AND HOW TO CATCH THEM. 11 



properly so called ; and some little diversity of opinion 

 will exist as to the length, power, and mode of con- 

 struction of rods ; and as much of the comfort and 

 success of the sportsman will depend on his using 

 "tools" proportioned to his strength, some little care 

 will be needed in the selection. From sixteen to 

 eighteen feet will be found a fair length for a salmon 

 rod, and in good hands will deliver as much line as is 

 generally found needful. No implement which the 

 fisherman requires needs greater judgment and skill 

 in its manufacture than a thoroughly good salmon rod; 

 and my most earnest advice is, never be tempted to 

 invest in a cheap new one, as disappointment and vexa- 

 tion instead of sport will pretty surely be the result. 

 Some of the best and most reliable I have ever used 

 have been of the description known as spliced, and were 

 it not that a ferruled rod is rather more portable, I 

 would use no other. They are now made by many of 

 the leading fishing-tackle makers with match pieces to 

 protect the scarf, and flat slide rings to keep the ends 

 from shifting, which are great improvements, and 

 render the splice much more compact and secure. 



The rod for bull and salmon trout may be of a 

 lighter description, but not less than from fourteen 

 to seventeen feet long. For both salmon and sea 

 trout rods, the butts should be of straight-grained 

 ash ; intermediate joints, well-seasoned hickory ; tops, 

 lance-wood and split cane; large rings, and plenty 

 of them, and a round ball at the end of the "butt." 



