258 SALMON AND TROUT. 



General instructions for tying the foregoing flies. 



1. The bodies, especially of the ' Yellow ' and the ' Black and Silver,' 

 should not be too plump should be. rather ' thinner than thicker,' in short. 

 (See cuts.) 



2. Nor should the bodies of the flies be carried too far along towards the 

 bend. A fly is like a woman it looks better ' under ' rather than ' over ' 

 dressed. 



3. The whisks or tails should be about the length shown in the cuts, 

 depending on the character of the fibre or feather used. 



4. And the hackles invariably the same. The hackles in all cases also 

 should stand out from the hook's shank at all but right angles. This is vitally 

 important in order to fulfil that which is primarily the object of the hackle to 

 impart an appearance of life to the fly, as they open and close in the water 

 like the movements of a jelly-fish somewhat. If the hackle slopes close to the 

 body of the fly, or does not stand ' crisply ' out, its only effect is to hide the 

 colour of the fly's body. For the same reason flies my hackle flies at any 

 rate should never be compressed, or flattened, or squeezed in any way, at 

 any period of their existence, and if they are, they will never be so good again. 

 Most tackle-makers now-a-days have the sense to put their flies in card boxes. 



5. All hackles should be cock's hackles, and fibres of the yellow back 

 feathers of Golden Pheasant may be used instead of fibres of topping, if 

 desired. Their effect is very similar when held up to the light. 



6. When the flies are dressed on my eyed hooks the neck should always be 

 left clear to receive the knot. (See diagrams. ) 



I have furnished patterns of these flies to Messrs. Farlow 

 and Messrs. Hardy Brothers, who have had practice in dressing 

 them on the eyed hook. To this course I have been driven 

 by the monstrosities they can be called by no other name 

 constantly met with at the tackle shops, or shown to me by 

 fly-fishers as ' my flies.' (I refer to my three original patterns 

 of ' typical flies.') Briefly, my collection of them forms a sort 

 of * chamber of horrors ' ! 



A word as to Stream Trout flies (I do not refer now in any 

 way to dry-fly fishing). These I fancy look somehow best, and 

 realise better the idea of ' a poem on a hook,' when dressed 

 on the sneck-bend (see cut), and I would suggest the following 

 as good all-round killers, one or other of which will generally 

 bring fish to the basket. They are all hackle flies. 



As before observed apropos of lake flies, the great thing in 

 dressing all flies on these eyed hooks is to leave clear the 



