CLEANING AND VARNISHING 37 



wood until it glistens, winding neatly, and then, 

 when it is almost ready for use, have bad luck 

 in varnishing, and feel like throwing the rod 

 away, for apparently it is ruined, and there is 

 nothing left to do but remove windings and 

 guides, scrape it down and begin the work all 

 over again. 



This, however, is a mistake, for the fault 

 may be remedied if one is careful. Take a 

 bethabara rod, for example. This wood is 

 more or less oily. You may finish a rod with 

 the greatest care, wetting the wood to raise 

 the grain, then cutting down all roughness, 

 polishing with mild abrasives, then with fine 

 bethabara shavings, and finally with tissue pa- 

 per, until the wood glistens like polished brass; 

 but in the winding the natural oil from your 

 hands will coat the wood evenly, and it may not 

 occur to you that the rod is in bad shape for 

 varnishing. 



At best bethabara will not absorb much var- 

 nish; therefore, it is essential that the varnish 

 shall dry rapidly and not crawl, or solidify in 

 uneven patches, leaving other spots dry. If 

 you varnish the rod on a warm day, turning 

 it round now and then, so that it will dry evenly 

 in the open air, it will be satisfactory; but if 

 circumstances force you to varnish it hurriedly 



