38 Dry -Fly Fishing. 



The knee-pad is a necessity for the dry-fly fisher- 

 man ; mine is made of leather wadded with horse- 

 hair and lined with soft leather waterproofed ; 

 measures 5^in. by Gin. ; completely covers and 

 protects the left knee-cap, and is fastened round the 

 leg by a strap and buckle, below the knee. It is like 

 the one volunteers used to wear. 



The damper box. Mine is made of white -plated 

 thin metal which the wet does not affect nor, there- 

 fore, rust. It is round, 2^in. in diameter and three- 

 quarters deep, with a lid to take off. Cut out a 

 round of thin Saxony flannel to cover the bottom of 

 it loosely, to take in and out ; also cut two similar 

 rounds of spongio-piline, which can be purchased at 

 any chemist's shop. When in use, these three 

 rounds should be saturated with water, but not be 

 dripping wet. Between the flannel and the water- 

 proof side of the spongio-piline is the place to put 

 a spare collar, so that it may be ready in case of 

 need ; between the two rounds of spongio-piline, 

 face to face, put the cast you intend using first, and 

 two strands of 18in. 4x drawn gut, also three of 6x 

 or finest for points, the 4x in a small coil, the 6x not 

 so small, so that at a glance you may know the 

 difference. This provision will probably be suf- 

 ficient to repair breakages for the day. All should be 

 placed in a damper box quite two hours before they 

 are required for use, so that they may be soft and 



