FISH RISE IN ALL WEATHERS 119 



feed at some time in the twenty-four hours, and be sure if 

 they are not rising it is because there are no flies to tempt them. 

 They are not starving by way of amusement, rely upon it, but 

 have " metal more attractive " down below, in the shape of 

 grabs, worms, larvae, etc. No one perhaps would willingly 

 select a bright hot day, with no wind and a low water, yet I 

 have at times had excellent, nay the best of sport even, on 

 such days. And few would choose a steely bright day with a 

 cutting easterly wind, and little or no fly on the water ; but 

 on two such days running I once, in Derbyshire, killed in the 

 brightest possible water forty-six brace of capital trout each 

 day. I could have killed more on the second day, but did not 

 care to carry them, and I have often had good sport on similar 

 days ; some of the best days I have had this season (1867) 

 were on bitterly cold days with a north-east wind, and little or 

 no fly on ; and some of the worst on warm cloudy days with a 

 south and south-west wind and plenty of fly. Upon the other 

 hand, how often will the angler go out upon a day which he 

 would have picked out from the whole year, had he the choice, 

 and do little or nothing. There are some days, nice, brisk, 

 cloudy days, with a steady breeze, and not too much fly, and 

 the water in good order, which the angler may pretty well 

 count upon as being good days, and be seldom deceived, 

 though he may sometimes even then ; but as to picking out a 

 day when he can be sure that the fish will not feed, it is beyond 

 his skill. He may of course chance to be right and he may 

 chance to be wrong, and the longer he is a fisherman the more 

 he will discover that he does not know how a day may turn out 

 until he turns out his creel at night. It not unfrequently 

 happens that some very slight and unexpected change will 

 take place, some new fly will begin to hatch out, or some other 

 insect will put in an appearance, which sets all the fish feeding 

 suddenly, and will thus afford him an hour or two's capital 

 sport, turning a bad day into a good one. My advice to the 

 young angler is, always carry your mackintosh, be patient 

 and persevering, and leave the weather to take care of itself. 

 As regards a bright, hot, still day, although I do not say that 

 I should prefer such a day, yet I would not go far out of my 

 way to avoid it if the water be in fair order ; on a similar day 

 last year I caught in the Rennet (which is one of the hardest 

 streams to kill a dish of trout in that I know) six and a half 

 brace of trout, several of them up to two pounds, and one of 

 nearly four they were caught with a good-sized alder ; and 



