CHAP. V. THE COMPLETE ANGLER. 95 



sad-coloured, to make the fly's head :) and there be 

 also other coloured feathers, both of little birds and 

 of speckled fowl: 1 I say, having those with him in a 



(1) The Author not having particularly enumerated the Materials necessary 

 for Fly-making, it will not be improper, once for all, to do it here. And, first, 

 you must be provided with bear's hair of divers colours ; as grey, dun, light and 

 dark coloured, bright brown and that which shines; also camel's hair, dark, 

 light, and of a colour between both : badger's hair, or fur; spaniel's hair from 

 behind the ear, light and dark brown, blackish, and black : hog's down, which 

 may be had about Christmas, of butchers, or rather of those that make brawn ; 

 it should be plucked from under the throat, and other soft places of the hog; 

 and must be of the following colours, viz. black, red, whitish, and sandy; and 

 for other colours, you may get them dyed at a dvers: seal's fur is to be had at 

 the trunk-makers ; get this also dyed of the colours of cow's and calf's hair, in 

 all the different shades, from the light to the darkest brown ; you will then 

 never need cow's or calf's hair, both which are harsh, and will never work 

 kindly, nor lie handsomely : get also mohairs, black, blue, purple, white, violet; 

 Isabella, which colour is described in a note on Cotton's Flies for March; 

 Philomot, from feuille mort, a dead leaf; yellow, and orange: camlets, hoth 

 hair and worsted, blue, yellow, dun, light and dark brown, red, violet, purple, 

 black, horse-flesh, pink, and orange colours. Some recommend the hair of abor- 

 tive colts and calves; but seal's fur, dyed as above, is much better. 



A piece of an old Turkey carpet will furnish excellent dubbing : untwist the 

 yarn, and pick out the wool, carefully separating the different colours, and 

 lay it by. 



Some use for dubbing, barge-sail; concerning which, the reader is to know, 

 that the sails of West-country and other barges, w'aen old, are usually converted 

 into tilts, under which there is almost a continual smoak arising from the fire 

 and the steam of the beef-kettle, which all such barges carry, and which in time 

 dyes the tilt of a fine brown ; this would be excellent dubbing, but that the ma- 

 terial of these sails is sheep's wool, which soaks in the water, and soon becomes 

 very heavy : however, get of this as many different shades as you can: and have 

 'pal's fur and hog-wool dyed to match them ; which, by reason they are more 

 '. urgid, stiff, and light, and so float better, are, in most cases, to be preferred to 

 worsted, crewels, and, indeed, to every other kind of wool : and observe, that 

 the hog-wool is best for large, and the seal's fur for small flies. 



Get also furs of the following animals, viz. the squirrel, particularly from his 

 tail ; fox-cub, from the tail, where it is downy and of an ash-colour; an old fox ; 

 an old otter; otter-cub; badger; fulimart, or filmert; a hare, from the neck, 

 where it is of the colour of withered fern ; and, above all, the yellow fur of the 

 martern, from off the gills or spots under the jaws. All these, and almost every 

 other kind of fur, are easily got at the furrier's. 



Hackles are a very important article in fly making ; they are the long slender 

 feathers that hang from the head of a cock down his neck ; there may also be 

 fine ones got from near his tail ; be careful that they are not too rank, which 

 they are when the fibres are more than half an inch long, and for some purposes 

 these are much too big: be provided with these of the following colours, viz. 

 red, dun, yellowish, white, orange, and perfect black ; and whenever you meet, 

 alive or dead, with the cock of the game breed, whose hackle is of a strong brown- 

 red, never fail to buy him : but observe, that the feathers of a cock chicken, be 

 they ever so fine for shape and colour, are good for little ; for they are too 

 downy and weak to stand erect after they are once wet, and so are those of the 

 Bintam-cock. 

 Feathers are absolutely necessary for the wings and other parts of flies: get 



