Notes and Sport of a Dry-Fly Purist. 169 



a supply with and without wings, and also on the 

 same sort of hooks some Wickham fancies with 

 added crimson tags, and gold ribbed hare's ears. Of 

 course, I had other flies with me. All the above 

 patterns were successful. The broad shallows from 

 the bridge up to the little weir on the w r est bank, 

 and where the streams are divided, were, on the 

 surface of the moderately flowing water, quite free 

 from upstanding weeds, so that every movement of 

 the fish could be seen. They all rose in the middle 

 or towards the opposite shore, requiring a long 

 throw to reach them. And as the rings they made 

 were the only indication of their locale (for, unlike 

 trout feeding under a bank, they could not be seen), 

 those rings had to be promptly and accurately cast 

 over up stream, or when they occurred lower down 

 the dry-fly could be sent there by the horizontal 

 drift cast, to avoid the rod wielder having to move 

 every time. 



Until 3 p.m. I was constantly in practice, either 

 in missing to hook, or oftener presenting the fly 

 without good result, landing, unhooking, putting 

 back, and sometimes measuring the grayling, the 

 excitement varied by the loss of small and haply of 

 proper- sized ones ; but I had already landed and 

 carefully put back five and a half brace, measuring 

 as follows; Six under lOin., two llin., one 11^-in., and 

 two lOin., the strict rule being that no grayling be 



