22 FISHING KITS AND EQUIPMENT 



in that with such a rod it is very difficult to avoid 

 handling the fish too roughly. From the middle to the 

 end of the open season low and clear water is the 

 rule, a condition which the angler meets with small 

 flies and light leaders. With a stiff rod and light ter- 

 minal tackle quick, sharp striking is more than apt to 

 result in tearing the small hook away from the trout, 

 or, in case the fish is a large one, snapping off the fly. 



The rod quality of resiliency is often confused with 

 that of pliancy. The two qualities are, however, quite 

 different, although, in a way, interdependent. As a 

 very rough example of the distinction between pliancy 

 and resiliency it may be said that a piece of copper wire 

 may be bent, thus showing the possession of pliancy, but 

 when the strain is released it will retain the bend. But 

 if you bend a piece of whalebone it will, when re- 

 leased, immediately spring back to its normal condition. 

 Resiliency, then, is the rod's ability always to come 

 back, rebound, to the normal after any reasonable 

 strain. It can only be attained by expert construction 

 and the use of the best material obtainable. The de- 

 gree in which the rod is endowed with this quality de- 

 termines the length of its life, for no one likes to use 

 a rod which has lost its speed and liveliness, and has 

 acquired a lifeless and permanent set, although other- 

 wise it may be' intact. 



That the rod must have strength is sufficiently plain. 

 Balance, the question whether the rod fits you or not, 

 is one of the things to think of when selecting a fly-rod. 



