THROWING THE FLY. 87 



Hope is the angler's staff : walk hence with that, 

 And manage it against despairing thoughts." 



The first difficulty is to throw the line at all ; the 

 next, so to throw, that it descends lightly, and, 

 fully extended ; then to throw a long line to any 

 given spot ; and lastly, to throw, in almost any 

 situation among trees, avoiding entanglement. All 

 these are to be acquired by care and practice ; 

 but the last two can only be achieved by extreme 

 diligence ; and there are, consequently, few who 

 can accomplish them. I knew a gentleman, many 

 years since, a poor curate, who, fifteen times out 

 of twenty, with a single handed rod, could throw 

 a trout-fly into a hat at twenty-five yards' distance. 

 In fact, I never saw his equal ; for so sure a 

 fisher was he, that the owners of trout streams in 

 the neighbourhood, were as shy of allowing him 

 a day's fishing, as though he had been an otter. 

 The rod, in the hands of a practised fly-fisher, 

 may become like the foil in that of the celebrated 

 Roland ; he may do anything with it. But how 

 few are there, who have either the talent or the 

 time, requisite to render them such adepts ! 

 And I think I may safely say, that there are 

 hundreds, who, from not knowing the science of 

 fly-fishing, would never improve, if their whole lives 

 were devoted to the practice of that art alone ! 

 But the best way to ascend the hill is to begin ! 



