54 The North Country Angler. 



shallow streams, when trout and grayling will 

 not stir at a large fly. 



I once met with a young Gentleman at Roth- 

 bury, who fished chiefly with one of these yel- 

 lowish flies; and was very nice in dressing them; 

 he made the wings to lean back to the shank end 

 of the hook, and always fished straight down the 

 stream ; which put the wings into their true pos- 

 ture : He got many rises, as he called them, but 

 seldom hooked a fish. I told him of his fault, 

 and fished the same stream, drawing my fly across 

 it and seldom missed a fish. This Gentleman 

 had a bag of trumpery hanging at his side, as big 

 as his creel ; and spent more than half of his 

 time in changing and dressing ; he said, it was 

 their way in the South. 



I own, I do not like to fish with a single fly, 

 though, some nice anglers pretend, it is the best 

 way: and, if my observations are gooU, you will 

 be of my opinion. 



When a fly lights upon the water, and the 

 stream brings it down, it is always in its natural 

 or sitting posture, with its wings close on its 

 back, or by its sides, according to its shape and 

 make; but when the same fly is flying, it looks 

 quite otherwise; and to dress one to resemble it 

 as flying, is, I think, more curious than to dress 

 the other. 



And this is my reason for making the end fly 

 a dubbed one, and the upper, or drop-fly, a 

 hackle : and the best way to do this, is to 

 choose the hackle as near the colour of the wings 

 of the fly, as they appear when flying, as possible. 



