fly will murder, which is to be made thus: the dubbing, of bear's dun, with a little brown and yellow camlet very well mixed, 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 gray 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 greendrake, 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 gray feather dyed 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 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 gray feather of a mallard; and it is a killing fly for small fish. And so much for May.

JUNE.

From the first to the four-and-twentieth, the green-drake 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;† the dubbing of a white weasel's tail; and a white gray 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 gray wing, of a mallard's feather.

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

See ante, p. 279.

+ 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 sunset till ten at night, and from two to four in the morning.-H.

The white or pale-coloured moths, such as the ghost-moth, (Hepialus humuli,) are called owl-flies by anglers.-J. R.

4. As also a gold twist hackle with a purple body, whipped about with a 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 gray wing.

6. Also another little flesh-fly; the body made of the whirl of a peacock's feather; and the wing, of the gray 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 mixed, with a light gray wing.

9. We have likewise a brown gnat; with a very slender body of brown and violet camlet, well mixed, and a light gray wing. 10. And another little black gnat; † the dubbing of black mohair, and a white gray wing.

11. As also a green grasshopper; the dubbing of green and yellow wool mixed, ribbed over with green silk, and a red capon's feather over all.

12. And, lastly, a little dun grasshopper; the body slender, made of a dun camlet, and a dun hackle at the top.

JULY.

First, all the small flies that were taken in June are also taken in this month.

1. We have then the orange-fly; the dubbing of orange wool, and the wing of a black feather.

2. Also a little white dun; the body made of white mohair, and the wing, blue, of a heron's feather.

3. We have likewise this month a wasp-fly; made either of a dark brown dubbing, or else the fur of a black cat's tail, ribbed about with yellow silk; and the wing, of the gray feather of a mallard.

4. Another fly taken this month is a black hackle; the body made of the whirl of a peacock's feather, and a black hackle feather on the top.

5. We have also another, made of a peacock's whirl without wings.

6. Another fly also is taken this month, called the shell-fly; the dubbing of yellow-green Jersey wool, and a little white

The ant-fly, which is the male or female ant, has four wings; but the artificial fly so called, has only two,- so much for imitation,-J. R.

+ Black gnat. The body extremely small, of black mohair, spaniel's fur, or ostrich feather; wing, of the lightest part of a starling or mallard's feather. A very killing fly in an evening, after a shower, in rapid rivers, as in Derbyshire or Wales.

+ Orange-fly. The body of raw orange silk, with a red or black hackle; gold twist may be added; warp with orange. Taken when the May-fly is almost over, and also to the end of June, especially in hot gloomy weather.

hog's hair mixed, which I call the palm-fly, and do believe it is taken for a palm, that drops off the willows into the water; for this fly I have seen Trouts take little pieces of moss, as they have swum down the river; by which I conclude that the best way to hit the right colour is to compare your dubbing with the moss, and mix the colours as near as you can,

7. There is also taken, this month, a black blue dun; the dubbing of the fur of a black rabbit mixed with a little yellow; the wings, of the feather of a blue pigeon's wing.

The same flies with July.

AUGUST.

1. Then another ant-fly; the dubbing of the black brown hair of a cow, some red warped in for the tag of his tail, and a dark wing. A killing fly.

2. Next, a fly called the fern-fly ;* the dubbing of the fur of a hare's neck, that is of the colour of fern, or bracken, with a darkish gray wing of a mallard's feather. A killer too.

3. Besides these we have a white hackle; the body of white mohair, and warped about with a white hackle-feather; and this is assuredly taken for thistle-down.

4. We have also, this month, a Harry-long-legs; † the body made of bear's dun and blue wool mixed, and a brown hackle feather over all.

Lastly, in this month, all the same browns and duns are taken that were taken in May.

SEPTEMBER.

This month the same flies are taken that are taken in April. 1. To which I shall only add a camel-brown fly, the dubbing pulled out of the lime of a wall, whipped about with red silk; and a darkish gray mallard's feather for the wing.

2. And one other for which we have no name; but it is made of the back hair of a badger's skin, mixed with the yellow softest down of a sanded hog.

OCTOBER.

The same flies are taken this month that were taken in March.

*This is not properly a fly, but a beetle, called the fern, or garden chafer, (Melalontha horticola.)—J. R.

+ Harry-long-legs. Made of lightish bear's hair, and a dunnish hackle; add a few hairs of light blue mohair, and a little fox-cub down; warp with light gray or pale blue silk; the head large. Taken chiefly in a cloudy windy day. I have formerly, in the rivers near London, had great success, fishing with a long line, and the head of this insect only. - H.

Called the Jenny-spinner in Scotland; the Pedicia rivosa of systematic authors.-J. R.

NOVEMBER.

The same flies that were taken in February are taken this month also.

DECEMBER.

Few men angle with the fly this month, no more than they do in January; but yet, if the weather be warm, (as I have known it sometimes in my life to be, even in this cold country, where it is least expected,) then a brown, that looks red in the hand, and yellowish betwixt your eye and the sun, will both raise and kill in a clear water and free from snow-broth: but, at the best, it is hardly worth a man's labour. *

And now, sir, I have done with fly-fishing, or angling at the top, excepting, once more, to tell you, that of all these (and I have named you a great many very killing flies) none are fit to be compared with the drake and stone-fly, both for many and very great fish; and yet there are some days that are by no means proper for the sport. And in a calm you shall not have near so much sport, even with daping, as in a whistling gale of wind, for two reasons, both because you are not so easily discovered by the fish, and also because there are then but few flies that can lie upon the water; for where they have so much choice, you may easily imagine they will not be so eager and forward to rise at a bait, that both the shadow of your body, and that of your rod, nay, of your very line, in a hot calm day, will, in spite of your best caution, render suspected to them but even then, in swift streams, or by sitting down patiently behind a willow bush, you shall do more execution than at almost any other time of the year, with any other fly: though one may sometimes hit of a day when he shall come home very well satisfied with sport with several other

:

* Some, in making a fly, work it upon, and fasten it immediately, to the hook-link, whether it be of gut, grass, or hair; others whip on the shank of the hook a stiff hog's bristle bent into a loop: and concerning these methods there are different opinions.

I confess the latter, except for small flies, seems to me the more eligible way and it has this advantage, that it enables you to keep your flies in excellent order; to do which, string them, each species separately, through the loops, upon a fine piece of catgut, of about seven inches long; and string also thereon, through a large pinhole, a very small ticket of parchment, with the name of the fly written on it: tie the catgut into a ring, and lay them in round flat boxes, with paper between each ring. And when you use them, having a neat loop at the lower end of your hook-link, you may put them on and take them off at pleasure.

In the other way, you are troubled with a great length of hook-link, which, if you put even but few flies together, is sure to tangle, and occasion great trouble and loss of time. And as to an objection which some make to a loop, that the fish see it, and therefore will not take the fly, you may be assured there is nothing in it.

flies. But with these two, the green drake and the stone-fly, I do verily believe, I could, some days in my life, had I not been weary of slaughter, have loaden a lusty boy; and have sometimes, I do honestly assure you, given over upon the mere account of satiety of sport; which will be no hard matter to believe, when I likewise assure you, that with this very fly, I have, in this very river that runs by us, in three or four hours, taken thirty, five-and-thirty, and forty of the best Trouts in the river. What shame and pity is it then, that such a river should be destroyed by the basest sort of people, by those unlawful ways of fire and netting in the night, and of damming, groping, spearing, hanging, and hooking by day; which are now grown so common, that though we have very good laws to punish such offenders, every rascal does it, for aught I see, impune.*

To conclude, I cannot now, in honesty, but frankly tell you, that many of these flies I have named, at least so made as we make them here, will peradventure do you no great service in your southern rivers; † and will not conceal from you, but that I have sent flies to several friends in London, that, for aught I could ever hear, never did any great feats with them; and, therefore, if you intend to profit by my instructions, you must come to angle with me here in the Peak; and so, if you please, let us walk up to supper; and to-morrow, if the day be windy, as our days here commonly are, it is ten to one but we shall take a good dish of fish for dinner.

*Not at present with impunity in some parts of Derbyshire, where, I am informed, an unprivileged person is not allowed to go near some of the streams with so much as a walking stick in his hand. J. R.

The reader may rest assured, that with some or other of these flies, especially with the palmers or hackles, the great dun, dark brown, early (and late) bright brown, the black gnat, yellow-dun, great whirling-dun, dun-cut, green and gray-drake, camlet-fly, cow-dung-fly little ant-fly, badger-fly, and fern-fly, he shall catch Trout, Grayling, Chub, and Dace, in any water in England or Wales; always remembering that in a strange water he first tries the plain, gold, silver, and peacock hackle. Of the truth of this he need not doubt, when he is told, that in the year 1754, a gentleman, who went into Wales to fish with the flies last above mentioned, made as above is directed, did, in about six weeks' time, kill near a thousand brace of Trout and Grayling, as appeared to him by an account in writing, which he kept of each day's success. In confirmation whereof, and as a proof how the rivers in Wales abound with fish, the reader will find in the Appendix, No. V. a little account, kept by another person, of fish, to an astonishing amount, caught by him, in a series of years, in some of the Welsh rivers; which account was sent by him to Mr Bartholomew Lowe, fishing-tackle maker, in Drury Lane, 24th February, 1766, and is inserted in his own words.