BOOK ON ANGLING by Francis Francis - concerning care of fine scissors: "They should be kept in a leather sheath, and out of the ken of all females, or they will be looked on as lawful spoil and degraded to lace work, or to some hideous muslin enchantment designed to entrap some wretched gudgeon."

- From Wayne Luallen

DYEING FIERY BROWN

On page 47 of A Guide to Salmon Flies (By John Buckland and Arthur Oglesby, the Crowood Press, 1990) there is a color plate which includes an old Fiery Brown. In describing the fly the authors state "There are wonderful stories about trying to find the 'real' fiery brown which has a reputation for being the most taking of colours. It is a sort of search for the Holy Grail."

If the colors in that plate are true there is a simple dyeing process for getting darned close to the Grail. Use Tincture of Iodine (yes, the antiseptic that upholds the name ‘fiery’) diluted with about twenty parts of distilled water. Dunk your clean seal into the solution without heat or additives (no vinegar required) and leave it. I left mine an hour without a problem. Rinse and let dry. A small bottle of Iodine will not dye very much seal, but it will turn that seal fiery brown.

- From Marvin Nolte

PALMERED HACKLES

Ever wonder when Palmering a body hackle on a Salmon Fly where the term "Palmer" came from? You have? (Whew!). Well, you're in luck, because I think there's an answer. In my dictionary Palmer is a noun and is defined as "A person wearing crossed Palm leaves as a sign of his pilgrimage to the Holy Land." Alex Simpson, in Scotland, told me that the Crusaders of the 11th - 13th Century were called "Palmers". Alex went on to say that "Caterpillars which are imitated with stiff
hackles, in olden days, were called Palmers because on being hatched, straight away they go on a pilgrimage for food like the Pilgrims who traveled all over the Holy Land."

Then as a final note my dictionary defines a Palmer Worm as "A caterpillar that suddenly appears in great numbers devouring herbage." - From Wayne Luallen

ABOUT POLISHING TINSEL

Last issue a question was raised about polishing tarnished tinsel. Two answers were received that may help out. Each answer takes a different viewpoint. Choose which is best for you.

From Alec Jackson -

"Someone asks about cleaning and polishing tinsels. To which I respond if tinsel needs cleaning and polishing then you have the wrong stuff. In my opinion the only tinsel worth having has MADE IN FRANCE and VERNI stamped or branded on the spool (VERNI means it has been varnished by the maker). Herter's used to be my source and I still have tinsel bought from them over 20 years ago for $1.29 per ounce spool (Keep it wrapped in foil). Today the only source of such tinsel which I know of is Bill Hunter's (at least while Bill owned the store). Expect to pay over $30.00 per ounce if you buy in bulk - say 4 ounces and up of each type.

Just because sly shops say they have French tinsel don't believe them. Most of the tinsel sold as French tinsel will deteriorate with time. Always look for MADE IN FRANCE and VERNI stamped or branded on the bobbin (I've only seen the real thing on wooden bobbins). Insist on VERNI - varnished tinsel."

And from Dave (no last name) -

"I was fortunate enough to acquire some French tinsel awhile back and in looking it over I noticed how dull and tarnished a few spools of the gold flat and oval tinsel compared to the others! So I bought a small can of BRASSO and with a paper towel rubbed it along the tinsel to coat it well, then I let it dry so it looked like it had a light coating of dust on the tinsel. After this I drew the tinsel through a soft dust cloth and Wah Lah! Just like new again. I'm not sure how long it will stay that way without redoing it again, but it has been six months and I haven't noticed any discoloration in the tinsel.

Of course if you really wanted to make sure your tinsel doesn't tarnish you can put a drop or two of Fleximent on your fingers and draw your tinsel through it to give it a light even coat of lacquer. But don't go over the lacquer with Brasso because it melts the lacquer and ,you're back to square one again."