THE BRITISH ANGLER'S LEXICON. 93 



sort won't do to learn properly with, and the education 

 received by the means of a poor rod is so much time thrown 

 away. Very soon the rod will be thrown away also, the 

 cost of which is lost, and would have been more wisely 

 added to the price of a good one. It takes some little time 

 before the angler, be he tyro or professor of the art, becomes 

 acquainted with the capabilities of his rod and what it will 

 do for him. Rods are made from a variety of woods (see 

 " Rod Making "), but the wood that is now to the front is 

 greenheart, especially for salmon and trout rods. It makes 

 a powerful, yet elastic and easily-handled weapon. A fly rod 

 made from it is capable of hooking and playing a one pound 

 trout, and quite able, if the occasion turns up, of hooking 

 and killing a ten pound salmon. A fly rod should give 

 a perceptible spring right down to the hand. Some anglers 

 prefer a stiff rod and others a whippy one. The latter is a 

 little more difficult to work with, especially casting against 

 the wind, and does not lift the line so cleanly from the 

 water. Many of the rods are made with small handles for 

 instance the Castleconnell rods ; others, especially the 

 English makes, have a good grip at least one inch in 

 diameter where the hand grasps and the rod in this case 

 tapers off suddenly. Others have false handles fitted over 

 the thorough wood, made from cork, fancy wood, lapped 

 cane, leather, or lapped with twine like the handle of a 

 cricket bat. The preference should be given to the solid 

 wood handle, as it gives a more commanding grip. The 

 fewer splices or joints there are in a rod, the more 

 perfect the playing powers. Except for convenience, it 

 would be better if it had no joints at all. But this would 

 render it awkward to carry about. One splice or joint is 

 quite sufficient in a nine or ten foot rod, two in a twelve 



