304 ROD AND RIVER 



designed by Mr. Farlow. It consists of an oval 

 tin box with three divisions, one for casts, and one 

 with a lid for flies inside the space left for the 

 former. These are in the lower half of the box. 

 The upper portion is fitted with strips of cork in 

 which to place wet flies, and the lid is perforated 

 in order to assist the drying process. It is a very 

 simple and practical little affair, and I can very 

 fully recommend its adoption. 



I had almost forgotten to mention one more 

 apparently insignificant, but by no means unim- 

 portant, item. It frequently happens that a salmon 

 when hooked takes to sulking at- the bottom of 

 the river, and at times the patience of the angler 

 is sorely taxed, for there is no knowing how long 

 this state of affairs may continue ; moreover, a 

 fish will often succeed in either sawing the gut 

 through against the sharp edge of a rock, or work- 

 ing the hook out of its mouth. It is, therefore, as 

 well to take active measures to make it move on. 

 Throwing stones, etc., may answer, but this is dan- 

 gerous work, and the gut may possibly be broken. 

 The usual plan is to send down a ' messenger.' 

 This latter is generally a round ring of thin card, 

 with a slit cut across one side of the ring to 

 admit of its being placed on the line. The angler 

 then gets up-stream above the fish, and the action 

 of the water carries the messenger down to the 

 hook. When this is satisfactorily performed the. 



