TACKLE (Continued) : Page 41

ally put on in clusters and the color is a matter of taste. There is nothing in metal windings that recommends their use on a fly rod.

Finish

The usual finish of a fly rod is a number of coats of good varnish. Some anglers prefer their bamboo rods to be stained dark green or brown to harmonize with stream-side surroundings on the theory that such a finish is less likely to scare a shy fish. I do not believe that the' finish of a rod or its fittings have much to do with its visibility to the fish but these dark rods, wound with " contrasty" silk and finished oxidized are certainly very handsome and if an angler has an artistic craving for such things and wishes to use a shy fish for an excuse I, for one, will not argue the question with him.