100 THE COMPLETE ANGLER. 



but in the Nottingham style of fishing the reel is of wood, and rims 

 so freely on its axis that the line can be thrown from the reel, which 

 unrolls as the line passes through the rings. 



Multiplying reels are a nuisance. Check reels, in which the reel 

 is prevented from overrunning and so entangling the line, by con- 

 cealed cog wheels which act as a check or break, are very useful. 

 The check system has lately been applied to wooden reels in such 

 a way that by simply moving a pin the wheel becomes a check reel 

 or a free-running reel at the angler's pleasure. These reels, how- 

 ever, are expensive, and the same result can be obtained by fasten- 

 ing an india-rubber brake withaspring on to the ordinary Nottingham 

 reel in such a way that it can be turned off or on the revolving rim 

 as desired. 



Lines are made of various materials. For salmon fishing 100 

 yards of dressed silk 8 -plait line is necessary. For trout fly-fishing a 

 mixture of hair and silk is said to be the best by some ; but it does 

 not run freely through the rings, and a dressed silk line, finer than 

 that used for salmon, is, I think, the best. Cotton lines, undressed, 

 and made by the Manchester Twine Spinning Company, 2 1 Cor- 

 poration Street, Manchester, are very much cheaper than silk line, 

 and answer every purpose nearly as well. I use their make, dressed 

 or undressed, for every description of fishing now, and I am well 

 satisfied with them. They are excellent for bottom-fishing, except 

 for the Nottingham style, when a very fine, light, though strong line 

 of undressed silk is used. 



" Dressed " lines are lines made waterproof. See Appendix, for 

 directions how to dress lines. 



Hooks are of various makes. The two best for striking and 

 holding are the Sneck bend and the Pennell ; but for worm-fishing 

 the " round " is the best, as a worm can be more easily threaded 

 upon it. 



Hooks are numbered according to their sizes, and the numbers 

 run different ways, according to the fancy of the various makers. 

 This makes it difficult to refer to them by the numbers. 



Between the reel-line and the hook is a longer or shorter piece 



