132 



natural flies, (and this is not, it would appear, 

 of the slightest importance), they certainly 

 catch fish as if they were." In another note 

 on Cotton the learned professor observes, 

 " Both these extracts from VenaUes are found- 

 ed upon the notion, that the fish can discrimi- 

 nate the species of flies, than which nothing 

 can be more unfounded, for the angler's flies 

 are not like any species." In another part of 

 his work Cotton says to his pupil, " I am now 

 to tell you next how to make an artificial fly, 

 that will so perfectly resemble him [May-fly], 



as to be taken in a rough windy day." 



Whereupon the professor notes, " The resem- 

 blance is not much nearer, I should say, than 

 Hamlet's cloud to a camel, or a whale." Lest 

 this opinion contained in notes should escape 

 notice, Mr. Rennie, in an original work, puts it 

 more prominently forward, thus : " It is still 

 more common, however, for anglers to use arti- 

 ficial baits, made in imitation, or pretended imi- 

 tation, of those that are natural. I have used 

 the phrase ' pretended imitation,' as strictly ap- 

 plicable to by far the greater number of what are 

 called by anglers ' artificial flies,' because these 

 very rarely indeed bear the most distant resem- 

 blance to any living fly or insect whatever, 

 though, if exact imitation were an object, there 

 can be little doubt that it could be accomplished 



