CHANGING THE HOOK. 265 



the fish to seize the hook, as indicate something faulty 

 in its humour or vision. 



All occasional salmon-fishers have, in their experience, 

 met with blank and adverse days ; and of these, the most 

 tantalising happen when the fish are plentiful; when 

 they are inclined, moreover, to look at the hook, to fol- 

 low it, and even break the surface above or near it, 

 without making any real attempt to take hold. What, 

 it will be asked, is to be done by way of remedy on an 

 occasion of this sort? The practice of experienced 

 anglers has been to change the fly over the fish ; and, 

 indisputably, it is the correct one. It must not, how- 

 ever, be presumed, that there is, to meet all circum- 

 stances, a great deal of efficacy in this resort, and that 

 one, after experimenting to a certain extent, may hit 

 upon what he chooses to term the killing fly of the day. 

 It generally happens, when fish are in the capricious 

 humour I speak of (affected possibly by atmospheric 

 causes, often by the state of the water, and as often by 

 the action of solar light), that they remain so for a con- 

 siderable time for the space, at least, of three or four 

 hours, sometimes nearly a whole day. The operation of 

 a change of fly, made under such circumstances, is 

 almost always limited to an individual fish; were it 

 otherwise, there could be no reason to complain ; but I 

 doubt much, unless in the event of a change of weather 

 or state of water, that salmon, having shown a degree of 

 partiality to the three or four flies first used by rising at 

 them, would, on the exhibition of a fifth or sixth, all at 

 once discover towards these a peculiar fondness which 

 induces them, without reserve, not merely to show face, 

 but greedily to take hold. In the case of an individual 

 fish, this is, I allow, possible enough to happen ; but I 

 cannot bring myself to believe in the influence of any 



