202 THE BRITISH ANGLER'S LEXICON. 



trolling rods are longer and stiffer. A fly rod, if well made, 

 should not show much depression of the point when held 

 horizontally. It ought to be as nearly straight as possible, 

 because, in striking a fish, its action should correspond at 

 once to that of the wrist. If it depresses much it is apt to be 

 slow, too slow for hooking the nimble trout. The manu- 

 facture of split cane rods was originally an English idea, 

 but it was left to our American cousins to work this out to 

 perfection, and they still claim that they alone can build 

 these rods in the proper style. However, good rods are now 

 built in England, and the great matter is to procure proper 

 canes, and use no trash. These are called Calcutta bamboos. 

 There are two sorts, the "male" and the " female." The 

 former selected makes the more perfect split rod, and is rent 

 or sawn into sections longitudinally, the soft inside wood is 

 taken away, and the outside silicious barked sections are 

 cemented up again into hexagonal shape. Some of these 

 rods have a steel wire running up the centre. A cane 

 built rod twelve feet long weighs from twelve ounces to 

 fourteen ounces only, but at the same time is strong 

 and pliable. These rods will not bear as rough usage 

 as a solid wood rod, and are so expensive owing to the 

 difficulty of their manufacture and the high class skill 

 required to get them up properly, that they are only to be 

 found in the hands of the more wealthy. An interesting 

 and detailed account of split cane rods is given by Dr. 

 Henshall in his " Book of the Black Bass." The ordinary 

 Indian or Japanese canes are chosen for rods according to 

 size, and jointed in their natural state, care being taken not 

 to rasp the joints of the canes down, and thereby weaken 

 them. In all rods stress should be laid upon the balance, 

 when taken in the hand. The difference between a well- 



