46 THE PIKE. 



sonally, with the most comfort to himself, can adopt, ancf 

 then he will be in a fair way to success, no matter which of 

 the two he selects. The plan that I found to be the easiest 

 for myself is what is known as the right-handed cast. This 

 is a cast that is adopted by many first class men in various 

 parts of the kingdom ; men who, as it were, graduated on 

 the Trent, and then left their native river to settle on the 

 banks of other waters, carrying their style to places where it 

 was practically unknown before. I have heard it said that 

 the introduction of this style tO' various well known rivers^ 

 marked a new era in the history of their angling. In the 

 first place the angler must find out exactly where to hold 

 his rod so as to have the best command over it. It will not 

 do f")r him lo hold it in a careless manner, he must be 

 master of his rod — and not the rod master of him — or in 

 all probability he will land his bait into the nearest hedge 

 instead of on the water. The proper right-handed cast is 

 made by grasping the rod firmly with the right hand, about 

 eight or nine inches above the narrow stop ring, or band of 

 the winch-fittings. This small stop ring or band, by the 

 way, should be firmly fixed on the rod butt, about an inch 

 above the slot that is cut into the wood to receive the reel. 

 When this reel is put on the rod in its proper position, the 

 two handles should be pointing to the right The right 

 hand, as I have just said grasps the rod firmly, nine or ten 

 inches above the reel ; the left hand is close over the reel 

 or winch fittings, in fact, to be exact, the rod is in the hol- 

 low between the thumb and forefinger of the left hand, close 

 to the reel, so that the fingers of the left hand can clasp the 

 back of the reel, the second finger reaching over the barrel 

 and just lightly touching the rim of the front or revolving 

 plate of the barrel on the top edge. By this plan you are 

 out of the way of the handles, and in no danger of being 

 smartly rapped over the fingers by them. After seeing that 

 your bait hangs some four or five feet from the point of 

 the rod — ^but this is regulated by the length of the trace — on 

 no account should any of the gimp or gut, whichever is used, 

 be wound through the top ring of the rod before making 

 the cast. The flight of hooks, the leaded trace, and the loop 

 where the silk line is joined to the trace, should all hang 



