PRACTICAL FLY FISHING 



BEST PATTERNS FOR TROUT 



" Don't bother with a lot of flies," said Thad. Nor- 

 ris, one of America's early fishing writers, " for here 

 are four that will serve all purposes: one is the Red 

 Spinner; the second a Black Gnat; the third is the 

 Coachman; the fourth and the best of them all is the 

 Red Palmer or Red Hackle, as it is indifferently 

 called." Pennell, a famous English trouter, confined 

 himself to what he called three " typical " flies; green, 

 brown and yellow hackles. Both of these men became 

 famous as anglers but neither succeeded in " selling " 

 his idea of few flies to the general run of trout fish- 

 ermen. 



In her charming " Favorite Flies and Their His- 

 tories," Mary Orvis Marbury gives the result of a 

 symposium on the best trout flies with the following 

 results : 



NUMBER 



PATTERN OF TIMES 



MENTIONED 



Grizzly King ... 23 

 Royal Coachman. 19 

 Queen of Waters. 19 



Silver Doctor 18 



Cowdung 18 



Scarlet Ibis . . i< 



Many years later (1916) I conducted a similar sym- 

 posium among middle western anglers of repute and 

 the result was as follows: 



