KNOTS 325 



is to be put to, but it is common, both for bottom and fly- 

 fishing lines, to taper them ; that is, the stoutest gut is 

 reserved for the upper part of the line, or that to which the 

 running or reel line is tied, and the finer for the part near the 

 hook, and it graduates in stoutness from one to the other. Gut 

 should be moistened in luke-warm water (if time can be spared, 

 cold is better), before it is tied ; and the older the gut is the 

 more thoroughly soaked it must be, and the more carefully and 

 closely the knots must be drawn together, as it gets brittle with 

 age. To tie two threads of gut together, place two ends side by 

 side, overlapping each other for a couple of inches or so, and 

 then tie the knot shown in Fig. 3, Plate III, page 66. Draw it 

 closely home, and snip off the short ends. This knot is generally 

 secure enough, if it be properly drawn home ; but to render it 

 more secure, I generally touch the knot, when the gut is quite 

 dry, with a drop of shellac varnish. If, however, this be not 

 thought secure enough, then it is usual to take another turn 

 in the fold, as shown in Fig. 4. The double folds, though they 

 make rather a large knot, render a slip impossible. There is 

 another way used when dropper flies are needed to be fastened 

 in, and that is shown in Fig. 2 in the same plate, but I have 

 noted that elsewhere. Some people whip the ends of the gut 

 on to the main line so as to secure the knot, but the whipping 

 always frays off, and is practically useless. In securing the gut 

 line to the reel line, it is usual to have a loop at the end of the 

 gut. The end of the reel line having merely a knot in it, take 

 the end of the reel line and pass it through the loop, as shown 

 in Fig. 5, Plate III, page 66. But if you wish to be able to undo 

 the line with ease and quickness when you require to change or 

 have finished fishing, then it is advisable to use the slip knot 

 shown in Fig. 6, when by pulling the loose end of the line 

 smartly, the hitch is released.* In making a loop in a gut line, 

 I usually prefer the knotted loop, as shown in Fig. 6, to the 

 whipped one, shown in Fig. 5. It is less conspicuous when 

 properly made and drawn close, and it is more secure, as loop 

 whipping often comes undone. Always try all hooks and gut 

 before using them, as it is exceedingly vexatious to lose a good 

 fish for the want of this precaution. 



And now as to fly tying. 



The Trout Fly. Some persons trust entirely to their tackle 



* Personally, I would not be found dead, so to speak, with such knots as 

 these on my line. In my opinion the figure of eight knot is the right one 

 for the purpose. ED. 



