ARTIFICIAL FLIES. 123 



Defects in any of these lead to disappointment. Books 

 are imperfect guides to colors and shades. To pursue 

 the art to its best perfection, it is necessary to take the 

 first steps. The materials for an artificial fly should be 

 compared and matched with the natural one, by the 

 eje and judgment of the flyfisher. The top*and under 

 side of feathers, for wings, must resemble, and the 

 transparent tinge, with any marks or freckles, must 

 match that of the natural fly. Take the dead fly on a 

 needle point, and compare it with the artificial materi- 

 als. Match the wings with the feather ; the body with 

 siik ; legs with hair, etc. Hold them together, side 

 by side, up to the light and in the sunshine, and look 

 through them as we may suppose the fishes do, turning 

 them into different positions in order to catch their 

 foundation colors, with their tinges, reflections, and hues. 

 This gives the flyfisher a grounded knowledge of the 

 natural flies ; and the materials once selected and 

 proved, become familiar in his mind and items in his 

 book, with which he can afterwards picture life with 

 but little trouble, and fish his flies with the greatest 

 confidence. 



Feathers for wings must be small fibred, close and 

 thin, of silky surface and transparent texture, that 

 will least shrink or change color on the water. Fine 

 old glossy birds, about Christmas, produce the best. 

 The length of the wings of the fly gives the length of 

 the fibres of the feather. The olden craft selected the 

 bard feathers from the inside and outside of woodcock 

 wings, for the bard wings of the early and light brown. 

 The_clouded feathers from under the wing of the hen- 

 pheasant, for the clouded wings of the March brown ; 



