A KILLING FLY. 31& 



orange-sable fur and gold-coloured mohair ; gold tinsel, 

 loosely but regularly wrapped with blood or claret-coloured 

 hackle round the shoulder, and ordinary red hackle lower 

 down. This fly has always been with me a great favourite, 

 more particularly if the water is clearing out after rain, and 

 with confidence I recommend it; at the same time I would 

 have two or three sizes, the choice to be dictated by the 

 size of water, colour, and hour. Some persons, in 

 addition, have forked it with two or three hairs of the 

 squirrel for tail ; and a very worthy friend and admirable 

 fly-fisher, whose success was a guarantee of his skill, used 

 to affirm that when fish wouldn't rise at " the drummer," 

 you might as well go to bed. As the results will show, my 

 couch was not put into requisition, for ere many minutes I 

 touched a splendid fish, but unfortunately didn't hold him. 

 After a few minutes without success, I moved a very heavy 

 fish without touching him. Again I gave him a chance,, 

 and he tumbled over the fly like a porpoise, without any 

 apparent inclination to take. The third time that I offered, 

 however, 1 was more successful, for in striking I hooked 

 the fish foul. The result was curious and far from satis- 

 factory, for this fellow put me through a course of spurts 

 which opened my optics, and further convinced me of the 

 uncertainty of the movements or plan of escape that is 

 probable to be adopted by the impaled. What was my 

 surprise and I am confident many others would have been 

 similarly affected to see my victim remain on the surface, 

 not jumping out of the stream, but beating the water with 

 his tail, and violently struggling, making the liquid fly for 

 feet around. For several moments this continued, when, 



