A KILLING FLY. 309 



golden pheasant for wings ; body, light hrown fur of 

 the bear next the hide, mixed with orange-sable fur 

 and gold-coloured niohair; gold tinsel, loosely but 

 regularly wrapped with blood or claret-coloured hackle 

 round the shoulder, and ordinary red hackle lower 

 down. This fly has always been with me a great 

 favourite, more particularly if the water is clearing 

 out after rain, and with confidence I recommend it; 

 at the same time I would have two or three sizes, the 

 choice to be dictated by the size of water, colour, and 

 hour. Some persons, in addition, have forked it with 

 two or three hairs of the squirrel for tail ; and a very 

 worthy friend and admirable fly-fisher, whose success 

 was a guarantee of his skill, used to affirm that when 

 fish wouldn't rise at " the drummer," you might as 

 well go to bed. As the results will show, my couch 

 was not put in requisition, for ere many minutes I 

 touched a splendid fish, but unfortunately didn't hold 

 him. After a few minutes without success, I moved a 

 very heavy fish without touching him. Again I gave 

 him a chance, and he tumbled over the fly like a 

 porpoise, without any apparent inclination to take. 

 The third time that I offered, however, I was more 

 successful, for in striking I hooked the fish foul. The 

 result was curious and far from satisfactory, for this 

 fellow put me through a course of spurts which opened 

 my optics, and further convinced me of the uncertainty 

 of the movements or plan of escape that is probable to 

 be adopted by the impaled. What was my surprise 

 and I am confident many others would have been 

 similarly aflected to see my victim remain on the 

 surface, not jumping out of the stream, but beating 

 the water with his tail, and .violently struggling, 



