Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1893-09-02
THE ART OF FLY-CAsTING.
How 10 Lure the Big Black Bass From
His Lair.

From the st. Louis Globe-Democrat.
The Increase of fly fishermen in st. Louis
Is an encouraging sign of progressiyeness
among local sportsmen. Ten years ego
there were not a dozen expert manipula-
tors OF the fly rod in the city, while today
they number by the hundreds. Not al OF
them can be designated as experts in COM
parison with record-breakers OF the east.
but still they whip the waters with
SUFFICIENT dizziness to bring the bass from
his bed in the lakes or his rocky retreat in
the rivers. Many anglers who have never
cast fly or handled big bass with seven
or eight-ounce rod. shrink for time from
the ordeal the beginner must endure ere he
gracefully sways the frall bit OF bamboo
and drops the flies 30. 50 or 40 feet away in
little hooks where the lily pods raise their
emerald discs ABOVE the placid waters,
and where the bass lies in wait for some
choice morsel Of the insect kind. When
the art OF handling the fly rod delicately
ana deftiy has been mastered-aDd IL 10 by
no means a tedious nor a lengthy lask-it
Is then the man. who has In the past done
his fishing with the wriggling angle worm
SEPARATION that makes him the same Kind a
crank he used to think the fly caster was
In the days when he himself did his flshing
with a paw-waw pole ana chalk line.
How to Handle the FIy-Rod-
Fly casting is the most healthful and in.
teresting occupation known TO sportsmen.
Standing erect in the bow Of the boat-with
a careful oarsman behind. who lightly dips
his oars and slowly and silently moves the
light craft through the wate--with each
cast the muscles of the anglers body are
| brought into play-not violently, but with
gentle undulations that develop without
overstraining them A gentle swish" of
the line as AZ cleaVes the AR, and the leader
with its flies shoots forward and drops as
a "a IA nf a N MT ltaaf .trlf
surface Of the water. just where the boughs
droop low and cast their shadows upon .he
slsearn. Time and again The angler makes
his casts. with eye strained for a water
break when the flies fall. until a rush that
scatters the spray tells him that the bass
has been lured from his lair. and thea he
sees the black beauty seize the bait with
wide open Jaws. A quick switch OF the rod
and he Is hooked Then comes the test OF
the anglers skin. in gently not forcibly
leading. playing and coaNing the FISH within
reach of the landing net Ii takes time,
patience. a cool head and a steady and
dexterous hand to accomplish this. n the
| base is a big one and a fighter. and all big
! bass are fighters. and some OF the little
| ones spar for an opening like a trained pu-
gilist.
When the strike is made by the bass the
angler must act quickly. for the bass is a
wary chap. and IL only takes him the small
| est part of a second to discover that the
little bunch of feathers is loaded. and is not
| the succulent insect he took IL TO be when
he made his mad rush after II II noi
hooked at once he will spit IL out with dis
| gust and go back into his hole and pull
| the hole in after him, as all the cunning
and coaxing of the angler can not bring
him out again for some time.
a fy-hsherman should practice ambidex-
| terity, and thus give equal exercise to both
hands and arms. There are fy-casters
| whose skill in handling the roa-w the
left hand, after practice, IS equal to that
with the right. While the work OF cast
ing for hours - not arduous. the wrist and
| forearm will feel the continued strain and
become stiff ard lame IL only one hand 10
| used. / have made II a practice In cast
ing TO shift the rod from right 10 left and
vice versa every ten or fifteen minutes.
and have found at the end OF a days work
that little fatigue followed the exercise.