16 



ANGLING FOR GAME FISH. 



Rod Fittings are of secondary importance; but anglers 

 should, nevertheless, insist on having the best that can be 

 made, the best costing only a fraction more than the worst. 

 Those on my rod (Fig. 4) are, of course, the ones I believe 



Snake-shaped Rod Ring. 



Bickerdyke " Rod-top Ring. 



Winch Fitting on the Weeger Principle. 

 Fig, 4. Rod Fittings. 



to be the best. The well-known "Weeger winch fitting holds 

 any-sized reel, and neither sticks nor hurts the hand. The 

 snake rings (if they may be termed rings) allow the line to 

 pass through them with less friction than any others made, 

 and — which is still more important — never get foul of the line, 

 as do the ordinary upright rings. I hope, in the course of a 

 year or two, to see these rings used on rods of every kind 

 and description, for they are not only the best, but also the 

 cheapest. 



The Top Ring is an invention of my own, which, so far as 

 I have heard, has met with the approval of all anglers who 

 have used it. It works on pivots, and by adapting itself to 

 any angle made by the line with the rod, reduces friction, 

 and saves wear and tear to both rod and line, especially to the 

 latter. Moreover, these top rings prevent fouling of the line, 

 for on the line getting twisted round the top of the rod, as 

 it sometimes will, the ring goes flat with the rod, and the line, 

 on being jerked, slips off. These rings are made by the makers 

 of the rod already described. With this top ring and the 

 snake rings a considerable amount of line can be thrown off 

 at the end of the cast {i.e., let out through the rings, the cast 



