SALMON FLIES. 147 



wing, the upper wing, mixed gold pheasant tail, brown 

 turkey, pintail, and bustard, with a few fibres of red and 

 green parrot, and blue macaw points. This is a very 

 useful fly, and may be dressed from over medium size 

 down to grilse size. 



THE PARSON. This is a very gay fly indeed, and is 

 rather a name for any fly with a number of toppings in it 

 than for any particular fly. It hails from the Erne in 

 Ireland, one of the most charming salmon rivers I know 

 of, and where I have had many a delightful day's sport ; 

 but if a striking showy fly is required, this is almost as 

 good a basis as can be selected ; Tail a topping, some 

 tippet sprigs, and a short kingfisher feather ; body, golden 

 floss about three turns, then pig's wool of the same colour, 

 changing into orange ; silver twist ; a golden olive hackle 

 with a turn or two of orange over it, and lastly, a lake* 

 hackle or blue jay in the shoulder, or in very showy flies a 

 few short toppings are tied in at the breast. The wing 

 varies according to the brilliancy of the fly in very bright 

 flies a single tippet, with cock of the rock (not the square 

 feather), on either side, two strips of pintail and a lot of 

 toppings as many as the fly will carry with two short 

 kingfishers at the shoulders, and blue macaw points. In 

 less showy flies, two golden pheasant saddle feathers over 

 the tippet and less toppings, with a few sprigs of gold 

 pheasant tail over the pintail, and no cock of the rock, 

 does well the toppings are sometimes tied on so as to 

 curve upwards. Tie it about medium sizes. 



THE NAMSEN. This fly is remarkable chiefly for the 

 beautiful way in which the colours of the body are 

 graduated from the tail to the shoulder. Taking that 



* I don't know what they call this colour now, but it is a sort 

 of red purple. 



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