72 ANGLING 



occasionally met with, a few instances, where trout, 

 dashing rapidly at the natural fly, have obstinately refused 

 the artificial fly ; but in all such cases as have come under 

 our own observation, we have, upon inspection, invari- 

 ably found the rejected fly too large in size. On the 

 substitution of a small one, somewhat in conformity, 

 perhaps, as to shape, though it may be decidedly opposite 

 in colour to the insect on which the fish were feeding, 

 the evil has been immediately rectijied, and trout taken 

 with great rapidity. 



What we consider almost decisive in this question is 

 this : when we traverse a fine trout-stream, we often 

 meet in the course of our rambles ten or a dozen 

 brother anglers, all well skilled in the craft, and em- 

 ploying an endless variety of flies. If the fish be in 

 good humour, the whole fraternity bear testimony to 

 the fact ; the difference in the number of the fish each 

 one has got will be but very trifling, and may well 

 enough be considered referable to the difierenoe of time 

 they may respectively have been on the rivers, or to the 

 casual advantages which some might enjoy over others, 

 by falling in with better streams. Mutual congratula- 

 tions and compliments are here the order of the day, and 

 the superior excellence of particular flies eagerly com- 

 mented on. But, on the other hand, when the fish 

 have no inclination for the fly, we find the reverse of 

 all this. Everyone shakes his head in despair, and 

 swears he has tempted them in vain with every conceiv- 

 able object in his fly-book. Ifow all this, which is an 

 everyday occurrence, is inexplicable, except upon our 

 theory, that when the fish are inclined to feed, they are 

 not nice to a shade of colour ; and when they are not, 

 the highest ingenuity of man may be displayed to no 

 purpose. 



We fished for five or six successive seasons some of 

 the finest and most prolific rivers in England and 

 Scotland, in company with one of the very best fly- 

 fishers in Great Britain, and the author of many papers 

 in popular periodicals on the art, and we invariably 

 used different coloured flies. It was quite astonishing 



