FLY-FISHING AT SEA. 87 



rod of course to about 15 feet 6 inches, a much more manage- 

 able length. A bamboo rod is the lightest and most agreeable 

 to fish with, but more liable to receive damage from the rough 

 and tumble work which is one of the concomitants of sea-fishing, 

 both in clambering over rocks and in the boat. 



Your rod, although strong, should not be unmanageably 

 heavy or stiff, in order to enable you to throw your flies as in 

 Salmon and Trout-fishing, when a shoal of fish is seen leaping 

 on the surface of the water. A stout top 6 inches long to fit 

 into the third joint is very useful for heavy work in the boat. 

 Supposing the rod to be four-jointed, three lengths without any 

 butt may be used for Mullet and Smelt angling from piers and 

 quays. Thus in one rod you will have an instrument useful 

 for all angling in salt water. The rings should stand out as in 

 a trolling rod, but need not be so large, | inch in the clear will 

 suffice. It is not in fresh water considered orthodox to use the 

 same rod for both fly and bait-fishing, but in salt-water work we 

 must bend to circumstances for the sake of having only one 

 rod, which can be made to answer all our requirements. 



The Winch should be a plain one without any complication 

 whatever : a Nottingham one is preferable, because, from the 

 size of the barrel, the line can be wound up more quickly when 

 a lead is used. As this winch works very freely, to prevent 

 overrunning and thereby entangling the line, a leather washer of 

 proper thickness should be placed between the screw nut and 

 the reel, or between the back cheek and the reel. Any required 

 pressure may thus be obtained, and the principal objection to 

 this class of reel removed. The new Nottingham winches are 

 fitted with a brake or check which prevents their overrunning. 



The Line. Your line should be of white or brown snooding, 

 or cotton, not less than 30 yards in length, with a reel or winch 

 which will run easily when a large fish takes the bait, or some 

 part of the tackle will be carried away ; if the fish run very 

 large 60 or 70 yards will not be too much. See fig. n, p. 48, 

 No. 5, for size of line. The check of the winch therefore should 

 not be heavy. 



The eight-plait trolling lines are also very suitable for salt- 

 water angling : in fact, there can be no kind of line better 



