226 BOOK OF THE BLACK BASS. 



class workman. But, at the same time, I would caution 

 the angler to take the most jealous and unceasing care of 

 such a rod, for it is not so serviceable as a wooden rod 

 when subject to the same conditions of usage. 



In order to give the reader an idea of the construction 

 of a split bamboo rod, I can not do better than to repro- 

 duce here the following extract from a letter, written to 

 me on this subject by Mr. T. S. Morrell, an accomplished 

 and finished angler, of Newark, New Jersey — relating to 

 the construction of a split bamboo Black Bass minnow rod, 

 as made by himself: — 



I have just finished a rod patterned after that described by you 

 in " Hallock'is Sportsman's Gazetteer " — a one-hand bait- rod for Black 

 Bass. I will briefly describe my method of manufacture, as I learned 

 it from Mr. E. A. Green : 



The rod is eight and a half feet long, in three joints, of six-strip 

 baiTiboo. The ferrules, reel-bands, butt-cap, and guides, I had made 

 to order, not being an expert in working metals. The bamboo I got 

 from Mr. C. F. Murphy, and is as tough as bone. 



I first sawed the piece in two strips with a fine, sharp hand-saw ; 

 then I took a board with a perfectly straight slit sawed the length 

 of a joint of the proposed rod. Laying the flat part of one of the 

 strips (I had just sawn asunder) on this board over the slit, I carefully 

 placed it so as to get the requisite taper, and then tacked it at the 

 edge§ firmly to the board. 



Then, with rule and pencil I drew on the bamboo a straight line, 

 being careful to taper it right, and sawed it out — six pieces exactly 

 alike in size and taper — for a joint. The manner of getting the size 

 correctly, is to take the male ferrule for the thick end of the joint, 

 and the female ferrule for the small end ; stand each on end on a 

 piece of paper, and mark a circle outside; then, with a pair of small 

 compasses measure the circle into six parts, and draw a line from 

 point to point across the circle, so that all the lines meet in the 

 center. This will show the size and taper of each piece, and the ex- 

 act shape. 



