46 ELEMENTS OF ANGLING. 



young angler can fish the same places in the 

 same manner, and do his share in persuading 

 history to repeat itself. If he has plenty of leisure 

 he can devote several days to assimilating 

 thoroughly the alphabet of the craft which he has 

 learnt as yet but superficially. They will not be 

 wasted, for, while they will make him more and 

 more familiar with his rod and line, they will also 

 teach him something else which it is well for him 

 to know the inevitableness of bad and blank days. 

 Even on Mr. Smith's well-stocked water one does 

 not always fill one's creel with fish. Some blazing 

 Saturday afternoon, perhaps, when the mill has 

 stopped and the water is glassy, and so clear that 

 the bottom can be seen, the novice will be able to 

 look down on shoals of fish, red- finned roach 

 poised head downwards scarcely a foot below the 

 surface, striped perch swimming languidly about 

 in mid-water close to the wall, and very dark 

 shapes motionless close to the bottom, which are, 

 possibly, the bream. Now and then a burly chub 

 will come into view, drifting like a log practically 

 on the surface. Such a spectacle of fish life is very 

 fascinating ; but the novice will not find much sport 

 under these conditions. Not a fish will even look 

 at his worm, suspended on the strong gut below 

 the painted float, and the only effect of his angling 



