248 FLY FISHING AND SPINNING 



It may also be a reasonable supposition to imagine that 

 the salmon, whether hungry or not, and whether capable 

 of swallowing or of assimilating any food it may seize, may 

 be still influenced by the feeding habits which have been so 

 strongly developed during its visit to salt water, and that, 

 continuing the attack on all moving objects, it unconsciously 

 fulfils a natural duty which tends to the future safety of its 

 young. 



