AN OLD THEORY NOT ABANDONED. 69 



seen or found in the heavens above, the earth 

 beneath, or the waters under the earth. Amongst 

 my plates of flies, will be found a beauty — a 

 piscatory Peri — which I have, in justice to the 

 artificial creature, christened " Ondine." In the 

 north of Ireland it is called the " Spirit-fly," 

 and the able artist who made the model for the 

 engraving, declares that it is an imitation of cer- 

 tain natural flies which he has seen. I fancy 

 this a day-dream of angling genius. Perhaps, 

 like the Phidian Venus, it is a statue made up of 

 the separate beauties of divers animated models. 

 Be that as it may, I never saw an insect like it, 

 or any thing like it, and all I know about it 

 is, that salmon will take it eagerly in certain 

 rivers. 



In trout-fishing with the fly, I shall not as yet 

 abandon my theory insisted upon in my " Hand- 

 Book of Angling," perhaps too dogmatically, but 

 certainly too pungently, as far as regards certain 

 Scotch writers of the anti-imitation school. That 

 theory is, that trout-flies can be well imitated, 

 and that the nearer the imitation the better. It 

 is now the fashion to maintain the contrary. Be 

 it so. But if ever I fly-fish for trout again, and 

 see living insects " out " — be they March-browns, 

 oak-flies, green-drakes, &c. — I shall certainly use 



F 3 



