Causes of Failure in Fly-fishing. 71 



one dressed in a suit of superfine black cloth. Why 

 were shape, and colour, and size, given to insects by the 

 Ruler of the Universe, unless it was to direct and guide 

 His creatures in their selection of food at times and sea- 

 sons proper for them ? Their shape and colour surely 

 was not given to please the eye of man only, but for some 

 more useful purpose in the field of nature. Again, Mr. 

 Stewart asserts that " sometimes trout more readily take 

 flies of one colour than another." And, because he can- 

 not understand why this is, he writes against the use of 

 more than three or four colours, and, if size be right, 

 quite discards attention to shape and colour. 



One great cause of failure in Fly-fishing is, that 

 parties will pursue the old, and now nearly obsolete and 

 erroneous method, of fishing down stream, whereas up 

 and across stream is really the improved and artistic 

 practice. And for these reasons : first, because the 

 Angler is unseen by the trout ; secondly, because he can 

 thus use a shorter line, and kill his fish better ; thirdly, 

 because he can work the stream yard by yard, and miss 

 no place where a fish is likely to lie ; fourthly, because, 

 when he hooks a fish, he does not disturb the upper part 

 of the stream, and thus secures several fish, which, if he 

 had fished down stream, would not have been the case, 

 one or two at most falling to his lure ; fifthly, because, 

 in down-stream fishing, on rising a fish he pulls his fly 

 away from him ; or, if he should hook him, ten to one 

 but in striking, he either breaks his tackle, or loses his 

 fish. These grounds will be found sufficient, I trust, to 

 show that the down-stream fishing ought, in general, to 

 be discarded. Of course, there are times and places 

 where such a practice cannot well be avoided, but it 

 seldom proves good for sport. 



To gain what is called " an angler's eye" is of mani- 

 fest importance in Fly-fishing, nay, in fishing of all kinds. 



