60 How to throw over and kill Trout. 



of trembling movement of the hand,* and this will keep the 

 flies in motion, as well as bring them a little towards you. 

 Still, you should let them be borne along by the current, 

 and at intervals gently shake them by a tremulous mo- 

 tion of the hand conveyed to the rod-top, and so to the 

 flies. When you see a fish rise at the natural fly in 

 streamy water, throw about a yard above him and a foot 

 beyond, and not directly over his head, and let your flies 

 move towards him with that tremulous shake I have 

 several times before spoken of, which will show them to 

 him in a more natural way, and tempt him the more to 

 rise at them. If the fish rise in an eddy by the side of 

 a fall or stream, or in a pool, cast your fly on to the very 

 spot where he rose. If you throw above your fish in 

 general stream-fishing, you will see him dart to meet and 

 take your fly as he does the natural one. If he miss it, 

 cast again and again, as long as he rises, until you either 

 hook or kill him, and do not leave him before you do the 

 one or the other. When trout are not feeding well, you 

 may rise them several times without hooking them ; it is, 

 however, far more satisfactory to kill one of these, than 

 half-a-dozen that give you no trouble. 



When a fish rises strike promptly, as before described, 

 but not too full or hard ; and, if he be very strong, let 

 him run out with your reel-line ; carefully, and always 

 gradually stopping him from making to a hold. If he 

 throws himself clear out of the water, the moment he 



* Mr. Stewart says in his work, p. 64 : " For an Angler to at- 

 tempt by any motion of his hand to give his flies a living appearance 

 is mere absurdity." Now I venture to suggest that the absurdity 

 lies in Mr. Stewart's own remarks regarding the handling of flies. 

 I grant that with a stiff nine or ten -feet stick and gut it would be 

 very absurd to suppose that such a motion could be conveyed to the 

 flies ; but with a properly made, sharp, springy, fly-rod and single-hair, 

 such a motion has long been and is used regularly on our fine waters 

 by Fly-fishers. 



