168 HOW TO FISH A STREAM. 



of casting tolerably well. Having cast his line out into 

 the stream, so as to have it all clear and straight, he 

 should make his first cast up stream, parallel and as close 

 as he conveniently can to the bank on his own side of the 

 stream, as here the best fish are lying in wait. The line 

 ^will come floating down towards him with the stream, or it 

 will travel faster than the natural flies which are coming 

 xlown with it, and this will beget suspicion on the part 

 of the fish, besides making an unnecessary disturbance in 

 the water. All that he has to do is to continue steadily 

 raising his rod, so as to keep the fly near the top of the 

 water, and to have as little slack line in the water as pos- 

 sible. Some people work their flies ; but unless the fly be 

 sunk rather deeply in the water (when it is mistaken rather 

 for some quick darting water larva than a fly), this is bad, 

 and often destructive of sport. Watch the flies upon the 

 water, how they come floating down. They do not dart 

 and spring and shoot about that is, the great majority of 

 them do not. There are one or two, as the stone fly and 

 certain spider flies, that do so. If fishing with these, 

 motion may be given to them, but with three-fourths of 

 the flies it is worse than unnecessary. Let the fly come 

 properly home, and then make another cast about a yard 

 farther from the bank, and so go on covering fresh water 

 at every throw, until you have fished the entire water, each 

 throw representing a radius to the quarter of a circle, 

 when you can take a step or two farther up the stream and 

 repeat the process. 



Now this is the way to fish a stream thoroughly when 

 you are, as it were, searching for fish and do not know 

 the stream or where they may come up ; but if the fish are 

 rising fairly, it is a needless waste of time. Cast, then, 

 over the rising fish, and fish over the likely spots, and 

 don't dwell upon barren water. In casting over a rising 

 fish be careful not to put the line across him, as the sight 



