5 4 AN ANGLER'S BASKET. 



And remember that, from their point of vision, it is even 

 possible, I was going to say probable, that things are topsy- 

 turvy, and that all men appear to be wrong way up, and 

 few of us can stand such a test as that without frightening 

 somebody. 



I have made these flies up into two casts, and they are 

 named in the order in which they should be on the gut, 

 beginning from the tail fly. Some wiseacres will tell you 

 the March-brown is out of place if the natural fly is not on 

 the water. You may safely ignore that statement. 



First Cast. i. March -brown, hook No. 3, winged from 

 a well-marked feather from the tail of a partridge, dubbed 

 with a little hare's ear and yellow mohair mixed, the whole 

 ribbed with a little yellow silk. This is an imitation of 

 the natural male fly, the best feather being from a hen 

 pheasant's quill ; but the darker fly is usually, though not 

 invariably, the better killer. 



2. Snipe and yellow (snipe bloa of the north). 



3. Woodcock, hackled with a well-marked feather from 

 the outside of a woodcock's wing ; body, orange silk, dubbed 

 sparely with hare's ear. 



Second Cast. i. Water-hen bloa, hackled with a feather 

 trom the inside of a water-hen's wing (if you can find one 

 with a blue tinge take that for preference) ; body, yellow silk, 

 dubbed with fur from a water rat. 



2. Olive dun, winged from a starling's quill ; body, 

 greenish yellow silk, legs from a hen's neck, and stained 

 to olive-yellow in onions. 



3. Dark snipe, hackled with a well-mottled feather from 

 the outside of a snipe's wing; body, purple silk. 



Many anglers would reverse the position of these two 

 flies on the cast, putting the winged fly at the top. Lastly, 

 if about the 24th of April, you should find the iron-blue dun 

 thick on the water, take off water-hen and put on the little 

 blue, dressing the wings from a feather which you can find 



