Such a reel would probably be called an underspin reel nowadays. One example is made by Daiwa.
https://www.amazon.com/...Underspin...C ... .../B001...
Back in the 60s and 70s there were a number of closed-face spinning reels available. Unlike the spin-cast reel, which would be mounted on top of the rod like a bait-casting reel, they would be mounted under the rod like an open-face spinning reel. The internal bail would be released by moving the reel handle backwards, then reactivated by moving the handle forward. There were also some semi-closed face spinning reels that were used the same way, notably some that were made by Shakespeare.
In a book that was written in the 1960s, that is probably what was described.