The Trout 



one reason, the dry fly must be cast up- 

 stream, which will never be a favorite 

 method with American anglers for well- 

 known reasons. Then again, our trout 

 streams are usually swift and broken, and 

 under these conditions the dry fly is soon 

 drowned and becomes a wet fly, thus sub- 

 verting the cardinal principle of dry fly- 

 fishing. In England this method is prac- 

 ticed on comparatively smooth, shallow 

 streams with but little current. The flies 

 are constructed with rather large, upright 

 wings and spreading hackle, and often with 

 cork bodies, to enhance their capacity for 

 floating and buoyancy. 



While fly-fishing, wet or dry, is unques- Comparisons 

 tionably the highest branch of angling, and 

 far preferable to bait-fishing for trout, It 

 does not follow that fishing with the dry 

 fly, or floating fly, is a superior art to 

 fishing with the wet or sunken fly, as 

 claimed by some of the dry fly-fishers of 

 England. Indeed, some of the ultra dry 

 fly enthusiasts have arrogated to themselves 

 the distinction of practicing the most artistic 



87 



