Aetificial Flies. 843 



CHAPTER XIV. 



ARTIFICIAL FLIES. 



" You are to note, that there are twelve kinds of artificial-made 

 flies, to angle with upon the top of the water." — Izaak Walton. 



Flt-Fishing and the art of making artificial flies dates 

 back at least to the ancient Greeks and Eomans. During 

 the palmy days of the Eoman Empire, the rod, line, hook, 

 and artificial fly were well known. Noel de la Moriniere 

 tells us that the lines were generally made of horsehair, 

 single, double, and plaited; and according to ^lianus the 

 hair was colored in different ways. The fishing-rod was 

 chosen with reference to the supposed weight of the fish to 

 be caught, and the resistance it could offer. The hooks 

 were of copper or iron, and coated with tin. The art of 

 making flies of feathers and other materials has, perhaps, 

 been carried not much further in our own time. It is pos- 

 sible that the national love for fly-fishing was introduced 

 into Britain by the Romans. 



It is with some degree of trepidation that I approach the 

 subject of artificial flies, for I am afraid that I hold some 

 ,very heretical notions on the subject. But of one fact I 

 am positively convinced, and that is, that there is a good 

 deal of humbug in this matter, as evidenced in the many 

 fine-spun theories and hair-splitting arguments that are 

 advocated and advanced (pertaining to the construction 

 and use of artificial flies) by some anglers, but which theo- 

 nes do not hold good in practice. 



In England, more especially, do anglers proceed to ex- 

 tremes as theorists in the matter of artificial flies for trout 

 fishing. They seem to be divided, principally, into " col- 



