104 THE SALMON. 
not too hard, but as quick as the lightning from the 
sky, and this although contrary to the English books, on 
the ground that a salmon, if he rises once and fails to 
touch the fly, will always come again. If, however, he 
has tasted the unappetizing morsel, and has not been 
hooked, for he is qnick to spit it out, you will see him no 
more. If you fail to hook a fish on the first rise, it is 
well if you can keep your impatience under control, to 
rest him by casting elsewhere a few times, and if you 
fail to strike him on the third rise, change your fly. 
Salmon are extremely particular and dainty in their 
tastes, and it is never advisable to fish too long with one 
fly unless they take it well. 
The great rules are — ^keep out of sight, change your 
flies and rest the pools. The best time of a clear day is 
early and late, and in the midday heat not a boat nor a 
line should disturb the water ; in fact, a pool that a 
canoe has crossed is ruined for the day, and when there 
is no rising, there is little good in casting. A pool that 
is not disturbed at night Avould be found much better, as 
a consequence, in the morning. 
But after your fish is hooked, after he is played and 
almost played out, after you have exhausted him, and 
brought him skillfully and carefully to shore, he is not 
yet in the pot ; nor will he be unless you have an assis- 
tant expert with the gafif. There are all sorts of direc- 
tions about this important operation, some authors saying 
a fish must be gafi'ed in the shoulder, others preferring 
the tail, some the belly, and some the back, but, in fact, 
one place is as good another ; the main points are not to 
miss nor graze him, and not to jerk so hard as to throw 
