ioo Wet -Fly Fishing 



Browns that were coming down from the 

 rapids above. I confess that I expected 

 more from the numbers of the submerged, 

 drowned flies, than from the few (very few) 

 living flies still left on the surface itself. 

 Whatever may be said or thought of these 

 motives or methods, they saved the day. 



The river was very low ; the trout were 

 getting rather hard to catch, and I had 

 done but little. 



As I was taking off my waders, the 

 keeper noticed a neighbouring proprietor, 

 who was a first-class and very active fisher- 

 man, and who often made very heavy 

 baskets, a man as hard as nails, and a 

 harder nut to crack. He had just fished up 

 the very best of the water, and was making 

 a few up-stream final casts, below Turriff 

 Bridge, to wind up the day till his trap 

 came. Down went the keeper to see him, 

 and I fully expected to learn that he had 

 made a heavy basket, as was his wont. 



To my surprise, he had done next to 

 nothing. I at once asked the friendly 

 keeper to take a little lot of the tiny 

 " doubles " down to him, with my compli- 

 ments ; and to say, from me, that, but for 

 these, I also should have done next to 

 nothing. He accepted the flies graciously, 



