226 ELEMENTS OF ANGLING. 



features of each pool, remembering each taking- 

 place by its proximity to a boulder, a bush, or 

 some other noticeable thing. 



Casting a salmon fly is like casting a trout fly on 

 a larger scale. The great thing is to allow plenty 

 of time in the back-cast (it is possible to look over 

 one's shoulder and see what is happening), and to 

 make the rod do its share. I hold my rod with the 

 right hand about a foot above the reel and the left 

 hand just below it, and, though the right hand does 

 most of the work, I sometimes find it easier to pick 

 a long line off the water by making the left hand 

 give the butt a slight kick away from the body. 

 This utilises the spring of the rod to jerk the line 

 off the water. A similar but opposite motion of 

 the left hand when the line is extended behind one 

 will propel it forward again with surprising ease. 

 This is, I believe, the system used with the Castle- 

 connell rods, and it is certainly worth adopting 

 when one is tired, as the novice very soon will be ; 

 the first day with a double-handed rod is wonderfully 

 productive of aches. When a high wind blowing 

 from one's right side makes casting awkward, one 

 can bring the rod back over one's left shoulder ; it 

 is hard work, but it prevents tangles, and keeps 

 the fly away from one's head a desirable thing. 



There is another genus of cast employed when 



