SALMON FISHING 187 



such a manner that it may be brought by the 

 stream moving in a lively and attractive way 

 within sight of the fish, being gradually swept 

 across to the angler's own bank. To do this 

 successfully the angler must cast not only across 

 but down the stream, and the more down stream 

 the cast can be made the slower will be the pace 

 at which the fly crosses the river, the greater 

 will be the chance of the salmon seeing it, the 

 less will be the chance of its seeing the line, and 

 the more easy it will be for the angler to keep in 

 touch with the fly during the whole time it is in 

 the water. This is why it is so important to be 

 able to throw a long line in salmon fishing, even 

 in a comparatively narrow river: it is desirable 

 not only to reach the whole of the likely water, 

 but to cover it at a proper angle. If the cast is 

 made directly across the stream, the line bags in 

 the middle, and for the first half of the cast the 

 fly has the appearance of a dead thing being 

 towed down stream by a visible cord, instead of 

 something alive being jerked by its own motion 

 in the water. Two things especially should the 

 angler bear in mind when actually casting and 

 managing his fly : the first is that the salmon in 



