PALMER WORMS. 35 



As a friend of mine was dibbing with the natural white 

 moth one night in the river Eatherow, he caught a very 

 fine eel with it. 



Though I have given you the size of the hook to each 

 fly ; some of them may be made larger for dead, heavy, or 

 coloured waters, but in fine water use small flies, for by 

 doing so you will have considerably more sport ; you cer- 

 tainly will lose more fish by their becoming unhooked, 

 than if you used large ones ; but you can afford to do so, 

 because you will have more rises, and in the summing up 

 at night you will find that you have it ken more fish than 

 you would have done had you used the larger flies. 



Be very careful to keep your silk and dubbing clean 

 when making flies, and see that the body and wings 

 lie neat and straight on the hook ; never mind what slo- 

 vens say (for some of them will tell you it does not matter 

 how the fly is made if the wings and body be the right 

 colour,) but I say to them, they are mistaken ; for you 

 may be sure the nearer they are to nature the better. 

 Others say the fish are not so particular to a shade as old 

 anglers would make you believe ; but I say, they are to the 

 greatest nicety, more particularly in the body ; for if you 

 make two flies apparently both alike, with but a slight 

 shade of difference in. the body, and use them both at once, 

 yon will find they will take one, but scarcely look at the 

 other, particularly if the day be bright and the water clear. 

 But theory without practice is like a ship without a helm. 



For the better illustration of the flies, I give a copy in 

 the annexed engraving of some of the principal ones, and 

 here I will give you the names of them , 



