SALMON FLY ROD, REEL, &c. 39 



does, for the adherence of its parts, on its natural 

 sap and structure, which while perfect in the 

 whole tree (in its continuity of fibre), has been 

 so destroyed by cutting and tapering, that its 

 durability must always remain an unknown 

 quantity. 



In using bamboo, however, the case is vastly 

 different, as the culms are split and cemented 

 together again, thus preserving the continuity of 

 fibre and structure in their entirety. To effect 

 this, no part of the skin, which is the hardest 

 and most valuable part of the material, should 

 be removed ; and it is here that the great skill 

 of the rod-maker is apparent to the expert. 



Bamboo is composed of a series of cells with 

 strong walls. These cells, large in the inner part 

 called the pith, are reduced in size and multiplied 

 in number as the outer walls are reached, where 

 they are closed round by a hard enamel-like 

 skin (see Fig. 8). There are over 150 known 

 varieties of bamboo grown in the East, and, as 

 is the case with other grasses, the stem is more 

 or less hollow, with transverse solid parts, called 

 joints or nodes, from which the leaf grows. In 

 different species, the length between the joints 

 or nodes varies greatly, as also does the den- 

 sity and strength of fibre, depending largely on 

 the particular nature of the soil and climate 

 where it is grown. It must not be assumed 



