DRY FLY FISHING 95 



of the fly or move to it and refuse it. It is 

 desperate work to continue to cast over a fish 

 which never takes any notice, but as long as a 

 trout makes any movement towards the fly it is 

 worth while to go on fishing for it and to try 

 a change of fly. Sometimes a new fly of the 

 same pattern will succeed where a much used 

 one has failed, and a change of the size of fly 

 may be as important as a change of pattern. 

 Now and then the trout is so interested in the 

 fly that it leaves its place and comes down stream, 

 inspecting the fly closely as it floats : sometimes 

 this ends in the trout taking the fly, at others 

 in its coming down stream till it sees the angler. 

 Occasionally it neither sees him nor takes the 

 fly and goes slowly back to its feeding place ; 

 and in any case the angler's only chance is to 

 keep perfectly still and make no movement, 

 unless the fly is actually taken. 



Most trout are scared by rising at an artificial 

 fly, even when they are not touched by the hook. 

 They know when you strike that something has 

 happened, which they did not expect, and they 

 either cease feeding or refuse for some time to 

 rise to the artificial fly again. On the other hand, 



