16 PRAIRIE AND FOREST. 



Three flies, their colouring and component parts, that I 

 have found successful on almost all waters and at every 

 portion of the open season, I will describe ; in fact, I have 

 so much faith in them that I invariably use all three in 

 making my first essay on an unknown river, viz. the red 

 hackle, hare's ear and yellow, and black hackle. In 

 America, on the small trout-brooks, I found them equally 

 attractive, evidence of a similarity of taste in fish on the 

 Eastern and Western Continents. Fly No. 1, the red 

 hackle, body composed of rufous wool, twisted in with 

 tying silk, lower portions of body to be fine, gradually 

 increasing in thickness till the shoulder is reached. 

 Shoulder of bright-red cock's hackle, the colour that is 

 obtained in a natural state from the domestic fowl, game 

 fowls generally producing the finest ; but if those from the 

 East Indian jungle cock can be obtained, you will possess 

 the very best. Wings put on separately, and obtained 

 from the wings of the corn-crake, shot immediately pre- 

 vious to their autumnal migration. Fly No. 2, hare's ear 

 and yellow ; this has a tail composed of two strands from 

 the larger feathers of the guinea-fowl, body composed of 

 the fine mottled hair off the ears of a hare, mixed with 

 fine mohair, of any of the intermediate shades from straw- 

 colour to olive. The mohair should be cut short, so that 

 it will the better mix with the hare's ear. This dubbing 

 must also be tied in with the silk, and the fly should be 

 large at the shoulder. No hackle in this specimen is 

 The wings from the large wing feathers of the 

 each placed on separately. Fly No. 3, black 

 hackle ; body of blue wool or mohair, finished at termina- 



