TERMINAL TACKLE 87 



loose coils on the floor. In a permanent camp it will 

 pay the bass-fan to build a line-drying windless, 

 which can be easily accomplished by the exercise of 

 a little ingenuity. Never leave a wet line on a reel 

 over night. Make it the rule of your life to care 

 for the line the first thing after landing. It is sur- 

 prising how soon a line will rot if not thoroughly 

 dried. 



"How long should a good casting-line last?" 

 That is a hard question and can only be answered 

 with, u That depends." Depends upon how much 

 money you are willing to spend and upon how much 

 care you are willing to lavish. I know of men who 

 never use a line a second day, discarding the "old" 

 line at the end of each day's casting. I can not afford 

 it, I have used lines two and three seasons even, 

 without losing a fish through breaking, but, then, I 

 am an "old maid" when it comes to "pottering with 

 tackle." At the end of the season I roll up the lines 

 that are worth saving and seal them in tubes, the 

 others I throw away. It is unwise to retain a line 

 which manifests the slightest weakness. Turn your 

 lines often so that the whole length receives equal 

 wear. Perhaps you have never thought of it, but 

 that portion of a 50 yard line which comes next the 

 spool is seldom used. I am taking it for granted 

 that you are not a tournament caster, and even if 

 you were, you would find it somewhat difficult to cast 

 150 feet with a regular fishing line. 



