188 FLY FISHING 



fresh water has more curiosity than appetite, 

 that he is not waiting for food, nor expecting it 

 to come to him as he lies in the water. The fly 

 must rouse the attention of the fish, and must 

 do it attractively. It should have the appearance 

 of something trying with difficulty to escape from 

 him, and so perhaps arouse in him the passion 

 of the chase, even when he has no appetite to 

 be appealed to. This is why I think it is im- 

 portant that the fly should cross the stream 

 slowly, but with a lively motion. The second 

 point is that, as salmon lie either at the bottom 

 of the river or not far from it, the fly should 

 be well sunk in the water. To secure this in 

 heavy water it is best not to jerk the fly 

 violently, but to trust the stream to give the 

 motion to the fly; and to use a long and heavy 

 line. The most successful salmon angler, of 

 whom I have ever had any knowledge, always 

 fished with a big rod and a heavy and long line 

 in the spring. I think his fish nearly always 

 took under water, but he caught more than any 

 one else on that river. 



If we could watch salmon more in the water, 

 as we can so often watch trout when feeding, 



