430 AMERICAN ANGLER'S BOOK 



We now come to figure 3. I have taken a few turns of my 

 wrapping-silk up the shank to C, and followed it with the 

 floss, increasing the bulk of the body somewhat towards the 

 upper end. I have also fastened the end of the floss, and tied 

 in the tip end of a ginger hackle with three turns of my 

 wrapping-silk, the under part of the hackle being uppermost, 

 so that, in winding it on, the back of it will lie next to the 

 hook. I ought to have stroked the fibres of the hackle back 

 towards the root of the feather ; it is my usual custom. If 

 you use the spring-pliers, grasp the butt end of the hackle 

 between its jaws ; its chief use is in holding the hackle in 

 place, by its pendent weight, when you have occasion to let 

 it go, or in fastening off. 



Now for figure 4. You see I have wound the hackle on 

 carefully to nearly the head of the hook. I have fastened it 

 with three turns of my silk, and nipped off the surplus end 

 of the hackle. Now I lay the wrapping-silk DD on the 

 shank of the hook, and form the loop DF, and then take 

 three turns with the slack F, wrapping over the end DB 

 towards the head of the hook, and, holding it down securely 

 with the finger and thumb of my left hand, I take hold of 

 the end D which you see sticking out to the left, and draw 

 in the slack FD, and cut it off. If the fibres of the hackle 

 stick out irregularly, pointing in different directions and 

 looking wild, like a little boy's head when he gets up in the 

 morning, I take my large darning-needle and "order them 

 aright." 



I have a phial of varnish not larger than the end of my 

 finger sitting on the table ; there is a sharp little stick thrust 

 through the cork ; I now pull out the cork, and touch the 

 head of the fly with a drop of shellac on the end of the 

 stick, and lay it by to dry. 



You will no doubt notice that in drawing the fourth figure 



