46 BY HOOK AND BY CBOOK. 



fished them many a time, we could never get a rise; 

 whereas, when wading from the other bank, within a 

 short space of time success has resulted, and we could 

 only attribute the difference to aforesaid reasons. 



From our own observation an unnatural disturbance 

 of the water tends greatly to scare fish; and as an 

 example — at a certain " caul '* or weir, at which we 

 spend many a Sunday afternoon, the fish lie close in 

 shore, resting in a small back wash of boiling water, 

 and will remain there heedless of man's presence ; but 

 if he dip his hands into the eddy, away they go down 

 the fall which they have had much labour to sur- 

 mount. 



When the angler possesses thorough knowledge of 

 the water, he can don his waders and flop into the 

 water at one point and then another ; but should he 

 not have this knowledge, or when the water is very 

 high, he had better previously take a few casts from 

 the bank, in order to give a chance to any fish that 

 may lie close in shore — they occasionally lie in curious 

 places. 



An angler's success depends in a great measure upon 

 his knowledge of the conformation of the river's bed, 

 and if it be possible he had better study it at summer 

 level; then when the pool is in fishing trim it will be 

 to him as an open page, although its peculiarities are 

 invisible. Should the bed of a pool be composed of 

 gravel the lie of the fish is apparent to a stranger ; but 

 where resting-places are formed by large rocks or 



