170 A TWIG OR WEED CUTTER. 



neglect this, and get hung up in some tall tree behind him, 

 he will be more likely to get fixed than when throwing 

 across, because of the heavy drag given to the fly in the 

 forward motion. To provide against mischances of this 

 nature, it is as well to carry a coil of stoutish cord in the 

 pocket or basket ; this takes up little or no room, and by 

 tying a stone on to one end of it and throwing over the 

 offending branch, and then twisting the depending stone 

 round aud round the length held in the hand, the bough 

 may generally be pulled down or even broken off. Some 

 anglers carry one of those little hook-shaped knives which 

 have a barbed gaff hook on the reverse side, and which can 

 be screwed into the but of the landing-handle. These are 

 meftil in cutting free a weed or twig which may be within 

 reach ; but it often happens that the handle is not long 

 enough to reach high up into a tree, and therefore the coil 

 of cord is to my mind preferable at any rate it is a useful 

 adjunct. A very useful little implement was sent to me 

 some time since ; it was a sort of hooked knife with a hol- 

 low but ; the top of the rod can be stuck into this but 

 and the knife projected up over any twig, a cord being 

 fastened to a ring in the back ; by this means the twi# may 

 often be severed, or the knife can be lashed on to a handle 

 cut from a tyree or hedge to cut a weed with ; a drawing of 

 it may be seen in Plate I. fig. 5, p. 11. 



When the angler hooks a fish in a very weedy place, the 

 best policy is a bold one. Let him at once, before the fish 

 is aware of what has happened to him, put on a heavy 

 drag, and pull him through or o^er the weeds into safe 

 water. I assure the angler that this is much easier and 

 safer than it either sounds or looks. It is one thing for 

 the angler to take a fish through weeds, but quite another 

 thing for the fish to take himself through them. In the 

 one case he does not see where he is going, and yields to 

 the impulse, while his fins offer no resistance ; in the other 



