Feb. 23, 1907.] 
2 99 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
So, a rod with full metal reel-seat may weigh 
434 or 5 -} 2 . as the case may be, and still be 
eligible. An old rule used to allow also an 
extra three-quarters of an ounce for rods with 
independent handles, but this has generally been 
discontinued. 
In the unlimited class, which is the star event 
and carries the championship for distance, the 
rod may be of any weight elected by the user, 
the only restrictions being it shall not exceed 
it 14 feet in length and must be used with one 
l and. Tournament rods, made especially for 
the purpose, are designed on lines radically 
different from the regular or standard fishing 
rods. There are really but very few expert 
makers of tournament fly-rods in this country 
and their creations are marvels of exquisite 
workmanship. The average angler, when 
handling one for the first time, will be amazed 
at the “speed,” strength and driving power of 
these rods which, by comparison, are apt to 
make his old favorite seem a veritable “limpy- 
go-fetch-it.” The makers referred to follow a 
different theory in the manufacture of tourna¬ 
ment rods. One of them follows the principle 
of a very heavy middle joint and tip being 
necessary to properly retrieve a long line and 
“kick” it well out behind; another claims the 
lifting can be done with the butt and that the 
greatest need in a rod is strength for the for¬ 
ward cast, so he puts a tremendous driving 
power in the butt. Both rods have proved suc¬ 
cessful in different hands, and while I, person¬ 
ally, prefer the latter style, the perfect rod is 
probably a proper combination of both. 
It is "a hard and almost impossible task for 
the tyro to pick out a proper rod for tourna¬ 
ment work and he had far better put himself in 
the hands of some one “in the know ’ or any 
reputable dealer who makes a specialty of these 
rods. It is sufficient to say that they should 
be stiff and powerful and have a quick, springy 
action, so that when whipped sharply they will 
spring back instantly. Large-sized snake guides 
will be found the best, and there should be a 
large agate “hand” guide, placed fairly close to 
the top of the butt. Many casters prefer, es¬ 
pecially on the heavy rods, an extension handle 
built out from 4 to 8 inches below the reel- 
seat. This is so managed that in recovering the 
line it is held under the forearm and affords 
the caster considerably more power by reason 
of the leverage obtained. It is a somewhat diffi¬ 
cult trick to master, however, and not many 
favor it. 
Lines and Leaders. 
Having settled on the rod, the next thing is 
the line. Here we encounter all manner of 
ideas and opinions as to the best. Certainly, 
to my mind, nothing can campare with the 
English soft enamel lines for this purpose. 
They are far more flexible, do not kink and 
are considerably heavier, size for size, than the 
hard enamel American lines. Their tapers, too, 
are much longer as a rule, and they will out¬ 
wear the hard enamel lines two to one—they are 
quite expensive. 
As I mentioned before, the lines generally 
used for tournament work are much heavier 
than those used for fishing, for with the heavy 
line longer casts are possible and the line is 
more easily controlled. Of course the line 
should be suited to the rod and it is an ex¬ 
tremely difficult thing to get a line which will 
match the rod at every ttirn and afford the best 
results under all conditions, and perfection is 
only arrived at by much practice and experi¬ 
ment. When you have at last attained this, be 
careful to preserve the exact dimensions, so 
that it may be replaced if lost—this is very im¬ 
portant. The loss of nearly the wh.ole front 
taper of my pet line once cost me an important 
match, as I had neglected to preserve the dimen¬ 
sions and could not replace it in time. Gen¬ 
erally speaking, a line suitable for the unlimited 
class of rods, weighing from 7 to 9 ounces, 
should run from A trout to No. 4 salmon (Eng¬ 
lish sizes) in the center. The tapers should be long 
and even, but no rule can be applied here, as 
so much depends upon the way in which the 
line is handled in casting. If the caster em¬ 
ploys a long, slow cast, a fairly light line with 
very long taper is essential, while the fast 
caster depends upon the rolling loop and re¬ 
quires a line with a very heavy center and a 
long, evenly balanced front taper. As the ma¬ 
jority of experts employ the rolling loop in dis¬ 
tance casting, I shall deal with that style only 
in the following directions for the cast. 
Considerable experimenting has been done 
with the so-called whip-lash line, but as yet it 
has found little favor. This line runs from a fine 
front taper, steadily increasing in size, until it 
attains the maximum diameter at a length of 
about 80 feet. It then tapers off sharply and 
runs the balance of its length in size H or I, 
which are the smallest sizes made. The theory 
is that when the heavy center line is thrown its 
impetus will carry after it a considerable quan¬ 
tity of the light back line. Most expert casters 
use lines which they themselves have spliced 
by hand of several different weights and sizes, 
thus working out to their own satisfaction the 
proper weight of center line, length of front 
and back tapers, etc., as suited to some par¬ 
ticular rod and their own peculiar manner of 
JOHN ENRIGHT CASTING FOR SALMON ON THE 
SHANNON RIVER IN IRELAND. 
casting. For the lighter rods of the 4 and 5- 
ounce" classes the proper sizes would be about 
No. 3 for the 4-ounce and No. 4 for the 5 " 
ounce. English trout sizes. It is well to note 
here that if the casting is to be indoors the 
front tapers should be much shorter than those 
used m the open, for here you have no favoiing 
wind to buoy up the line and straighten out a 
long light taper. 
Leaders also play an important part and 
should not be overlooked. In some events the 
length of the leader must not exceed the length 
of the rod by more than two feet, but generally 
speaking, any length is allowed, and experts 
use them up to 20 feet in length. They 
should be tapered (unlimited class) from heavy 
salmon gut (next to the line) to an ordinary 
trout size. For use with the heavy rod my 
favorite leader is j8 feet long, composed of 
9 feet of heavy salmon gut, 6 feet of heavy bass 
gut and 3 feet of regular trout gut. 
In some cases the fly used is furnished by 
the committee, but the caster should always be 
well supplied himself. The ordinary snelled fly 
is quite useless, as it will be almost immediately 
whipped off. Nothing is more annoying and 
disconcerting than, just as you have worked out 
your line to the point where you are ready for 
the final shoot, to hear the. judges sing out 
“Fly off!” when you must pull in and do it all 
over again. The smallest fly permitted under 
the rules is No. 12 sproat, old scale, and the 
best style is the metal eye or gut loop, as they 
do not snap off easily. I prefer the gut loop, 
as it does not cut the leader nor ruin it by rust 
it allowed to dry on the leader. 
Lou S. Darling, 
[to be continued.] 
Color or Shape—Which? 
Editor Forest and Stream: 
“Which is the most important feature in the 
construction of the artificial fly, the coloring or 
the shape?” 
I fancy this question has been debated many 
times in the past and that good anglers have 
disagreed as to the correct reply. No one doubts 
that the size of the fly used is of great impor¬ 
tance, so it is unnecessary to discuss that point. 
Personally I have not the slightest doubt that 
color is more important than shape, although 1 
detest an ill formed or badly tied artificial fly. 
I have seen the most rudimentary flies kill trout, 
and kill well. All anglers have taken fish after 
fish when the favorite fly on the cast had been 
literally torn to pieces by the sharp teeth of 
the trout. The same thing has occurred in black 
bass fishing. I remember giving two Lord Balti¬ 
more flies to a friend before his departure for 
the Berkshires, some years ago. In a short time 
I received a letter from him in which he re¬ 
counted extraordinary sport with small-mouth 
black bass in hard fished waters. The remains of 
the two flies were inclosed to show how they had 
suffered in many combats. The hooks were 
almost bare of silk, tinsel and feathers. In fact, 
the flies had been literally “chewed up.” 
I believe that no round-eyed creature has the 
refined and accurate perception of form pos¬ 
sessed by the almond-eyed human being. The 
former are quick in detecting motion, but ob¬ 
jects at rest will not be noticed. Even a deei 
or wild turkey will fail to distinguish a man 
who is absolutely motionless, although apparently 
gazing directly at him. Probably with highly 
educated trout in waters that have been hard 
fished more attention must be paid to shape of 
fly than when one is in pursuit of their more 
unsophisticated brethren of the wilderness, but 
color remains of first importance. A difference 
in the shade, darker or lighter, will sometimes 
make a difference in the killing qualities of an 
artificial fly. I have seen a pale yellow dun kill 
many trout when a darker pattern of the same 
fly on same sized hook was perfectly useless. In 
this instance the fish were rising freely at the 
natural insect. I am aware that well known 
men have doubted the ability of trout to distin¬ 
guish graduations of color. One has even ad- 
vanced the theory that fish are coloi blind, but 
rny belief is the result of experience. Curiosity 
may occasionally induce a trout to rise at a fly. 
He' may take it because it appears to be alive 
and small enough to eat, or its colors provoke 
his savage predatory nature. Red or red and 
white appears at times to have the same effect 
on fish that they have on bulls or turkey cocks. 
The imitative theory does not enter into this 
discussion, and only becomes a burning question 
upon streams which produce great numbers of 
ephemera or other insects. There you will find 
the best anglers making every effort to match 
the color and size of the fly on the water. Only 
last spring, in a day when many fly-fishers were 
at work, sport was ruined for the majority by 
the sudden appearance of a host of small natural 
flies. Trout were rising everywhere, but only 
one or two men were able to find flies near 
enough in color and size to the natural to take 
them. Nothing else was of the slightest use. 
Trout differ so much in their habits in different 
waters and localities that anglers of wide ex¬ 
perience hesitate to affirm that this or that is 
absolutely so, but I do believe that color is rela¬ 
tively more important than shape, granting, of 
course, that the artificial has some pretensions 
to being called “a fly.” Theodore Gordon. 
CONTINUED ENJOYMENT. 
Raleigh, N. C., Nov. 1, 1900.- We wish to continue our 
paper. Enjoy it more than any one we read.—C. T- 
Hilton. 
