IMITATION OF THE NATURAL INSECT 159 



to colour changes likely to take place upon im- 

 mersion, with the result that in many cases 

 where silk was used upon the body of the fly, 

 these changes were great enough to destroy 

 almost at once any resemblance to nature the 

 artificial might have had before it was wet. 

 I sometimes find myself believing that these 

 anglers, when they considered colour at all, 

 considered it only in relation to its effect upon 

 their own eyes, and without any regard to the 

 fish's view of it perhaps not entirely without 

 reason. True, the changes in, or loss of, colour 

 were offset to a considerable extent by the 

 motion, more or less rapid, imparted to the fly, 

 which prevented close scrutiny by the trout, 

 and detection of the fraud. My own notion 

 is that as the fly had to be taken quickly by 

 the fish, if at all, it was taken because it was 

 moving and might be food of some sort and not 

 because it looked like or was an imitation of any 

 particular insect. 



There are a great many expert anglers in 

 America who fish with accurate or close imi- 

 tations of the natural insect, wet or sunk, and 

 who, by virtue of their skill in throwing the fly 

 and their knowledge of the haunts and habits 

 of the trout, are enabled to basket fish of fine 



