20 AN ANGLER'S SEASON 



the evening. Instinctively it is assumed 

 that what is called chance has but little to 

 do with fly-fishing. Is that a mistake? 

 One must perceive that in fishing there 

 really are incidents which could hardly 

 be estimated without reference to the 

 notion which the word " fluke " expresses. 

 For example, when you raise and play 

 and capture a particularly fine trout in 

 a lake, it is not to be denied that luck 

 has helped you. You did not know that 

 the fish was just below where your cast fell, 

 and in that respect you were undoubtedly 

 a favourite of fortune. Similarly, you 

 may choose the very fly for which the 

 trout are on the outlook, and obviously 

 you are rightly to be considered lucky if 

 your choice has been at random. These 

 possibilities, however, seem to measure 

 the scope of flukes, and they are com- 

 paratively unimportant. Chance really 

 does play but a small part in trout- 

 fishing. 



That, it would seem, is chief among 

 the causes why the sport is so attractive. 



