56 AN ANGLER'S SEASON 



resume. There would be no general 

 rising of the trout until, after more rain, 

 the wind should veer to the west-north- 

 west, where it had been during the lull, 

 and the mercury in the weather-glass, 

 which must be drooping now, should 

 begin to rise again. 



One must not be sedulous in fishing 

 for trout in March. The lawful open- 

 ing of the season is a month earlier 

 than is really desirable. The trout, most 

 notably the large ones, are still capable 

 of much improvement in " condition." 

 They are not yet thoroughly good to 

 eat, and, despite the indulgence of the 

 Law, they should be given a chance to 

 become so. This thought, in a measure 

 apologetic, is particularly applicable in 

 Scotland, where, as has been indicated, 

 trout-preservation is only now becoming 

 a subject of anxious interest. The prin- 

 ciples are simpler than they are com- 

 monly believed to be. On the Tweed and 



