20 TROUT FISHING 



Greenwell's Glory, the March Brown is a 

 lure which it is always well to have handy; 

 but on that particular day the fly most 

 noticeably on the water was a blue dun. 

 I mentioned this to my host, and handed 

 him my tackle-book. " Take it away," he 

 said ; " take it away ! I see you have 

 them all the colours of the rainbow ; but 

 that's nonsense. I never fish with any- 

 thing but a March Brown." My ex- 

 pression of astonishment called forth an 

 arbitrary doctrine. " Why should I ? 

 Don't you see the earth — ' the brown 

 old earth' — and the river itself, and 

 the flies dancing about, and the atmos- 

 phere when the sun is clouded ? They're 

 all brown ! The very trout are brown — 

 just like partridges, grouse, pheasants, 

 hares, and all the other game you can 

 think of. If you pry into things in a 

 strong light, you'll detect some different 

 shades, no doubt ; but Nature doesn't pry. 

 Only the electric light does ; and that's 

 an invention of man, not a thing according 

 to Nature, — although I will say for it that 



