THE RISES 



do salmon rise to the flyt Is it 

 merely the desire for food that causes 

 them to spring so beautifully out of 

 the water? Or is it joy or anger that 

 makes them take the fatal lures we gently 

 draw across the stream f My idea is that both joy 

 and anger are the cause of their misfortune. I be- 

 lieve that as soon as salmon enter this cold north- 

 ern river they experience a sensation of happiness. 

 What pleasure it must give them, having escaped 

 the dangers of the deep, to go bounding up-stream 

 on the way to the breeding-ground, where in their 

 silent homes they bring forth th<ir young to 

 replenish the Grand Cascapedia! While they are 

 in this joyful state they love to frolic. They will 

 take small bite of wood indeed, they will seize 

 almost anything. But when they have been in the 

 river a number of days and the water begins to fall, 

 their excitement becomes less intense, and, gradu- 

 ally getting used to the situation, they are not as keen 

 to seize everything they see. They are like our- 

 selves, for are we not supremely happy as soon as we 



86 



