5^4 



AMERICAN GAME FISHES. 



Fig. i8. 



not think it advisable to describe the 

 detail of ferrule and reel-plate making, 

 when they can be bought so much easier 

 than made. They can be obtained of 

 any of the tackle-makers. 



Perhaps the best rod for the novice 

 to begin on will be a three-jointed, 

 ten-foot lance-wood liy-rod. The diffe- 

 rence between the make-up of a fine rod 

 and one of inferior build, is great in ef- 

 fect as regards actual wear and tear, 

 but in the manufacture there is little ap- 

 preciable difference, on the principle 

 that it is always nearly as easy to do 

 good work as it is bad, and to make 

 a fine fly-rod as one approximating to 

 the so-called "pole" of our ancestors. 

 As the tyro and myself intend to make 

 the rod together, and as I imagine 

 him to know absolutely nothing about 

 rod-making, a word or two about tools 

 are necessary: 



These are neither elaborate nor ex- 

 pensive. First, it is desirable to have 

 a good stout bench or table to work 

 upon. It should also stand in a good 

 light, and be of a height commensurate 

 with that of the operator, so that he 

 may incur as little fatigue as possible. 

 A tired man at any task is seldom a 

 minutely particular man, and it must 

 be understood once and for all that 

 eternal vigilance is the price of good 

 rod-making. A vise is desirable also, 

 but not absolutely necessary. One 

 can generally resort to a neighboring 



