LOOKING UPWARD 41 



from the fact that it was visible, and would not have been so 

 outside the semi-circle had it been floating. A sunken fly was 

 readily visible at quite a distance through the water, when 

 a floating fly at much less distance was, but for the hook, 

 clean out of sight. The insistence of the dry-fly angler on 

 extreme accuracy of casting and absolute dryness of gut and 

 fly seems, from these observations, so far as they go, to be 

 thoroughly justified. It is also obvious why a trout which 

 will move a long way to intercept a nymph or sunken fly 

 is not to be tempted by a dry fly that does not come 

 accurately over him into the circle of light above his head. 

 Later we sank a large Pink Wickham, and it looked dead 

 as mutton, and with the light behind it all the golden 

 brilliance of its body was lost. Not even in the magic 

 semi-circle above the observer was the glitter visible, but 

 it is conceivable that, were the fly floated over brilliant 

 green weed in sunshine, the green of the weed might be 

 thrown upwards on to the belly of the fly, so as to repro- 

 duce the effect of a green-bodied sedge. In the dull light 

 which we had, the brown stone bottom sent off too little 

 reflection to give any noticeable effect. Even as it was 

 the body did not look black. But some silver-bodied 

 and gold-bodied salmon flies, which were dangled over 

 sheets of metal painted blue, green and red, took up these 

 colours, despite the dull day, very splendidly. So there 

 can be no doubt that the effect of colour reflected from 

 the under-water surroundings on the body and hackle of 

 a trout fly is a question of degree. It may be consider- 

 able. The old trout-fly dressers were well aware of the 

 ability of hackles — especially cock's hackles — and furs to 

 take up light and colour from one another, so as to attain 

 unsuspected harmonies. Thus, you might take two dun 

 cock's hackles, apparently exactly alike, and, trying one 

 over a mole's-fur body, get a dusty grey effect, and, tying 



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