THE COMPLETE ANGLER. 283 



with a fly, of above a foot long in my life : but of little ones 

 about the bigness of a smelt, in a warm day, and a glowing 

 sun, you may take enough with these two flies, and they are 

 both taken the whole month through.* 



FEBRUARY. 



1. Where the red- brown of the last month ends, another 

 almost of the same colour begins, with this saving, that the 

 dubbing of this must be of something a blacker colour, and 

 both of them wrapped on with red silk. The clubbing that 

 should make this fly, and that is the truest colour, is to be 

 got off the black spot of a hog's ear : not that a black spot in 

 any part of the hog will not afford the same colour, but that 

 the hair in that place is, by many degrees, softer, and more 

 fit for the purpose. His wing must be as the other [1. in 

 January] ; and this kills all this month, and is called the 

 lesser red-brown. 



2. This month, also, a plain hackle, or palmer-fly, made 

 with a rough black body, either of black spaniel's fur, or the 

 whirl of an ostrich feather, and the red hackle of a capon 

 over all, will kill, and, if the weather be right, make very good 

 sport. 



3. Also a lesser hackle, with a black body, also silver twist 

 over that, and a red feather over all, will fill your pannier, if 

 the month be open, and not bound up in ice and snow, with 

 very good fish ; but, in case of a frost and snow, you are to 

 angle only with the smallest gnats, browns, and duns you can 

 make ; and with those are only to expect graylings no bigger 

 than sprats. 



4. In this month, upon a whirling round water, we have a 

 great hackle, the body black, and wrapped with a red feather 

 of a capon untrimmed ; that is, the whole length of the hackle 

 staring out (for we sometimes barb the hackle-feather short 

 all over ; sometimes barb it only a little, and sometimes barb 



* I do not think it necessary to describe the patterns of any trout-flies for 

 this month. Trout are in such ill-condition now, as to be entirely worthless 

 either for sport or food ; Grayling may be caught in the middle of fine 

 January days, with gentles, small artificial duns, and with a little " soldier 

 palmer," made thus : Body, bronze-coloured peacock harl, ribbed with fine 

 gold twist, and two very small black-red, or furnace hackles, struck with strict 

 regularity from tail to shoulder. Hooks, ten, eleven, twelve. This little 

 palmer is a general lure for trout, dace, and roach in the summer and autumn 

 months. ED. 



