80 TROUT FLIES. 



About the middle or end of May, sooner or later, 

 according to state of weather, a small dark blae fly 

 appears, which may be best imitated on a small 

 hook, No. 1 of Adlington's, or others of a similar size, 

 the body made of the belly fur of the water-mouse 

 where the far is shortest, blae-coloured, and tipped 

 with dun and tied with fine silk as near the same 

 colour as possible. The wings should be made from 

 the tip of the back feathers of the starling wing, or 

 from any other bird's wing of a fine texture and blae 

 colour, though I have often used those of a sparrow 

 wing, and with success. This small fly appears on 

 the water before the former (the second spring fly) 

 is retired. I have preferred using one of each to 

 form the pair, making the small blae fly the trail or 

 end one, and the former, larger, light-coloured one 

 the bob or dropper, upon the consideration that the 

 smallest fly of a pair should always be the out-end 

 one, giving it the open chance. For days or weeks 

 after you will take trouts alternately with each ; 

 and observe, that though trouts may occasionally 

 be taken at this period with flies of other descrip- 

 tions than these, yet no trout that would take any 

 other would reject these if gracefully offered. I 

 have always hated the confusion of fishing with 

 more than a pair of flies, and would rather nip off 



