18 THE AMERICAN TROUT. 



that they are unrecognizable. In these pages, when the 

 name is given of any fly described in Ronald's " Fly- 

 Fisher's Entomology-j" it is intended that it shall be 

 dressed after the directions therein contained. A more 

 full description of the various flies, both in use and to be 

 found in our waters, will be given hereafter with some 

 directions for tying them ; but a great deal must be left 

 to the practical experience of each fisherman, according 

 to the range of waters he is in the habit of fishing. 



Good luck, that synonym for all the virtues, does not 

 depend so much upon the kind of flies as the skill in 

 casting, and a poor fly lightly cast into the right spot 

 will do better execution than the best fly roughly cast 

 into the wrong place. The lure must be put where the 

 fish habit, often before their very noses, or they will not 

 take it ; and when they lie, as they generally do in run- 

 ning streams, in the deep holes under the banks, where 

 the bushes are closest and cause the densest shade, it 

 requires some skill to cast properly into the exact spot. 

 Sacrifice everything to lightness in casting ; let the line 

 go straight without a kink if you can, drop the fly into 

 the right ripple if possible, but it must drop gently on 

 the surface of the water. An ugly splash of a clear day 

 in pure water, and the prey will dart in every direction, 

 and the angler's .hopes scatter with them. 



A beginner may practise a certain formula, such as 

 lifting the line with a waive and a smart spring, swinging 

 it backward in a half circle, and when it is directly 

 behind him, casting straight forward ; but as soon as he 

 has overcome the rudimentary principles, he should cast 

 in every manner, making the tip of his rod cut full oir- 



