CHAPTER VIII 



MAY-FLY FISHING 



THERE are two flies to which the term May-fly is 

 applied. The first, which is known by anglers 

 generally as the May-fly, is the green drake, a large 

 yellowish fly, which makes its appearance on some 

 streams in great numbers, from the middle to the end 

 of June. Trout are very fond of them, seizing 

 greedily every unlucky individual that ventures on 

 the water ; and a couple of them put on a small 

 hook, and allowed to play on the surface, will be 

 found very effective, particularly in woody places. 

 It is subject, however, to the great objection of being 

 almost as difficult to catch as the trout themselves ; 

 so that as far as angling, at least in Scotland, is 

 concerned, it hardly deserves attention. 



The second fly, which is known on Tweedside and 

 in the Border districts as the May-fly, is the phry- 

 ganea or stone-fly of naturalists ; and when we speak 

 of May-fly in the subsequent parts of this chapter or 

 volume, it is this fly to which we allude. Away from 

 Tweedside, its virtues as a lure for trout are little 

 known, and we believe there are numbers of anglers 



