THE BRITISH ANGLER'S LEXICON. 69 



not available, beyond the spot, say a yard, where you 

 intend the tail fly to alight, and the eye and hand will 

 work in unison with wonderful precision. When casting, 

 just as the flies seem about to alight on the water, raise the 

 point of the rod slightly; this checks the forward movement 

 of the main line, which pulls up, so to speak, the casting 

 line, and causes it to level itself in the air, and to alight 

 straight with all the flies in their proper position and 

 without a splash. The tyro should devote a spare hour or 

 two in practising casting on some quiet spot on the water; 

 it will be well spent time. In salmon casting both hands 

 are used, and a wider sweep of the heavy line is given. 

 Always keep a sharp look out behind, that the flies do not 

 come in contact with bushes or other obstructions, else a 

 smash will occur. 



Casting" Line sometimes called the " collar" is 

 attached to the end of the reel line by a "knot" or "hitch," 

 and serves to bear the hooks or flies. It is made either of 

 silkworm gut or horse hair, and varies from six to nine feet 

 long. If made from gut it should be composed of good round 

 transparent threads, sorted so as to give it a distinct taper ; 

 that is, the thread of gut next the reel line is the thickest 

 and strongest, the next finer, until the last, which is chosen 

 the thinnest of all. These threads are steeped in tepid 

 water for about half-an-hour, the curled shrivelled ends 

 clipped off, and they are then knotted together, either by 

 the "water knot," or the "double fisherman's knot" (q.v.). 

 The latter is the neatest, and has the advantage of allowing 

 the knots to be drawn asunder, so that the artificial fly link 

 may be inserted when making up the casting line for 

 fishing. Gut should always be chosen perfectly round, as 

 flat gut is readily seen by the fish, as it glitters badly ; it 



