242 THE BRITISH ANGLER'S LEXICON. 



yet no sign of a fish either rising or being caught ; in an 

 hour or so the clouds darken and rain descends, and 

 when it clears again the fish rise in numbers, splendid 

 baskets being made just after a thunder shower or a sudden- 

 downpour of rain, while previous to these all the lures an 

 angler could offer would be powerless. This change is 

 owing to magnetic influences of the atmosphere, not per- 

 ceptible to man, but felt by fish at least this is the only 

 known theory put forward for this caprice of the trout. It 

 is difficult to ascertain the age to which trout live. Daniel, 

 in " Rural Sports," instances one living in a well for 

 twenty-eight years, but it never Increased in size or weight. 

 Probably five years is the limit of trout existence. 



TPOUt Fishing? may justly be termed the premier 

 sport of the angler ; for although fishing for salmon is 

 perhaps the more noble pastime, yet it is only the few who 

 nowadays are able to indulge in it, and there is certainly 

 more skill required to capture trout than any other fish. A 

 good trout fisher will always be able to hold his own when 

 called upon to angle for the larger salmo, but a first-class 

 salmon fisher may know very little about angling for the 

 smaller variety of the species. Trout can be angled for in 

 a variety of ways- by bait, artificial minnows, and by both 

 artificial and natural flies, all of which methods are ex- 

 plained under their different headings. Certainly the most 

 popular style is angling for these fish with the artificial fly, 

 and pleasant sport it is. To become a good trout fisher it 

 is almost a necessity that the angler should study the sub- 

 ject and view it in a hundred aspects. When he goes to 

 a stream to angle, he should be able at once to determine on 

 his line of action. If the water is full and strong, he has 

 only to cast away, covering each spot of water carefully, so 



