CHOICE OF MATERIAL. 153 



late years natural ones have been largely employed, 

 notably those of the Egyptian goose, which present a 

 decided brown tinge to the eye, but when held up to 

 the light, bear a much nearer resemblance to the tint 

 of the natural. For our part we may say that for 

 several seasons we have used the breast and side 

 feathers of the Canadian wood duck, which, even 

 when looked down upon, strikingly favours the pecu- 

 liar green-yellow tinge of nature's original ; and when 

 viewed from beneath, and compared with the genuine 

 thing, the beholder cannot fail to appreciate the 

 similarity. The material to be employed in the con- 

 struction of the body determines, more than anything 

 else, the floating powers of the fly. Wheaten straw, 

 when rightly tinted, is the best substance to be em- 

 ployed. This should be well secured at each extre- 

 mity, and a hollow left in the middle of the body 

 Red-brown coloured silk should be used to bind and 

 form the ribs of this. The whisks should be three 

 strands of a partridge's tail feather ; the rabbit's 

 whiskers usually used act very detrimentally as 

 regards hooking the fish, which, as they essay to lay 

 hold of the fly at the tail, are foiled in a measure by 

 the undue stiffness of the head feelers of the animal, 

 which cannot be said to have been designed to grace 

 the tail of anything. As regards legs, these in a 

 floating fly should be ample and full ; a freckled 

 breast feather of a ginger hue, entwined with a cock's 

 honey dun hackle, is a combination that answers 

 remarkably well. The fly above described we have 

 found so successful and recommended it so strongly, 



