82 SALMON FLIES 



hot weather, a vice makes it easier to avoid 

 soiling the delicate silk with the fingers. 

 Again, in the case of flies that need a lot of 

 " tying in " at the tail end, where the number 

 of things e.g., two or three kinds of tinsel, a 

 ribbing hackle and body material (as in the 

 Spey flies) are somewhat cumbersome to con 

 trol, a vice is a distinct help ; and in the case 

 of small double hooks, and of very long- 

 shanked hooks, the strain of holding with the 

 forefinger and thumb of the left hand is 

 considerable, and a vice is undoubtedly a 

 relief. 



But, for all that, I do not think a vice is an 

 absolute necessity ; and so far as concerns the 

 tying of wings of whatsoever variety, I believe 

 that the unaided fingers always lead to better 

 results. 



If asked to express my own opinion, I should 

 say borrow ; or, if you must and can con- 

 veniently afford it, buy a vice, and learn to 

 tie flies with it. But having once acquired 

 familiarity with the necessary manipulations, 

 dispense with it ; and if you have bought it, 

 only use it on those occasions some of 

 which I have mentioned above where its 



