ARTIFICIAL FLY-FISHING, ETC. 97 



means of the winch, you may, if you are expert, 

 and are a true lover of angling, alter some trials 

 accomplish it. Never encumber yourself with too 

 much line at first, but increase the length of it as 

 you find you make improvement; and as it is ten 

 to one, that you lose a fly every time you cast 

 your line, until you are arrived at some degree of 

 perfection in doing it, it will not be amiss to prac- 

 tise sometimes without one. But let me return to 

 the subject : your line should run taper from the 

 top of the rod down to the fly, that is, if the fiist 

 link is composed of thirty-five hairs the next 

 must be of thirty-four; so leaving out one hair 

 in each link, till the whole is completed ; then 

 comes the silk-worm gut, on which you should 

 whip all your hooks. 



But the best lines for artificial fly-angling are 

 those that are wove, and are all one piece, and 

 are to be bought at any of the shops in London, 

 ..where fishing-tackle is^ sold, and run taper like 

 the lash of a coach-whip, and may be had at any 

 length ; as from thirty to forty yards, 8cc. 



These are the only lines that can be used on a 

 winch; because they have no knots to prevent 

 them running glibly through the rings of the rod. 

 By the line being made taper, you will be able 

 to throw it into any place you like with a greater 

 exactness, and it will fall much lighter on the 

 water, which will very much increase your sport. 

 The reader now being informed of the rod and 

 lines best calculated for artificial fly-fishing, I shall 

 in the next chapter give him a list of the mate- 

 rials he must be in possession of before he at- 

 tempts to make flies, and afterwards give him 

 the best instructions for making them. 



