96 FRESH WOODS. 



would they swing their rods, half-a-dozen 

 times or more, to get their insect perfectly 

 dry and floatable, and then let him swim, 

 wings erect, with the most delicate precision, 

 just over the very centre of the ring made by 

 the rising trout ! How tantalising, then, to 

 see a real May Fly glide down over the same 

 spot, and the big trout come straight at him, 

 and scorn the scientific impostor ! Thus did 

 these enthusiasts, single-handed and double- 

 handed, swing their rods the livelong day ; 

 they were perfect adepts in the art, and it was 

 a real pleasure to see how cleverly they tried 

 to deceive these cunning fish. Occasionally, 

 to the disgust of the patient angler, a stupid 

 roach would be beguiled ; but of the educated 

 trout, what shall I say ? So far as I was able 

 to ascertain, four good sizeable fish were the 

 sole result of all this desperate striving, and 

 one of these was blind of one eye ; these had 

 all succumbed to the skill of one of these 

 redoubtable anglers. This very remarkable 

 want of success was, of course, quite unusual ; 

 for these anglers were all men of experience, 

 their arms were as accustomed to the swing- 

 ing rod as the thresher to his flail, or Mr. 

 Gladstone to his axe. Sometimes one would 

 have a try at another man's fish during his 

 temporary absence, in the vain hope of good- 



