PRAISE OF FLY-FISHING. 5 



wandering by, offered him an attraction which he 

 constantly revelled in, viz. fly-fishing. Sir H. 

 Davy, Archdeacon Paley, Sir Francis Chantry, 

 Sir Walter Scott, were enthusiastic fly-fishers. 

 General Sir Charles Dalbiac, the Duke of Eox- 

 burghe, the Earl of Essex, and many other great 

 names I could mention, are constant and con- 

 summate practitioners of the pleasing sport. 

 Other field sports may be more exciting, but 

 there is not one requiring more skill, or calling 

 into exercise more intelligence and adroitness of 

 mind and body. A quick eye, a ready and de- 

 licate hand, an apprehensive brain, delicacy in 

 the senses of touch and hearing, activity of limb, 

 physical endurance, persevering control over im- 

 patience, vigilant watchfulness, are qualifications 

 necessary to form the fly-fisher. His amusing strug- 

 gles, teeming with varying excitement, are with the 

 strongest, the most active, the most courageous, 

 the most beautiful and most valuable of river fish, 

 and his instruments of victory are formed of mate- 

 rials so slight, and, some of them so frail, that all 

 the delicacy and cunning resources of art are re- 

 quisite to enable feebleness to overcome force. 

 The large, vigorous, nervous salmon, of amazing 

 strength and wonderful agility the rapid trout 

 of darting velocity, hardy, active, untiring, whose 

 dying flurry shows almost indomitable resistance, 

 are hooked, held in, wearied out, by the skilful 



B 3 



