132 DYEING MALLARD'S FEATHERS 



yellow colour. To hit the true colour makes the 

 great difficulty. To get over it I know not how. 

 I must be content to cite the best authorities. 

 First I will take Mr. Blacker, a capital judge of 

 colours, who dyes his feathers yellow according to 

 the following recipe : Boil two or three hand- 

 fuls of yellow wood one hour, in a quart of soft 

 water; wash the mallard hackles, or other 

 feathers in soap and hot water ; then boil them a 

 short time, with a large spoonful of alum and 

 tartar, in a little pipkin, with a pint of water ; 

 take them out and immerse them in your yel- 

 low decoction, and simmer them slowly for an 

 hour or two. The shorter the simmering the 

 paler yellow will be the feathers ; take them out 

 and wash them in clear, hard water. When there is 

 occasion for dyeing yellow-green, add a little blue, 

 more or less, according to the shade of green you 

 wish to give to the yellow. Mr. Ronalds re- 

 commends another way for dyeing mallard's fea- 

 thers for the May-fly's wings. He tells us to 

 make a mordant by dissolving about a quarter of 

 an ounce of alum in a pint of water, and then 

 slightly boil the feathers in it to get the grease 

 out of them, after which boil them in an infusion 

 of fustick to procure a yellow, and then subdue 

 the brightness of the yellow by adding a little 

 copperas to the infusion. Having now the wing- 

 feathers dyed, I'll tell you how to make the fly. 



