18 BACK-HANDED THROWING. 



of your rod from left to right over your right 

 shoulder, bringing it parallel with the right side 

 of your head, and you have then been taught to 

 cast straightforwards, or rather from right to left. 

 If you have learned to do all this well, have no 

 fear ; you must succeed in fly-fishing. But to be 

 still more an fait in throwing the line, take the 

 end of it in your left hand, and bringing the point 

 of the rod to that side, move your wrist and fore- 

 arm backwards to the right, turning the hand up, 

 so that the finger-nails will point to you. Let go 

 the line, and its point will pass first slightly to 

 the left of you, and then turn over and fall on the 

 water on your right side. Although you will not 

 be able to throw in this way so long a line as 

 overhanded from right to left, you will be able to 

 throw it to a moderate distance easily and lightly. 

 Take a coachman's whip in your hand, and work 

 it right and left, that is, fling the thong sharply 

 and shortly before you to each side, making the 

 lash crack each time, and you will acquire a free- 

 dom in the wrist (but nothing more) that will be 

 of service to you in handling the fly-rod. A 

 coachman driving four-in-hand, with a long, 

 limber whip-handle and tapering thong, very fre- 

 quently uses the fly- fisher's motions, but does so 

 in a manner too cramped, sudden, harsh, and 

 violent. Observe him touching playfully the 

 heads of his leaders with the point of the lash, 



