EVOLUTION OF THE TROUT FLY. 143 



the best imitation of the February Red, and 

 when so used it is specific. And besides the 

 February Red it also kills as an imitation of 

 the nymph of the Blue Winged Olive, and as 

 such is general. Or again the Wickham is 

 regarded as a fancy fly, yet a trout must be 

 keen sighted to distinguish it from a Red Quill, 

 specific imitation of a Red Spinner. So there 

 is no hard and fast line. Nor is there a hard 

 and fast line with fishermen, for most of us 

 use all three sorts. Few are entirely fancy ists 

 or generalists or individualists. Yet the 

 distinction remains and has been an important 

 one throughout history. 



I do not propose to enter on that controversy, 

 which has been waged with some acrimony. 

 What I want to show, if I can, is man's struggle 

 towards the light in specific imitation, how he 

 found his way slowly to the exquisite copies 

 which we use to-day. But before doing that 

 there is one further distinction which I must 

 mention. The individualists themselves are 

 split into two schools, those who regard colour 

 as the more important factor and those who 

 regard form. Some, with Sir Herbert Maxwell, 

 believe that a scarlet Mayfly kills as well as a 

 natural coloured one. Others change their 

 Olive Quill so as to match its hackle more closely 

 to the legs of the fly which has just arrived on 

 the water. On this controversy all I have to 

 say is that I shall assume for the purpose of this 

 chapter that imitation both of colour and of 



