SALMON FISHING WITH THE FLY. 199 
A friend of mine (a Lee, co, Cork, fisherman) told me not 
long ago that the fish were beginning to take the Jock Scott in 
that river ; but the greatest revolution as regards local patterns 
has been on the river Usk, in Monmouthshire. Formerly the 
favourite fly used there was made of a dirty yellow body, blue 
or red cock’s hackle, and brown wing. Now, that fly is quite 
out of date, and the favourite fly—I suppose it may be called 
a fly—is the ‘Usk grub.’ Its body is made of tinsel chenille, 
cock-y-bonddu hackle in joints, and it is certainly a killing fly. 
Other flies of modern patterns are used, but this is the favourite. 
This fly was first introduced in the Usk by Mr. G. M. Kelson. 
A gentleman considered to be the best fisherman on the 
Usk, who has fished that river all his life, uses nothing but 
bodies of flies without wings, made of various colours of seal’s 
fur and mohair, with hackles to match. He never puts on 
wings, as he says there is no necessity for them, and yet he 
catches as many fish as anyone else, and often scores when 
others draw a blank. Two years ago I went with my friend 
Colonel R to fish the Shannon at Killaloe, in the month 
of April. The river was high at the time, and the gaudy Shan- 
non flies were being used. We had just come from the Black- 
water, and had no flies excepting those we had been fishing 
with on that river. Our boatman had no Shannon flies to spare 
us, so we were obliged to fish with the Blackwater flies, but 
were told no Shannon salmon would look at them. The result 
was—whether it was luck or not—the Blackwater flies beat the 
Shannon flies, much to the astonishment of our boatman, who 
accounted for it by saying that the fish were tired of seeing 
gaudy Shannon flies and wanted a change. Almost every sal- 
mon we caught, however, had sea lice upon him, and the fish 
which were said to be tired of seeing the Shannon flies were in 
all probability in the sea at the time. I often ask myself the 
question whether it is the salmon or the angler that has changed 
his fancy. I am inclined to think it is the latter. 
I think I have adduced sufficient evidence to prove that 
the salmon is not so very particular as to the pattern of fly, and 
