FISHING FOR SALMON 289 



results in the salmon, as fishermen say, " coming on the 

 feed," so long as no one on the bank is visible to them. 



The salmon see the air bubbles made by the bait or the 

 stones, feel the vibration of the water, or perchance hear 

 in their own way the noise of the stone falling on the pebbles 

 under water, and, although they may have appeared dull 

 and listless at the time, they frequently become alert and 

 excited, and at once attack the first moving object they 

 see apparently imbued with an instinctive desire to destroy 

 the possible enemies of their future young and to which 

 they may reasonably impute the disturbance in the water. 

 To watch salmon in a pool is an easy matter if the right spot 

 is selected, and if the spectator approach with the greatest 

 caution and remain apparently immovable and as much 

 concealed as is possible. 



A fisherman when wading does not appear to frighten 

 fish so greatly as when he is standing on the bank. Salmon 

 have followed my spinning lure, and taken it, close to my 

 rod point, when I have been wading. For this reason, 

 therefore, when playing a salmon from the bank, it is 

 advisable to keep as low down as possible. 



WHEN ENTERING FRESH POOLS 



It has been repeatedly noticed that when salmon are 

 running up a river they display considerable activity for 

 two or three days after reaching any fresh pool. This 

 cannot be due to an appetite forgotten during the final days 

 of their stay in the lower pool, and resuscitated in response 

 to the exertion of reaching the new water, because the run 

 between these pools has on several occasions been par- 

 ticularly noticed, and it has not been of such a character 

 as to exhaust the fish, and create a temporary demand for 

 food. As a more likely explanation, it may be assumed 

 that their instinctive desire to destroy the possible enemies 



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