210 A SCOTTISH FLY-FISHER 



employ a rod the management of which is well within 

 his stren(jth. But to obtain lightness he need not 

 sacrifice efficiency. Whatever the weight of the rod, 

 it should be moderately stiff; if supple and pliant it 

 will prove a disappointment. It will be found im- 

 possible to cast with it against the wind, and even in a 

 favourable wind, its elasticity will seriously interfere 

 with the success of the angler's efforts to control the 

 direction of his line. It is, however, in playing a fish 

 that its defects are most apparent. It places the 

 angler in an ignominious position ; he does not control 

 the trout ; it takes charge of him and, for a time, deals 

 with him at its pleasure. While it is occasionally 

 necessary that in its first wild dash for liberty, the 

 trout should have its way, the sooner it is subdued to 

 the will of its captor the better. To continue trifling 

 with it long after it should be within the net is to 

 waste time. The angler never feels more ridiculous 

 than when being played with by a heavy fish on a 

 feeble rod, and the consciousness that he is sustaining 

 a minor part in the amusing comedy, is not conducive 

 to his self-content. 



I was induced, lately, to try a rod some two feet 

 shorter and several ounces lighter than my own, but in 

 my unaccustomed hands, it proved a futile weapon. 



