THE COMMON BROWN TROUT. 251 



This is what an old writer of about 1660, whose MS. I have discovered 

 in the Sloane collection of the British Museum, says, and it may fitly 

 end my directions on casting : 



"Upon casting I wd. do it with a little circling about my head, by 

 waving ye rod, or else ye fly may, with too smart a jerk, be apt to snap 

 off, and so I must stay a quarter of an hour, may be, to get another. 



" In casting, I will observe allways to do before me, that it may fall 

 on ye water, and no part of ye line shall dash to scare ye fish, and if I 

 can without making any circling in the water I will. If ye wind be high, 

 I will let some of ye line be in ye water to keep ye fly from being blown 

 out." 



Having made the cast, what is to be done ? Mr. Francis does not 

 advocate working the fly, as is the style for salmon, but rather to allow, as 

 he says, "the fly to come properly home (i.e., in up-stream fishing), and 

 then make another cast, about a yard further from the bank, and so go 

 on, covering fresh water at every throw, until you have fished the entire 

 water each throw representing a radius of a quarter of a circle when 

 you can take a step further up the stream and repeat the process." I 

 confess I like working inert flies with a gentle tremulous motion, intended 

 to imitate the struggles of the insect were it drowning. It is nonsense 

 to say that a fly does not struggle. It really does so on finding out any 

 accident. Look at the fly in your milk jug, brother anglers, for a 

 familiar example. 



Of course, I am aware the objection will be urged, " But the fly in 

 question does not move along the water by jerks." Granted; but the 

 working of the fly is the only means whereby it is possible to put life and 

 vivacity into the inevitably unreal. Here the question arises, "would 

 not the fish more unerringly notice the deadness of the imitation fly if it 

 be allowed to float, as recommended by Mr. Francis, than if its struggles 

 were imitated by the ' working ' business ? " I think it would. Would 

 the accelerated pace be so noticeable as the inanimation ? I think not. 

 Therefore, I would recommend my readers to work their flies with a 

 gentle tremulous motion of the top of the rod, whether casting up or 

 down stream. 



This brings me to the question which has been much mooted, and may 

 be stated in legal form, viz. : Up v. Down-stream fly fishing. 



Here is the case of the up-stream fisherman, as ably represented by 

 Stewart. 



" The first and the greatest advantage is, that the angler is unseen 

 by the trout. Trout, as is well known, keep their heads up stream ; 

 they cannot remain stationary in any other position. This being the 

 case, they see objects above and on both sides of them, but cannot discern 



