Mr Pennell's " true rationale " criticised. 35 



are the points, therefore, to be kept in view in the 

 construction of artificial trout-flies." 



Mr Pennell then goes on to state his conclusion on 

 the whole matter that " it would be better to select 

 two or three of the most favourite and distinctive 

 families of flies, and imitate them only ; not in their 

 varieties or even in their species, but, as it were, in 

 their types, using those colours only which repre- 

 sent the prevailing tints in the families selected." 

 Following out this idea he selects the Ephemer- 

 idse and the Phryganidae as the families from 

 which these typical flies are to be drawn, employ- 

 ing in their construction only the colours green, 

 yellow, and brown, as these are the tints which 

 predominate in the families. 



Eeverting to this " true rationale," I should state 

 it thus : " Trout certainly take the artificial for 

 the natural fly ; " but to induce them to do so the 

 more readily 



1. Select as your prototype not any one natu- 

 ral fly, but an ideal fly a creation of your own, 

 a nondescript. 



2. Of this ideal nondescript make an imperfect 

 imitation both in form and colour. 



3. Present this imperfect imitation in an unnat- 

 ural condition not as floating passively down, 

 but as swimming vigorously up. 



4. Conceal both the imperfect imitation and the 



