. Dry-fly fishing in theory and practice . sting against the wind, and using the taperform of line recommended in a previouschapter. Even with a short length of gut,the absence of weight in the fine end of theline increases the difficulty, and nothing butcontinual practice will enable the tyro to over-come this. One of the tests of a first-rate rodis its capacity to cast a short or a long lineequally There are, however, places in which one under which . , it i i » a long cast is must either cast a long line or abandon one snecessary. chaiice of getting fish—places in which ther
. Dry-fly fishing in theory and practice . sting against the wind, and using the taperform of line recommended in a previouschapter. Even with a short length of gut,the absence of weight in the fine end of theline increases the difficulty, and nothing butcontinual practice will enable the tyro to over-come this. One of the tests of a first-rate rodis its capacity to cast a short or a long lineequally There are, however, places in which one under which . , it i i » a long cast is must either cast a long line or abandon one snecessary. chaiice of getting fish—places in which theriver is perhaps twenty-four to twenty-sixyards wide, the water deep and comparativelystill under your own bank, and a strongstream under the opposite one. In such aplace the greater run of water, and, conse-quently, the greater proportion of natural flies,float down near the farther bank, and, withthe wind across or nearly across from behindthe angler, every rising fish will be foundthere. The artificial fly, too, in such a posi- r::^^. I/O IV TO CAST 87 tion fishes well, and without drag. Theknack of making these extra long casts is onewhich can be acquired without any greatdifficulty, and is simply invaluable to thosefishing on club or subscription waters, asenabling them to give a fly to rising fish whichare passed by as impossible by the majority oftheir brother members. This throw, which is called the steeple Steeple , has been frequently referred to; butwriters on the subject have, I venture tosubmit, failed to convey accurately the prin-ciple of it. Commencing with quite a shortline, the right hand holding the rod is ex-tended nearly straight from the shoulder, andcarried up almost perpendicularly so as to liftthe fly well up into the air, as if trying to clearsome high obstacle immediately behind theangler, and hence the name of the steeplecast. While drying the fly backwards andforwards, the length of line required is gradu-ally drawn off the reel with the
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