62 FLY FISHING. 



warped on with silk of the same colour, with a hackle stained yel- 

 low over all, which any white hackle may be by boiling it in a 

 solution of tumeric with a piece of alum about the size of a wal- 

 nut. It should have whisks of the same colour at the tail. If 

 you use wings, a canary's quill feather will answer the purpose. 

 The yellow May fly when it changes its garb becomes a very 

 homely looking brown spinner, and may be imitated by the pea- 

 cock herl stripped, with a wing of a mottled feather of a partridge, 

 the whisks at the tail should be rather long. 



Another good May fly is the oak fty, which is usually found about 

 the trunk of that tree, as also upon dry stumps of timber near the 

 water side ; it has the singular habit of always placing itself 

 when pitched in such a position as to carry its head downwards, 

 from which remarkable property it has obtained the name of 

 downlooker ; in addition to which it is also styled the ash fly, 

 woodcock fly, and cannon fly. It is best adapted for windy wea- 

 ther, when it is apt to be blown off the trees into the water. The 

 artificial fly should be made with a body of the brightest orange 

 floss silk, which must be subdued to the proper tint by winding 

 over it a strip of transparent India rubber, or a piece of transpa- 

 rent bladder laid over so as to imitate the ribbed appearance of the 

 hinder parts of the insect, two or three turns of a mottled golden plo- 

 ver's feather should hackle form be used to represent the legs, the 

 wings should be the mottled feather of a woodcock's wing, the palest 

 that can be procured, and tied on with dark coloured drab silk, 

 and tied full at the head, the wings lying flat, and if possible made 

 to stand a little out to the right and left. 



The stone fly is also a famous fly for May and June, being con 

 sidered by some to contest with the green drake, the title of the 

 May fly. Cotton, indeed, enumerates four that contend for this 

 title, viz. the green drake, the stone fly, the black fly, and the little 

 yellow May fly : all of whom he states have their champions and 

 advocates to dispute and plead their priority ; though he, at the 

 game time, observes that he does not understand why the two last 

 should ; the first two having manifestly the advantage both in their 

 beauty, and in the wonderful execution they do in their season, in 

 all of which I concur ; except so far as relates to the stone fly's 

 beauty, which I consider far too like a winged earwig to claim 

 any title to rank with the beautiful amongst created beings, whilst 

 the little May fly may fairly dispute the palm of loveliness 



