Pishing Ebels. 203 



gear." This consists in cutting the teeth of the wheel and 

 pinion ohliquely or diagonally, instead of horizontally. 

 The space between the teeth, at their base, is also cut 

 rounding, instead of Hat or square. 



Other makers of the " Kentucky reel " are Geo. W. Gayle, 

 of Frankfort, and James Deally, of Louisville. The reel 

 as now made is Still principally for black bass fishing, 

 though larger sizes are furnished for striped, bass and 

 tarpon. 



In connection with the foregoing account I wish to 

 add that before Snyder's day, the black bass anglers of 

 Kentucky used the single action reel, and sometimes a 

 wooden thread-spool mounted on a brass or iron frame 

 as mentioned. Many years ago a gentleman named Lewis 

 owned an estate called " Llangollen," a few miles from 

 Frankfort, Kentucky, on the banks of the classic Elk- 

 horn, then a famous bla,ck bass stream. He was a sports- 

 man of the old school and a frequent contributor to Skin- 

 ner's "American Turf Eegister and Sporting Magazine," 

 and later of Porter's " Spirit of the Times." He was the 

 owner of an old spool similar to the one figured which he 

 left in 1843 with Mr. Sage for repairs, and said that he 

 brought it from his old home at Wytheville, Virginia, and 

 had used it for many years. He preferred it to the mul- 

 tiplying reels then being made in Kentucky, and used it 

 for bait-fishing, as well as for fly-fishing, — a striking 

 illustration of that prejudice, called by courtesy conser- 

 vatism, of the British angler, for he was no doubt of Welsh 

 extraction judging from his name and the title of his es- 

 tate. The old spool figured may be the one alluded to, as 

 it came from the archives of Mr. J. L. Sage, an old Ken- 



