whilst there is any day upon the sky; and with a madefly I once took, ten days after he was absolutely gone, in a cloudy day, after a shower, and in a whistling wind, five and thirty very great Trouts and Graylings, betwixt five and eight of the clock in the evening, and had no less than five or six flies, with three good hairs apiece, taken from me in despite of my heart, besides.

12. I should now come next to the Stone-fly, but there is another gentleman in my way, that must of necessity come in between, and that is the GREY-DRAKE, which in all shapes and dimensions is perfectly the same with the other, but almost quite of another colour, being of a paler, and more livid yellow, and green, and ribb'd with black quite down his body, with black shining wings, and so diaphanous and tender, cobweb-like, that they are of no manner of use for daping; but come in, and are taken after the Green-drake, and in an artificial fly kill very well, which fly is thus made:' the dubbing of the down of a hog's bristles and black spaniel's fur mixed, and ribb'd down the body with black silk, the whisks of the hairs of the beard of a black cat, and the wings of the black grey feather of a mallard.

And now I come to the STONE-FLY; but am afraid I have already wearied your patience; which if I have, I beseech you freely tell me so, and I will defer the remaining instructions for fly-angling till some other time.

Viat. No, truly, Sir, I can never be weary of hearing you. But if you think fit, because I am afraid I am too troublesome, to refresh yourself with a glass and a pipe, you may afterwards proceed, and I shall be exceedingly pleased to hear you.

(1) Grey Drake. The body of an absolute white ostrich feather; the end of the body towards the tail of peacock's herl; warping of an ash-colour, with silver twist and black hackle; wing of a dark grey feather of a mallard. A very killing fly, especially towards the evening, when the fish are glutted with the Green-drake.

Pisc. I thank you, Sir, for that motion; for, believe me, I am dry with talking: here, boy! give us here a bottle and a glass; and, Sir, my service to you, and to all our friends in the South.

Viat. Your servant, Sir; and I'll pledge you as heartily; for the good powdered-beef I eat at dinner, or something else, has made me thirsty.

CHAP. VIII.

FISHING AT THE TOP continued. Flies for the end of May, and for the following Months till December; containing, under May, Instructions when to dape with the Stone-fly.

Viator. So, Sir, I am now ready for another lesson, so soon as you please to give it me.

Pisc. And I, Sir, as ready to give you the best I can. Having told you the time of the Stone-fly's coming in, and that he is bred of a cadis in the very river where he is taken,' I am next to tell you, that

13. This same STONE-FLY has not the patience to continue in his crust, or husk, till his wings be full grown; but so soon as ever they begin to put out, that he feels himself strong, (at which time we call him a Jack) squeezes himself out of prison, and crawls to the top of some stone, where if he can find a chink that will receive him, or can creep betwixt two stones, the one lying hollow upon the other, (which, by the way, we also lay so purposely to find them) he there lurks till his wings be full grown; and there is your only place to find him; (and from thence doubtless he derives his name;) though, for

(1) Chap. VII, Num. 11,

want of such convenience, he will make shift with the hollow of a bank, or any other place where the wind cannot come to fetch him off. His body is long, and pretty thick, and as broad at the tail, almost, as in the middle: his colour a very fine brown, ribbed with yellow, and much yellower on the belly than the back: he has two or three whisks also at the tag of his tail, and two little horns upon his head: his wings, when full grown, are double, and flat down his back, of the same colour, but rather darker than his body, and longer than it, though he makes but little use of them; for you shall rarely see him flying, though often swimming and paddling with several feet he has under his belly, upon the water, without stirring a wing. But the Drake will mount steepleheight into the air; though he is to be found upon flags and grass too, and indeed every where, high and low, near the river; there being so many of them in their season as, were they not a very inoffensive insect, would look like a plague: and these drakes (since I forgot to tell you before, I will tell you here) are taken by the fish to that incredible degree, that upon a calm day you shall see the still deeps, continually, all over circles by the fishes rising, who will gorge themselves with those flies, till they purge again out of their gills:' and the Trouts are at that time so lusty and strong, that one of eight or ten inches long will then more struggle and tug, and more endanger your tackle, than one twice as big in winter. But pardon this digression.

This Stone-fly then we dape or dibble with as with the Drake, but with this difference, that whereas the GreenDrake is common both to stream and still, and to all hours of the day, we seldom dape with this but in the streams,

(1) I have caught a Trout so full of them, that, in taking him off the hook, I have prest out of his throat a lump of them as big as a walnut.

(for in a whistling wind, a made-fly, in the deep, is better,) and rarely, but early and late, it not being so proper for the mid-time of the day; though a great Grayling will then take it very well in a sharp stream, and here and there, a Trout too, but much better toward eight, nine, ten, or eleven of the clock at night, at which time also the best fish rise, and the later the better, provided you can see your fly; and when you cannot, a made-fly will murder, which is to be made thus: the dubbing, of bear's dun with a little brown and yellow camlet very well mixt, but so placed that your fly may be more yellow on the belly and towards the tail, underneath, than in any other part; and you are to place two or three hairs of a black cat's beard on the top of the hook, in your arming, so as to be turned up when you warp on your dubbing, and to stand almost upright, and staring one from another; and note, that your fly is to be ribbed with yellow silk; and the wings long, and very large, of the dark grey feather of a mallard.

14. The next May-fly is the BLACK-FLY; made with a black body, of the whirl of an ostrich-feather, ribbed with silver-twist, and the black hackle of a cock over all; and is a killing fly, but not to be named with either of the other.

15. The last May-fly (that is of the four pretenders,') is the LITTLE YELLOW MAY-FLY; in shape exactly the same with the Green-Drake, but a very little one, and of as bright a yellow as can be seen: which is made of a bright yellow camlet, and the wings of a white-grey feather died yellow.

16. The last fly for this month, (and which continues all June, though it comes in the middle of May,) is the fly called the CAMLET-FLY, in shape like a moth, with fine diapered or water wings, and with which (as I told

(1) See p. 323.

you before) I sometimes used to dibble; and Grayling will rise mightily at it. But the artificial fly (which is only in use amongst our anglers) is made of a dark-brown shining camlet, ribbed over with a very small light green silk; the wings, of the double-grey feather of a mallard; and 'tis a killing fly for small fish. And so much for May.

JUNE.

From the first to the four-and-twentieth, the Greendrake and Stone-fly are taken as I told you before.

1. From the twelfth to the four-and-twentieth, late at night, is taken a fly called the OWL-FLY:1 the dubbing of a white weasel's tail; and a white-grey wing.

2. We have then another dun, called the BARM-FLY, from its yeasty colour. The dubbing of the fur of a yellow dun cat, and a grey wing of a mallard's feather.

3. We have also a HACKLE with a purple body, whipt about with a red capon's feather.

4. As also a GOLD-TWIST HACKLE with a purple body, whipt about wit ha red capon's feather.

5. To these we have, this month, a FLESH-FLY. The dubbing of a black spaniel's fur and blue wool mixed, and a grey wing.

6. Also another little FLESH-FLY, the body made of the whirl of a peacock's feather, and the wings of the grey feather of a drake.

7. We have, then, the PEACOCK-FLY, the body and wing both made of the feather of that bird.

8. There is also the flying-ant, or ANT-FLY, the dubbing of brown and red camlet mixt, with a light-grey wing.

9. We have likewise a BROWN GNAT, with a very slen

(1) White Miller, or Owl-Fly. The body of white ostrich herl, white hackle, and silver-twist, if you please; wing of the white feather of a tame duck, Taken from sun-set till ten at night, and from two to four in the morning.