THE PATH OF GOOD INTENTIONS 131 



and conversely, a floating fly is not subaqueous food ; 

 therefore, even should the trout be willing to take the 

 floating fly (which is theoretically impossible), it is to 

 be questioned whether the purist should permit himself 

 to take advantage of such a lapse. The method comes 

 perilously near " chucking and chancing." Again, the 

 trout may be taking but one natural fly out of every 

 six that pass over him. This shows that he is suspicious, 

 or timid, or both. Is the dry-fly man justified in doing 

 that which may only make the fish worse ? Assuredly 

 no ! Yet again, Mr. Jones may already have passed 

 up the water. Is the dry-fly man at liberty to cover 

 feeding fish which have probably already inspected 

 one of his flies, perhaps several times ? for Mr. Jones 

 is not a purist. Undoubtedly not ! And once more, 

 Mr. Smith may be coming up the water behind. Is 

 the dry-fly man to cast over trout which are within his 

 own reach, and therefore within Mr. Smith's when he 

 shall arrive ? The dry-fly man must do no such thing. 

 He must go on upstream till he comes to a fish feeding 

 in a spot which he cannot reach, and for him he must 

 angle. 



There are many other noble things which we shall 

 do in the new year, many other base ones which we 

 shall leave undone, and the roughly-paved path that 

 we have laid for ourselves stretches into the grey and 

 distant future. How long we shall look upon it without 

 stumbling, how soon we shall begin feverishly to 

 demolish the work of our own hands, and how many 

 of the stones will remain in place on the eve of another 

 new year, who knows? Of one thing I feel pretty 

 confident ; if I do all the things I aim at doing, and 



