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THE BROOK TROUT. 131 
the insect food which come forth now so plenteously to 
sport their little day in the warm sunshine. 
Along the Atlantic coast, indeed, on Long Island, and 
to the eastward, where, in fact, alone on the Atlantic 
coast of the United States trout prevail, fishing is per- 
mitted by law, and practised by sportsmen, long before 
this, the true month of the fly-fisher. In March it com- 
mences on the Island, where formerly was the finest 
trout-fishing perhaps in all the country; but where the 
streams are now whipped so severely, that, in spite of 
stringent regulations lately resorted to—too lately—in 
the vain hope of preserving them, the run of fish are 
declining in size year after year, and a good day’s sport, 
is fast getting to be a thing little to be expected, scarce 
even to be hoped for. In March, the trout will rarely 
look at the fly, and they are caught at this season for the 
most part with the float and red, or brandling worm; on 
bright, warm days, however, they will at times take the 
artificial fly, and it is remarkable that very early in the 
season they will rise at a bright, gaudy fly, like nothing 
in nature, which a month or two later they would prob- 
ably reject with contempt. Two or three years ago, the 
most killing early fly was a scarlet Ibis wing, scarlet silk 
and gold twist body; but subsequently it has failed so 
generally, as to have fallen into some sort of disrepute. 
The flies especially recommended for this month, imita- 
tions of the natural insects, are the red fly, blue dun, 
-red spinner, great dark dun, cow-dung fly, March brown, 
