FLIES AND KNOTS.
It is generally considered that fly-making cannot be taught by written
instruction, but this depends somewhat on the intelligence of the
scholar, who must not undertake to conceive the result before he has
waxed his thread, but should be content to follow the directions word by
word. At all events there is something that the experienced, and an
immense deal that the partially instructed beginner may add to his store
of knowledge, and if the following directions will not make a novice
perfect, they may aid him when he has had a few personal lessons. To tie
a fly, the gut should be singed in a candle or bitten at one end, and
the hook and thread waxed to insure the hook’s not coming off, which,
when a fine fish has it in his mouth, is a heart-rending casualty. Take
a few turns with the thread on the shank of the bare hook, nearly to the
head, then applying the gut, whip it firmly on by working back to the
bend; under the last turns at the bend insert whisks for the tail
dubbing, floss or herl for the body, and tinsel if desired. The floss,
silk and dubbing are generally spun or twisted in with the thread, and
then wound back toward the shoulder, but they may be wound on before,
with, or after the thread. Care must be taken that the turns at the
bend be firm, and when the material is carried back, the body is
finished with a couple of turns of the silk, a hackle is then introduced
under them and firmly secured. Wind the hackle round the hook at the
place where it is inserted, and when it is sufficiently thick, and the
fibres which constitute the legs stand out well, tie it down. Prepare
your wings by stripping off the requisite number of fibres, and tie them
on, either single or divided, and finish off. To make a buzz-fly, that
is, one with the hackles the whole length of the body instead of only at
the shoulder, insert a hackle at the bend at the same time with the body
and tail, and twist it round the body after that is put on, and fasten
it at the shoulder. The wings are sometimes laid on pointing up the
shank, and afterward bent down and brought in their places. And thus, if
any one desires, he may make a fly.
Few people in this stage of civilization dress their own trout flies,
and although skill in the art will enable you to make a better selection
in your purchases, it is rarely useful at the riverside. The better plan
is to have a great variety, keep them safe from moths by the use of a
linen bag, and fish often enough to prevent the gut’s decaying. I have
flies that have been in my possession for fifteen years, and yet seem to
be as good as ever. You would require a knapsack to keep all the
articles requisite to dress every fly, and would waste half your day in
the operation. Nor is it yet settled that by imitating the natural
insect you gain any advantage; one half the most skillful fishermen
assert that the fly, as for instance, the scarlet ibis, need resemble
nothing on earth, or in the waters under the earth, and that the
sharp-sighted fish are never deceived by thinking ours the natural
insect, but take him for some new and undescribed species. As for
myself, to use the quaint language of the editor of the “Knickerbocker,”
“sometimes I think so, and then again I don’t, but mostly I do.” On
certain occasions it would seem that the closer the imitation the
better, on others the less the similarity the greater the success. Upon
this question my friends stand like the hackle on a well-dressed fly,
“every which way.” At any rate, it is no time to be dubbing when you
ought to be fishing, and if you cast a long line and a light fly and the
fish will not rise, you may be sure they will not.
The various flies that appear upon the surface of the numerous and
varying waters of our country, from the borders of Mexico to the
confines of Labrador, would furnish the subject for an instructive and
interesting work.
The natural flies, whether hatched from the caddis at the bottom of the
streams, or from the burrows in the ground, or the knots on the limbs,
or the cocoons amid the leaves of trees, are more numerous than those of
any European country. As a class, they are larger, the ephemeræ
especially, and although often found to be similar in general
appearance, furnish many species unknown there. They have never been
properly described and classified, and no satisfactory work has been
written, at all thorough and reliable, in which an attempt is made to
record their nature and habits.
Many of them do not return every year, but seem to require several
seasons to mature, and the earliest fly of one season may not be that of
another. Every observant fisherman has noticed flies at one time that
he may not see again for a long period, and has found his imitations of
them perfectly useless.
The first tree that puts forth leaves in the spring is the maple, and
its buds are a bright scarlet. As they drop into and are swept along the
surface of the water by the wind, the fish seize them, no doubt either
decoyed by their appearance or attracted by insects that may be
concealed upon or within them. The scarlet ibis resembles these buds
nearer than any other known thing, and is probably mistaken by the fish
for them.
When commencing this work, it had been my intention not only to describe
the artificial flies in general request, but to give the habits, periods
and names of the natural ones of which they were imitations, without
which latter information the former would have been far from complete.
But the obstacles in my way were so numerous, the confusion existing as
to names, localities, and times of appearance was so utter, the
difficulty of finding any satisfactory work on the natural insects so
great, that I was almost in despair; on the point, however, of making
the attempt, rash as it appeared, I was informed that the matter had
been undertaken by a friend of mine, who is every way equal to the task.
Although much relieved, there was still something to be done to give a
general idea of the flies in use with us. On this subject, the only work
existing of any value is the supplement to Frank Forester’s “Fish and
Fishing,” written by a gentleman who is a thorough sportsman, and
alongside of whom I have often had the pleasure of casting the fly. The
directions in the body of that work itself, like many other parts of
it, are copied from the English writers, and in our waters are utterly
valueless. The author, although a splendid sportsman, was not as an
angler acquainted with our trout streams and ponds, and the contributor
of the supplement judged rather too exclusively from his experience on
Long Island.
The first and most striking difference to be observed between the
systems of the two countries is in the comparative size of the flies,
those of America, following the natural insect, being larger, and,
probably for a similar reason, gaudier. It is a remarkable fact that the
most gaudy of all, the scarlet ibis, is prominently successful alone in
the streams of Long Island and of the British Provinces. As many of the
Long Island trout yearly migrate to the sea, in which peculiarity they
resemble the fish of the latter place, it may be that this fly is only a
favorite with sea-going fish. A little tinsel wound round the body is
supposed to improve its efficiency, as some fishermen suggest from a
resemblance to the principal Winter food of the trout, the salt water
minnow.
The earliest fly on the Long Island ponds is a dark water fly, with a
brownish red body and legs, and black, filmy, transparent wings. It is
rather large, is wafted along upon and occasionally rises from the
water, and never appears in any considerable numbers. It is usually
represented by the English or female cow-dung, which, although not
similar in coloring, presents somewhat the same general appearance. The
wings, being transparent, should not be imitated with a black feather,
although I have had great success when these flies were on the water
with a fly that had black wings and a claret body and legs. The orange
dun, with a body tinged with brown, would be a good imitation.
The next natural fly, which is smaller than the last, is of a greenish
yellow, and is also caricatured by the cow-dung. But it is decidedly
recommended to make a more faithful copy, which the writer has done with
eminent success. In speaking of this matter, it is important to add that
the midges, such as the black gnat and others, are out earlier, and it
is to the larger flies alone that reference is made. The earliest of the
species mentioned appears in ordinary seasons about the first of March,
and the next about a week later. At this period, and at all periods, of
a bright day a large black gnat with black hackle, black or dark blue
body, silver tinsel at the tail, and dark wings, is usually successful.
Shortly after the greenish fly, come many others, appearing almost
together, and among them the cow-dung and the yellow sally, the latter
occasionally fairly covering the water. About this time the professor
answers well, although I have never discovered its prototype, if it has
any, and shortly afterward an unimitated brown fly, together with the
blue blow and cinnamon, and in warm weather innumerable others. In the
latter part of April and early part of May, the bushes and streams are
alive with the gay little beauties, of every color, size and shape, and
the fish make them their principal food. But the waters are growing
clear, the deception is becoming apparent to the fish’s eye, and the
insects, though in reality larger, must have more delicate substitutes.
At such times a small red bodied fly, with dun wings, has proved
extremely killing, and although large, white, gelatinous ephemeræ swim
upon the water, the midges are on quiet days the most successful; and
when the sky is bright, subdued colors are in principal demand.
In June there are prominent, among many others, the black fly, with
body, wings, legs and antennæ all of the same sable hue, busy the entire
day dancing over the water a veritable dance of death, for it is often
terminated by the fatal rush of the watchful trout; a dun fly, with
greyish dun mottled wings, grey legs, and light green body; another fly
with similar wings, but red legs, and a rich brown body--none of these
having any whisks in their tails; another beautiful and delicate yellow
fly, that appears generally in the morning and evening, and flies
heavily and slowly from place to place, till it falls suddenly, and is
forever submerged in the cruel waters. Its legs, body and wings are
yellow, the latter being the palest, and it has two short whisks and
antennæ of the same color. All the foregoing have four wings, in the
black and yellow varieties strongly reticulated, and all but the last
swim well under water. Toward night a frail whitish fly makes its
appearance still more fragile than its yellow compeer; it has two wings,
a thick body and long whisks. The eyes of the yellow and white fly are
black spots, and although I never have done much with a white fly, a
small yellowish drake was successful when the yellow flies were
abundant. A better imitation however could be made of pure yellow.
On one occasion I was struck with the fact that although I did not know
these insects were on the water, my only successful flies were a
yellowish fly, a green-bodied, dun-winged fly, and a similar fly with a
brown body, and I hit on them accidentally after trying a great
variety.
Hackles, in our Long Island ponds, are, by universal testimony, a
failure, and the palmers worthless; and throughout the breadth and
length of our country, the winged flies are vastly preferable. The
hackles and palmers are intended to represent the caterpillars, which
our fish very sensibly ignore alongside of the innumerable beautiful,
delicate and gaudy flies, and which under no circumstances are found
except in the fresh-water brooks. Through all the early Spring, the
stomachs of the trout will be found filled with the shells of the
caddis, and these, if they could be obtained, would doubtless be a
killing bait. Fortunately they cannot be, and are not to my knowledge
used here at all.
In our mountain streams the fish are generally extremely numerous,
though small, and will eagerly seize any fly presented to them, vying
with one another to be first. The following is a good assortment, and
will, in addition to those already mentioned, be sufficient for all
waters: The alder-fly, English partridge hackle, hackles of all colors,
red and black ants, the devil-fly with a yellow body, the tail of one
red and one black whisk, black hackles and red and black wings, dark
mackerel, red spinner, English blue jay, fern-fly, orange dun, the
camlets of various colors, grey, dun and black midges, the coachman, the
stone-fly, the May-flies, millers for night-work, the sand-fly, the
various other duns, the turkey brown, and a large light grey fly.
As each maker employs different colors and feathers for the same fly,
these descriptions are rather indefinite but by taking a number of
various shades, you can readily select the most effective. The
well-known flies should be dressed after Ronalds as far as practicable.
It is to be regretted that there is not more uniformity and pride in, or
practical acquaintance with, the subject among our principal
tackle-makers. With the English makers it has always been an especial
care that their flies should be dressed well and with uniformity; but
here, anything that can be palmed off on an ignorant or indulgent
public, or a barbarous country trade, is all that is desired. It is
better always to send a pattern, with instructions to copy it precisely,
and that no originality of variation will be permitted. Then, and then
only, can you obtain what you wish. So much for trout-flies.
To make a salmon-fly, the following additional directions, most of which
apply equally to carefully made trout-flies, will be found convenient.
Tie on the gut as before directed; upon reaching the bend, fasten the
spring pliers on to the thread, and do not take them off till the fly is
finished. Take two turns with the silk over a strip of tinsel, pass the
latter several times round the hook to form the tag, fasten it with the
silk and cut it off; introduce the floss for the tip, take several turns
evenly, tie it down and cut off the end; introduce the tail and then a
piece of herl, wind the herl at the root of the tail and fasten it; take
in a new piece of tinsel and a hackle by rubbing back all the fibres but
a few at the point; leave both pointing from the head. Take a small
piece of mohair between your fingers, break it over and over again into
small pieces, lengthen it out and twist it round the silk toward the
left, as otherwise it will unlay in winding; wind the silk and mohair
together round the shank to the shoulder, leave a space of bare hook
sufficient for the wings. Wind in loose coils first the tinsel and then
the hackle, and fasten both at the shoulder. Strip two wings from
feathers that have been taken from the opposite sides of the bird, place
them together, hold them firmly on the hook with the left forefinger and
thumb, and fasten them securely. Cut off the ends, insert a piece of
herl, wind it over the head and tie it down. Lay the end of the silk
back down the shank, and take three turns with the other part over silk,
hook and gut; pass the gut end through the loop three times and draw the
silk tight. Two turns of silk should hold the different parts during the
entire operation, and a couple of half hitches under the wings at the
shoulders are sometimes used to fasten off. The feathers should be mated
to make neat wings, and if they are laid right side out they will close
round the hook; if otherwise, they will stand out. Do not fail to
varnish at the head with wood varnish, or some other kind that will dry
rapidly. The hackle may be introduced at the shoulder. Where herl or
floss is used for the body, it is wound on separately from the tying
silk, which is sometimes passed in loose coils afterward. A second
hackle of a different color, or a feather wound like a hackle, may be
introduced after the first, or after the wings and before the head is
finished, and is called the legs. The wings must be tied above the
dubbing on the hook, or they are liable to turn, especially where floss
silk is used for the body.
The following is a list of Canadian salmon flies, copied from the work
on Salmon Fishing in the Provinces, edited by Colonel Alexander,
supposed to be by Dr. Adamson, with two of my own added; the latter
having been furnished by a friend of extended experience, are warranted
excellent:
No. 1. LOUISE.--An extremely beautiful fly, having wings composed of the
golden pheasant’s top-knot, breast feather and tail, with sprigs from
the green parrot, blue macaw and kingfisher; the body is of fiery brown
mohair, with gold twist; the head of orange mohair; the tail, a single
feather from the golden pheasant’s top-knot; reddish-brown hackle and
jay legs.
No. 2. EDWIN.--A much simpler fly and often equally efficacious among
the fins, the wings being composed of the golden pheasant’s tail feather
with a dash of yellow macaw; the body, yellow mohair; ribs, of black
silk; head, black mohair; tail, golden pheasant’s top-knot; hackle,
yellow; and scarlet silk tip.
No. 3. FORSYTH.--Wings of the yellow macaw, with a slight dash of
mallard wings at each side; yellow mohair body, with black ribs; head,
black; tail, golden pheasant’s top-knot; hackle, yellow, with light blue
silk tip.
No. 4. STEPHENS.--Wings of golden pheasant’s breast feather, with slight
mixture of mallard; body of reddish brick-colored silk, gold twist;
head, black ostrich; tail, golden pheasant’s top-knot; hackle, red, to
match the body; tip, blue silk.
No. 5. ROSS.--Wings of mallard and peacock’s herl; body,
cinnamon-colored silk, gold twist; no head; tail, green parrot; red and
black hackles and black tip.
No. 6. THE PARSON.--This is a beautiful and efficient fly. The wings
are mixed, and very similar to those of No. 1, but have a slight mixture
of wood duck in them; the body is of very dark claret silk, with gold
twist; head, black ostrich; tail, golden pheasant’s top-knot; hackle,
dark claret; legs, blue, with a tip of yellow and gold.
No. 7. STRACHAN.--Mixed wings, chiefly of golden pheasant’s tail, yellow
macaw and jay’s wing; body of crimson silk with gold twist; head, black
ostrich; tail, golden pheasant; black hackle, with jay’s wing legs; tip,
yellow and gold.
No. 8. LANGEVIN.--Wings, body, tail, hackle, legs, tip all yellow, made
of the dyed feathers of the white goose; the head of black ostrich, and
the twist of black silk.
No. 9. WHITCHER.--Mixed wings, of mallard and hooded merganser, the
latter being like the teal wing, only more of a yellowish green, or the
tail of the golden pheasant may be used; head, black ostrich herl; black
hackle and black mohair body, with a thin rib of silver; tip, yellow
silk; and tail from the top-knot of the golden pheasant.
No. 10. GREY FLY.--Mixed wings, of mallard, turkey, golden pheasant’s
neck and top-knot, and sprigs of blue macaw; head of black ostrich heel;
legs, carmine; grey hackle; body of a grey mohair, with silver ribs, and
tip of silver and deep orange silk; tail, mixed grey mallard and tail of
the golden pheasant.
It will be observed that the foregoing are not imitations of any natural
insect, but merely fanciful combinations of beautiful colors. The more
harmonious the tints the finer the effect. Some of them are gay flies,
gaudier than I should recommend; modest colors suit the salmon as they
do the ladies of our country. For the rivers of New Brunswick more
particularly, I would add the following, requesting the reader to bear
in mind that larger and more brilliant flies are permitted among the
rougher waters and heavier fish of the Canadas.
No. 11. NICHOLSON.--Wings mallard with sprigs of blue macaw; body,
blood-red mohair, head of black ostrich herl; hackles, one blood red and
one dark blue wound on together; gold ribs and tip; tail, mallard and
golden pheasant neck. This is one of the best flies ever cast on the
Miramichi or Nipisiquit, and is simple and inexpensive.
No. 12. CHAMBERLAIN.--Turkey wing, the lighter and darker fibres mixed,
or turkey and mallard; head, black ostrich herl; orange mohair body and
hackle, yellow legs, silver or gold ribs and tip and black silk twist;
tail of golden pheasant top-knot.
No 13. DARLING.--Wings of turkey and golden pheasant neck feather and
sprigs of blue macaw; head, black ostrich; hackles, black along the
stem, but with reddish ends; tip, orange silk; tail, golden pheasant
top-knot; thin gold ribs and tag and black mohair body.
No. 14. MAJOR.--Wings of mallard and turkey with sprigs of blue macaw;
head, claret herl; light red hackle, and orange legs; body, deep purple
mohair; tip, blue silk: tail, golden pheasant neck feathers; ribs and
tag gold tinsel.
No. 15. CAPTAIN.--Wings of turkey and golden pheasant tail and neck
feathers and sprigs of blue macaw; head claret herl; red hackle; body,
claret mohair; tip, orange silk; silver tag, gold ribs, and tail of
golden pheasant top-knot.
No. 16. CARIBOO.--Wings of turkey and mallard with sprigs of macaw, and
a few fibres from the golden pheasant’s neck; head of black ostrich
herl; claret legs; grey hackle; body of grey cariboo hair or mohair;
lower part of tip golden yellow silk, and upper part black silk; tail,
golden pheasant top-knot, and gold tag. This fly, with various
modifications, is extensively used by the resident fishermen of
Fredericton.
No. 17. EMMET.--No head; wings of black and golden pheasant neck feather
with sprigs of macaw; body, black mohair; black hackle; gold tip and
twist; a turn of black herl taken just above the tail, which is golden
pheasant crest.
No. 18. LILLIE.--Wings and tail dark grey turkey; body, mohair of the
same dull color; yellow silk tip; red hackle, and no head. This is
almost identical with the stone fly, and approximates in color to the
natural fly, and is generally dressed on a small hook.
There is no limit to the list of salmon flies that might be given;
artistic beauty is a great point to be gained, but further than that
nothing is positively ascertained on the subject. I was once visiting a
well known salmon river with fifty dozen flies loaned to me by an
excellent angler who was one of the oldest _habitués_ of the stream.
Another excellent fisherman looked over my hooks with an unapproving
air, and after my return told me that he was surprised I had taken any
fish at all, for my flies were totally unsuited to the river. It is,
however, generally conceded that different waters require different
flies, and those in vogue in Canada are much gayer than those of New
Brunswick. In Great Britain it was once the custom, as it still is in
Wales, to use sombre colors; in England and Ireland the gayest are now
the rage; perhaps it will be the same here, and in the end we may find
that handsome, gaudy feathers answer best.
The turkey wing is of various colors, but where no other specific
direction is given, the common mixture of black and brown is intended.
Some sportsmen pretend to assimilate their flies to the sand-lance,
others to the shrimp; as the salmon obtain neither in fresh water, there
is little to choose between the plans.
As will be seen, therefore, from the foregoing, salmon flies are much
more complicated than trout flies, and require more skill in their
manufacture. The wings are ordinarily made of numerous fibres,
frequently of distinct feathers, which are fastened separately upon one
another, and usually called toppings. The hook is often first tied
securely with thick silk and then varnished, while a small loop instead
of a length of gut is used. This is allowed to dry, and finer silk,
usually the color of the intended fly, is employed to tie the feathers.
Occasional fastenings may be made by taking a hitch over the whole, and
varnish is applied, especially at the head and tail. After the hook is
tied on, the silk is made fast at the bend, where the tinsel, the
whisks, the body and the hackle are inserted; the latter may, however,
be introduced after several turns have been taken with the body, and the
body may be divided into sections of various colors, in a manner that
the least practice will render easy.
It is no small matter to give a list of the requisite fly-making
materials, but the following are a few of the most important:
Silk of various colors, wax, nippers, scissors, a bench vice, picker,
spring pliers, varnish, hooks and gut, tinsel of gold and silver,
twisted and plain; hackles of all colors, feathers of the mallard, teal,
woodcock, golden, silver and argus pheasants, turkey, macaws, curlew,
ruffed grouse, ibis, blue-jay, black-bird, fresh water rail, guinea
fowl, common chicken, and any and all other birds that may come in the
angler’s way; dubbings of mohair, pig’s hair, wool, seal’s fur, rat’s,
mole’s and squirrel’s fur; floss silk of all colors, and peacock’s and
ostrich herl. Dyed feathers had better be purchased of the tackle
makers, and should include blue, purple, orange, yellow, brown, green,
crimson and scarlet hackles, and yellow wing feathers.
There is a Limerick hook now made with the shank turned over so as to
form a loop into which the gut is inserted and the trouble of tying the
gut is avoided. They have come into general use among the Irish and
Scotch fishermen, and are a great aid to the man that ties his own
flies. The gut in ordinary fly fishing wears out just above the hook, a
difficulty that is entirely removed by this improvement, and it is by no
means so ugly or ungainly as might be supposed. This is no new
discovery, but has been practised with common American hooks for a
considerable period, and might be advantageously used in many kinds of
fishing, and applied to all hooks.
Hooks are numbered in the most singular manner, no two makers agreeing,
and some indulging in remarkable eccentricities. But as Limerick hooks
are generally used for fly-making, the numbers 2, 1, 1-1/2, 0 and 2/0
will include all that is requisite. No. 1-1/2 is my favorite for
ordinary purposes, but a few 3/0 may be desirable in heavy water, with
an occasional monster for foaming rapids.
The charges for dressing trout flies in this country are exorbitant,
whereas in England they can be purchased of the best makers at from
seventy-five cents to a dollar and a half per dozen; we are charged from
a dollar and a half to three dollars, and generally furnished an
inferior article. There is an abominable article of wholesale traffic
sold for fifty cents a dozen, that is beneath any sportsman’s notice. I
have imported a great many, but it is a troublesome operation, and the
best way is to bear the imposition meekly.
The English and Irish salmon flies are, on the contrary, expensive; a
great deal of the neck and top-knot of the golden pheasant and of the
wings of the blue-jay is employed, birds which cost from ten to
twenty-five dollars a piece, and which only furnish twenty to thirty
pairs of each kind of feathers. The use, therefore, of several long
crest and neck feathers at fifty cents a pair in the wing, and five or
six from the top-knot for the tail, besides other expensive materials
and the employment of the best workmanship, will make a fly dear at the
original cost. Blacker, the great English rod and fly maker, has been
paid two guineas apiece for his finest. The reader may console himself
by remembering that salmon were taken with the fly before the golden
pheasant was heard of as one of the indispensable ingredients. A little
practice will enable the angler to make flies himself, and add to his
sport the consciousness of invention.
Except in that way, and except for salmon fishing, the sportsmen of our
country have no time to waste tying flies. The regular shops charge a
heavy profit over the amount paid the workman, and if the purchaser is
capable of telling a good fly, the best plan is to go direct to the
latter, explain what is wanted, and show an interest in the proceeding.
A half dozen of each of the foregoing specimens, firmly fastened on
strong, round, even gut, will last two months’ daily salmon fishing in
well-stocked streams. An average loss of four or five a day would be by
no means surprising, although a single one might kill a great many fine
fish. Hooks are apt to be broken at the bend by striking against a rock,
from carelessness, or the awkward handling of too long a line. If you
find a hook broken in that way, lay it primarily to this cause, and
watch the sweep of your cast.
After the fly is made, tying it on to the leader and the leader to the
line is an important matter, and as it is always desirable to put the
right knot in the right place, the following directions may do something
toward enabling one to effect that object, and after a little practice
will be found entirely intelligible. The gut lengths of the droppers
should be short, to prevent their fouling round the leader.
No. 1 and No. 2 are both good ties to fasten the leader to the line. No.
3 is a becket-hitch, and No. 4 a double becket-hitch. No. 5 is a single
water knot.
[Illustration: KNOTS.]
No. 6 is a double water knot. The latter are used for tying lengths of
gut together. But recollect that before a knot is made in gut it must be
wet, and had better be soaked for some time in warm water. In using the
double knot, the ends need not be whipped down. No. 7 shows how a dandy
fastens his droppers to the leader. No. 8 shows how a lazy man does the
same thing.
No. 10 is a reef, or square knot. No. 11 is a granny knot, and you had
better not knot that knot as a reef knot at sea. The former never slips,
and yet never jams; the latter always slips and always jams. No. 12 is a
bowline, the best knot of all.
No. 13 is a wall. No. 14, a wall and crown; follow the strands round
with the ends, and it is a double wall and crown. No. 15, a Mathew
Walker, is made by unlaying the strands a sufficient distance, and
carrying one end underneath and through its own bight, then the next
underneath through the bight of the first and its own bight, and then
the third underneath through the bight of the first and second and then
its own. No. 16 shows the first strand passed; No. 17 is the finished
knot. A diamond knot, No. 18, is made by laying the strands back along
the rope, then passing the first end over the second through the bight
of the third, the second over the third and through the first, and so on
drawing all tight. It may be crowned like a wall.
No. 19 is a sheet bend. No. 20, a studding sail bend. No. 21, a rolling
hitch. No. 22, a timber hitch. No. 23, a clove hitch. A whipping is put
on as shown by No. 24, by first passing the turns over one end, and then
the other end under the last few turns, and drawing it close. No. 25 is
called a cat’s paw. These knots will probably be sufficient without
adding the hangman’s knot, with its seven professional turns, and a
choice among them will often be found convenient, while a glance at the
cut will refresh an imperfect recollection.
In tying flies or hooks, it is well to use varnish occasionally, in fact
wherever it can be done without injuring the appearance of the colors;
no fly will last well that has not been varnished. In making the wings
of salmon flies, it is usual to put on numerous fibres, often of
different feathers, and tie them on separately. This renders the wings
more pliable, but destroys their beauty and harmony. A number of
inconsistent colors will injure the effect of one another; the contrast
between body and wings should be decided, and the unity and coherence of
the latter should be preserved. If the tip of the feather is used and
fastened by the stem, it will slip unless firmly secured. There is great
difference in the adhesion of the fibres of different feathers, but a
little practice will determine the selection.
Black bass flies are generally made with a red body, gold twist, and
wings of ibis and white, or black and white, or peacock’s herl and
white; but a beautiful and effective fly is made as follows: wings, two
plumes of the silver pheasant with two smaller ones of ibis over them;
body, blood-red mohair; furnace hackle; blue floss tip; gold tag, and
ibis tail.
In salmon fishing it is customary to use but one fly, as two
sixteen-pound fish would be troublesome to handle; but occasionally a
dropper is added at the upper end of the casting line to attract their
attention.
Three flies are sufficient for trout fishing, and are desirable,
although frequently failing to hook the fish in consequence of lying on
or close to the leader. This is in a measure prevented by short, stiff
gut lengths, but when the rises are mainly at the upper flies, many will
be missed.
In this connection it may be well to mention that coloring gut,
especially for bright, transparent waters, is an error; remember the
fish from below look at it against the sky, and will see it the plainer
the more it is colored. The less distinguishable to the angler the more
apparent it is to them. This can be proved without difficulty, by
holding against the light two strands, one plain and the other colored.
For salmon, it should, if single, be round and strong; for trout, fine
and delicate.
NOTE: Since the above was written, immense strides have been made
in this country in the manufacture of fine tackle, while the prices
of many articles have been reduced. Our rods, reels and lines are
the finest in the world, nothing equal to a split-bamboo rod or an
Imbrie reel being produced anywhere. Our lines, both for trout and
bass, combine a fineness and strength unknown even in England,
which is the birth-place and home of angling.