14 CHATS ON ANGLING. 



how easily he works his twenty yards of line ; there is an entire absence 

 of all effort ; it looks as easy as shelling peas. The beginner or duffer 

 will invariably put too much effort into his cast ; he will not allow time 

 for the line to extend itself behind him ; he will bring his hand so 

 far back that the fly will be hung up in the grasses or bushes behind him, 

 and the force of his forward cast will make the line cut the water like a 

 knife, and the fly will be delivered in the midst of a series of curls 

 of gut, presenting anything but an attractive appearance to the fish. The 

 movement of the hand in an accomplished fisherman is singularly 

 slight ; I doubt if it ever traverses much more than twelve inches 

 from the vertical position. 



Rest content with the ordinary overhead cast until you are an 

 absolute master of it. When this desirable result is accomplished, there 

 are one or two casts well deserving of care and attention. One in 

 particular you should seek to accomplish — viz., the cast into the teeth 

 of an adverse wind. Recollect that, under those circumstances, you can 

 usually approach much nearer to fish than when the wind is up stream 

 or non-existent ; therefore you can use a shorter line. The cast is 

 called the "downward" cast, and is really very simple. The backward 

 part is the same as in ordinary casting, but in the forward delivery 

 the hand traverses a much greater angle, and at the finish the rod 

 point is near to the water. At the moment of delivery the elbow is 

 brought up level with the shoulder, the thumb is depressed, the knuckles 

 being kept uppermost. The resultant effect is that the line cuts straight 

 into the wind, and is little affected by it. In a foul wind flies cock 

 and float more easily than in a down stream wind ; so this, at any rate, 

 is in your favour. Yet one more style of casting should be practised. 

 I have found it in\ aluable when awkward trees have been overhanging 

 my own bank. It is what is called by salmon anglers the " Spey Cast." 

 Inasmuch as it avoids the necessity of bringing your line behind you, 

 its value is self-evident. This is the method of the cast : Having got 

 out as much line as you think you will need, get it out up stream 

 of you, bring the fly quickly towards you out of the water, allow the 

 fly just to kiss the water when it is just level with you, the curve 

 of the line being down stream of you, then, with a similar kind of 

 action to that advocated for the downward cast, your line will be sent 



