108 BEST'S ART OF ANGLING. 



ger and thumb, holding the hook so fast as only 

 to suffer it to pass by, till the end of the gut is 

 near the middle of the shank of the hook, on the 

 inside of it; then whip the silk twice or thrice 

 about both gut and hook, as hard as the strength 

 of the silk will permit ; after that take the wings, 

 which before you began to make your fly you had 

 stripped off the stem for its wings, and proporti- 

 onal to it, and which lie with your other materials 

 by you, (as they always should before you begin) 

 and place that side downwards which grew upper- 

 most before; upon the back of the hook, leaving 

 so much only, to serve for the length of the wings 

 of the point of the plume, laying it reversed from 

 the end of the shank upwards ; then whip your 

 silk twice or thrice about the root-end of the fea- 

 ther, gut, and hook ; which being done, clip off 

 the root-end of the feather close by the arming, 

 and then whip the silk fast and firm about the 

 hook and gut till you come to the bend of it ; and 

 then, if the gut goes beyond the bend of the hook, 

 cut it off and make all fast : take then the dub- 

 bing which is to make the body of your fly, as 

 much as you think will do, and holding it lightly 

 with your hook, between the finger and thumb of 

 your left hand, take the silk with the right, and 

 twisting it between the finger and thumb of that 

 hand, the dubbing will spin itself about the silk, 

 which, when it has done, whip it about the armed 

 hook, till you come to the setting on of the wings : 

 afterwards take the feather for the wings, divide 

 it into two equal parts, and turn them back to- 

 wards the bend of the hook, the one on the one 

 side, the other on the other side of the shank, hold- 

 ing them fast in that posture, between the fore- 

 finger and thumb of your left hand ; which being 



