THE BRITISH ANGLER'S LEXICON. 



and in these pockets the coil of gut to which the 

 flies are attached is inserted, leaving the flies exposed 

 to view so that the angler may readily choose what he 

 requires. It is usual also in these fly books to have 

 leather receptacles for scissors, needles, disgorger, a file or 

 tweezers, and baiting needles. It is a mistake to have the 



TROUT FLY AND TACKLE BOOK. 



book too small ; it should measure at least six inches by 

 four inches, so that the flies may lie neatly, and not stray 

 out at least that the gut should not stray outside the leaves, 

 as it is very apt to do from getting hard in the process 

 ot time. The binding of the book should be of good strong 

 leather that will not suffer from a little rain or from lying 

 in the damp grass, although it is advisable to keep it as dry 

 as possible to preserve the hooks from rusting. The corners 

 of each parchment leaf should have a shaving of cork or 

 thick leather glued on, so as to prevent the leaves pressing 

 together and spoiling the appearance of the flies. This is 

 a great objection to fly books in general, and many good 

 anglers have given up the use of them and taken to carrying 

 their flies in boxes. It would be a decided improvement if 

 a book could be brought before the angling public more in 

 the character of a box ; this can be managed by having 

 the edges flapped with a stiff binding, so that when the 



B 



