BEST TIME OF DAY. 147 



more trout may be captured in the month of July 

 than by any other means in any other month of 

 the year. And he is not worthy of the name of 

 angler who cannot, in any day of the month, when 

 the water is clear, kill from fifteen to twenty pounds 

 weight of trout in any county in the south of Scot- 

 land. 



Sport can also be more relied upon in this than 

 in any other kind of angling ; thunder in the air, 

 that dread of the fly-fisher, does little harm here. 

 We never found trout taking better than one day 

 in Gala during a thunder-storm, when we captured 

 22J Ibs. of trout, and they continued taking as 

 readily as ever, till about one o'clock, when sud- 

 denly the water, which before had been clear, came 

 down quite thick and muddy, and put an end to 

 further sport. 



The first part of the day is undoubtedly the best, 

 and the angler should arrange so as to have the bulk 

 of his take by twelve o'clock ; but if the day is dark, 

 and the sun comes out about four P.M., or a mild 

 shower falls, very good sport may be had up to a 

 late hour in the evening. If the weather is favour- 

 able, the angler cannot commence too early ; trout 

 will take readily when there is only sufficient light 

 to bait a hook. A dry morning, with little dew, 

 or a rainy one, if it is warm, will generally be 

 found best ; but if there is much dew falling, or a 

 thick mist rising from the waters, trout will not 

 take till some time after the sun is up. Early in 



