PRACTICAL LESSONS IN THE GENTLE CRAFT. 461 



Its material is the next consideration, and, after trying rods 

 manufactured from a variety of woods, I can find none so 

 reliable and lasting as one of good sound cane, such as 

 can be obtained to perfection from my friend Alfred, of 

 Moorgate Street, himself a good and practical fisher, and 

 hence a good man to apply to. The joints should be 

 perfectly straight, free from flaw, and the less knots in 

 them the better, the ferrules strong and well fitted, the 

 rings upright, as a matter of course, thus allowing the 

 line to run freely, when thrown out from the winch ; and 

 with regard to the action or " play " of the rod, it should 

 neither be too stiff nor too supple. If it is very stiff it does 

 not show by the "niggle" at the point of the top-joint, 

 a process most popular in use, when the fish is attacking 

 the bait, or at any rate, if they are feeding badly, the best 

 moment at which to strike. If it is too supple, the quick 

 stroke of the wrist necessary in driving the steel home into 

 our tough-nosed friend's snout is frequently lost through 

 the action being diffused too slowly through the elasticities 

 of the weapon in use. The rod, therefore, should be fairly 

 stiff, with a fine top, a trifle stouter than a roach top, yet 

 with an amount of bend and give-and-take work about it 

 as will aid the hand, wrist, and reel, in killing a good fish, 

 should the angler be so fortunate as to get hold of one. 

 The best advice that I can offer to a tyro in the selection of 

 a rod is this in buying your rod go to such men as Alfred 

 of Moorgate Street, Gowland of Crooked Lane, Bowness 

 and Farlow of the Strand, or Carter of St. John Street Road. 

 Tell them exactly what you want, pay a good price at the 

 outset, and the probabilities are that you will get a tool 

 that with careful usage will last a lifetime. While upon 

 the subject of rods I may mention, perhaps with advantage 

 to my readers, the excellent rods that are to be obtained 



