SENSES OF FISHES. 19 



that the sunny side would be left to me, and cats 

 always prefer the sunshine." Sir Humphrey, speaking 

 to his companions in the ' Salmonia/ subjoins, " as 

 you are my scholars, I believe I must teach you. The 

 sun is bright, and you have been, naturally enough, 

 fishing with your backs to the sun, which, not being 

 very high, has thrown the shadows of your rods and 

 yourselves upon the water, and you have alarmed the 

 fish whenever you have thrown a fly. You see I have 

 fished with my face towards the sun, and though 

 inconvenienced by the light, have given no alarm. 

 Follow my example, and you will soon have sport, as 

 there is a breeze playing on the water." 



The same indistinctness of vision will prove the 

 decided fallacy of the supposed art of the routine 

 angler, who fancies the fish are so well skilled in the 

 colours and forais of particular flies, as to refuse all 

 other sorts on particular seasons and days, and even at 

 different periods of the same day. Nothing can be 

 more preposterous than such a notion, universal though 

 it be amongst the most experienced anglers ; yet at 

 the same time, I am w^ell aware that the facts are 

 certain upon which they found the fancy, but are to be 

 accounted for on a totally different principle, as I 

 shall endeavour to illustrate in a subsequent page. 

 " There is no evidence," says Daniell, " of any fishes 

 seeing at a considerable distance, and the conduct of 

 many of them that are deceived by different baits 

 prepared in imitation of their food, gives room to 

 suspect, that objects are not very distinctly perceived 

 by them even when near." 



c2 



