Publisher's Synopsis
This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can usually download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1894 edition. Excerpt: ... CHAPTER XXVIII. A CHAPTER OF ACCIDENTS. We have previously remarked in these pages of what enormous advantage to the angler is the knowledge of a river, as, apart from other considerations, one possessed of such should, at the first glance at the water, be able to accurately gauge its height at the other pools, and so save time by making straight away to suitable waters, avoiding those which are too low, and leaving undisturbed for a future day those which as yet are too big. A bit of generalship is required in angling as in most other pursuits. It is not a morsel of use flogging a pool while it be too big, as the fish have not settled down, and the catches cannot be rightly commanded, and even if they can be, the water is probably too deep to enable fish to see the fly, so, with this combination, it is any odds against the angler, who only messes the water about for nothing. If fish he must, he had better be content with casting from the bank on the off chance of attracting the attention of fish lying close in to the sides, anyhow by so doing he will not much disturb the pool. The experiences which suggested the heading to these notes were gained during a visit to a northern river, during early spring, when the water chanced to be dead low; indeed, rods were laid aside until the next flood, of which, by-the-by, a steady cast wind gave no promise in the near future. Not a fish had been taken for ten days or more, but we had come to fish, and fish we must; so after due consideration we determined to make off to a very rough pool which was rarely fishable on account of its heavy boiling waters and extremely rough wading. For these reasons it was fished by few; indeed, only one or two knew how to wade it, and upon this occasion it had not...