96 BEST'S ART OF ANGLING. 



rod, because they say it is more light ; but I in 

 answer to that aver, that it is not half so strong 

 and lasting, and that the ash, on account of its 

 strength, may be turned in the lath, or planed 

 down to be every jot as light as the deal, and that 

 the angler, when he has hooked a good fish, need 

 never fear it snapping short, as deal will, because 

 it is the nature of the wood to bend almost dou- 

 ble, and will always, if well seasoned, return to its 

 former straightness. Let your rod, thus made, 

 be ringed for the line to pass through, with small 

 brass rings, about a foot distant from each other, 

 and at the but-end let there be a spike made to 

 screw in, which you will find very convenient ; 

 and you may, if you like to alter the colour of 

 your joint (though it does not signify so much in 

 ash as in deal, whose whiteness would scare the 

 fish) first warm it before the fire, and then dip a 

 feather in aquafortis, put it on the ash, and then 

 chafe it with your hand, and it will make it a 

 cinnamon, or rather a puce, or flea colour. 



Your fly-line should be about thirty yards long, 

 and wound on a small brass multiplying winch, 

 which is to be placed on the but of your rod ; then 

 you must run the line through the rings before- 

 mentioned, and you may always command the 

 length without the trouble of changing die line, 

 and shorten it when you come to places encum- 

 bered with wood. The general length that you 

 should have off your reel must be about four yards 

 longer than your rod, hay, sometimes the line 

 must be t\yice the length of the rod ; for to fish 

 fine and far off is the standing rule for trout fishing. 

 But it will be a long time before you are able to 

 throw a dib-line with nicety at the general length, 

 yet as you can always lengthen or shorten it by 



