SALMONID^. 45 



being equal, the Andrew Gierke split bamboo of six splices 

 asserts and proves its superiority ; for, while an ash or green- 

 heart rod of the ordinary length of seventeen or eighteen 

 feet will weigh 2 lbs. 13 oz., a bamboo of equal length will 

 weigh but 1 lb. 8 oz. This is no trilling advantage to the 

 angler who has a whole day's work before him. As every 

 veteran knows, each additional ounce tells painfully in the 

 long run. That the merits of the Gierke rod are reasonably 

 appreciated is shown by written testimonials from English 

 professionals, including' the veteran Frank Buckland, of 

 " Land and Water," who have laid their prejudices on the 

 shelf, and now regard the split bamboo as a sine qua non. 

 For myself, I have used no other material for fly-rods for five 

 years past ; and I have had the satisfaction of hearing the 

 best Ganadian authorities assert that my salmon-rod is the 

 finest they ever saw. Single-handed trout-rods of split bam- 

 boo measure II5 feet, and weigh from 6 to 8 oz. So light 

 and delicate are they that one would think them hardly capa- 

 ple of lifting a minnow, and yet I have seen them kill a 

 four-pound grilse ! These rods, it may be remarked, are ex- 

 pensive ; but so are first-class guns, for which sportsmen are 

 willing to pay as high as eighty or one hundred guineas. 

 Best ash and lancewood or greenheart rods can be had for 

 $20 to $25, while a bamboo trout-rod costs 840, and a salmon- 

 rod not less than $75. Scribner, of St. John, sells his salmon- 

 rods for $12. Salmon-rods of 21 feet are ponderous affairs, 

 and now almost obsolete ; a man can do all necessary execu- 

 tion with a 17-foot rod. The only advantage of extra length 

 is, when a fish is liors du combat, to lift the line more easily 

 over rocks and boulders, I have seen a Gierke rod throw a 

 measured seventy-six feet. Ordinarily forty-five feet of line is 

 enough for any cast. It is of great service, when making an 

 unusually long cast, to count the time for your back-line, as 

 singers do their rests in music, before bringing the rod for- 

 ward. One cojpes to do it instinctively at last. It prevents 

 taifgling of the line or snapping off the flies. In raising a 



