32 FISHING IN AMERICAN WATERS. 



for salmon, trout, maskinonge, pickerel, black bass, bluefish, 

 Spanish mackerel, and all other surface feeders. Besides, the 

 pretended imitations are used several months earlier in the 

 year than nature produces their originals ; thus, while the 

 finest salmon-fishing in Europe is during the spring months, 

 the dragon-fly is a summer insect, and rarely makes its ap- 

 pearance until June. 



If artificial flies have no resemblance to natural ones, " how 

 much more unlike must they be when, instead of being swept 

 down by the current, as a real one would be, the artificial fly 

 is seen crossing and recrossing every stream and torrent with 

 the agility of an otter and the strength of an alligator? 

 Now, as it is demonstrable that the artificial fly generally 

 used for salmon bears no resemblance, except in size, to any 

 living one ; that the only tribe which it may be supposed to 

 represent does not exist in the winged state during the pe- 

 riod when the imitation is most generally and most success- 

 fully used ; and if they did, their habits and natural powers 

 totally prevent them from being at any time seen under such 

 circumstances as would give a color to the supposition of 

 the one being even 'mistaken for the other, may we not fairly 

 conclude that, in this instance at least, the fish proceed upon 

 other grounds, and are deceived by an appearance of life and 

 motion rather than by a specific resemblance to any thing 

 which they had previously been in the habit of capturing ? 

 What natural insect do the large flies and spoons at which 

 sea trout, lake trout, black bass, etc., bite, resemble ? These, 

 as well as salmon, frequently take the lure far within the 

 bounds of salt-water mark, and yet materialists know that no 

 such thing as a salt-water fly exists. Indeed, no true insect 

 inhabits the sea. What species are represented by the palm- 

 er, or by three fourths of the dressed flies in use ? An arti- 

 ficial fly can, at the best, be considered only as the represent- 

 Mtive of a natural one which has been drowned, as it is im- 

 possible to imitate the dancing or hovering flight of the in- 

 sect over the surface of the stream, and, even with that re- 



