350 THE DRY-FLY MAN'S HANDBOOK 



growing on it. These gravel-bars should be from, 

 say, five to twelve yards in width, and the intervening 

 weed-bars should be approximately of the same or a 

 little less width. Thus, at this stage the shallow 

 would appear as alternate bars of dense weed and 

 clean gravel. 



It will probably be found that in this state the 

 water will be penned back too much, and possibly even 

 land above the shallow may be flooded. To counteract 

 this it is only necessary to cut here and there narrow 

 longitudinal cuts through the weed -bars in the 

 middle, or at the sides of the stream, and let the 

 water down. It is often a good policy to arrange 

 these cuts alternately on either side of the stream. 

 Care and attention in carrying out this work will 

 enable an efficient keeper to arrange the flow of water 

 over a shallow so as to content the farmers and other 

 tenants, and at the same time give fishermen the 

 best chance of sport. 



The exact arrangement of the bars should be 

 thoroughly thought out and their positions should be 

 marked by stakes on the bank before the work is com- 

 menced. The places in which the growth of weed is 

 most luxuriant are evidently those designed by nature 

 for weed-bars, and conversely wherever there are 

 natural clean gravel-patches these are the parts de- 

 signed for the gravel-bars. Every advantage must be 

 taken of the natural set of the stream to provide desir- 

 able holts for the fish, and the classes of weeds which 

 usually contain the largest supply of food should be 



