118 FLO A TING FLIES 



ditions afforded by its habitat. There is all die 

 difference in the world between playing a fish 

 in still and fast water, and the brook trout is 

 essentially a fast water fish. 



The way you will play a trout depends in 

 great measure upon how your tackle is rigged. 

 If you have assembled rod, reel and line cor- 

 rectly, the chances are that you will soon dis- 

 cover and adopt the best method of handling a 

 hooked trout; on the other hand, if your tackle 

 is improperly adjusted, it will be physically im- 

 possible for you to go after your trout the right 

 way. The necessity of saying something about 

 how to adjust your rod, reel and line is ap- 

 parent. 



In his book "The Theory and Practice of 

 Dry Fly Fishing," Mr. F. M. Halford advises 

 a method of assembling rod and reel which is 

 directly contrary to the usage and advice of 

 most seasoned American fly-fishermen. Briefly, 

 his advice is to have the reel on the under side 

 of the rod with the handle to the left, presum- 

 ing that the angler casts with the right hand. 

 When a trout is hooked the rod is passed to 

 the left hand, turned over so the reel is on top, 

 and the fish is then played directly from the 

 reel. 



In view of the fact that Mr. Halford is a 



