196 Wet-Fly Fishing 



due to the presence of that tell-tale thread 

 of gut, which, however fine, remember, is 

 never strictly invisible ; and that our success 

 much depends on our being able to make 

 the fly alight softly, about six inches above 

 the said trout, to float down naturally to- 

 wards him, without the slightest drag ; but 

 also without any possibility of the gut being 

 visible, before the fly itself comes into 

 view. 



If I am right (and I think I am), it 

 would be highly diverting to know how 

 often, when the fisherman has been throw- 

 ing his fly perfectly, and could get no sign 

 of life out of some tantalizing old trout, a 

 puff of wind, doubling back, in a curve, 

 about 18 inches of the extreme end of the 

 gut casting-line, has, accidentally, placed 

 the fly "just right/' with the desired prac- 

 tical result. I commend these words to 

 the careful consideration of all wet-fly 

 and other fishers. 



I have elsewhere directed the reader's at- 

 tention to another possible cause of failure. I 

 mean the presence of the air-bubbles, which 

 afc times seem to cling to certain artificial 

 flies, especially when they are newly put 

 on. To other flies they scarcely seem to 

 cling at all, as the feathers apparently 



