INTRODUCTION 37 



Opinions are divided as to the precise Rain and hail, 

 manner in which a downpour of rain or 

 hail may, directly or otherwise, affect the 

 fisherman's chances. It seems to be 

 established that the majority of fish feed 

 well during, at any rate, light showers, and 

 some, like the mahseer, are said to feed on 

 hailstones, occasionally even with fatal 

 results. As distinct from the imperfectly 

 understood effect of a fall of rain or hail 

 on the appetite of fish, we have in the 

 course of the chapter on the subject to 

 consider the indirect bearing of the rise 

 of rivers in a spate, the discoloration of 

 the water by floods, and the washing down 

 of fresh stores of worms and other natural 

 food. Under certain conditions also the 

 patter of rain-drops on the surface of dead 

 still water may in some measure serve the 

 fly-fisherman in place of a breeze, though 

 whether, as generally believed, by hiding 

 the cast, or, as Dr. Bright prefers to think, 

 by more thoroughly oxidising the water, 

 it is difficult to determine. 



The question of the right level of each 



