THE WONDERS OF THE SHORE. 195 



surface, become flying Plnygane^e (caperers and 

 sand-flies), generally of various shades of fawn- 

 colour; and the water-crickets (though an unscien- 

 tific eye may be able to discern but little difference 

 in them in the "larva," or imperfect state) change 

 into flies of the most various shapes ; — one, perhaps, 

 into the great sluggish olive " Stone-fly " (Perla 

 bicaudata) ; another into the delicate lemon-coloured 

 " Yellow Sally " (Chrysoperla ^dridis) ; another into 

 the dark chocolate " Alder " (Sialis lutaria) ; and the 

 majority into duns and drakes (Ephemerse) ; whose 

 grace of form, and delicacy of colour, give them a 

 right to rank among the most exquisite of God's 

 creations, from the tiny "Spinner" (Baetis) of in- 

 descent glass, with gorgeous rainbow-colom^ed eyes, 

 to the great Green Drake (Ephemera vulgata), known 

 to all fishermen as the prince of trout-flies. These 

 animals, their habits, their miracidous transforma- 

 tions, might give many an hour's quiet amusement 

 to an invalid, laid on a sofa, or imprisoned in a sick- 

 room, and debarred from reading, unless by some 

 such means, any page of that great green book out- 

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