52 FLIES AND FLY FISHING. 



kinds of fishing should be thus stained. This is the only 

 good dye I know, and therefore I use it ; but if it was 

 possible, all gut for salmon fishing, as well as trout, ought 

 to be made like cliesnut liair. This looks like a weed in the 

 water ; and, although fish can see it, I do not think that 

 it at all alarms them. 



Casting lines ought always to be dyed after being made 

 up, as you thus get them throughout of a uniform tinge. 

 I also dye gut intended to be used for the bodies of flies 

 in the above mixture. 



Hair for fly fishing is, in my opinion, of not mucli use. 

 I once used it entirely for a whole season instead of gut 

 when fishing for brown trout and grayling, but have since 

 almost entirely given it up. You can get good gut finer than 

 Lair, and of much, greater strength ; and the hair sinks so 

 badly that it is almost useless for grayling. Its advantages 

 are that you can get it in such long single strands, and 

 thus avoid so many knots ; and it sometimes happens that 

 where streams are continually whipped over with gut 

 casts, by giving the fish the novelty of hair you may get 

 a few more rises than you otherwise would. Chestnut 

 hair is much the best both for color and strength, and all 

 hair varies very much in its quality. 



In making up a gut cast, pick out as long strands as 



