CASTING IN THE NOTTINGHAM STYLE 51 



strong remarks are passed, and our angler wishes he could 

 rid himself of all this trouble by casting direct from the reel. 



We are told that an ounce of practice is worth a pound 

 of theory ; and a few lessons by a practical caster would 

 do more good than pages of written matter. The greatest 

 difficulty that I have to contend with is the fact that it is 

 almost impossible to lay down a hard and fast rule as to 

 how the rod and reel should be manipulated in casting out 

 in what is known as the Nottingham style. Even our own 

 Trent men are by no means agreed on the subject ; some 

 of them say the reel should be checked with the right hand, 

 others say the left. Some again say the hand that checks 

 the speed of the reel should be at the top edge, while others 

 maintain the bottom edge is the proper position. All men 

 are not alike, the plan that is free and easy to one may be 

 difficult and painful to another ; he must hold the rod and 

 reel, and throw in the manner that is easiest to himself ; 

 but this can only be acquired after very careful practice 



I have seen men who have been most expert in that style 

 casting in opposite directions, one of them casting with the 

 right hand above the reel, and the fingers of the left guard- 

 ing the revolving barrel at the top edge ; and the other one 

 with the left hand above the reel, and the right below it, 

 guarding the speed at the bottom edge. Each of these 

 methods is equally good ; it is for the caster himself to 

 find out which is likely to be the better and easier for 

 himself. 



Many of our best men throw from both shoulders, right 

 and left ; there are men who graduated on the Trent, and 

 then left their native river to settle on the banks of other 

 waters, carrying their style to places where it was practi- 

 cally unknown. I have heard it said more than once that 

 the introduction of this style on certain well-known rivers 

 marked a new era in the history of their angling. 



In casting from the reel the angler must find out exactly 

 where to hold his rod, so as to have the best command over 

 it. What we call the right-handed cast is made by grasping 



