TROUT FLY-FISHING IN AMERICA 



The ultimate aim of fishing is to catch fish, indepen- 

 dent of the method employed, whether it be by bait, troll- 

 ing or fly-fishing. As I have already said, the catching of 

 game fish on the fly, however, does not mean the killing 

 of fish, as is usually the case with the two other methods. 

 Anyone who claims that the object of fly-fishing is not to 

 catch fish is not a fly fisherman. 



The act of placing a fly delicately and accurately de- 

 pends more upon the skill of the angler than upon the 

 kind of rod, assuredly such is the fact so far as the two 

 mentioned rods are concerned. 



The degree of delicacy and accuracy required is de- 

 termined first, by the method used, the wet or the dry, and, 

 second, by the conditions under which the angler has to 

 fish. For if an angler always fishes the same way for the 

 different species of trout found in the many different kinds 

 of fishable water he will have but little success, and could 

 not properly be called a good fly fisherman. 



The Doctor's rod does not relieve the leader of "strain" 

 in the way Mr. La Branche would seem to imply, it simply 

 relieves it of "undue strain,' ' thereby giving the angler a 

 chance to display his skill instead of mere strength. 



If light gut leaders are smashed when striking a trout, 

 or afterward, assuming that they are made from suitable 

 high-grade material, it is because the angler is a poor fish- 

 erman, or the rod does not suit the angler, or the rod is too 

 powerful; and generally the smashing is due to the last- 

 named cause. 



85 



