182 THE COMPLETE ANGLER. PART. I. 



that of the winds the south wind is said to be best. One 

 observes, that 



when the wind is south, 



It blows your bait into a fish's mouth. 



Next to that, the west wind is believed to be the best : 

 and having told you that the east wind is the worst, I 

 need not tell you which wind is the best in the third 

 degree. And yet, as Solomon observes, that " he that 

 " considers the wind shall never sow ;"sohe that busies 

 his head too much about them, if the weather be not 

 made extreme cold by an east wind, shall be a little su- 

 perstitious : for as it is observed by some, that " there 

 " is no good horse of abaci colour; so I have observed, 

 that if it be a cloudy day and not extreme cold, let the 

 wind sit in what corner it will, and do its worst, I heed 

 it not. And yet take this for a rule, That I would, 

 willingly, fish standing on the lee-shore. And you are 

 to take notice, That the fish lies or swims nearer the 

 bottom, and in deeper water, in Winter than in Sum- 

 mer ; and also nearer the bottom, in any cold day, and 

 then, gets nearer the lee-side of the water. 



But I promised to tell you, more, of the Fly-fishing 

 for a Trout ; which I may have time enough to do, for 

 you see it rains May butter. First for a MAY-FLY : 

 You may make his body with greenish coloured crewel 

 or willowish colour ; darkening it in most places with 

 waxed silk ; (or ribbed with black hair ; or, some of 

 them, ribbed with silver thread ;) and such wings, for 

 the colour, as you see the fly to have at that season, 

 nay, at that very day on the water. Or you may make 

 the OAK-FLY : with an orange, tawny, and black 

 ground ; and the brown of a mallard's feather for the 

 wings *. And you are to know, that these two are most 

 excellent flies, that is, the May-fly and the Oak-fly. 



* Some dub the Oak-fly, with black wool, and Isabella-colored mohair, 

 and bright brownish bear's hair, warped on with yellow silk, but the head 

 of an ash-colour ; others dub it with an orange, tawny, and black ground ; 

 others with blackish wool and gold-twist ; the wings of the brown of a 



