to within a foot 

 of the rod tip, before making the cast, and as the 

 line is of so small a size, a gut leader is neither 

 required nor necessary. The snell of the hook 

 is affixed to the line by a swivel of the smallest 

 size. 



The minnow is hooked through the lips, and 



reeled up to within a foot or two of the tip of the 



rod, and an underhand cast, from below upward, 



made to the right or left, for a distance of from 



U5 



