42 ROD AND RIVER 



shape, and proportion. Of the woods generally 

 in use for the manufacture of rods at the present 

 day, greenheart is perhaps the most common. It 

 is a somewhat heavy wood, capable of bending 

 freely, and yet possessing the power of regaining 

 its shape the instant the tension on it is relaxed, 

 properties which render it very suitable for the 

 purpose ; but at the same time it is extremely 

 brittle, and a fall may shiver it, even in so light 

 an article as a trout-rod. It is nevertheless the 

 wood which I myself prefer to any other, for 

 despite its weight, which latter is a matter for 

 some consideration (especially for dry-fly fishing, 

 when the arm is at work unceasingly), it has 

 great power, and if duly seasoned and made, a 

 greenheart rod can force a line against the wind 

 as no other rod can. It possesses what may be 

 termed ' backbone,' and yet, if properly handled, 

 permits of the greatest delicacy in casting. But 

 there are rods and rods, and there is green- 

 heart and greenheart ; nothing but the best and 

 most flawless wood should be used for the 

 purpose, and it must be well seasoned. It can- 

 not be too perfectly seasoned, and this remark 

 holds good regarding any wood which may be 

 used for fishing-rods. Let the reader but re- 

 member how slender a thing a trout-rod is, even 

 the strongest, and reflect how perpetually it is 

 in motion when being used (in dry-fly fishing 



