ach, of different
thickness--that is, fine, medium, and stout, the latter for salmon and
sea-trout fishing. That quantity should suffice for a fortnight's
outing, even making allowance for breakage, and leave you some over for
another time: but in this matter it is better to run no risk of being
short. The gut should be stained a light tea colour, or the faintest
blue: it can be bought so. There is no occasion for them being more
than three yards long, as we cannot advocate fishing with more than
three flies at a time. If three flies are properly placed on a line, and
the line be properly handled in the casting, they will cover as much
water as any number of flies. Besides, there is far less chance of a
"fankle," to use a most expressive Scotch word, than when four or more
flies are used. In this, however, _chacun a son gout_,--we are only
giving an opinion after trying both ways.

In making up a cast of flies, _have no loops_ of any kind, excepting the
one by which the cast is attached to your silk-and-hair line. The
water-knot is so simple and neat, that it is the best for the purpose of
fixing on the tail-fly, which, by the way, should be the heaviest of
those you are about to use, if there is any difference between them. In
case our readers don't know the water-knot, we give an illustration
which explains itself--

[Illustration]

The loops are pulled tight, and then the fly and the line are drawn in
opposite directions, the result being that the knots formed by the
loops meet and make a firm, and at the same time an almost
imperceptible, joining. You then clip off any ends that may remain. So
much for the tail fly. The putting on of the other two is simplicity
itself. You take the strand of gut on which the next fly you purpose
affixing is dressed, and laying it along the main line, _taking care to
have the hook lying in the reverse direction from the tail fly_, you tie
it into the line a yard from the fly already attached. In tying it in,
leave the hook hanging about two and a half inches from the line. The
third, or "bob" fly, is attached in like manner, and thus your cast of
flies is completed. The only objection to this method of making up a
cast is, that once the middle and bob flies are tied in, they cannot be
used again. This is quite true; but the keen angler will submit to the
little extra expense on this score for the gratification which the sight
of a really neat cast will afford him. The system of su