LOOSE STRANDS 213 



by art. Certainly no one colour will render it a whit 

 more valuable than it is as it comes from the hands of 

 the manufacturer. If, however, the angler will have it 

 disguised he should provide himself with a supply 

 stained in various hues to suit the varied circumstances 

 in which he means to employ it. When, for instance, 

 it is his intention to fish Loch Leven, he should have 

 it dyed a delicate glaucous-green, but when his purpose 

 is to cast a fly on the dark waters of a Highland loch, 

 it should be coloured pale brown or yellow. 



There may be reason in staining gut green or 

 brown, since the trout, if he takes note of it at all, may 

 regard it as a piece of stray vegetable matter, but what 

 was in the mind of the angler who first dyed it blue ? 

 Did he fancy that he was assimilating its colour to that 

 of the water, or was he under the— in this climate — 

 erroneous impression that the fish see it against an 

 azure sky ? 



The angler may " work " his flies, or he may draw 

 them slowly towards him with uninterrupted motion, 

 or, when fishing up-stream, he may submit them en- 

 tirely to the influence of the current. It is widely 

 believed that when the lure is moved through the 

 water in a series of short jerks the alternate opening 

 and closing of the hackle gives it a deceptive appear- 



