PREFACE. 



THE art of angling has been practised for ages past, and at times we 

 find the most experienced anglers at fault, though being more practised 

 than their less fortunate brethren, sooner recover their position in 

 the silent warfare. Being strongly urged by some of my friends to pub- 

 lish a treatise on this most innocent and recreative amusement, I have 

 complied with their request, and now lay before the lovers of the rod 

 and line more than thirty year's experience, in as concise and lucid a 

 manner as my humble abilities will allow. I should have hesitated to 

 follow the different writers on this subject, had I not been confident there 

 was room for improvement a few of which, I believe, I have been able 

 to supply. You will find that the flies and baits, and the different 

 methods of angling that I shall in the course of this work enumerate, 

 will take salmon, trout, grey ling, pike, or other fish, in any river 

 in the united kingdoms of Great Britain and Ireland, if care and 

 strict attention be paid to the precepts I shall put forth. 



The system I have laid down in the course of this work for making 

 the different flies, will supersede any thing of the sort that I have seen 

 in any previous publication. There is one particular point I wish to 



draw attention to, viz., the method I take to strip the feather with 

 which I make the winged fly, for by that means the wings will be 

 parted when the fly is made, without the trouble of whipping the silk 



across two or three times, which I have seen recommended, and will 

 be a much neater fly, and swim a great deal lighter. 



All the rules that I have laid down are so plain and explicit, that 



the young angler will find no difficulty in ascertaining the full meaning 



of my views, and the best of anglers will have some good pickings from 



the labours of their humble servant, 



THE AUTHOR 



M846483 



