50 THE TROUT 



happen should this manoeuvre be executed would be 

 that the point of the rod would drop slightly and 

 the line thereby be slackened, the very thing to be 

 avoided at such a juncture ! The object of the ' strike ' 

 is, as has been pointed out, to drive the hook in over 

 the barb into the fish's mouth, before he has had time 

 to discover that the fly or bait, whatever it may be, 

 possesses an unnatural and disagreeable foreign body, 

 and consequently endeavours to spit it out. The 

 strike can be effected only, as far as I can see, by raising 

 the point of the rod at exactly the right moment, not 

 so violently as either to drag the hook out of the fish's 

 mouth, or to break the casting-line. I have often 

 watched skilful fishermen rise, strike, and hook fish, 

 and I have always seen the rod go straight back, 

 quickly but gently, in the direction of the angler's 

 shoulder. Any lateral motion such as that suggested 

 by the expression ' turn of the wrist ' has been most 

 carefully avoided. 



V\'ith very fine tackle a fly is frequently struck off. 

 No man, however great an adept he may be, can help 

 this happening at times. An extra-cramped position, 

 or a very long line which has a slight drag on it, will 

 make such an accident very possible. If the fisher- 

 man be not quite fit and well, if his nerves are 

 slightly upset, he is apt to strike somewhat more 



