THE NEEDLE BROWN. 



shade being chosen. The angler need not cast this fly like 

 a zephyr. Naturally, when blown into the water, it flops 

 in like a beetle, but it immediately recovers its presence 

 of mind, and sits on the water, though somewhat stupidly 

 in appearance, quite as if it was used to it ; its hairiness 

 prevents it from being drowned easily. It is not indis- 

 pensable, but sometimes it is a useful fly. 



The XeedU Bivwn. This little fly, which, as I have 

 already said, belongs to the Perlida 1 , is only partially 

 treated of by angling writers. It is the smallest of the 

 willow flies. Wade mentions it in ' Halcyon ' as the 

 Spanish needle, but without comment. Theakstone, in 

 his capital little work on the streams about Ripon, gives 

 a fiill account of it. Jackson mentions it as the little 

 brown ; but Ronalds' * Ephemera,' and Blaine, say nought 

 about it, which, considering how widely the fly is dis- 

 persed, is somewhat strange ; possibly the difficulty of 

 imitating it successfully has something to do with it ; as 

 an old friend of mine used to say of it, who was a great 

 frequenter of Tweed, where it abounds, * A nasty little 

 nuisance ! you can neither do with it nor without it. 1 It 

 is a great favourite, however, with the trout ; and as it 

 makes its appearance early, and is to be found more or 

 IBM throughout the season, it cannot be other than a useful 

 fly. On fine sunny days the angler may often notice it on 

 the stones, piles, posts, &c., by the river-side a little insect 

 of some half an inch or more in length, resembling in ap- 

 pearance a thin fragment of stick or straw, of a steely 

 brown colour (hence the name it is sometimes known 

 by the Spanish needle) ; sometimes it is perfectly still 

 and quiet, but when disturbed it shows great activity, 

 running over the stones and hiding itself in cracks. On 

 fine warm days, and later in the season, it is often very 

 abundant. On catching and examining the insect, the 

 angler will observe that the wings, which are closely folded 



