EQUIPMENT FOR SOUTH AFRICA 225 



natural fly. Yet the President of the South 

 African Fly Fishers' Club, Mr. E. Chappell, told 

 me recently that one day he saw on his lawn at 

 Parktown West, an object which looked so much 

 like a blue jay that he thought one of the 

 specimens from his fly box must by some 

 mysterious means have wandered thither. It 

 was, however, no artificial fly but a live creature. 



The size of the fly used must depend a good 

 deal upon the river itself. For big rainbow trout, 

 if they are rising to the wet fly, a No. 7 (Limerick, 

 old scale) is not too big ; for Loch Leven and 

 brown trout the size may be anything between, 

 and including, No. 12 and No. 9 (Limerick, old 

 scale). In a dry climate eyed flies are obviously 

 better than flies tied to gut, and hackle patterns 

 are as a rule better than winged. Even if I were 

 tied down to six varieties of wet fly, 1 should 

 personally like to have also a few varieties of dry 

 fly. 



As receptacles for the trout when caught I 

 have seen all sorts of things used, from the simple 

 haversack to the wicker creel. Baskets have the 

 advantage of letting more air in, and therefore 

 tend to keep trout fresher, but a fairly big wicker 

 basket is bulky and therefore may be incon- 

 venient. A suitable bag is made of twill or 

 canvas, with leather fastenings and straps. Inside 

 it 1 like a waterproof compartment, fastened by 

 buttons. These waterproofs, which hold the fish, 

 are of course washable. A landing net capable of 

 being slung or otherwise attached to the angler or 



