,,transcriber ,,notes3 ,a letter preceded by a caret 77 indicate a superscript in the original text4 ,additional transcriber notes can be found at the end of this project4 ,,old ,,flies ,,in ,,new ,,dresses ,illustration3 ,,plate ,i ,,natural ,,flies #a4 ,,alder-,,fly4 ,sialis lutaria1 ,linn4 7,slightly enlarged47 #b4 ,,caperer4 ,halesus radiatus1 ,mc,lach4 #c4 ,,red ,,sedge4 ,anabolia nervosa1 ,steph4 7,slightly enlarged47 #d4 ,,welshman',s ,,button4 ,sericostoma collare1 ,pict4 #e4 ,,cinnamon-,,fly4 ,mystacides longicornis1 ,linn4 #f4 ,,grannom4 ,brachycentrus subnubilus1 ,curt4 #g4 ,,willow-,,fly4 ,leuctra geniculata1 ,steph4 #h4 ,,blue-,,bottle4 ,calliphora erythrocephala1 ,mg4 #i4 ,,green-,,bottle4 ,lucilia caesar1 ,linn4 #aj4 ,,house-,,fly4 ,musca corvina1 ,fab4 #aa4 ,,oak-,,fly4 ,leptis scolopacea1 ,linn4 #ab4 ,,cow-,,dung-,,fly4 ,scatophaga stercoraria1 ,linn4 #ac4 ,,hawthorn-,,fly4 ,bibio marci1 ,linn4 #ad4 ,corixa geoffroyi4 #ae4 ,,fresh-,,water ,,shrimp4 ,gammarus pulex4 ,swan ,electric ,engraving ,co4 ,,old ,,flies ,,in ,,new ,,dresses ,,how ,,to ,,dress ,,dry ,,flies ,,with ,,the ,,wings ,,in ,,the ,,natural ,,position ,,and ,,some ,,new ,,wet ,,flies ,,by ,,charles ,,edward ,,walker ,,illustrated ,,by ,,the ,,author ,,and ,,edward ,,wilson ,illustration ,,london3 ,,lawrence ,,and ,,bullen1 ,,ltd4 #af ,,henrietta ,,street1 ,,covent ,,garden ,,mdcccxcviii ,,richard ,,clay ,,and ,,sons1 ,,limited1 ,,london ,,and ,,bungay4 ,,preface ,in the first part of this little work ,i do not wish my reader to suppose that ,i claim to be the first who has dealt with any particular imitation in the manner he will find that ,i have dealt with it4 ,in the case of particular flies1 others have frequently observed that the imitations generally used were inaccurate4 ,the imitation of the ,alder-fly has perhaps been most treated in this way1 but it is not alone4 ,one instance1 however1 of inaccuracies in imitations of natural flies having been observed1 will ,i hope not be trespassing too much upon my reader's patience4 ,blaine1 in his ,encyclopaedia of ,rural ,sports published in #ahdj1 says when speaking of the ,cow-dung fly3--,by some extraordinary mistake ,bowlker describes this fly as having upright wings2 and as many of the ,london fly-makers dress their flies by his directions1 we need not wonder that they are often bought with their wings unnaturally glaring outwards4 ,what ,i have tried to do1 is to work out and bring down to a definite rule the position in which the wings of the imitations of the various kinds of flies should be placed4 ,my reader therefore must not hope in this first part to meet with many imitations of creatures that have not been imitated before2 but if he finds that the manner in which the flies are dealt with as a whole is any step forward1 be it ever so small1 ,i shall be satisfied in having attained the object at which ,i aim4 ,my reader may be surprised at the order in which ,i have arranged the various flies2 but it was necessary1 or at any rate very much more convenient1 to arrange them in the way ,i have1 as entomological accuracy of arrangement in a work on fishing must not be the first consideration of the author4 ,that the wings of the ,alder and the ,caddis flies are in practically the same position in relation to their bodies1 was my reason for placing the descriptions of these flies next each other1 and this instance is sufficient to suggest to those of my readers who are entomologists1 reasons for the other cases in which ,i have not placed the descriptions of the various flies in their correct sequence4 ,a disclaimer must also be my preface to the second part of my work1 for ,i know that ,i am far from being the first in thinking that the wet fly of the fisherman is not taken by the fish for the natural fly it is supposed to represent4 ,here my hope is that my reader will find a definite theory which is sufficiently plausible to interest him1 at least for the moment4 ,i have to acknowledge the kind assistance of ,dr4 ,g4 ,a4 ,buckmaster1 ,lecturer on ,physiology at ,st4 ,george's ,hospital1 of ,mr4 ,ernest ,e4 ,austen1 of the ,british ,museum 7,natural ,history71 and of several other gentlemen4 ,i must also thank the ,editor of ,land and ,water for allowing me to republish an article in the first part of my book1 and the ,editor of ,the ,field for a similar permission with regard to certain articles which appear in the second part4 ,mrs4 ,j4 ,r4 ,richardson1 of ,kingston-on-,thames1 has also given me some hints as to improvements in the dressing of some of the flies described4 ,,charles ,,walker4 ,,contents ,,part ,i ,,dry ,,flies ,,chapter ,i ,,page ,,introductory #c ,,chapter ,,ii ,,colour ,,perception ,,in ,,fish #ad ,,chapter ,,iii ,,how ,,to ,,dress ,,flies ,,with ,,the ,,wings ,,in ,,the ,,natural ,,position #bi ,,chapter ,,iv ,,the ,,alder-,,fly #da ,,chapter ,v ,,caddis-,,flies #de ,,chapter ,,vi ,,perlidae #ed ,,chapter ,,vii ,,diptera #eh ,,chapter ,,viii ,,winged ,,ants #gb ,,chapter ,,ix ,,caterpillars #gf ,,part ,,ii ,,wet ,,flies ,,chapter ,i ,a ,,theory #hg ,,chapter ,,ii ,,corixae #if ,,chapter ,,iii ,,fresh-,,water ,,shrimp #ajg ,,larvae ,,of ,,water-,,insects #aac ,,some ,,hints ,,on ,,dry ,,fly-,,fishing #aae ,,old ,,flies ,,in ,,new ,,dresses ,,part ,i ,,dry ,,flies ,,chapter ,i ,introductory ,though it would not be true to say that hitherto writers on fly-dressing have shown any lack of power of observation1 still it is unfortunately true that their energy seems1 strangely enough1 to have stopped short at observing the natural fly1 and has not been sufficient to carry them on to making even passable imitations1 except of ,ephemeridae4 ,with the exception of this family of flies1 no one could possibly recognise the artificial through knowing the natural fly which it is supposed to represent4 ,yet the fisherman who knows the natural fly well by sight will go on using these imitations year after year unquestioningly2 and though he himself would certainly not have known1 unless he had been told1 what natural fly the imitation he is using is meant to represent1 he expects the trout to do so at once4 ,there has been much discussion recently as to whether trout have the power of discriminating between different colours1 but no one has ever cast a doubt on their power of discriminating between different shapes2 yet in most of these imitations it is not the colour that is wrong1 but the shape4 ,the wings of a fly undoubtedly play a most important part in forming the outline1 and consequently the general appearance of the fly4 ,therefore1 if they are not put in the natural position1 the whole contour of the imitation must be entirely different from that of the natural fly4 ,it seems1 however1 judging by the standard works on the subject1 that there is practically but one recognised position for the wings of the artificial fly1 as the difference between the position of divided wings and wings dressed flat together is1 after all1 but slight4 ,no one seems yet to have realised the fact that the wings of a ,may-fly do not lie in the same relative position to the body as do those of the ,blue-bottle1 whilst in the case of the ,alder there is a further marked distinction from both4 ,the wings1 in the different families of flies upon which trout and grayling feed1 lie when at rest in three distinct positions in relation to their bodies4 ,in the ,ephemeridae they lie in planes approaching the vertical1 slightly diverging from each other towards their extremities4 ,fig4 #a gives a sketch of one of the ,ephemeridae1 and ,fig4 #b a transverse section through the line alpha beta of ,fig4 #a4 ,these drawings show the relation of the wings to the body4 ,all flies have so far been treated by writers on fly-dressing as though their wings were in this position4 ,in the ,caddis-flies 7,trichoptera7 and the ,alder-fly 7,sialis lutaria7 the wings lie on each side of the body1 meeting at their upper edges in front1 gradually diverging towards their lower edges and posterior extremities4 ,fig4 #c gives a sketch of an ,alder1 and ,fig4 #d a transverse section through the fly1 showing the position of the wings4 ,in the ,diptera 7,blue-bottle1 ,cow-dung1 c471 and ,perlidae 7,stone-fly1 ,yellow ,sally1 c471 the wings lie in a horizontal plane4 ,in some ,diptera the wings diverge from each other towards their extremities1 as in the ,blue-bottle1 shown in ,figs4 #e and #f4 ,in some other ,diptera and in the ,perlidae1 the wings lie over each other1 as shown in ,figs4 #g and #h4 ,it will be seen that the wings in both these cases lie in a horizontal plane4 ,in ,figs4 #b1 #d1 #f and #h beta represents the section of the body1 alpha and gamma the section of the wings4 ,i wish it to be thoroughly understood that these positions are the positions of the wings of the natural fly when at rest4 ,many flies when they fall on the water buzz round in circles periodically1 apparently with the object of disengaging themselves from the surface4 ,between these efforts1 however1 their wings generally assume the normal position of rest4 ,the only way to imitate the fly when it is buzzing is by dressing it without wings1 and with extra hackle2 and this is1 after all1 but a poor imitation4 ,in most cases it is better to imitate the wings at rest2 and if this is done accurately1 it will present to the trout an accurate imitation of the natural fly as it appears to him when not trying to raise itself from the water4 ,illustration3 ,,fig4 #a4 ,,fig4 #b4 ,,fig4 #c4 ,,fig4 #d4 ,,fig4 #e4 ,,fig4 #f4 ,,fig4 #g4 ,,fig4 #h4 ,sketches and diagrams showing the relative positions of the wings to the body in the various natural flies4 ,figs4 #b1 #d1 #f and #h show sections through alphabeta in ,figs4 #a1 #c1 #e and #g4 ,in ,figs4 #b1 #d1 #f and #h alpha anterior wings2 beta body2 gamma posterior wings4 ,i have on many occasions watched the behaviour of an ,alder when it has fallen on the water4 ,at first it moves its wings rapidly1 but soon stops1 to begin again1 however1 when it has rested4 ,this is repeated time after time1 but after each succeeding struggle1 the interval of rest becomes longer4 ,in many cases1 however1 the fly hardly struggles at all4 ,in observing many other flies which had fallen on the water1 ,i have seen the same sequence of events occur1 though some flies struggle to raise themselves from the surface much more than others1 as in the case of the ,blue-bottle4 ,the first trial that ,i made of a fly dressed with the wings in the natural position was with an ,alder4 ,to make this trial complete1 ,i purchased some ,alders1 dressed according to the most approved patterns1 from three well-known firms of tackle makers4 ,when ,i got to the water-side the trout were rising freely1 and the banks were literally swarming with ,alders4 ,i saw a trout take one which had fallen on the water1 so it was evident that the ,alder was the fly to use4 ,i began with the flies ,i had purchased1 and cast over a trout which was rising under a tree4 ,he would not look at it1 and the same happened with the flies of the other two makers when ,i cast over two other trout4 ,i then tried one of my own1 and got a fish at once4 ,he did not take it in a half-hearted manner1 but was hooked right in the back of the tongue4 ,i then tried the other flies again without success4 ,when1 however1 ,i went back to my own fly ,i hooked the first fish ,i cast over4 ,imitations of other flies made with the wings in the natural position have served me as well as did my imitation of the ,alder1 though ,i was not inclined to try the ordinary patterns so freely on every occasion as ,i was at the first trial4 ,i have1 however1 several times caught a rising fish on one of my imitations when he had refused the ordinary imitation not two minutes before4 ,my reader will of course think that these experiments1 being carried out by myself1 are hardly a conclusive proof of my theory1 as1 however impartial ,i might wish and believe myself to be1 ,i must be naturally biased in my own favour4 ,i quite realise that this is a natural doubt1 but fortunately others besides myself have tried my flies4 ,mr4 ,herbert ,ash put them to an even more severe test than ,i did myself1 and has kindly permitted me to give his experience4 ,i give an extract from a letter written by him and published in ,land and ,water on ,october #bcrd1 #ahig1 as ,i think it is a very pertinent testimonial to the practical success of my theory4 ,i put up a cast of three ,alders1 two being the shop-tied patterns which ,i usually used1 and the third1 which ,i put on as a first dropper1 being ,mr4 ,walker's4 ,i landed eight trout in about an hour and a half1 and each of those fish took ,mr4 ,walker's fly4 ,now1 although ,i used three flies1 ,i was fishing up stream and dry1 my object being to test the new mode of tying the ,alder1 and ,i found that while the fish rose boldly at the first dropper1 not one took any notice of the other flies4 ,colonel ,walker also had much greater success with flies dressed with the wings in the natural position than with any others4 ,in fact1 for several consecutive days1 on different occasions he caught no fish except with my flies1 though he did not use them more than flies dressed in the ordinary way4 ,several other fishermen have told me that their experiments with my imitations have produced similar results4 ,mr4 ,h4 ,h4 ,brown1 of the ,piscatorial ,society1 after ,i had read a paper to that ,society on my theory of the right way to dress trout flies1 described a very interesting experience which he had one day when out fishing1 and which bears directly on this theory4 ,while out fishing some time ago1 he rested on a bridge over the river in which he was fishing4 ,there were a great number of ,alders about1 and on observing some fish in the water some little distance below the bridge1 he caught some ,alders1 pinched their heads slightly in order to either kill them outright or at any rate stop them struggling1 and threw them on the water4 ,he was in such a position that he could observe each fly individually until it either floated past or was taken by the fish4 ,what he observed was1 that when in killing the fly he had disturbed the natural position of the wings1 not one of the fish would look at it2 while1 if the wings remained in the normal position of rest1 the fly was always taken4 ,this occurred time after time1 and not once was the fly with the wings in an unnatural position taken1 but1 on the other hand1 not a single fly with its wings in the natural position of rest was allowed to pass4 ,he also observed that once or twice the fish came up to look at a fly whose wings had been disarranged1 but on getting close to it they always drew back4 ,this is1 ,i think1 an extremely strong argument in favour of my theory4 ,i do not propose in this work to deal with ,ephemeridae1 as the wings in the imitations now sold are in the natural position4 ,the families ,i do propose dealing with are the ,sialidae1 ,trichoptera1 ,diptera1 and ,perlidae1 as no one has yet1 to my knowledge1 described the position in which the wings of the imitations of these flies should be put4 ,,chapter ,,ii ,,colour ,,perception ,,in ,,fish 7,rewritten from ,land and ,water1 ,november #f1 #ahig7 ,many interesting problems constantly come before the fisherman1 but certainly one of the most interesting which has recently attracted his attention is ,sir ,herbert ,maxwell's theory on the power of fish to discriminate between various colours4 ,his theory is1 that though fish can undoubtedly discriminate between different shades of light and dark1 they cannot distinguish one colour from another4 ,the only conclusion that can be drawn from this theory is the conclusion at which ,sir ,herbert ,maxwell has apparently arrived4 ,this is1 that if the same relations of light and shade be maintained in the artificial which exist in the natural fly1 the colour of the imitation is quite immaterial4 ,the facts upon which he based this theory were 7#a7 that during the ,may-fly season he used several artificial ,may-flies1 some of which were coloured scarlet1 some bright blue1 and some coloured to imitate the natural fly1 all of them being similarly graduated with regard to the shade of their various component parts2 7#b7 that he caught trout with all these flies1 no particular one of them being decidedly more successful than the others4 ,this experience of his no doubt would at first strike one as being very strongly in favour of his theory2 but on going deeply into the matter1 its bearing on the fish's powers of vision is not so great as it appears4 ,to begin with1 we must consider whether1 judging from experience in the past1 trout have been known to rise at things on the water which were not only unlike in colour to any flies on the water1 but also unlike them in shape and gradations of shade4 ,this we know they will sometimes do4 ,i have on several occasions seen a trout which refused a fairly accurate imitation of the flies which were on the water rise at and take below the surface a swan's feather4 ,there are also many other much more extraordinary but similar cases on record4 ,thus1 the fact that these trout took an abnormally coloured fly is not a conclusive proof that they mistook it for the natural fly1 particularly as this experiment was made during the ,may-fly season1 when the trout sometimes appear to be quite mad1 but are at any rate always much less shy than at any other time of the year4 ,the experiment1 too1 was made upon a private water1 and ,i think that there is great doubt that the same result would have occurred had it been made upon a well-fished water where the trout were more shy and better educated4 ,we must then consider whether1 in what we know of the natural history of fish1 there are any facts which point towards the probability of their being able to discriminate between different colours4 ,here we find that there are cases in which in certain species the males are more brilliantly coloured than the females1 either at the spawning season or always4 ,this is probably a process in evolution which tends to make them more attractive to the female4 ,we also know that fish sometimes assume a colour similar to their surroundings4 ,this colour is1 no doubt1 evolved for their protection from enemies1 and surely a very large proportion of these enemies are other and larger fish4 ,many of the larvae of water insects and other creatures upon which fish feed are also coloured according to their surroundings1 in order to facilitate their concealment4 ,these facts would naturally lead us to come to a conclusion opposed to that of ,sir ,herbert ,maxwell1 as the probabilities all point towards the power of fish to discern various colours4 ,another very important point is the structure of the fish's eye in comparison with that of man1 who we know has the power of discriminating between colours4 ,this power is1 in the human eye1 probably situated in the layer of rods and cones of the retina4 ,had the fish's retina not contained this layer1 as is stated by ,sir ,herbert ,maxwell1 there would certainly have been most excellent grounds for supposing that his theory was true2 but this layer is contained in the fish's eye1 though it is not the same as in man4 ,if the fish's eye did not contain it1 fish would have been totally blind4 ,how far this difference in the retina of the fish bears on its sense of colour is1 at present1 a moot point1 though ,i believe researches are being made in this direction4 ,at present1 our knowledge is too limited with regard to it for any definite statement to be made4 ,the probability is1 that fish have the power of distinguishing colour from colour4 ,a probability1 however1 is not a certainty1 though one is more inclined towards it than towards an improbability4 ,even should ,sir ,herbert ,maxwell's theory prove true1 in spite of probabilities to the contrary1 ,i do not see that we should have progressed very much further with regard to facilities in imitating the natural fly4 ,we know that the relative values of light and shade in various colours contiguous to each other1 is not actually the same as the impression conveyed to our eyes4 ,we have an example of this always with us in the photograph1 where red and blue1 in relation to each other1 certainly do not produce the same effects on the plate as they do on the eye2 and as we have no accurate knowledge as to the effect of contiguous colours upon a normally monochromatic eye1 we could hardly be certain of producing an accurate monochromatic imitation of a multi-coloured object1 which would deceive that eye4 ,the case of a colour-blind human being is certainly not a normal case1 so the shade value of the various colours to this eye could hardly be taken as a safe standard4 ,even if we assumed that all these difficulties had been surmounted1 and that the exact relative shade values to this monochromatic eye of every colour were estimated1 ,i think that there can be no doubt that it would be easier to imitate the colours1 with the various shades in these colours1 than to calculate out the relative shade values of the different colours1 in one particular colour1 and that the result of the former and easier1 would be much more likely to be accurate than the latter and more difficult attempt4 ,besides this1 possibly1 as the eyes of some families of fish are more highly developed than those of others1 the relative shade values of colour might be different to the different families1 so that if we eliminate colours from our lures1 we must have different shading for different fish4 ,having considered all these things carefully1 ,i have come to the conclusion that it will be much safer and easier to keep on using colours in our imitations1 even if we do present these imitations to a monochromatic eye4 99 99 99 99 99 ,since writing the above article1 ,i have been able to collect some further information with regard to the probable power of the trout's eye to discriminate between colours4 ,these researches1 though ,i have not yet had time to carry them as far as ,i had hoped1 have led me to believe more firmly than ever that ,i am right in recommending the use of colours in our imitation flies4 ,i have prepared some sections of the retina of the trout1 and examined them carefully in comparison with the retinae of several other fish4 ,a short account of what is known at present of colour-vision is1 ,i think1 advisable to make my meaning clear to those of my readers who may not be sufficiently well versed in this particular subject4 ,the sensation of an individual colour is produced by rays of light of a particular wave-length falling upon the retina4 ,a sensation of white is produced by rays containing all the wave-lengths which are able to affect it4 ,when1 on looking at an object1 we find that neither a colour nor white sensation is produced1 this sensation is called black4 ,the white sensation may be mixed with the sensation of any colour of the spectrum1 as also may the sensation of black1 and when these two are mixed they produce a sensation of grey4 ,some colours of the spectrum are probably produced by a mixture of various wave-lengths of different primary colours1 and many colours in nature do not exist in the spectrum4 ,the word tone expresses variations of wave-lengths within a named colour1 and brightness is used to indicate the intensity of the sensation produced upon the retina4 ,the enormous difficulty of working out into a monochrome the shade-values of a collection of colours1 with several tones and shades of brightness in each of the variously coloured parts of the object we wish to imitate1 can be imagined on considering these facts only2 but there are more facts which lead me to believe that to do this is not only difficult1 but impossible4 ,two theories have been propounded to explain the sensation of colour produced upon the retina4 ,the ,young-,helmholtz theory teaches that there are three primary sensations--red1 green1 and violet4 ,other colours are a mixture of these sensations2 white is produced when all three sensations are excited together1 and black is an absence of sensation4 ,hering's theory is that there are six primary sensations arranged in three pairs--white and black1 red and green1 and yellow and blue4 ,he assumes the existence of three visual substances which undergo metabolic changes when subjected to the action of light4 ,these are the red-green1 the yellow-blue1 and the white-black substances4 ,the white-black substance is influenced by all the rays of the spectrum1 while the red-green and yellow-blue substances are differently influenced by rays of different wave-lengths4 ,when all the rays together fall upon the retina1 no metabolism takes place in the red-green and yellow-blue substances1 but only the white-black substance is affected4 ,thus the white-black substance is the most active4 ,any discussion as to the relative value of these theories would in this work be out of place and unnecessary4 ,the ordinary form of colour-blindness in human beings is the inability to discriminate between red and green4 ,this shows that the visual power of these people is dichromatic and not trichromatic1 as their power is limited to two colours1 or pairs of colours1 and does not extend to three4 ,the individuals who belong to this class of the colour-blind may be divided into two sub-classes--those who are red-blind and those who are green-blind4 ,those who are red-blind do not see the red end of the spectrum1 and the blue-green appears grey1 though they have distinct colour vision of the parts of the spectrum on either side of the blue-green4 ,in matching red with a green1 they put a bright red with a dark green4 ,on the other hand1 those who are green-blind see the red end of the spectrum1 while the green appears to them as grey4 ,in matching a red with a green they put a dark red with a bright green4 ,no absolutely undoubted cases of blue-yellow blindness have been recorded1 and only one of absolute colour-blindness2 but one case is not sufficient to go upon4 ,according to the ,young-,helmholtz theory1 a case in which only shades of black and white were visible would be impossible1 as it would not be shades of black and white which would be seen1 but shades of either red1 green or blue4 ,according to ,hering's theory1 of course1 absolute colour-blindness would be possible4 ,in the normal human eye1 only the central parts of the retina are sensitive to colour1 the peripheral parts are practically colour-blind4 ,anaemia of the retina1 which may be produced by pressure on the eye-ball1 will render the retina1 first colour-blind and then insensitive to light4 ,to me it appears that colours in relation to each other assume a grey tone1 and the sensation of black and white disappears last4 ,the great difference which ,i have been able to observe between the human retina and the retina of the trout is1 that while the human retina contains a layer of rods and cones1 the retina of the trout only contains cones1 or if it does contain rods1 contains very few1 as ,i have not found any as yet4 ,there exists also at the back of the retina of the trout a tapetum1 which extends over almost the whole of its posterior surface4 ,this does not exist in the human eye1 but is found in the eyes of some of the vertebrates4 ,it consists of a layer of guanin crystals1 and1 presenting as it does a metallic appearance1 and having great power of reflecting light1 probably plays an important part in the visual power of the trout1 particularly1 ,i should think1 in a dim light4 ,the fact that the rods are absent from the trout's retina does not bear the important significance that one would imagine on first realising it4 ,the fovea centralis of the human retina is the seat of most acute vision1 and in the fovea centralis there are no rods4 ,the cones in the retina of the trout are very closely arranged1 so that they are practically in contact with each other1 and their outer limbs are rather longer and finer than in the case of man4 ,this layer of cones extends to the periphery of the retina1 and the cones are just as closely arranged as far as they extend4 ,these facts should lead us to believe that the vision of the trout is probably extremely acute1 in fact1 as we find in the retina of the trout1 no material difference from the fovea centralis of the human retina1 we have no reason to suppose that the visual powers of the whole of the retina of the trout1 should differ in any way from the visual powers possessed by the fovea centralis1 the seat of most acute vision both as to colour and light in the human retina4 ,the retinae of other fishes which ,i have examined 7none of them were ,salmonidae7 contained only cones2 but these cones were some distance from each other4 ,the layer of pigment epithelium which is present in the human eye1 is present also in that of the trout4 ,it occupies the same position between the layer of rods and cones1 or cones only1 and the choroid4 ,as in the human eye1 it adheres sometimes to the choroid and sometimes to the retina1 when the retina is removed1 though perhaps it most often adheres to the retina4 ,my space is too limited to enter into any of the theories as to the possibility of the pigment cells playing a part in colour vision4 ,it is quite sufficient to state that they undoubtedly do play some part in our sense of sight1 and that they are contained in the eye of the trout4 ,the retina of a colour-blind person does not show any organic difference from the normal eye1 so we cannot say to what cause colour-blindness is due2 but so far as our knowledge goes1 there is no reason to suppose that the trout is normally colour-blind4 ,as ,michael ,foster so ably put it1 ,no man can tell what are the sensations of his fellow-man1 still less ,i think can man say what are the sensations of a trout4 ,all we can do with regard to this question of colour vision1 is to find out all the facts we can relating to it1 and working on comparisons1 arrive1 not at conclusions1 but at probabilities4 ,the only thing of which ,i am sure is that we shall find it safe and comparatively easy to imitate flies in colours1 but to make a monochromatic imitation of one1 which would accurately represent it to a normally monochromatic eye 7about which we know nothing71 in a medium of which we know very little1 is practically impossible4 ,,chapter ,,iii ,,how ,,to ,,dress ,,flies ,,with ,,the ,,wings ,,in ,,the ,,natural ,,position ,the generally accepted method of dressing a trout fly is to put on the wings first4 ,this is perhaps the best plan when making an imitation of one of the ,ephemeridae1 but it is impossible to put the body on after the wings1 if the wings are placed in the natural position in the case of any fly not belonging to this family4 ,the hackle must also be put on before the wings1 so it will be seen that putting on the wings is the last operation in dressing one of these imitations4 ,i have never myself used a vice in fly-dressing1 and think that it is a great advantage to be able to dress a fly without using one4 ,any one who can dress flies well without a vice will be able to dress them even better with a vice1 and will be able to dress flies at all sorts of odd times and places where a vice could not be used2 while he who has never dressed flies without using one1 will find that the imitations he produces are anything but neat1 when he first tries to make them without his vice4 ,alder and ,caddis ,flies4 ,these flies1 as ,i have already explained1 have their wings in the position shown in ,figs4 #c and #d4 ,give a few turns of the tying silk round the shank of the hook1 beginning near the eye and leaving enough room to put on the hackle and wings4 ,carry it down the shank in the ,alder1 going just beyond the bend1 and in the ,caddis-flies generally stopping well short of it1 so that the body may be perfectly straight4 ,the material for the body and the tinsel1 if used1 should now be tied in4 ,i find it best to tie the tinsel in first1 not straight out from the hook1 but diagonally1 as1 if put on in this way it lies much smoother in the first turn than if tied in quite straight4 ,if the body is to be made of wool or hair1 the tying silk should be waxed again at the part nearest the hook for about two or three inches1 and the material spun on it4 ,when ,i began fly-dressing ,i found this spinning on of the dubbing a great stumbling-block4 ,in all the books ,i have read the directions on this point are simply1 ,spin the 'dubbing' on the tying silk1 and ,i had not the least idea how this should be done4 ,as others who wish to make their own flies may also find this a difficulty1 ,i will try to explain the method which ,i have found the easiest4 ,if ,berlin wool is used1 a piece should be broken off and the strands separated from each other4 ,the strands should then be laid together and pulled into short pieces until the whole is in one mass4 ,this should then be teazed up with the nails of the thumbs and first fingers until it is of an even consistency4 ,a small portion of this should then be taken to make the body of each fly4 ,this should be teazed up again1 and made to taper gradually to a point at one end1 and applied to the tying silk with the taper end towards the hook1 as shown in ,fig4 #i4 ,all dubbing should be teazed up and applied in this way4 ,illustration3 ,,fig4 #i4 ,illustration3 ,,fig4 #aa4 ,,fig4 #aj4 ,the wool must now be taken between the thumb and first finger of the right hand1 and twisted round the tying silk by rubbing the thumb and finger together4 ,the dubbing is now spun on1 and should cover from about a quarter to three-quarters of an inch of the tying silk1 according to the size of the hook4 ,it should be wound round the shank to the head1 leaving a small portion of the shank bare at the head for the hackle and wings4 ,the tinsel or wire is then wound round in a spiral to the head1 tied1 and the surplus cut off4 ,the hackle should now be applied4 ,the longest fibres of the hackle must be of the same length as the hook4 ,clear off the flue with the nails of the thumb and first finger1 and then holding the tip of the hackle in the left draw down its fibres by pressing the hackle between the thumb and first finger of the right hand and drawing them downwards4 ,the hackle will now appear as shown in ,fig4 #aj4 ,take the tip of the hackle thus prepared between the nails of the thumb and first finger of the left hand1 and the butt of the hackle in the hackle pliers1 so that the back or dull surface of the hackle faces towards you4 ,now1 holding the hackle pliers in the palm of the right hand with the third and fourth fingers1 put the first and second fingers behind the hackle1 and by stroking them down with the thumb make the fibres of the hackle which point upwards point down in the same direction as the lower row4 ,the hackle will now appear as shown in ,fig4 #aa4 ,illustration3 ,,fig4 #ab4 ,tie the point of the hackle in at the head as in ,fig4 #ab1 cut off projecting point1 and wind it on with the pliers in close turns towards the head4 ,three or four turns will be found ample as a rule4 ,tie in the end with the tying silk and cut off the part which remains over4 ,now draw down the fibres of the hackle which project upwards1 cutting off those which will not stay down4 ,the fly should now appear as shown in ,fig4 #ac4 ,illustration3 ,,fig4 #ac4 ,,fig4 #ad4 ,illustration3 ,,fig4 #ae4 ,the wings should be taken from corresponding quill feathers from opposite wings of the bird4 ,these are split up the middle with scissors1 and a piece from the side with the longest fibres taken4 ,the piece of quill attached must now be cut at regular intervals1 and each piece between these cuts will serve as a wing 7see ,fig4 #ae74 ,take two of these pieces1 one from each feather1 and place them together1 with their concave surfaces toward each other4 ,place them1 one on each side of the hook1 with their lower margins a trifle lower than the body of the fly1 tie them in at the head1 cut off the projecting part with the quill1 and finish off the head4 ,the head should now be varnished1 taking care to clear the eye of the hook1 and the fly will appear as shown in the illustrations of imitation ,alder and ,caddis-flies4 ,there is another way of preparing wings which is much better1 as it makes the ends of the wings round1 though it is more difficult4 ,this was first shown me by ,mrs4 ,richardson of ,kingston-on-,thames4 ,the feather is taken and the lower part of the fibres stripped off1 till a part is come to suitable for making a wing4 ,a portion of fibres sufficient for making a wing is then separated from the fibres above and bent carefully downwards4 ,if the fibres are stroked very gently between the thumb and first finger1 they will arrange themselves1 so that their ends present a rounded edge instead of a point4 ,this portion of fibres is then grasped firmly between the thumb and first finger near the quill1 and detached therefrom by pulling it smartly downwards4 ,the other wing is prepared in a similar manner from a feather of the opposite wing of the bird4 ,diptera and ,perlidae4 ,in imitations of ,diptera and ,perlidae the body and hackle are put on in the same way1 except that the hackle should be allowed to project sideways as well as downwards2 for as the wings are horizontal in these flies1 the fibres which project sideways will not interfere with the position of the wings1 as they would do in the ,alder and ,caddis flies4 ,the body and hackle1 when put on1 should therefore appear as shown in ,fig4 #ad4 ,illustration3 ,,fig4 #af4 ,the wings of these flies are perhaps the most difficult of any to put on4 ,to put on wings which diverge from each other as in the ,blue-bottle1 two portions of the quill feathers from opposite sides1 prepared as described for the ,alder and ,caddis flies1 should be laid upon each other1 as shown in ,fig4 #af4 ,the hook should then be taken in the left hand1 and held by the bend between the first and second fingers1 with the head pointing towards the right4 ,the wings are then laid flat on the body with the right hand1 and held there firmly with the left thumb4 ,the wings are now tied in1 the quill and part of the fibres attached cut off close1 and the head finished off4 ,the illustration of the imitation ,blue-bottle1 etc41 shows its appearance when finished4 ,those ,diptera whose wings lie1 when at rest1 one over the other 7as in the case of the ,cow-dung71 my reader will see that ,i have represented in my imitations1 with their wings spread to a certain extent4 ,this is because ,i have seen that1 in the natural fly1 when it falls on the water1 the wings are most often in this position4 ,in ,perlidae1 whose wings lie one over the other1 the wings should be put in the position they occupy in the natural fly1 instead of across each other1 and the fly will appear when finished like the illustration of the imitation ,yellow-,sally4 ,the dressings which ,i have found most successful will be described with each fly4 ,it will be noticed that ,i have put tinsel on many of the flies which have been dressed hitherto without4 ,my reason for using it so freely is because this is the only way to produce a peculiar effect which is seen in certain flies when viewed from under the surface of the water2 and as this is how they must appear to the trout1 it is best to imitate this effect as nearly as possible4 ,the bodies of many flies are covered with short hairs4 ,when these flies fall on the water1 an air bubble adheres to these hairs1 and1 seen from below the surface1 produce a brilliant metallic effect1 with the colour of the body showing through in places4 ,ribbing the body of the imitation with tinsel reproduces this effect accurately4 ,the appearance of the natural fly on the water1 when seen from below1 may be observed by placing a small mirror at the bottom of a large bowl full of water4 ,i have used one of those small round mirrors which were sent about some time ago as an advertisement for something1 ,i forget what4 ,if the fly be placed on the surface of the water over this mirror1 its reflection will show what the fly looks like to the trout4 ,another1 and perhaps a better1 way to observe the appearance of the fly from below the surface is to put it on the water in a large glass aquarium4 ,it can then be observed by looking up at it through one of the sides of the aquarium4 ,it is better to use tinsel in dressing these flies than wire1 as wire does not reproduce the metallic effect of the air bubble on the body of the natural fly4 ,illustration3 ,,plate ,,ii ,,artificial ,,flies ,drawn from flies tied by ,mrs4 ,j4 ,r4 ,richardson1 of ,kingston-on-,thames 7dressed from the ,author's models74 #a1 #b4 ,,blue-,,bottle4 #c1 #d4 ,,green-,,bottle4 #e1 #f4 ,,house-,,fly 7slightly enlarged74 #g1 #h4 ,,curse 7,,black74 #i1 #aj4 ,,curse 7,,dun74 #aa4 ,,curse 7,,badger74 #ab4 ,,black ,,gnat4 #ac1 #ad4 ,,yellow ,,sally4 #ae1 #af1 #ag4 ,,willow-,,fly4 #ah4 ,,alder-,,fly4 #ai4 ,,oak-,,fly4 #bj1 #ba4 ,,cow-,,dung-,,fly4 #bb4 ,,hawthorn-,,fly4 ,swan ,electric ,engraving ,co4 ,,chapter ,,iv ,the ,alder-fly 7,sialis lutaria1 ,linn474 ,the ,alder is a fly which hitherto has taken a position in the dry-fly fisherman's estimation very much inferior to that which is its due4 ,almost every writer on the subject says that it is but rarely found on the water4 ,it is naturally not found there so often as the flies which are hatched out in the water1 but ,i have notwithstanding frequently seen them on the water in fair numbers4 ,the proportion of ,alders which get on the water is probably very small if compared with those which do not2 but as the fly is in some places extremely numerous1 even this small proportion becomes in those places a large number4 ,a practical proof that they do frequently fall on the water is the avidity with which the trout feed upon them1 and ,i have almost always found them in the stomachs of trout when they have been numerous at the water-side4 ,i have also often dropped a natural ,alder on the water and seen it taken by a trout4 ,many will probably think that ,i have mistaken one of the ,caddis-flies for the ,alder1 but ,i can assure them that this is not the case4 ,i have always1 with regard to the ,alder especially1 made a very careful examination of the flies at the water-side1 and1 as every one knows1 even a cursory examination of the fly with a magnifying-glass puts an end to all doubt as to its being an ,alder or ,caddis-fly1 even if the knowledge of entomology possessed by him who examines is but small4 ,the peculiar hump-shape of the wings when at rest also makes an ,alder easily recognisable4 ,i believe that the great reason that the imitation ,alder is not so successful as it should be1 is because the wings are generally put in an absolutely impossible position4 ,this is not the fault of the fly-dressers1 as all writers on the subject have put the wings in this position1 a position into which they could not get in the natural fly without the intervention of external violence4 ,i have1 in observing this fly when it has fallen on the water1 seen its wings in the position of rest as often as not4 ,in fact the only other condition in which ,i have seen it1 is when it has been buzzing violently1 apparently with the object of raising itself from the surface4 ,of course the easiest1 and in fact the only possible position in which the wings can be accurately imitated1 is the position of rest4 ,another mistake in the imitations usually sold1 is in the materials used in the dressing4 ,the body is made very fat1 with peacock herle2 while in the natural fly it is decidedly thin1 and of a dark brown colour4 ,the wings are made of brown speckled hen's quill feathers or bustard1 which are of a very much richer brown than the wing of the natural fly1 and lastly the hackle is much too profuse and goes all over the fly4 ,the following dressing of the ,alder ,i have found to be most successful1 both in my hands and in those of other fishermen4 ,body4 ,very dark brown floss silk1 carried well on to the bend of the hook1 and there made a trifle thicker4 ,i have at times found it very successful when ribbed with narrow gold tinsel 7#jj size74 ,if the body be covered with thin india-rubber1 it will be found to give the fly a most effective appearance4 ,hackle4 ,three or four turns of a black cock's hackle1 put on as described in ,chapter ,,iii4 ,wings4 ,from quill feathers of woodcock's wings taken from opposite sides4 ,the woodcock's feathers have a somewhat shiny appearance2 and as they are also the nearest in colour to the general colour of the ,alder's wings1 ,i think they are the very best feathers to use4 ,i have described the position in which to put the wings in ,chapter ,,iii4 ,hook4 ,no4 #b--d1 new size4 7,plates ,i4 and ,,ii4 show the natural ,alder and the imitation as it should appear when finished47 ,,chapter ,v ,,caddis-,,flies 7,trichoptera74 ,every fisherman knows the ,caddis-worm1 which is the larval form of the ,caddis-fly4 ,as the number of different species of ,trichoptera is very large1 there are many different sorts of ,caddis-worms4 ,some of these make cases which they fix to rocks2 most of them however have cases which they drag about with them1 and retire into it when any danger approaches4 ,these cases vary much in shape and the materials of which they are made4 ,some species are however1 as a rule to be found in almost every water4 ,they are extremely interesting to watch1 though1 if they are accidentally introduced into a hatching trough containing trout ova1 they will destroy the eggs4 ,caddis worms are taken freely by trout1 and ,i have frequently found them1 contained in their cases1 in the stomachs of trout4 ,the ,caddis or ,sedge flies1 as ,i have pointed out1 are a very numerous family1 and most of them are taken very readily by the trout4 ,these flies1 when on the water1 generally have their wings in the position of rest4 ,notwithstanding this fact1 the wings of the imitation ,sedges are always put in an upright position1 while the position of the wings at rest in the natural flies is practically the same as in the case of the ,alder1 though the lower edges of the wings do not1 as a rule1 come quite so low in relation to their bodies4 ,,the ,,grannom 7,brachycentrus subnubilus1 ,curt474 ,this fly is extremely numerous on many of the streams in the ,south1 and is so well known to the fisherman that a description is almost needless4 ,it appears about the middle of ,april1 and lasts five or six weeks1 though ,ronalds says that he has found them in the stomachs of trout as late as ,august4 ,the bunch of eggs which the female carries at the tail is best represented by winding on some bluish-green floss silk or wool at the end of the body1 which should be carried well down on the bend of the hook1 as shown in the illustration of the imitation fly4 ,body4 ,light coloured fur from hare's face1 with green floss silk or wool at the tail4 ,if ribbed with narrow gold tinsel is sometimes more successful4 ,hackle4 ,light ginger1 or1 better still1 a hackle dark in the centre and light ginger at the ends4 ,wings4 ,the lightest-coloured feathers from a partridge's wings4 ,hook4 ,no4 #a--c1 new size4 7,plates ,i4 and ,,iii4 give illustrations of the natural and artificial ,grannom47 ,,the ,,sand ,,fly 7,limnephilus flavus1 ,steph474 ,mr4 ,halford points out in his ,dry-,fly ,entomology1 that ,ronalds was mistaken in calling this fly the ,sand-fly1 as the true sand-fly is one of the ,diptera4 ,i take it1 however1 that in either case this is but a popular name2 and as almost all former writers on the subject seem to have described the ,sand-fly as being a common ,caddis-fly1 ,i think that in adhering to the old name ,i shall avoid confusing the fisherman4 ,this fly is one of the most useful of all the ,caddis-flies1 as it is hatched out in ,april1 and lasts almost all the season4 ,there are several other ,caddis-flies which come out later in the year1 that resemble it very closely both in colour1 shape1 and size4 ,the wings are of a yellow ochre colour1 barred with brown1 the body is covered with short hairs of a light fawn colour1 and the fly is about the same size as1 or a little larger than1 the ,grannom4 ,the dressing given below1 if slightly modified1 will serve for several of the other ,caddis-flies which come out later in the season4 ,body4 ,light-coloured fur from hare's face1 ribbed with orange silk4 ,if ribbed with narrow gold tinsel is sometimes more successful4 ,hackle4 ,light ginger4 ,wings4 ,the part of quill feather of a hen pheasant's wing that is yellow1 barred with brown1 or a similarly barred part of the quill feather of a woodcock4 ,hook4 ,no4 #a--c1 new size4 7,illustrations of the natural and artificial fly are given in ,plates ,i4 and ,,iii47 ,,the ,,red ,,sedge 7,anabolia nervosa1 ,steph474 ,there is a ,caddis-fly which appears on the water about the beginning of ,june1 and which ,i have seen in great numbers as late as the middle of ,october1 that does not seem to have obtained a popular name among fishermen4 ,its wings are very much like those of the ,alder in shape and veining1 and the fly is nearly the same size1 though perhaps it is1 on an average1 very slightly smaller4 ,here1 however1 the resemblance ends4 ,its anterior wings are of a light reddish-brown colour1 and are more transparent than are those of the ,alder4 ,the body is also shorter in proportion to its wings1 and is closely covered with light yellow hairs1 which1 on the darker background of the body1 gives it a greyish-yellow appearance4 ,this fly is taken freely by both trout and grayling1 and ,i have seen dace feeding on it greedily4 ,body4 ,lightest yellow fur from the water-rat1 spun on black silk4 ,hackle4 ,light red4 ,wings4 ,the peculiar shape and colour of the wings are best represented by the tip of a feather covering the roots of the quill feathers in the wing of the landrail4 ,these feathers are of a reddish brown colour1 and are found near the upper edge on the outer surface of the wing4 ,the most superficial and reddish feathers are the best4 ,these feathers should be taken from opposite wings1 and prepared by stripping off some of the fibres so that they may appear as shown in the illustration of the artificial fly on ,plate ,,iii4 ,plate ,i4 gives an illustration of the natural fly4 ,hook4 ,no4 #i--d1 new size4 ,,the ,,welshman',s ,,button 7,sericostoma collare1 ,pict474 ,this fly is very numerous in some places1 and is taken readily by trout4 ,the body of the imitation is generally made of peacock herle1 but this makes it much too thick4 ,the fly generally appears early in ,june4 ,it is said that this fly is often mistaken for the ,alder1 but it should be easy to discriminate between them4 ,in the ,alder the anterior wings are smooth1 broad and strong1 in the ,welshman's ,button they are covered with hairs and narrow4 ,this fly is usually smaller than the ,alder4 ,body4 ,reddish brown wool1 ribbed with narrow gold tinsel4 ,hackle4 ,yellow centre with black ends4 ,wings4 ,from reddish quill feather of landrail4 ,hook4 #b--d1 new size4 ,,the ,,cinnamon ,,fly 7,mystacides longicornis1 ,linn474 ,there are a large number of small ,caddis-flies which are very much alike in appearance4 ,the anterior wings are long and narrow1 and are brown barred with dull yellow4 ,they hover in great numbers by bushes and trees overhanging the water1 and are taken readily enough by trout4 ,i have chosen the ,mystacides longicornis as being one of the commonest and most typical4 ,an illustration of the natural fly is given on ,plate ,i4 and of the artificial on ,plate ,,iii4 ,body4 ,light fur from hare's face4 ,hackle4 ,ginger4 ,wings4 ,narrow piece from well barred quill feather of hen pheasant4 ,hook4 ,no4 #j--b1 new size4 ,,the ,,caperer 7,halesus radiatus1 ,mc,lach474 ,this fly1 which is well known to fishermen and appears as a rule in ,august1 is one of the largest ,sedge-flies4 ,its wings are mottled brown and covered with hairs4 ,several other ,sedges somewhat resemble it4 7,illustrations of the natural and artificial flies are given on ,plates ,i4 and ,,iii4 respectively47 ,body4 ,brown fur from hare's face4 ,hackle4 ,a badger hackle1 the light parts of which are of a pale dull yellow colour4 ,wings4 ,from the dullest mottled quill feather of a hen pheasant4 ,hook4 ,no4 #c--e1 new size4 ,there are many other ,caddis-flies1 but the following dressings1 perhaps slightly modified to imitate certain flies more closely1 will be found to cover most of them4 #a4 ,body4 ,white wool1 ribbed with narrow silver tinsel4 ,hackle4 ,pale ginger4 ,wings4 ,brown quill feather of landrail4 ,hook4 ,no4 #j--c4 #b4 ,body4 ,hare's face1 ribbed with narrow gold tinsel4 ,hackle4 ,brown ginger4 ,wings and ,hook as ,no4 #a4 #c4 ,body4 ,pale yellow wool1 ribbed with narrow gold tinsel4 ,hackle4 ,coch-y-bondu4 ,wings4 ,speckled quill feathers of pheasant's wing4 ,hook as ,no4 #a4 ,,chapter ,,vi ,,perlidae ,imitation ,perlidae1 or ,stone-flies1 are more used in the ,north in wet-fly fishing than by the dry-fly fisherman of the ,south4 ,the best known species is the ,stone-fly proper1 but this fly does not seem to abound in the ,south1 though ,i have found isolated specimens at ,heathfield in ,sussex on two occasions4 ,this fly is therefore omitted1 and the ,willow-fly and the ,yellow-,sally only are described4 ,perlidae1 unlike ,diptera1 have four wings4 ,as1 however1 the anterior wings cover the posterior when at rest1 it is as a rule only necessary to make the imitation with one pair of wings4 ,this posterior pair of wings in the ,perlidae often materially changes the colour of the anterior pair when they are at rest4 ,thus in the ,willow-fly1 though the anterior pair of wings are of a brownish colour1 they appear of a dark slaty hue when the fly is seen crawling about4 ,an illustration of natural fly is given on ,plate ,i4 ,,willow-,,fly 7,leuctra geniculata1 ,steph474 ,this fly comes on late in the season4 ,in ,september and ,october it is taken freely by the trout and grayling4 ,it is similar in shape to the ,stone-fly of the ,north4 ,this fly has almost always been made buzz4 ,ronalds mentions in his ,fly ,fisher's ,entomology that it may be made with wings1 but does not say anything about their position4 ,i do not think that the hackle fly is a really good imitation of the natural insect1 and it is quite possible to put the wings of the imitation in the same position as those of the natural fly4 ,it will be seen that there are on ,plate ,,ii4 three illustrations of the imitation ,willow-fly4 ,one of these has its wings in the position of rest1 the manner of dressing which ,i have described in a previous chapter4 ,the other1 which has its wings partially spread1 ,i owe to a suggestion from ,mr4 ,g4 ,e4 ,m4 ,skues4 ,the posterior pair of wings are put on first1 and the anterior afterwards4 ,as the mode of procedure is practically the same as in the ,blue-bottle1 with the addition of another pair of wings1 ,i need not enter into further detail4 ,the ,willow-fly1 when it falls on the water1 has its wings sometimes in one and sometimes in the other of these positions4 ,body4 ,light brown fur from water-rat1 ribbed with narrow gold tinsel4 ,hackle4 ,ginger4 ,wings4 ,darkest starling's quill feathers4 ,the wings should be made narrow4 ,hook4 ,nos4 #jj--a1 new size4 7,illustrated1 ,plate ,,ii47 ,,the ,,yellow ,,sally 7,chloroperla grammatica1 ,poda74 ,this fly appears in ,may and ,june1 and though it is said to be occasionally taken by trout1 does not seem to be relished to any great extent by them4 ,the wings should be placed one over the other as in the illustrations of the imitation fly given on ,plate ,,ii4 ,body4 ,light brown water-rat's fur1 ribbed with yellow silk4 ,tail4 ,two brown fibres from pheasant's wing4 ,hackle4 ,partridge hackle1 dyed olive4 ,wings4 ,quill feather of white hen1 dyed olive4 ,hook4 ,nos4 #a--b1 new size4 ,,chapter ,,vii ,,diptera ,the order ,diptera1 or two-winged flies1 includes more species which at times serve as food for trout and grayling1 than any other order which includes species of so-called flies4 ,though naturally many other species than those whose imitations ,i describe here will be found on the water1 ,i have tried to include those which are most commonly found1 without burdening my reader with too many4 ,the several patterns of imitations of small ,diptera 7curses7 will1 ,i believe1 be found to represent most of the commoner species found on the water1 at least sufficiently accurately to deceive the trout sometimes1 though when the fish are feeding upon these tiny flies1 it is very probable that they will refuse all imitations1 for many species which serve them as food are too small to imitate4 ,,blue-,,bottle ,,and ,,green-,,bottle ,the ,blue-bottle and ,green-bottle1 though perhaps some of the commonest of flies1 are but little used by the fly-fisherman4 ,the success met with in using the natural fly is very small4 ,the reason for this want of success is the position in which the wings of the imitation are put by the fly-dresser4 ,in this case1 like that of the ,alder1 the fault does not lie with the fly-dresser1 as the writers on fly-dressing direct that the wings should be put on in the same position as those of every other fly--that is1 in an upright position4 ,any one1 as ,i have said before1 on the most casual observation must realise that the wings of a ,blue-bottle and the wings of a ,may-fly do not lie in quite the same position in relation to the body4 ,there are many ,diptera which come under the names of ,blue- and ,green-bottles1 but as they are very similar in appearance it is only necessary to vary the size1 as the trout are probably not sufficiently scientifically educated to discriminate between the different species4 ,the commonest species of ,diptera which are included under the popular names of ,blue- and ,green-bottles1 are the ,calliphora erythrocephala1 ,mg41 and ,lucilia caesar1 ,linn41 of which illustrations are given on the ,plate of ,natural ,flies4 ,august and ,september are the best months for these flies1 though they come out much earlier4 ,they seem1 however1 to fall upon the water much more frequently later in the season4 ,they are also very good flies for grayling in ,october4 ,as ,i have already said1 of the many different species which ,i have ventured to include under the name ,blue-bottle1 the commonest at the water side is ,calliphora erythrocephala4 ,this fly is also found in towns4 ,the ,green-bottle1 however1 which ,i have chosen to represent all the others as being the commonest at the water side is a country fly1 ,lucilia ,caesar4 ,some species of ,lucilia1 the bodies of which are generally green1 are found in towns4 ,blue-bottle-- ,body4 ,fine dark blue chenille or dark blue ,berlin wool1 ribbed with silver tinsel4 7,i have found the fly very successful when ribbed with light blue silk as well as the tinsel47 ,hackle4 ,black4 ,wings4 ,transparent wing feather of starling4 ,hook4 ,nos4 #b--d1 new size4 7,no4 #c best all round47 ,green-bottle-- ,body4 ,bright green peacock herle1 ribbed with silver tinsel4 ,hackle1 ,wings and ,hook4 ,same as ,blue-bottle4 7,illustrated ,plate ,,ii47 ,,house-,,fly ,there are many small ,diptera which frequent the water side1 which to the ordinary eye are apparently ,house-flies4 ,they resemble them so closely1 in fact1 that many could not be discriminated from them except by an entomologist4 ,i have1 therefore1 ventured to put them all under the heading of ,house-fly4 ,the only difference which will ever have to be made in the dressing given below is in the body1 and very rarely in the hackle2 but these modifications must be left to the fisherman1 who must judge for himself according to the flies he finds by the water4 ,i do not remember ever having met a fisherman who had used an artificial ,house-fly for trout4 ,trout however do feed on them2 and in this case ,i can bring other evidence than my own4 ,ronalds describes an experiment he made in order to test the trout's power of taste2 and in this experiment he used ,house-flies1 to which he applied various condiments1 including red pepper4 ,though his object was not to prove that trout fed readily on ,house-flies1 ,i think he proved that they did so4 ,probably the commonest of these small ,diptera which is to be found by the water is ,musca corvina1 ,fab41 which is the country cousin of our well-known ,house-fly1 though1 indeed1 many of the flies which frequent our houses are not the true ,house-fly 7,musca domestica74 ,the male ,musca corvina1 whose portrait is given on ,plate ,i41 has a body which appears to consist of alternate stripes of yellow and brown4 ,the female1 however1 has a uniformly dark body4 ,of the other flies1 very similar in appearance to ,house-flies1 the bodies vary in colour2 but if made of a yellowish or dull brown1 sometimes ribbed1 it will generally prove like enough to nature1 to deceive the trout4 ,body4 ,yellow ochre-coloured ,berlin wool1 spun on black silk4 ,ribbed with silver tinsel and dark brown according to circumstances4 7,the exact shade is easy to see on the under surface of the natural fly4 ,the under surface of the fly is the surface seen by the trout47 ,hackle4 ,coch-y-bondhu4 ,wings4 ,transparent quill feather of starling4 ,hook4 ,nos4 #jj--a1 new size4 7,illustrations of imitation1 ,plate ,,ii47 ,,cow-,,dung ,,fly 7,scatophaga stercoraria1 ,linn474 ,this fly appears as a rule in ,february1 but ,i have seen it on warm days in ,january1 in fairly large numbers4 ,it lasts all the year till the frosts set in4 ,those cow-dungs which appear early in the year are not so large as those which appear later4 ,the body is covered with short hairs which gives it a velvety appearance4 ,the thorax is large and also has a number of hairs upon it4 ,in order to imitate this large thorax1 it is necessary to have more room on the hook above the hackle and wings than in other flies to leave room for a turn of the chenille1 of which the body is made1 just below the head of the fly4 ,this will be seen in the illustrations of the artificial fly on ,plate ,,ii4 ,the body of the male is a bright yellow colour1 that of the female is greenish4 ,the male is rather larger than the female4 ,these flies1 which on windy days particularly1 frequently fall on the water1 are often taken very freely by the trout4 ,though when at rest the wings are flat upon each other1 as shown in the illustration of the natural fly in ,plate ,i41 they often1 when the fly falls on the water1 are spread out slightly2 so in the imitation it is best to put them in the position shown in the illustration of the artificial fly4 ,body4 ,yellow or greenish yellow chenille ribbed with gold tinsel4 ,hackle4 ,ginger4 ,wings4 ,light landrail1 or brownish starling4 ,hook4 #j--b1 new size4 ,,black ,,gnat 7,bibio johannis1 ,linn474 ,the black ,gnat is found on almost all waters4 ,it is extremely numerous in some places1 and is taken very readily by the trout4 ,these flies are not really ,gnats2 but as they are commonly called ,gnats by the fishermen1 ,i have kept to the old name4 ,bibio johannis comes out in ,june4 ,the body is black in both the male and female1 the wings in the male are almost colourless1 while the wings of the female are dark4 ,the head of the male is also larger than the head of the female4 ,both the male and female have a dark oval-shaped patch about the middle of the anterior margin of the front wing4 ,both these flies are taken greedily by the trout when they fall upon the water4 ,i have found the following dressing the best3-- ,body4 ,peacock quill dyed black1 or black silk4 ,hackle4 ,cock starling's hackle1 stripped on one side4 ,wings4 7,male7 ,from most transparent part of quill feather of starling4 7,female7 ,from brown tipped starling's tail feather4 ,hook4 ,no4 #jjj--j1 new size4 ,an illustration of the imitation fly is given on ,plate ,,ii4 ,,hawthorn ,,fly 7,bibio marci1 ,linn474 ,bibio marci is commonly called the ,hawthorn-fly1 and was described under this name by ,ronalds4 ,it is1 speaking broadly1 first cousin to the ,black ,gnat1 though it is very much larger4 ,it appears at the end of ,april or the beginning of ,may4 ,the body is black1 and the wings show the oval patch in the ,b4 johannis2 but as the fly is larger1 in the ,b4 marci it is more noticeable4 ,as only the male seems to rove about to any extent1 it is just as well to imitate the male only4 ,body4 ,black ,berlin wool1 ribbed with silver tinsel4 ,hackle4 ,black4 ,wings4 7,male7 ,transparent part of quill feather of starling4 ,hook4 ,no4 #a--c1 new size4 ,an illustration of the natural fly is given on ,plate ,i41 and one of the imitations on ,plate ,,ii4 ,curses ,there are several other small ,diptera which at times appear on the water in swarms4 ,these are known to the fishermen as ,curses or ,smuts4 ,they are often so small that there is no hook made small enough upon which to tie imitations of them4 ,however1 as every fisherman knows1 when the trout or grayling are feeding on these flies1 it is generally impossible to get them to take the imitation of any other fly1 it is worth while trying to imitate them on the smallest hook made4 ,this is an #jjj1 with a short shank4 ,as it is extremely difficult to put wings on these flies1 hackle patterns may be tried1 but the winged patterns are the best4 ,once1 when out fishing1 ,i had a very aggravating experience with some tiny ,curses4 ,i had been fishing all the morning and had caught nothing4 ,at about two o'clock ,i saw several good fish rising1 but they would not look at my fly4 ,i observed a fair number of light ,olive ,duns on the water1 but both the imitation of this fly and several fancy patterns ,i tried proved equally useless4 ,at last ,i seated myself on a fence close to a clump of willows1 lighted a pipe1 and began watching a fish which was rising a few yards higher up1 not far from the bank on my side of the river4 ,the water was perfectly clear1 and when the fish rose ,i could see him distinctly4 ,he was a grayling of between half and three-quarters of a pound1 and rose four or five times in the minute4 ,there were a lot of ,smuts on the water1 which from where ,i was1 looked very dark if not black4 ,these the fish rose at regularly1 but he let several ,olive ,duns pass by unnoticed4 ,the only ,curses ,i had in my fly-box were black2 and as those he was feeding upon appeared to be black1 ,i put one on my cast and floated it over him several times4 ,but though he once took a natural ,smut floating within an inch of my fly1 my fly he would not take4 ,i then went further down the bank and caught some of the ,smuts that were on the water4 ,they were of a mottled dun colour1 and the black effect was only produced by their shadow or reflection 7which ,i could not determine7 when they were on the water4 ,of the flies in my box that which came nearest in general effect to these ,curses was a green insect 7dun hackle and peacock herle body7 tied on an #jjj hook4 ,this ,i put on my cast and floated over him4 ,he rose to it1 and as he rose ,i could see him distinctly4 ,when within a few inches of my fly1 however1 he stopped short1 turned aside1 and took a natural ,smut that was floating past4 ,i tried him then with an olive quill1 a ,wickham1 and a red tag2 but he would have none of them4 ,i had to give him up in despair1 though ,i believe if ,i had had a dun-coloured ,smut he would have taken it4 ,the dressings of ,curses given here will1 ,i think1 be sufficient to include the commoner ,curses so numerous on most waters1 especially during the hottest part of summer and autumn4 ,the number of different small ,diptera which are found on the water is so great that any attempt to classify them in a work which is meant only for fishermen would be out of place4 ,i have therefore limited myself to giving these imitations-- ,curse ,no4 #a 7,black73-- ,body4 ,black silk or black quill1 with a turn of the narrowest silver tinsel at the tail4 ,hackle4 ,black4 ,wings4 ,most transparent part of starling's quill feather4 ,hook4 #jjj short shank4 7,illustrated1 ,plate ,,ii47 ,curse ,no4 #b 7,dun73-- ,body4 ,thinnest part of natural brown ostrich4 ,hackle4 ,dun 7hen's7 ,wings and hook as ,no4 #a4 7,illustrated1 ,plate ,,ii47 ,curse ,no4 #c 7,badger73-- ,body1 wings and hook as ,no4 #b4 ,hackle4 ,cock's badger hackle4 7,illustrated1 ,plate ,,ii47 ,curse ,no4 #d 7,red73-- ,body4 ,peacock quill dyed to a crimson lake colour4 ,hackle4 ,black4 ,wings and hook as ,no4 #a4 ,nos4 #b and #c should be made also without the fluff being stripped off the quill1 which in this case should be used just as peacock herle is used4 ,,the ,,oak-,,fly 7,leptis scolopacea1 ,linn47 ,this fly1 notwithstanding its popular name1 is found on many other trees1 and ,i have seen it in places where there were no oak-trees near4 ,it kills very well1 and is in season from ,april to ,july4 ,the body is long and tapered1 and the segments of the abdomen are1 in the male1 of a brilliant orange colour1 with black markings upon them1 as shown in the illustration of the natural fly on ,plate ,i4 ,the wings are brown4 ,body4 ,reddish orange ,berlin wool1 ribbed with black silk1 and narrow gold tinsel4 ,hackle4 ,coch-y-bondhu4 ,wings4 ,from sixth or seventh quill feathers of landrail wings4 ,hook4 ,new size1 ,no4 #b--c4 7,imitation illustrated on ,plate ,,ii41 ,figs4 #c and #d47 ,,chapter ,,viii ,,winged ,,ants ,the ,winged ,ants1 which are the newly hatched insects1 appear about the middle of ,july4 ,the time at which they appear1 however1 varies very much4 ,they appear in swarms1 and when one of these swarms gets near or on the water1 the fish feed greedily upon them4 ,they have four wings1 the anterior pair being somewhat longer than the body4 ,these wings1 when at rest1 do not fold neatly over each other1 and as the insect is clumsy in its flight1 even a slight breeze is sufficient to drive many of them out to the water4 ,the ,ant ,i have seen most frequently on the water is a large ,red ,ant1 but smaller ,red ,ants and winged ,black ,ants are also frequently seen4 ,the position of the wings in relation to the body easiest to imitate is shown in the illustration of the imitation of the ,willow-fly1 which has four wings4 ,the ,red ,ant is frequently used early in ,june1 though the natural insect is not seen so early4 ,the imitation1 however1 frequently meets with success1 though it is improbable that the trout takes the imitation for the natural insect1 especially as the wings are always put on in a vertical position4 ,the bodies of all the ,ants should be made fat towards the bend of the hook1 and carried well on to the bend4 ,as the body of the ,ant is very shiny1 parts of it1 when the light falls upon it1 have a very brilliant appearance2 therefore ,i have recommended the use of tinsel4 ,red ,ant-- ,body4 ,red-brown 7burnt sienna7 silk1 thin on the shank and fat towards and on the bend of the hook1 ribbed with gold tinsel4 ,hackle4 ,red4 ,wings4 ,transparent part of a starling's quill feather4 ,hook4 #j--b4 ,black ,ant-- ,body4 ,black silk1 ribbed with silver tinsel4 ,hackle4 ,black4 ,wings4 ,as ,red ,ant4 ,hook4 #j--a4 ,,chapter ,,ix ,,caterpillars ,of the caterpillars1 spiders1 and other creatures which are supposed to fall from the trees into the water1 and into the trout's mouth1 and of the consequent advantage of trees projecting over a stream2 of the sapient advice1 both verbal and written1 to cultivate vegetation overhanging the river1 because it increases the supply of natural food2 of the statement that fish under trees are invariably in the best condition1 anglers have heard from time immemorial4 ,my advice is1 cultivate your trees1 because they are of advantage as giving shelter to the fish4 ,not a single example of these tree windfalls has been found in the hundreds of autopsies which ,i have made1 and all the caterpillars and spiders that fall from the trees in a mile of water would not suffice to feed a single pound trout for a single day4 ,they may therefore be discarded from consideration4--,,halford',s ,dry-fly ,entomology1 page #ach4 ,i read this passage with extreme surprise1 as it absolutely contradicts my personal experience4 ,after thinking the matter over carefully1 and trying to make out how it was that ,mr4 ,halford1 in the hundreds of autopsies he has made1 has never come across a caterpillar1 ,i realised how dangerous it is to make a dogmatic and sweeping statement with the evidence of personal experience only to fall back upon4 ,as recently as ,june1 #ahig1 when fishing with ,dr4 ,charles ,r4 ,watson and ,mr4 ,a4 ,d4 ,home1 ,i made with them a series of six autopsies of trout caught consecutively in one morning4 ,the smallest number of caterpillars found in one of these six autopsies was five1 and the greatest1 twelve4 ,these trout were all caught under oak trees overhanging the water1 which were at that time swarming with small caterpillars1 most of these caterpillars being of a brilliant emerald green colour4 ,in the afternoon of the day on which ,i am writing this1 ,colonel ,walker showed me a peculiar sort of knife which he carries when out fishing1 for the purpose of making autopsies on trout4 ,i naturally took advantage of this occasion to increase my evidence1 and asked him if he had ever found caterpillars in the trout he caught4 ,he told me that in certain places1 in the early part of the summer1 he almost always found caterpillars in the stomachs of the trout he caught under trees overhanging the water4 ,this experience of his exactly coincides with my own1 though the six consecutive autopsies described above without my other similar experiences is a fairly strong piece of evidence4 ,i am therefore inclined to believe that there is some good to be gained in following the sapient advice1 verbal and written1 to cultivate vegetation overhanging the river1 beyond its advantage as giving shelter to the fish4 ,i will narrate the circumstances which first led me to use the caterpillar as a dry fly1 as they may1 ,i think1 interest my reader4 ,i was lying on the bank by a large pool on a stream1 and saw a little green caterpillar hanging from the branch of an oak tree1 apparently trying in vain to pull himself up the thread by which he had so foolishly lowered himself1 till he was uncomfortably near the surface of the water4 ,i watched him1 lazily thinking in a dreamy manner how very unkind it was of the trout to keep on rising1 and yet not look at my fly4 ,they were evidently feeding on something1 but what it was ,i could not make out4 ,the little green caterpillar was getting gradually nearer to the water1 and ,i was beginning to think that the poor little chap would meet with a watery grave1 when just as he touched the water a trout came up and grabbed him4 ,little green caterpillars were evidently what the trout were feeding upon1 and that was the reason that ,i could not catch one with a fly4 ,i watched the branches of the oak tree overhanging the water for some time1 and saw several caterpillars fall in and meet with the same fate4 ,the next thing ,i did was to catch a caterpillar1 scrape the fly dressing off my hook1 and put him on it instead4 ,i caught several trout in this way1 but found that it was almost impossible to cast any distance without shaking off the caterpillar4 ,after much trouble caused by this difficulty1 which was very trying to the temper1 as the caterpillars always seemed to come off the hook at the most critical moment1 and having got a fairly good basket1 ,i found it was time to return4 ,that night ,i managed to make some fairly good imitations of the little green caterpillar to use on the morrow1 instead of the natural ones4 ,these imitations met with success1 and since that time ,i have been able to improve on the dressings then used4 ,i have found many different kinds of caterpillars in the stomachs of trout1 but small green ones of various sorts were decidedly the most numerous4 ,the species ,i have most frequently found is1 ,i believe1 the larval form of the ,tortrix viridana4 ,i have never found a large caterpillar in a trout1 though ,i have caught trout with imitations of them used as dry flies4 ,i give the exact dressing of the green caterpillar2 but the other dressings must be left to the discretion of the fisherman for alterations1 as there are so many sorts of small caterpillars1 some of them being extremely rare in one place and common in another4 ,should the fisherman wish to see the sort of caterpillar commonest where he is fishing1 he must seek them himself4 ,those only are useful which are on the trees overhanging the water4 ,if there are oak trees the caterpillars will probably be green1 and many kinds of caterpillars will be found which have rolled themselves up in the leaves of the tree upon which they live4 ,i have no doubt that this imitation caterpillar will be looked upon as a poaching implement1 but it is or should be used as a dry fly1 and to use it successfully requires as much skill and power of observation as does the use of any imitation of a fly used in a similar manner4 ,how to make an ,artificial ,caterpillar4--,a small piece of cork #a_/cb of an inch thick1 or less1 and nearly twice the length of the hook1 must be cut into the shape shown in ,fig4 #ag4 ,next take a piece of quill rather longer than1 and about the thickness of a large pin1 from a tail or wing feather of a starling4 ,this quill makes the foundation of the body4 ,split the thick end of the quill far enough to embrace two-thirds of the shank of the hook1 and then tie it on the hook as shown in ,fig4 #ah4 ,now fold the piece of cork1 with the broad end towards the eye of the hook1 over the shank of the hook and the quill1 tying it in as shown in ,fig4 #ai4 ,illustration3 ,,fig4 #ah4 ,,fig4 #ag4 ,,fig4 #ai4 ,this foundation serves for any caterpillar4 ,tie it at the tail whatever is to be used for ribbing the body1 and the body material if it is not to be spun on the tying silk4 ,then wind on the body material1 tie it in1 wind on the ribbing1 finish off at the head1 and cut off the projecting piece of quill4 ,the caterpillar when finished should appear as shown in the illustrations on ,plate ,,iii4 ,green ,caterpillar4--#a4 ,emerald green wool spun on tying-silk1 ribbed with light yellow silk4 #b4 ,emerald green wool spun on tying-silk1 ribbed with scarlet silk4 #c4 ,yellowish green wool spun on tying-silk1 ribbed with narrow gold tinsel4 #d4 ,olive green wool spun on tying-silk1 ribbed with narrow gold tinsel4 7,i have found ,nos4 #a and #b very successful when ribbed also with narrow gold tinsel1 and ,nos4 #c and #d when ribbed with light yellow silk47 ,other ,caterpillars made with a reddish-brown body1 and ribbed with yellow or red1 are also sometimes very successful1 as are those also ribbed with red or ,coch-y-bondhu hackles4 ,illustration3 ,,plate ,,iii ,,artificial ,,flies ,drawn from flies tied by ,mrs4 ,j4 ,r4 ,,richardson1 of ,kingston-on-,thames 7dressed from the ,author's models74 #a4 ,,sand-,,fly4 #b4 ,,grannom4 #c4 ,,cinnamon-,,fly4 #d4 ,,welshman',s ,,button4 #e4 ,,caperer4 #f4 ,,red ,,sedge4 #g1 #h4 ,,green ,,caterpillar4 #i1 #aj4 ,,corixa4 #aa1 #ab4 ,,fresh-,,water ,,shrimp4 ,swan ,electric ,engraving ,co4 ,,part ,,ii ,,wet ,,flies ,,chapter ,i ,a ,,theory#a #a ,rewritten from an article in ,the ,field under the heading of ,an ,unorthodox ,view of ,wet ,fly ,fishing4 ,that a trout or any other fish could possibly mistake a wet fly used in the regular wet fly way for the natural fly of which it is supposed to be an imitation1 was always to my mind a very doubtful question2 but now it is so no longer4 ,i am sure the fish takes it for something else4 ,if we consider what would happen to a natural fly which had by some mishap become submerged1 we can come to no other conclusion than that it would be carried along by the current1 without any power of its own of altering the direction in which it was being moved by the water4 ,does this ever happen to the sunk fly8 ,i think not4 ,in fishing across and down stream it certainly does not2 and even in up stream fishing1 in order to keep his line straight1 the fisherman must keep a certain amount of tension on it1 and very probably draws it through the water with much the same sort of movement he would give it if not fishing up stream4 ,this movement through the water which is given to the artificial must be absolutely unlike any movement of the natural fly when under the surface2 for in the natural fly1 if it were not already drowned1 the only possible movement would be that of its legs and wings1 which1 not being intended as a means of progression through the water1 and being absolutely unsuitable for that object1 would be most unlikely to enable it to do so4 ,but here a very natural question arises as to what1 if not the natural fly1 the fish takes the imitation to be8 ,in a communication to the ,field in ,june1 #ahig1 ,i described1 under the heading of ,a ,new ,trout ,fly1 the imitations of two ,corixae4 ,this seems to be a key to the whole question4 ,the number of insects living in fresh waters1 and possessing the power of moving through it1 is enormous4 ,there are between #bbj and #bcj different species of ,water ,beetles in our waters4 ,there are also very many different sorts of ,heteroptera1 including the numerous family ,notonectidae4 ,when we add to these the larvae of flies and water beetles1 the ,crustaceans1 ,hydrae and ,water ,spiders1 we must begin to realise that there are other things than a drowned natural fly for which the fish might mistake its imitation1 with the materials of which it is made soaked in and drawn through the water4 ,the movement of many of these creatures through the water is fairly represented by the movement of the artificial fly in wet fly-fishing2 and1 when the shade and colour and size of the fly is the same as one of these aquatic creatures1 ,i am sure that the fish takes it1 not for a fly1 but for one of them4 ,again1 when the enormous number of these aquatic creatures is considered1 it is most probable that one or other of the flies tried on any water by the fisherman will come very near in shade1 colour1 and movement through the water1 at any rate1 to one of them4 ,if this conclusion at which ,i have arrived is correct1 as ,i believe it to be1 would it not be wiser to try to imitate1 not the natural fly1 but some of these numerous aquatic creatures8 ,they are numerous enough1 and a large number of them are easy to imitate2 but as yet but little has been done1 except with regard to the spiders1 in this direction4 ,i am also sure that the success of the so-called spider patterns used in wet fly-fishing has been due to quite a different cause to that which those who first used them and those who use them now believe1 as these imitations are made from the insect as it appears when out of the water4 ,the spider goes from its nest to the surface of the water and back again by a thread stretched between1 and so would hardly move through the water1 as its imitation is made to do by the fisherman4 ,those of the so-called spider-flies which are supposed to represent some of the ,ephemeridae1 are1 for the reasons ,i have given before in speaking of flies in general1 most unlikely to be mistaken for the natural insect by the trout4 ,a trout will undoubtedly sometimes take anything moving through the water which simulates life1 if it be of a suitable size4 ,this is shown by the manner in which they take the fancy flies2 although here again1 as one particular pattern of a fancy fly kills better than any other on one particular water1 ,i think that very often this fancy fly is taken by the fish for some creature which is particularly numerous there4 ,at any rate1 if the fish only takes the artificial fly because it is apparently something alive and moving1 ,i am sure that he would seize it with much more avidity if it represented one of his aquatic neighbours on which he has been feeding1 and if its appearance reminded him of many previous pleasant meals4 7,jan4 #ae1 #ahih47b #b ,since this article appeared in ,the ,field1 some correspondence on the subject has taken place in ,the ,fishing ,gazette and ,st4 ,james's ,gazette4 ,many of the arguments brought forward by some of the correspondents have led me to believe that ,i cannot have made myself sufficiently clear in the above article1 so ,i have added some further explanations4 ,my readers must not suppose that ,i intend to apply these remarks to any particular circumstances2 ,i am only speaking of wet-flies in general4 ,while it is probable that the natural fly does often sink under the surface1 and may then be taken by the trout1 the wet-fly of the fisherman does not as a rule behave as does the natural fly when under water4 ,that the trout takes the wet-fly fished up stream1 which is allowed to come down with the current without any drag and close to the surface1 for the natural fly it represents1 is also very probable2 but these facts do not in any way tend to disprove my theory4 ,this manner of wet-fly fishing is very much like dry-fly fishing1 and is certainly not the way in which wet-fly fishing is practised in lakes1 and is hardly the most general way in which it is practised on many rivers4 ,in dealing with this subject fully and to carry my theory to its necessary conclusion1 it is of course necessary to find a probable explanation of what every form of wet-fly1 fancy or supposed imitation of a natural fly1 is taken for by the fish4 ,this naturally leads us to believe that such a theory1 if it approaches the truth1 should include an explanation of why the salmon takes the fly4 ,we know but little of the world as it appears to the eye of the fish1 but from the little that is known something may be deduced which carries this theory a little further4 ,in the sea many and very various effects may be produced upon objects moving through the water when passing between the eye and the surface1 by light1 by the reflecting powers of the bottom of the water1 and by the relative clearness of the water1 all of which factors of the effect produced vary to an almost incalculable extent4 ,given a bright sun1 a light sandy bottom and clear water1 a small crustacean swimming between the eye of the observer and the surface often will not appear to be like the creature when it is seen out of the water4 ,the outline will be indistinct1 and the whole will frequently appear to be brilliantly coloured4 ,not only is the body thus brilliantly coloured1 but equally gaudy rays will be seen round it1 probably produced by the moving legs and by refraction4 ,in this case the circumstances are all in favour of the production of an effect of brilliant colouration2 but going to the other extreme1 with a dull light1 a dark bottom and cloudy water1 we have the dullest-coloured fly accounted for1 as the first conditions accounted for that which was most gaudy4 ,this also explains the fact that the flies which go in various gradations of colour between these extremes are most suitable for various conditions of the weather1 water1 and locality4 ,in the case of the ,salmon-fly1 probably the salmon remembers1 when he has reached fresh water1 many an appetising morsel in the shape of a crustacean or small fish1 and takes the fly for one of these4 ,in the case of the trout we know that crustaceans are very acceptable to them1 and though probably fresh water will not produce the brilliant effect which is produced by salt water as ,i have described above1 still1 as fancy ,trout-flies do not run to such gaudy colours as do ,salmon-flies1 still the effect should be sufficient to account for a fair amount of brilliant colour under similar conditions4 ,no doubt some of the fancy ,trout-flies are also taken for small fish4 ,in many waters1 however1 the effect could hardly be made brilliant1 as shallow water1 shade produced by weeds1 c41 and muddy or dark bottoms would all militate against its being so1 and in these waters probably only lures that imitate the actual colours of the object they represent would be of any use4 ,in fresh water and in the case of trout1 as ,i have pointed out1 there are many aquatic creatures which serve as food which have the power of swimming through the water4 ,my theory1 stated briefly and more explicitly1 ,i hope1 than was the case in my article in ,the ,field1 is that under circumstances in which the wet-fly behaves more as does some creature having the power of swimming through the water1 it is better to imitate this creature than any natural fly on the water1 which cannot in any case behave in such a manner2 and what ,i wish to advocate is1 that imitations of these aquatic creatures should be made and used4 ,,chapter ,,ii ,,corixae#c #c ,rewritten from an article in ,the ,field under the heading of ,a ,new ,trout ,fly4 ,while fishing in a water where the trout are very numerous in the spring of #ahig1 ,i found that ,i could hardly catch a single trout in the day with the fly4 ,the weather was cold and windy1 and showed no signs of mending4 ,at last1 one day1 ,i opened a trout1 one of the few that ,i had caught during my visit1 and found the stomach full of some insects belonging to the family of ,corixae4 ,these insects are very commonly called ,water ,beetles1 or ,water ,boatmen4 ,they1 however1 are not beetles but bugs 7,heteroptera71 and are not the same as the true water-boatmen1 the ,notonecta glauca1 though they somewhat resemble it in appearance4 ,on finding these insects in the trout ,i took some of them home1 and made imitations of them4 ,with these the next day ,i caught a number of trout1 though the weather was just as unfavourable4 ,since then ,i have improved somewhat upon the imitations ,i then used1 and in waters which are inhabited by ,corixae4 ,these imitations have met1 both in my hands and in the hands of others1 with greater success than any other form of wet fly4 ,it is an extraordinary thing1 considering the number of men who have written on trout fishing1 that it has apparently never occurred to one of them to describe an imitation of one of this large family of insects4 ,mr4 ,halford1 in his ,dry-fly ,entomology1 indeed states that he has frequently found them in the stomachs of trout1 but he does not even suggest that an imitation of them might be made4 ,there are many species of ,corixae which inhabit our waters1 but the commoner sorts are so similar in appearance that many of the species are very difficult to distinguish even by an expert1 and but little work has been done with regard to them4 ,therefore ,i have come to the conclusion that a similar dressing on different sized hooks will be quite sufficient to deceive the unscientific eye of the trout4 ,this conclusion is corroborated by the fact that ,i have several times had an imitation ,corixa seized by a trout when it was sinking1 and before ,i began to draw it through the water1 which is1 ,i take it1 a fairly severe test as to the accuracy of the imitation4 ,colonel ,walker and ,mr4 ,herbert ,ash have also had the same thing happen to them when fishing with my imitation ,corixae4 ,corixae vary much in size1 the largest and one of the commonest species being the ,corixa geoffroyi1 which is about half an inch long4 ,in all ,corixae1 the head is wide and is attached but slightly to the body4 ,it is convex in front and concave behind1 so as to fit the end of the thorax1 and is as wide as the wings when folded and at rest4 ,these insects possess four wings1 which they frequently use1 though they are somewhat clumsy in starting from the surface of the water4 ,i have sometimes1 however1 seen them fly considerable distances4 ,the anterior wings resemble the wing-cases of a beetle2 they are hard and shiny1 brown in colour1 with dark mottled markings upon them4 ,the posterior pair are transparent4 ,the abdomen is light yellow and fringed with hairs1 and there are transverse lines on the dorsal surface of the thorax4 ,as1 however1 these markings on the thorax and wings are hardly visible to the naked eye1 they give the ,corixa a generally brownish and shiny appearance4 ,of the legs1 six in number1 the hind pair are most used in swimming4 ,they are somewhat flattened at their extremities to a paddle shape1 and are fringed with hairs4 ,i have seen the hind legs of the ,corixae when the insects have been suspended motionless in mid-water1 standing out at right angles on each side of the body2 and as in the imitation ,i am about to describe1 the legs take this position when the fly is at rest or sinking in the water2 this explains the fact of the trout taking them in the way ,i have mentioned above4 ,the ,corixa sahlbergi1 which is almost as common as the ,corixa geoffroyi1 is about half its size1 but is otherwise very similar in appearance1 as are nearly all the other smaller species4 ,the ,corixa frequently comes to the surface to breathe1 and a number of small air bubbles attach themselves to its body4 ,these1 when the insect is swimming under water1 give its body a brilliant silvery appearance1 with the yellow showing through in places4 ,this effect is accurately reproduced by ribbing the body with silver tinsel4 ,the size of the hooks used must depend upon the size of the species of ,corixae inhabiting the water to be fished1 and varies from ,no4 #a to #c1 new size4 ,the ,corixae in any particular water may easily be found in order to observe the size4 ,they congregate in great numbers among the weeds1 c41 on the bottom of the water4 ,they are very numerous in most millponds1 pools1 back-waters1 sluggish waters and ponds4 ,the body is made with light yellow ,berlin wool1 teazed up with fur from the hare's face1 and ribbed with silver tinsel4 ,a good space of shank should be left above the body4 ,the only legs which make any show in the water are the hind legs1 and they are the only ones it is absolutely necessary to imitate2 should1 however1 the fisherman wish to imitate the others1 one turn of a ginger hackle may be used4 ,when ,i described the ,corixa in the ,field ,i directed that the hind legs should be made with a strand of peacock herle4 ,i have however found a better imitation of these legs since then1 in the end of a quill feather from a starling's wing4 ,this keeps up its spring even when soaked for a long period in the water1 while the peacock herle legs after a time adhered to the body of the fly1 and did not stand out on each side when the fly was at rest4 ,the tip of the feather should be completely cleared of fibres on one side1 and nearly so on the other1 leaving however a few short stumps at the end1 as shown in illustrations of imitation in ,plate ,,iii41 to represent the paddle-shape of the legs4 ,these legs are then tied in at right angles to the body4 ,i have found the best way of accomplishing this is to tie the legs in straight to the side1 with the buts pointing towards the tail of the fly4 ,then bend them down1 and put enough turns of the tying silk round the shank of the hook to keep them in the position shown in the illustration of the imitation4 ,the wings are made from the quill feathers of the woodcock1 laid flat on the body one over the other1 as described in the directions for tying ,perlidae1 which have their wings lying one over the other4 ,the head must be made large1 and the whole fly when finished appear as shown in the illustration4 ,when used1 this fly should be allowed to sink4 ,the depth to which it must sink varying according to circumstances1 and then drawn through the water in little jerks4 ,each of these movements through the water causes the legs1 which stand out on each side of the body1 to bend back2 but at the end of the jerk1 when the fly is momentarily stationary1 these legs resume their original position4 ,thus the movement of the legs of the natural insect when swimming is accurately imitated4 7,june #ab1 #ahig47 99 99 99 99 99 ,this imitation ,corixa has met with a very general condemnation as not being a lure which should be allowed on waters where the use of the fly only is permitted4 ,as this child of my fancy has cost me many hours of careful thought and labour1 ,i am inclined1 with all due deference to these opinions1 expressed by men of much greater experience than mine1 to say a few words in its defence4 ,corixae are insects which live in the water and are eaten by trout4 ,they possess wings which they use frequently1 sometimes flying a considerable distance1 and ,i have seen trout take them just as they were trying to leave the surface of the water4 ,the efficacy of the imitation1 therefore1 depends upon the skill of the fisherman1 who must make it simulate in its movements the movements of the natural insect4 ,mr4 ,g4 ,a4 ,b4 ,dewar1 in his ,book of the ,dry ,fly1 in speaking of tailing trout1 which are probably feeding on food of the shrimp and snail order1 advises that they should be fished for with a long line down stream1 and the fly worked with a series of little jerks1 somewhat as in salmon-fishing4 ,the fly should be cast just above where the head of the trout is adjudged to be1 and worked into the angler's bank1 and it must never be kept still1 otherwise the fish will at once perceive the deception and at once decline it4 ,mr4 ,dewar then mentions a dry-fly angler of great skill who is very successful in fishing in this manner with a big ,alder4 ,it is more than probable that in these cases the ,alder is taken for a ,corixa1 or something very like it1 as the colour1 size1 and movements are somewhat similar4 ,the ,marquis of ,granby1 in the preface to ,mr4 ,dewar's book1 also speaks highly of a sunk alder for tailing trout4 ,to kill 'tailers' in broad daylight and in low water is quite an art in itself1 is another quotation from ,the ,book of the ,dry ,fly upon this mode of fishing1 and though the author points out that this is not true dry-fly fishing1 still if the fisherman's conscience allows him to use a sunk ,alder down stream and worked in this manner1 ,i think it should also allow him to use an imitation ,corixa under similar circumstances4 ,i should not have dragged the writings of others into such a question as this1 had not the criticisms upon my flies been an indirect attack upon myself1 as what has been said about them practically means that they ought not to be used by any one who calls himself a sportsman4 ,if this is true of the flies1 what could not be said of their inventor8 ,for this reason ,i take the best means ,i can find to defend myself1 and what better defence could there be than the published practices of two men whose sportsmanlike qualities have never been doubted8 ,what is legitimate trout-fly has1 ,i believe1 never been clearly defined2 but ,i hope ,i shall not be presuming too much in saying1 that if the lure in question is the imitation of an insect which can and does fly1 made of the ordinary materials used in fly-making upon one hook1 this lure has a perfect right to be called a legitimate trout-fly4 ,it will be found that my ,corixa fulfils these conditions4 ,there is one thing that ,i wish particularly to impress upon my reader1 and this is that1 in using the imitations of ,corixae and ,fresh-water ,shrimps1 he should find out whether these creatures inhabit the water he is fishing4 ,if he does not do this and fishes with the imitations of either of them where they do not exist1 he will probably meet with failure and disappointment4 ,,chapter ,,iii ,,fresh-,,water ,,shrimp 7,gammarus pulex7#d #d ,rewritten from an article in ,the ,field1 ,april #af1 #ahih1 under the heading of ,the ,fresh-water ,shrimp as a ,wet ,fly4 ,of all the forms of food partaken of by the trout the ,crustacea are the best4 ,when ,i say the best1 ,i mean that trout fed upon ,crustacea seem to thrive better than trout fed on anything else4 ,in this case1 at any rate1 the most wholesome form of food seems also to be the most welcome2 for though ,i have tried feeding trout with almost every form of food1 ,i have never come across another form which they have taken with anything approaching the voracity with which they take ,crustacea4 ,fortunately1 ,i can bring forward a case to show how trout thrive when fed upon ,crustacea4 ,in ,april1 #ahig1 ,colonel ,walker presented some trout to the ,brighton ,aquarium4 ,i myself caught some of these trout1 which were put in a rearing pond to await their being transferred by rail to the ,aquarium4 ,as ,i also assisted in the operation of taking them from the rearing pond and putting them into the tanks in which they were to travel1 ,i can vouch for their size at that time4 ,they were all in rather bad condition1 and1 even had the largest been in good condition1 it could not have weighed more than three-quarters of a pound4 ,these trout have been fed entirely on ,crustacea since they were introduced into the tank they now occupy2 and at the time ,i am writing 7,january1 #ahih71 the largest of these trout must be quite two pounds or more in weight1 and there are others which are nearly as large4 ,the voracity with which these trout seize the ,sandhoppers and ,shrimps upon which they are fed is a perfect revelation4 ,i have seen them leap out of the water to catch the ,shrimps thrown to them before they reached the surface4 ,i have also found that young trout in rearing ponds take ,fresh-water ,shrimps with the same greediness2 and on considering these facts1 ,i am surprised that there have not been more attempts to imitate the ,fresh-water ,shrimp4 ,the ,gammarus pulex may be found in almost all streams1 especially where there is much vegetation4 ,an illustration of it is given on ,plate ,i4 ,i have however found them abundant in streams where there were no weeds4 ,they hide under stones at the bottom of the water and among the weeds1 especially among watercress and starwort4 ,though they will live in still water1 ,i have found them most numerous in streams2 and notwithstanding that they are generally supposed only to inhabit somewhat sluggish streams1 ,i have found them in fairly rapid ones1 with a stony bed4 ,the ,shrimp is very prolific1 and if protected increase very rapidly2 thus it is a most excellent plan for those who breed and rear trout to cultivate them1 as they are one of the most valuable forms of food4 ,these animals are very similar in shape to their well-known relation1 the common ,sandhopper4 ,in colour they vary very much according to the water they inhabit4 ,i have seen them a pale yellow colour in some streams1 while in others they are almost black4 ,the commonest colour is however a reddish-yellow4 ,i find that the general idea is that these ,shrimps travel through the water in quick leaps by bending up their bodies and straightening them out again4 ,i have however never seen them do this1 though ,i have kept them in an aquarium and watched them very carefully4 ,what ,i have seen is1 that they use their legs to swim with1 moving them as though they were walking very rapidly4 ,they cannot1 however1 walk when they are taken out of the water1 but lie perfectly helpless upon their sides4 ,in a stream where the ,fresh-water ,shrimp swims1 it seems unable to progress up stream1 or at any rate1 if it does it moves very slowly2 when they wish to go up stream they crawl along the bottom4 ,they can1 however1 as a rule1 maintain the same position against the current4 ,i have found the following to be the best way to dress an imitation of the ,fresh-water ,shrimp3--,choose a light ginger tackle1 cut the tip off1 and tie the tip on a hook 7,no4 #a or #b1 new size71 so that the fibres will project for between #a_/h and #a_/d of an inch at the tail4 ,tie in a thin strip of india-rubber and a piece of narrow silver tinsel4 ,the strip of india-rubber must be taken from a piece of the natural rubber1 and cut so thin that when stretched it is transparent4 ,when stretched it should be quite a sixteenth of an inch broad4 ,a little piece of india-rubber tapered at each end and half as long as the shank of the hook1 must now be fastened to the shank near the head of the fly1 placing the piece of rubber on the shank and tying it in with the tying silk4 ,now bring back the tying silk to the tail of the fly1 and spin the wool1 of which the body is to be made1 on to the tying silk and wind it on the shank4 ,the wool may vary in colour1 according to the colour of the ,shrimps in the stream to be fished1 from light yellow or reddish-yellow to a very dark brown4 ,when the wool body is finished off1 wind on the strip of india-rubber1 so that the edge of one lap meets the edge of the other1 thus covering the body entirely2 tie in and cut off the remainder1 and then rib the body with the tinsel4 ,in putting on the hackle1 which is light ginger1 it is necessary that some of the fibres should be made to project forwards1 so the tying silk should be finished off behind these4 ,when the fly is complete it should appear as shown in illustrations of imitation on ,plate ,,iii4 ,in fishing this fly must be allowed to sink to mid-water1 and then allowed to travel across and down stream in short stages2 but should not be drawn towards the fisherman in any marked way1 or it will not represent the movements of the natural ,shrimp4 ,whether any particular stream is inhabited by these ,crustacea may be easily discovered4 ,if the stream has a stony bottom they will be found under almost every large stone which is turned over4 ,if1 however1 there be debris or mud at the bottom1 they may easily be captured with a stout gauze net1 mounted on a strong ring and handle4 ,if this net be passed along the bottom1 and some of the weeds and debris brought up1 the ,shrimps will be found among the contents of the net4 ,i should strongly advise any one possessing a trout stream which is not inhabited by the ,fresh-water ,shrimp to introduce them1 for they are1 as ,i have pointed out1 one of the very best forms of trout food4 ,i have been very successful with the imitation shrimp on waters which contain the fresh-water shrimp4 99 99 99 99 99 ,this imitation has also met with general condemnation of an even more decided character than that of the ,corixa4 ,in neither case1 however1 have any reasons been given for the condemnation4 ,as undoubtedly some of the hackle flies used wet must be very like a shrimp1 and if the imitation shrimp is condemned1 so also should these hackle flies4 ,,larvae ,,of ,,water-,,insects1 which have the power of swimming in the water1 are best imitated by making a very taper body1 with a large head4 ,they are many of them small1 and these should not be tied on a hook larger than ,no4 #a1 new size4 ,there are1 however1 many larvae which are larger1 but not many of these swim about much in the water4 ,some are brownish-yellow1 and some nearly black4 ,some should have a tail made of two or three strands of hackle the same colour as the body4 ,some have appendages on the sides of the body1 and in the imitations of these the hackle must be tied in at the tail1 carried up over the body1 and a couple of turns given at the shoulder4 ,they may be made in various shades1 from brownish-yellow to black4 ,i have not yet had time to work out any proper scheme of imitations1 but only write this as a suggestion4 ,,some ,,hints ,,on ,,dry ,,fly-,,fishing ,on ,casting ,the fly must not be thrown directly on to the water1 but should be allowed to drop there by gravitation4 ,thus the line should extend itself in a perfectly straight line in the air1 at least a foot above the surface of the water1 and then the fly will drop naturally upon it4 ,on ,keeping the ,line ,floating ,unless the line be floating it is almost impossible to avoid a drag1 which is1 as a rule1 absolutely fatal4 ,the best way to make the line float is to rub the last twenty-five yards with vaseline1 then go over the line with a lump of beeswax1 and finish up by rubbing very gently with a rag with vaseline upon it4 ,a rag should be carried when out fishing1 with a small piece of beeswax in it4 ,a small tin of vaseline must also be taken and then1 when the line shows any signs of sinking1 it must be rubbed with the rag which has been previously dipped in the vaseline4 ,the small piece of beeswax should touch the line as it is being rubbed with the rag1 and the wax will become soft on the surface as it mixes with the vaseline4 ,on ,making the ,fly ,float ,many fishermen use odourless paraffin2 but it takes some time for the paraffin to float off1 and when a quick change of flies is necessary1 this is a great disadvantage4 ,if the finger be dipped very slightly in the tin of vaseline1 so that there is just a suspicion of it on the skin1 and the hackle of the fly be rubbed with it1 the fly will float as well as it does with the odourless paraffin1 and the vaseline will not float off4 ,personally ,i prefer not to use anything4 ,this entails a small amount of extra labour in drying the fly2 but the tints of the fly are not altered1 as they often are if any form of grease is used to make the fly float4 ,,richard ,,clay ,,and ,,sons1 ,,limited1 ,,london ,,and ,,bungay4 99 99 99 99 99 ,,transcriber ,,notes3 ,punctuation has been normalized without note4 ,footnotes have been moved closer to their reference point in the text4 ,page #aj3 biassed changed to biased 7,i must be naturally biased74 ,page #ajj3 teased changed to teazed for consistency 7teazed up with fur74