CHALK-STREAM FISHING WITH DRY FLY. 333 



SQ long as it comes down exactly in the right spot before his 

 suspicions are aroused by seeing a foot or two of glittering gut 

 pass over his nose half a dozen times. So that there is a certain 

 amount of truth in the saying, ' It is not so much the fly as the 

 driver,' though the originator of this Hampshire maxim is him- 

 self quite as famous for his practical knowledge of flies and fly 

 tying as he is for his skill in handling a rod. 



But the angler who really desires to get the most enjoyment 

 out of his sport will never be contented with the utilitarian view 

 which measures a day's sport solely by the weight of the basket; 

 he will always have powers of observation keenly developed, 

 some at least of the instincts of the naturalist will be present, 

 and the marvellous profusion of insect life which is the pecu- 

 liar characteristic of the chalk streams cannot fail to excite 

 his interest. And, other things being equal, there can be no 

 doubt that the entomologist always has a great advantage over 

 the man who knows nothing and cares nothing about the habits 

 and life history of the flies of the streams he frequents. More- 

 over, there are some days, as all experienced anglers will admit, 

 on which any efforts however skilful appear to be useless until 

 the right fly is found. Then possibly, after an hour or more of 

 fruitless whipping, the spell appears to be broken, and fish after 

 fish falls a victim to the attractions of a single fly, the only 

 pattern in the angler's store which for the time possesses any 

 charm. 



A certain amount of fly-fishing entomology may, of course, 

 be learnt from books, but the only knowledge which can be really 

 useful is that which the fisherman acquires for himself by his 

 own habits of observation. The novice should, therefore, make 

 a practice of studying the flies by the water-side ; he will soon 

 learn to recognise some flies at a glance, but, however proficient 

 he may become, it is hardly likely that he will ever be able 

 wholly to dispense with the useful habit of dipping up from the 

 water a few of the natural insects, rather than fish for a moment 

 in doubt or hesitation. To readily recognise the fly on which 

 the fish are feeding, and to be able to match it with a good 



