20 HOW TO TIE SALMON FLIES. 



is nasty stuff to handle, until practice has taught 

 you when to let go of it. Keep it in water. 



Varnish. The best receipt I know of for 

 making this is as follows : Half fill a bottl^ 

 with orange shellac ; then fill up the bottle with 

 spirits of wine, then put in a small piece of white 

 resin, about the size of a nut to a 3 oz. bottle ; 

 cork the bottle, and leave it until the shellac and 

 resin are dissolved. This varnish dries quickly, 

 and will not chip or turn white. Should it at 

 any time be too thick, add a little more spirit, 

 and shake well. To apply the varnish use a 

 porcupine quill, or piece of wood. It is liable to 

 ' run ' from a brush and spoil silk, feathers, etc. 



A Vice is not necessary, but the use of one 

 afford many advantages : the work can be kept 

 cleaner ; no part of the fly need be crushed ; both 

 hands are free, and I find I can work more ac- 

 curately with one. There is generally a hook 

 attached to the pillar of the vice. The object 

 of this is to enable you to hook the silk on to it 

 when waxing. It is cheaper in the end to buy 

 a good vice and pay a little more for it, than to 

 get a cheap one which will wear out quickly. 



Methylated Spirit. Always have a bottle of 

 this and a rag near you when fly-making. The 

 fingers can be cleaned of wax, etc., in a moment, 

 by pouring a few drops on to the rag and rubbing 

 them. Let me here impress on the beginner the 

 importance of keeping his fingers clean and free 



