252 Salmon Fishing. 



especially with a dark body, is the little 

 bright blue feather of the kingfisher. I verily 

 believe I have seen it glancing in the streams 

 twenty yards from me. It was with a claret 

 body, and this feather at the shoulder, I used 

 to beguile many a brown trout, over two pounds 

 weight, to his ruin, in one particular stream 

 in the Dovey, when I first began fishing it, 

 and with a fly of this type I killed the salmon 

 in the Awe I lately had such a memorable 

 fight with. 



It is a rare thing to see any bought fly, or 

 indeed any made by an amateur, without a 

 topping for a tail. The graceful curl of the little, 

 bright, golden feather, is singularly attractive to 

 the human eye at least ; but I much question 

 if it appear anything extraordinary in the 

 salmon's eye. It is but seldom I use it, being 

 difficult to get, and in my humble opinion by 

 no means indispensable. On the contrary, I 

 believe a tail well concocted of a few striking 

 colours to be equal, if not, superior to it, I 



