No. 2. The body is made of black floss silk, tipped with silver, tag of orange, ribbed with broad silver plate up the body, beside which a claret hackle, and the tail two toppings; the wings are made of a large red rump spear feather of the golden pheasant in the centre, four large toppings with a mixture of sprigging at each side of the following: Argus pheasant tail, bustard, blue and yellow macaw, blue jay at the shoulder, and a large size head of puce pig hair. Hook No. 1 or 2, Spring Salmon size.
No. 3. The body is made of black floss silk, ribbed with silver, orange tag, tip of silver, tail a topping with a little red; the wings are made of the whole yellow feathers of the macaw which grow under the wings of the bird, two tipped feathers mixed with bustard, Argus, blue and scarlet macaw, and a blue head of pig hair or mohair. No. 1 or 2 hook.
No. 4. The body is made of light puce floss silk, ribbed with silver plate and gold twist, a claret hackle over it, tipped with silver, a topping for tail, and orange tag; the wings are made of yellow macaw, a red spear feather, four toppings, a mixture of bustard golden pheasant tail, kingfisher's each side, and a large blue head of mohair. (It cannot be too large for the Shannon). No. 1 hook, large Salmon size.
No. 5. The body is made of puce floss, ribbed with broad silver and gold twist, purple hackle over it, orange tag, tip of silver, and tail a topping; the wings are made of two body feathers of the yellow macaw, mixed with blue macaw tail and Argus, two large toppings, and a dark blue pig hair head. Salmon hook No. 2, spring size.
No. 6. This is another excellent fly. The wings are like the last named fly; a black floss body, ribbed with silver, and yellow hackle over it; a large blue head, picked out to hang down like a hackle. No. 3 hook. This is a fly of "The Ogormans," of Ennis, in the County of Clare, see his Work on Angling. The two Salmon Flies in the plate, with "picker," are described for Killarney.
SALMON RIVERS.
It will be most advantageous to my readers that I should give them some accurate accounts of the various Salmon Rivers, pointing out at the same time the best station on each where sport may be expected with the fly, and to know where to proceed before starting on their angling excursion, as the whole fun is in knowing the right places to prevent disappointment. There are numerous small size rivers, the local flies for which are of a plain and sombre hue, and which it will be necessary the fisher should be acquainted with—these I will give as I proceed.
In summer, when the rivers are low, small plain flies are best, or rather so on dark days, with a good ripple, then they will entice them. They do not rise often when the sun is warm, except in rapid streams. Use small black bodied flies with silver and middling gaudy wings, mixed with teal or cock of the north feather—change it to a gaudy one if they do not take the black. Early in the mornings before the sun strikes the water, and from three o'clock till dark, or about sunset is a good time to move a large fish with a fly he likes. The two flies at the bottom of the plate with "picker," are most likely ones for that time in the day. The plain one is brown body, and wings of mallard. The bottom one is green body, and mixed wings of gaudy feathers; the body is a jointed one, of peacock green. I made it nearly twenty years ago,—it is a beautiful specimen of a gaudy fly for rapids after a flood.