THE SPEY. 389 



steadily down and the grilse are beginning to come up, is 

 perhaps the best time for the Spey. 



The Spey flies are very curious productions to look at, 

 it being customary to dress them the reverse way of the 

 hackle, and to send the twist or tinsel the opposite way to 

 the hackle. 



The Spey Dog (Plate XII. adjoining, fig. 3). This is 

 usually dressed large for the spring, the long-shanked Dee 

 hooks being preferred. Body, black pig's wool ; up this 

 is then wound some broad silver tinsel in widish rings ; 

 over the tinsel is laid on a large black feather (it can 

 hardly be called hackle) with a lightish dun tip, taken 

 from the side of a Scotch cock's tail. The feather is dressed 

 the wrong way, so that the hackle stands out abruptly, 

 and it is carried round the opposite way to the tinsel, as 

 some of the tinsel crosses it ; over this hackle is wound 

 some gold tinsel, not side by side with the silver, but 

 quite independent of it. This aids the glitter of the fly, 

 and strengthens and keeps the hackle secure. At the 

 shoulder a teal hackle ; wing, a good wad of gold pheasant 

 tail, with two long strips of grey mallard with brownish 

 points over it. The fly can be varied by using a brown 

 hackle and turkey instead of gold pheasant tail; add also 

 Drange silk between the tinsels. 



The hook used in these flies is 3 inches long in the 

 *hank, and the bend is that given as No. 3 in the scale, 

 :mt which is barely 2J inches long in the shank. 



The Purple King. Body, a light purple mohair; 

 lackle, brownish black with light blue dun tip, teal at 

 shoulder; tinsel, gold and silver and silver twist over 

 mckle as before ; wing, two strips of grey mallard with 

 )rown strips. 



The Green King. Body, orange and olive-yellow mixed 

 nohair ; hackle, brown with grey tips ; the rest of the fly 

 is before. 



