104 Wet- Fly Fishing 



screeching like a girl when a mouse runs 

 over her foot, surely to continue my 

 method is wisdom's choice, at least, so 

 long as it succeeds. 



Sometimes it answers uncommonly well. 

 If it does not, I return to more congenial 

 and orthodox methods. Of course, if a hatch 

 of flies presently transforms the scene, no 

 one but a rank duffer would continue to 

 sink the fly ; as then, of course, the trout 

 come quite near to the surface, and the 

 endeavour must be to float rather than to 

 sink the fly. Then, how glorious it is, when 

 there is a good rise not a mass of flies, 

 for that invariably is fatal to great results, 

 but just a fair sprinkling of flies, which 

 serve only to stimulate the trout, rather 

 than to satiate and gorge them : to mark 

 down any large-sized individual trout ; to 

 get below them, to fish up, and, one by 

 one, to basket the fish, till you have creeled 

 half a score to a score of pounds-weight of 

 trout. I can imagine nothing on earth 

 more enjoyable than a time like this ; and 

 it is in the hope that I may be the means 

 of helping others to partake of many such 

 pleasant hours, that I am writing this 

 chapter at all. 



Wading trousers coming up to the waist 



