THAMES' TROUT. 201 



A Thames trout tries the rod to the uttermost, 

 being such a quick-moving fish ; and when 

 he has to be held, a weak rod may fail at a 

 critical moment. Messrs. Slater and Co. made me 

 a rod several years ago^ with which I have landed 

 twenty-eight Thames trout and scores of chub and 

 pike that have taken the trout-bait. The butt and 

 centre-joint are of solid cane, not split cane ; the 

 top is greenheart. The joints measure as follows : 

 Top, 50 inches ; centre-joint, 50 inches ; butt, 

 57 inches ; making a rod about 13 feet in length. I 

 only employ the full length in difficult weirs, where it 

 is of use to reach over stones and stumps, close up. 

 In easy fishing weirs, I like a shorter rod ; so I had 

 a special butt made by Holroyd's, of Gracechurch 

 Street. This is a short butt of hard wood, grooved 

 to give a firm grasp of the hand, important in cold 

 or wet weather ; the butt is only 26 inches in length, 

 giving a rod of about loj feet The weight of the 

 shorter rod is only I J Ibs., of which the butt accounts 

 for three - quarters of a pound, thus keeping the 

 weight well back in the hand. The rod is fitted with 

 a mixture of rings ; they are large upright round 

 rings,exceptingtwo, the top rings on the centre-joint, 

 and are bridge rings. I use these two special rings 

 for making the loop throw (p.244), pulling the line 

 down between them ; the line does not catch in or 

 round the rings when the throw is made. The rod 

 is a dull, dark green, and being well weather-beaten, 

 is without glitter. A Thames trout-rod should be 

 supple, but with plenty of power in it, a combina- 

 tion most difficult to attain, for it must not be weak. 

 The rod must be of such a weight that the angler 

 can easily manage with one hand, an over-weighty 

 rod being a terrible infliction, for it should always 



