114 HINTS ON ANGLING. 



The best, and indeed only efficient, mode is to fish 

 down the river; and, where it is possible, fish each stream 

 in it right across. To do this, begin at that part of the 

 stream which is nearest to you, and trail your line at a 

 considerable angle to the other, or vice versa, as the case 

 may be. If the fish rise when your tackle is in this posi- 

 tion, there is far greater probability of his hooking him- 

 self than if any other direction be taken; and, when 

 hooked, his rushes down stream bring him in direct op- 

 position to the strain of the line and the spring of the rod, 

 and so expedite his capture. If it should happen, as it 

 often does, that you have a strong head-wind against you 

 in descending a river, then you must make the best of 

 your situation, and contrive to throw your line at as 

 slight an angle in an upward direction as the breeze will 

 let you. Steady practice and perseverance, however, will 

 enable you to overcome all difficulty arising from this 

 source, unless you encounter a hurricane. 



To have, what may be called, an angler s eye, is of 

 great importance in fly-fishing, and indeed, in fishing of 

 all kinds. This consists, in perceiving at a glance, where 

 the fish may be presumed to be, in any stream or water. 

 This apparently intuitive knowledge, is solely the result of 

 observation and experience, and not any written directions 

 can convey it to the young beginner. Still, without it, 

 no man can make any satisfactory progress in the art. An 

 expert angler, if he sees a brother of the craft flogging 

 away in certain parts of the water, detects in a moment 

 that he can have no correct notions on the subject, and is, 

 in this matter, a veritable ignoramus. 



The trout observes the same rule as the salmon, with 

 respect to his haunts and places of abode. The latter 

 never ventures into very shallow water, at a great distance 



