io 4 THE TROUT 



sible, representation of that fly, to put on when it 

 makes its annual appearance? It is needless to add 

 that during the brief but ecstatic period when the 

 Mayfly arrives the fisherman must have many deftly 

 constructed specimens of the fly-tier's art at his dis- 

 posal, should he be fortunate enough to find himself 

 fishing waters where that mysterious insect exists. 



It would be out of place in this book to do more 

 than touch very slightly on the question of flies, arti- 

 ficial or natural. The subject is one which has been 

 so fully and ably dealt with by fishing experts for 

 many years past, that any extended disquisition must 

 be superfluous. But the list which has been given 

 above will, as a general rule, be found sufficient to 

 ensure success on most English or Scotch streams 

 should the trout be at all inclined to rise. 



It is rare, nowadays, to find a dry-fly fisherman 

 using any other flies than those tied on ' eyed ' hooks. 



The reasons for this are obvious. In the first 

 place, ' eyed ' hooks are much less liable to ' crack ' off 

 when casting than hooks tied on gut. In the second 

 place, as there is no gut to spoil and get rotten by 

 keeping, the flics last very much longer, in fact till 

 they are either worn out by use, or lost in a fish. 

 These arc material advantages which at once explain 

 the popularity of eyed hooks. 



