96 THE COMPLETE ANGLER. 



many of them in their season, as, were they not a very inoffen- 

 sive insect, would look like a plague ; and these drakes, — since 

 I forgot to tell you before, I will tell you here, — are taken by the 

 fish to that incredible degree, that upon a calm day you shall see 

 the still deeps continually all over circles by the fishes rising, 

 who will gorge themselves with those flies, till they purge again 

 out of their gills ; and the trouts are at that time so lusty and 

 strong, that one of eight or ten inches long will then more strug- 

 gle and tug, and more endanger your tackle, than one twice as 

 big in winter : but pardon this digression. 



This stone-fly, then, we dape or dibble with, as with the drake ; 

 but with this difference, that whereas the green-drake is common 

 both to stream and still, and to all hours of the day, we seldom 

 dape with this but in the streams — for in a whistling wind a 

 made fly in the deep is better — and rarely but early and late, it 

 not being so proper for the mid-time of the day ; though a great 

 grayling will then take it very well in a sharp stream, and here 

 and there a trout too ; but much better towards eight, nine, ten, 

 or eleven of the clock at night, at which time also the best fish 

 rise, and the later the better, provided you can see your fly ; and 

 when you cannot, a made fly v.ill murder, which is to be made 

 thus : The dubbing of bear's dun with a little brown and yellow 

 camlet very well mixed ; but so placed, that your fly may be 

 more yellow on the belly and towards the tail underneath, than 

 in any other part ; and you are to place two or three hairs of a 

 black cat's beard on the top of the hook in your arming, so as to 

 be turned up when you warp on your dubbing, and to stand 

 almost upright, and staring one from another ; and note, that 

 your fly is to be ribbed with yellow silk, and the wings long, and 

 very large, of the dark grey feather of a mallard. 



14. The next May-fly is the black-fly, made with a black 

 body, of the whirl of an ostrich feather, ribbed with silver twist, 

 and the black hackle of a cock over all ; and is a killing fly, but 

 not to be named with either of the other. 



15. The last ]\Iay-fly, — that is, of the four pretenders, — is a 

 little yellow May-fly, in shape exactly the same with the green- 

 drake, but a very little one, and of as bright a yellow as can be 



