THE FLY ROD 31 



choice. The fly-caster should never lose sight 

 of the fact that fly-casting, pure and simple, is 

 by no means all of fly-fishing that in the se- 

 lection of the fly-rod its suitability to striking, 

 playing, and landing a trout must receive care- 

 ful consideration. 



Fly-rods which answer all too strongly to 

 the quick impulse of the angler's wrist when 

 striking a rising fish are by no means rare. 

 Bearing in mind the small flies and delicate 

 leaders necessarily used in dry fly fishing, the 

 result of striking too strenuously can easily be 

 imagined, but the fault cannot be corrected if 

 the use of a rod too stiff and harsh in action is 

 persisted in. Moreover, during the process of 

 playing a trout, it is essential that the rod give 

 and take with the movements of the fish, exert- 

 ing an even but not too decided strain. A stiff 

 rod is a very risky one with which to play a 

 fish; there is great danger of the unconscious 

 employment of too much force; a trout even 

 poorly hooked may usually be safely landed if 

 delicately handled, but a fish quite firmly fas- 

 tened can easily be lost if forced by the angler. 

 A rod possessing just the correct degree of elas- 

 ticity and resiliency may often offset errors of 

 judgment on the part of the angler while play- 

 ing a fish, but a rod of incorrect action can 



