30 THE TROUT 



by some-one totally unconnected with the feast. He 

 would probably hesitate considerably before accept- 

 ing the proffered novelty, for fear of either spoiling 

 the proved excellence of his meal, or from the dread 

 of some form of practical joke. And that is just what 

 trout do when ' tailing. 7 They think over the matter 

 deeply, before venturing to attend to the allurements 

 of the dainties^ hackle fly. So the fisherman, when 

 he tries for a * tailing ' fish, must make up his mind 

 to work hard for him, and then, with luck, he may 

 eventually be well rewarded for all his time and 

 trouble. 



The second condition I have mentioned is, when 

 trout are found to be * bulging.' Often on reaching 

 the riverside the fisherman will notice what at the 

 first glance might seem to be innumerable rises. On 

 closer inspection these will prove to be fish taking 

 what I believe are called the nymphcz of the duns or 

 mayflies just before they reach the surface, there to 

 hatch out. When trout are thus employed, they are 

 very difficult to catch by means of the artificial fly, 

 however skilfully used. A stray fish may be induced 

 to look at a floating dun, but it is a rare occurrence, 

 and on the whole I don't know any more aggravating 

 mood to find fish in than that of * bulging.' What 

 makes it worse is that the water is being constantly 



