i6 
A HANDY GUIDE TO 
that you have failed to let it go its full length behind, 
and you should practice until you can return it with- 
out any crack. 
“Accidents,” however, “will happen in the best 
regulated families,” and sometimes even the expert 
will crack off his flies. I have sometimes fished hard 
all day without losing a single fly throughout it, 
while on another occasion I have flicked off half-a- 
dozen. This may depend on circumstances of various 
kinds, such as wind, heat, bad gut, old flies, and 
even the angler's condition of health or temper. The 
whisky-flask is very favourable to the flicking off 
of flies. 
Endeavour to make the force of your forward cast 
creep, as it were, from your wrist all up the rod, but 
falling with its greatest force on the upper part of the 
middle joint. This will cause the force to fall on that 
part of the line nearest to the top of the rod, which 
force will then travel all along the line bellying it up 
and out into a straight line. 
In bringing the line backwards do not let your rod 
go much further back than your right shoulder. 
Practise this exercise until you can swish it out 
with force and ease ; the latter being a great 
desideratum. Half an hour a day for a week ought 
to give you this mastery. Hardly less will suffice. 
Festina lente : Make haste slowly. But you may 
gradually let out a little more line each day. 
