40 ANGLER'S EQUIPMENT. 



as one with brass joints ; the wood of a rod re- 

 quires to be thinned in order to put the brass on, 

 rendering them liable to give way at the joints a 

 fact which the experience of all anglers will con- 

 firm. A tied rod also bends most equally through- 

 out ; and no angler will deny that it is the most 

 agreeable to use. The great objection, however, 

 to brass joints is, that, in order to bear their weight, 

 the rod requires to be made so much thicker 

 throughout. A rod of twelve feet, without brass 

 joints, should weigh about fourteen ounces ; with 

 brass joints, it will weigh about a pound and a 

 half, nearly double the weight, which tells fearfully 

 upon the angler's arm in fly-fishing. When the 

 tie system is adopted, the splices should be well 

 waxed, as also the thread with which they are 

 tied, otherwise they will be constantly slipping. 

 This mode of joining is objected to by some, on the 

 ground that there is a good deal of time spent in 

 putting the rod up ; but we think much more time 

 will be lost by using a rod with the additional 

 weight necessary to stand brass joints. 



If the angler cannot be troubled to tie the pieces 

 of his rod together, joints of some kind are indis- 

 pensable. The old mode of joining was by screw 

 joints; but they do not last, and the plain slip 

 joint has entirely superseded them, and is un- 

 doubtedly the most convenient and lasting method 

 of putting a rod together. The pieces are the 

 better of being tied together, as, if they are not, 



