TROUT-FLIES. 89 
stem of the hackle off so as to leave the fibres in the 
V-shaped form shown in the engraving. These latter 
form the whisks. By leaving and lapping over the 
stem of the hackle and the end of the silk, or by 
“stripping” the former and cutting the latter off close, 
the body can be made thick or thin as desired. 
It will be seen that the body of the above fly is made 
of the same strand of silk with which the gut is tied on, 
and that the “whisk ” is made of the same feather that 
forms the legs, or hackle. A fly thus constructed cannot 
break until the hackle or body silk is actually worn 
through, and will last twice as long as one made on 
the ordinary plan, where the hackle, wings, &c., are 
constantly slipping or coming undone at the head. 
The saving in time in tying a fly (say a March brown) 
thus, as compared with the common method, is about 
400 percent. ; which I have proved by having frequently 
tied the fly on my plan complete in forty-five seconds, 
whilst in the ordinary method it cannot be tied by even 
a professional hand under three minutes, The whole pro- 
cess is, moreover, so exceedingly simple that a single 
lesson ought to be sufficient to impart it to the merest 
tyro. | 
The difficulty which gave me the most trouble to 
- overcome was the body-silk. In order to use this for 
whipping on the hook, &c., it was of course necessary to 
wax it; but I found that the ordinary “cobbler’s” wax 
quite destroyed the colouring of the yellows and greens, 
