FLIES AND FLY FISHING. 23 



3rdly That if wading or walking up stream when 

 killing a fish, you do not disturb unfished water. 



The first two of these statements are utterly wrong in 

 practice, and show an ignorance of the habits of the fish. 

 Although fish always lie with their heads pointing up 

 stream, they never by any chance take a fly in that position, 

 but always make a decided turn in the act of rising and 

 take the fly with their heads pointing down stream ; there- 

 fore, at the moment of his taking the fly the fish and 

 fisherman are face to face, supposing the latter to be 

 fishing up stream. To prove this, let anyone look out for 

 a trout on feed in some running water, and shallow enough 

 for his manoeuvres to be easily perceived in, you will ob- 

 serve that he always swoops round and takes each fly as 

 I have described. But the best proof is to throw your 

 own fly just above him, keeping well out of his sight ; if 

 he rises you will see that the fly having passed over his 

 head, he will turn right round in his rise and dash at it. 

 In nearly still water, under banks, &c., he does not 

 always make so decided a turn as when in the stream 

 itself, but his head is always more inclined down stream 

 than otherwise when taking a fly ; but it must be borne 

 in mind that when trout are gnatting they do not follow 

 this rule but take the little midges in every direction all 

 round them. 



