356 AMERICAN ANGLER'S BOOK 



of very dark claret silk witli gold twist ; head black ostrich ; 

 tail golden pheasant topknot, hackle dark claret ; legs blue, 

 with a tip of yellow and gold. 



" The Strachan. — Mixed wing chiefly of golden pheasant 

 tail, yellow macaw, and jay's mng ; body of crimson silk 

 with gold twist ; head black ostrich ; tail golden pheasant ; 

 black hackle with jay's wing ; legs tip yellow and gold. 



" The Langevin. — Wings, body, tail, hackle, legs, tip all 

 yellow ; made of the dyed feathers of the white goose ; the 

 head of black ostrich, and the twist of black silk." 



Casting the Fly. — As bait-fishing or trolling can scarcely 

 be called a sportsmanlike way of killing Salmon, I shall 

 confine my observations to angling for them only with the 

 artificial fly. 



In my remarks on Trout-fishing I have alluded to the im- 

 possibility of learning how to cast the fly well from written 

 directions alone. One may get the theory ever so well in his 

 head — and good theory too — when he comes to try his hand, 

 however, there are so many things he must remember to do 

 just at the nick of time, and so many contingencies which he 

 did not look for, constantly arising, that he will likely 

 recollect no more of the lessons he has learned from books 

 than some general directions, and will depend rather on his 

 own judgment and native aptness. This is more the case in 

 Salmon-fishing even than in casting the fly for Trout. 



I do not mean to convey the idea that the written directions 

 are useless ; on the contrary, they are of much service when 

 combined with some practical knowledge of the art. It would, 

 therefore, be well for the beginner to learn all he can from 

 books, and not discard his theory entirely, if not approved 

 of by anglers, whose instruction he may have the benefit of 

 on the river. A little experience will show him that he may 

 combine the teachings of the two, and profit by both. 



