i 3 o THE FINE ART OF FISHING 



the man who can skilfully handle a long line can still 

 more skilfully handle a short one. The angler should, 

 nevertheless, never allow the obsession of distance to 

 get the better of him. Unless you have a very natural 

 aptitude, gaining distance is rather a slow process. It 

 is much better to confine yourself to the correct hand- 

 ling of moderate casts and let distance take care of 

 itself. In due time a fairly long line comes automatic- 

 ally. 



How to Improve the Fly-rod 



Satisfactory fly-casting under any conditions exacts 

 the finest possible adjustment of tackle in every way; 

 but, chiefly, the rod must be a good one and its furni- 

 ture capable of giving the results which the caster 

 desires. If your casting to-date is not as good as it 

 should be it is quite possible that the rod is at fault. 

 It might be suggested that before you make up your 

 mind that you are a born duffer at the game you first 

 make sure that the tools you have been using are suited 

 to it. A good fly-rod need not be expensive, while, at 

 the same time, it cannot be cheap. Granted that the 

 material is of fairly good quality, it may be said that 

 effective casting depends greatly upon the style of 

 guides, the balance, the method of winding, etc., things 

 which to a certain extent may be regulated at will 

 without going to the expense of a new rod. Buying a 

 fly-rod is always a pleasure but sometimes, unfortu- 

 nately, the state of the money market is prohibitive. 



If originally the rod was a good one as regards 

 material, of carefully selected and assembled cane if the 



