132 A SCOTTISH FLY-FISHER 



there. But, trying though it sometimes is, the angler 

 would not be without it ; it affords protection to the 

 trout and provides a nursery for the organisms on which 

 he lives. The difficulty presented by the weeds, how- 

 ever, is not insuperable ; it may be overcome if the 

 trout, in its first surprise, permits the angler to lift its 

 head above the water and drag it hurriedly along the 

 surface to the bank. But unless the angler acts with 

 promptitude, the manoeuvre is unlikely to succeed ; if 

 he delays until his quarry has regained its scattered 

 wits, he may await a second opportunity in vain. 



On open water, the usual three flies may be em- 

 ployed with perfect safety, but where weeds abound, 

 two of them will be wisely dispensed with. When the 

 cast is furnished with a single fly, and it is in the mouth 

 of a fish, there are none to give the angler occasion for 

 profanity. 



It is difficult, except to the most skilful, to cast suc- 

 cessfully across the wind, and when the breeze is parallel 

 with the shore the angler should enter the water and 

 fish to leeward. In a succession of casts he should 

 describe the arc of a circle, and when he has completed 

 his first series he should take a. step forward, causing 

 as little disturbance of the water as possible, before be- 

 ginning the next. Whether the initial cast be towards 



