APRIL. 219 



him due courtesy by paying away line with due 

 reserve nevertheless. Now he wearies, and lies 

 athwart the glistening surface of the water, as pretty 

 a contrast to its silvery ripples as can well be 

 imagined. Here we are at last, with a splendid 

 one-and-a-half pounder, which ultimately proves 

 but a type of a dozen or more which grace your 

 basket at sundown. The only rivers of the north 

 that the March brown does not frequent are the 

 Tay and Tweed. Upon every mountain burn and 

 moorland stream this fly is a standard killer. The 

 rough bumble is also an excellent lure. 



APRIL. 



This is the best month in the year for fly-fishing. 

 The proverbial showers which characterise the 

 month, have the double effect of drowning the 

 flies, and stripping the water of its transparency ; 

 indeed, the more inclement the weather, the greater 

 chance of sport. The flies are more sturdy than in 

 the summer months, getting more delicate as the 

 season advances. 



The flies recommended for last month will be 

 found equally serviceable in this, especially if the 

 season is rather backward, the weather retarding 

 the progress of the little insects in proportion to 

 its severity. There are the Yellow Dun of April (two 

 shades), Pale Blue Dun, see page 150, Red Spinner, 

 Sand fly, Stone fly, and Foster's intermediate. The 

 Iron Blue Dun comes on in this month, but is much 

 more numerous in the next, for which see description. 



