SALMON FISHING 127 



of the rod, draw it in, take two steps forward, cast again, and 

 so on till the end of the pool. 



So long as the line can be deposited in coils on a grassy 

 bank at the feet of the fisherman, it is child's play to send out 

 some twenty yards ; but as soon as it is necessary to wade, 

 this becomes quite another matter, requiring a lot of practice 

 to do well. The process is somewhat difficult to describe. 

 The butt of the rod should rest high up on the inside of the 

 thigh, then as much line should be pulled off the reel as the 

 stream will float on the surface in the shape of a loop ; nip 

 this between the thumb and forefinger, repeat the operation, 

 but make the loop shorter than the first ; again secure it, and 

 continue to do this till there are four or five loops floating on 

 the surface, kept away from the angler by the force of the 

 current ; then sweep the rod from the thigh as if casting from 

 the bank, while at the same time slightly raise the hand hold- 

 ing the loops, when the whole line will fly out smoothly. When 

 the stream is not flowing smartly past the angler, he will have 

 to make more and shorter coils. We once saw a gentleman, 

 unable to master this method of casting, who had a tray of 

 wicker-work hung by straps across his shoulders and standing 

 out in front of him, on which his line was coiled. It certainly 

 answered very well, but he was chaffed out of it by being 

 promptly christened "brandy balls," from his ridiculous like- 

 ness to the well-known old character at Brighton, who for so 

 many years promenaded the King's Road there, with his case 

 of sweeties sticking out in front of him. 



It is often a matter of difficulty to procure minnows large 

 enough, for they should be three inches long at the very least. 

 During the summer months there are plenty of this size in the 

 Dee, but in winter and spring they entirely disappear, either 

 going up the burns or sinking into deep, quiet holes from which 

 they do not stir till the water gets warm, and the latter pro- 

 ceeding is most likely the solution of the problem as to where 

 they vanish to. Joseph Loveder, Full Moon Inn, Fish Ponds, 



