twist them over again Some intermingle Silk in the twisting but I cannot approve of it but a Line of all Silk is not amiss also a Line made of the smallest Lute-string is very good but that it will soon rot by the Water The best colour for Lines is the sorrel white and grey the two last for clear waters and the grey for muddy Rivers neither is the pale wacry green to be contemned which colour you may make after this manner Take a pint of strong Ale half a pound of Soot a small quantity of the juice of Walnut-leaves with the like quantity of Alum put these into a Pipkin and boil them together about half an hour Having so done take it off the fire and when it is cold put in your Hair Or thus Take a pottle of Alum-water somewhat more than a handful of Marigold-flowers boil them till a yellow scum arise then take half a pound of green Copperas with as much Verdegreece and beat them together to a fine powder put these with the Hair into the Alum-Water and let it lie ten hours or more then take the Hair out and let it dry In the making your Line leave a Bought at both ends the one to put it to and take it srom the Rod the other to hang your lowest link upon to which your Hook is fastned and so you may change your Hook as often as you please Of the Hook Flote and other things worth the Observation YOur Hook ought to be long in the shank somewhat round in its circumference the point standing even and straight and let the bending be in the shank Use strong but small Silk in the setting on of your Hook laying the Hair on the inside of your Hook for if it be on the outside the Silk will fret and cut it a sunder As for the Flotes there are divers way of making them Some use your Muscovy-Duck-quills which are the best for still Waters but for strong streams take good sound Cork without flaws or holes and bore it through with a hot Iron then put into it a Quill of a fit proportion then pare your Cork into a Pyramidal form of what bigness you think fit after this grind it smooth To plum your Ground you must carry with you a Musquet-bullet with a hole made through it or any other sort of Plummet tying this to a strong twist hang it on your Hook and so you will find the depth of the Water And that you may not incommode your Tackle it will be very requisite to make several partitions in pieces of Parchment sowed together by which each Utensil may have a place by it self In any wise forget not to carry a little Whetstone with you to sharpen your Hooks if you find them blunt and dull I need not advise you how to carry your BOB and PALMER or put you in mind of having several Boxes of divers sizes for your Hooks Corks Silk Thread Lead Flies c. or admonish you not to forget your Linnen and Wollen Bags for all sorts os Baits but let me forwarn you not to have a PAUNDER that is heavy for it can never be light enough those which are made of Osiers I think are the best Lastly forget not carry with you a small Pole with a Loop at the end thereof to which you may fasten a small Net to land great Fish withal There is another way much better and that is by the Landing-hook which hath a Screw at the end of it to screw it into the Socket of a Pole to which Socket may be fitted also two other Hooks the one to pull out Wood and the other sharp to our away Weeds Of Flies Natural and Artificial and how to use them NAtural Flies are innumerable there being as many kinds as there are different sorts of Fruits to avoid prolixity I shall onely name some of them viz. the Dun-fly the Stone or May-fly the Red Fly the Moor-fly the Tawny-fly the Shel-fly the Cloudy or Blackish-fly the Flag-fly the Vine-fly also Caterpillers Canker-flies and Bear-flies with Thousands more which frequent Meadows and Rivers for the contemplation of all but particularly the recreation of Anglers These come in sooner or later according to the season of the year that is sooner or later according to the forwardness or backwardness of the Spring for Flies being bred of Putrefaction commence their being according as the Heat doth further their seminal vertue unto animation I cannot prescribe you Rules to know when each Fly cometh in and is most grateful to every sort of Fish and therefore I shall leave the knowledge hereof to your own observation Moreover there are several sorts of Flies according to the several natures of divers Soils and Rivers or diversity of Plants yet some there are common to all although but few All Flies are very good in their seasons for such Fish as rise at the Fly but some more peculiarly good as being better beloved by some sort of fish Fish generally rise at these Flies most eagerly when most sorts of Flies resort to the Water-side hanging in a manner in clusters on Trees and Bushes delighting themselves to skip thence and play upon the water and then do the fish shew their craft in catching them To the intent you may the better know what kind of Fly the Fish then most covet observe thus to do coming in the Morning to the River-side beat the Bushes with your Rod and take up what variety you may of all sorts of Flies and try them all by which means you will quickly know which are in greatest estimation among them Not but that they will change their Fly sometimes but then it is when they have glutted themselves there with for five or six days together which is commonly upon the going out of that Fly for Fish never covet that Fly more than when there is greatest plenty contemning them at their first coming in There are two ways to fish with these natural Flies either on the surface of the water or a little underneath it Now when you angle for Chevin Roach or Dace with the natural Fly move it not swiftly when you see the Fish make at it but rather let it glide spontaneously towards it with the Stream If it be in a still and slow water draw the Fly slowly sideways by him that will make him eager in pursuit of it whereas if you should move it swiftly they will not follow it being a lazy fish and slow of motion These fish delight to shew themselves in a Sun-shiny-day almost on the very surface of the Water by which means you may pick and choose The Artificial Fly is seldome used but in blustering weather when by the Winds the Waters are so troubled that the Natural Fly cannot be seen nor rest upon them There are according to the opinion of Mr. Walton a very ingenious man and an excellent Angler twelve sorts of Artificial Flies to angle with on the top of the Water
should not be despised The Spawners are usually full of Spawn all the Summer long for they breed often as it is but necessary being both Prey and Baits to other fish They come into the Rivers generally about March and April and there continue till the cold weather drive them into their Winter quarters again Of colour this fish is greenish or wavy sky-coloured his Belly is very white but his Back is blackish This Fish will bite sharply at a small Worm and if you will trouble your self to catch enough of them you may make an excellent Tansie of them cutting off their Heads and Tails and frying them in Eggs saucing them with Butter Sugar and Verjuice Anglers use to find him oftner then they would Deep places he seldom frequents It is a Fish no way curious of his feeding for any Bait pleaseth him if he can but swallow it he will strain hard for what he cannot gorge The chiefest food he loveth is a small red Worm Wasps or Cad-baits Of the POPE or RUFF THis Fish with a double name is small and seldome grows bigger than Gudgeon in shape he is not unlike a Pearch but esteemed better food being of tast as pleasant and delightful as any fish whatever The Ruff frequents the deepest running places in a Gravel River the exact bottom of which being found by plumbing and your Hooks being baited with small red or brandling Worms for I would have you fish with two or three you will have incomparable sport as long as you desire The Ruff makes excellent sport with an unexperienced Angler for he is a greedy biter and they are in great Shoals together where the Water is deep smooth and calm If you would catch a good round quantity bait your ground with Earth and angle for them with a small red Worm Of the PIKE THE Pike is a very long-liv'd creature and if we may credit Sir Francis Bacon or Gesner that famous Brutologist he outlives all other Fish which is pitty he being as absolute a Tyrant of the fresh-Fresh-waters as the Salmon is the King thereof The larger the Pike the courser the food the smaller being ever best contrary to the nature of Eels which improve their goodness by their bulk and age He is a melancholick Fish because he never swims in Shoals but rests himself alone and he is as bold as any fish whatever if we may believe Report which informs us a Pike hath been known to fight with an Otter for a Carp he had taken and was carrying out of the Water Another bit a Mule by the Lip as he was drinking and stuck thereunto so fast that by that means the Owner of the Mule took him Another bit a Maid by the Foot as she was washing He will frequently devour his own kind unnaturally from whence I suppose he may obtain the name of a Freshwater-wolf As the Pike is in nature like the Hawk a Bird of Prey so he is like her in generation neither of them breeding but once a year and when the Pike spawns it is between February and March The best Pikes are found in Rivers the worst in Meres or Ponds His common Food is either Pickerel weed Frogs or what fish he can procure This Pickerel-weed some say both feeds and breeds them There are two ways of fishing for the Pike first by the Ledger secondly by the Walking-bait The Ledger-bait is fix'd in one certain place whilst the Angler may be absent and this must be a living Bait either Fish or Frog Of Fish the best are a Dace Roach or Pearch for Frogs the yellowest are the best How to keep them alive on your Hook your own ingenuity will inform you When you intend to use the Ledger-bait if it be a Fish stick your Hook through his upper Lip and then fastning it to a strong Line at least twelve or fourteen yards in length tie the other end of the Line either to some Stake in the ground or to some bough of a Tree near the Pike's usual haunt or where you think 't is like he may come Then winde your Line on a sorked stick big enough to keep the bait from drawing it under water all except about half yard or somewhat more and your stick having a small celft at the end fasten your Line therein but so that when the Pike comes he may easily draw it forth and have Line enough to go to his hold and pouch If your Bait be a Frog put the Arming-wyre in at his Mouth and out at his Gills and then with a fine Needle and Silk sow the upper part of his Leg with one stitch onely to your Arming-wyre or tie his Leg above the upper joynt to the Wyre but as gently as you can lest you hurt him I have seen excellent sport with living baits tied about the Bodies of two or three couple of Ducks driven over a place where store of Pikes have frequented I have observed the Pike to strike so violently at the living Bait that being hung he hath drawn the Duck clear under water The like may be done with such baits tied to bladders suffering them to float down the River whilst you mind your sport walking on its Banks The next way of Angling for a Pike is with a Trowl with a Winch to wind it up withal As this Fish is very strong so must your Tackle and your Rod must not be very slender at top where must be placed a Ring for your Line to run through Your Line must be Silk two yards and a quarter next the Hook which mast be double and strongly armed with a Wyre about seven Inches the rest of your Line may be strong Shoemakers-thread Upon the shank of the Hook fasten some smooth Lead and having placed your Hook in the Mouth of a Minnow Dace or Roach with your Lead sink your Bait with his head downward Having so done cast your Bait up and down if you feel him at the hook give him length enough to run away with the Bait and pouch it which when you think he hath done strike him with a smart jerk and so continue your sport with him as long as you shall think fit Take likewise this next Direction from a friend that speaks not much different When you intend to Trowl you may make choice either of Roach Dace Bleak or Gudgeon to bait withal but for my own part I always prefer the Guogeon which you must do thus put your Arming-wyre in at the Mouth and thrusting it along by the Back bring it out again at the Tail and there faslen it with a Thread Having your Reel in your hand and your Line fastned to your hook through a Ring at the top of your Rod cast your bait into some likely place and move it up and down in the water as you walk gently by the River-side when you have a bite which you may easily feel for he will give a good tug be sure to give him Line enough You
do and therefore there is less danger of breaking your Line If you will angle for Salmon at ground then take three or four Garden-worms well scoured and put them on your Hook at once and fish with them in the same manner as you do for Trouts Be sure to give the Salmon as well as all other fish time to go gorge the Bait and be not over-hasty unless your bait be so tender it will not endure nibbling at Much more may be said of Salmon-fishing which I shall pass by leaving the rest to your own practice and observation Of the TENCH I Shall now discover an approved way how to take Tench and Carp in a muddy Pond but know I do not make publick this following Secret to teach Knaves how to rob Gentlemens Ponds but that the proper Owners may be able upon cases of necessity to supply themselves with Fish without being put to so much trouble and charge as to sue their Ponds But to the purpose In the first place you must provide your self with a very good large Casting-net well leaded let not the Meshes from the Crown to a full yard and a half be too small for then if the Pond be any thing of a depth the fish will strike away before the Net comes to the ground the whole Net ought to have a large Mesh well leaded and deep Tucked The second thing to be done is to make the place clean from Stakes and Bushes and try with the Net before you intend for the sport if your Net happen to hang then all your pains will prove ineffectual therefore you must be sure before you cast in your Net that you clear and cleanse the place very well twice or thrice with a Rake Then take a quarter of a peck of Wheat baking it well in an Oven putting in near three quarts of Water when it is well baked take five pints of Blood and incorporate the Wheat and Blood together adding thereto as much Bran as is sufficient to make a Paste thereof and that it may the better hold together put some lay to it after this knead it well together with a quart of Lob worms chopt in pieces and worked into Paste as aforesaid then roll it into balls as big as a Goose-egg and throw it into the Pond within the circumference of your Casting-net and between whiles throw in some Grains and when you think the fish have found out the Baiting-place then come in the close of the Evening having baited very early in the Morning and cast your Net over the baited-place then take a long pole with a large Fork made for the purpose and stir all about the Net for the Carps and Tench are struck up beyond their Eyes in Mud and stand exactly upon their Heads let the Net lie near an half hour still stirring with your Pole if the place be not too deep when you have covered the Fish you may go into the Pond and take them out with your hands but if the water be deep when you find the Carps begin to stir for they cannot stand long on their heads in the Mud then lift up the Crown of your Net bolt upright with a long Staff that so the fish may play into the Tuck of the Net Here note that should you draw up your Net suddenly after you have cast it in it is an hundred pound to a penny whether you should take one Carp or Tench but letting the Net lie the Mud will choak them if they remove not out of it Now here I cannot omit a very pleasant story in my opinion A Gentleman having special Carps in his pond but not knowing how to take one of them unless it were by chance with Hook and Line I desired him that we might taste of his Carps and modestly told him a brace of them would serve our turns He answered I might freely have them if I knew how to catch them Hereupon I prepared some ingredients and having baited a convenient place very early in the Morning at the dusk of the Evening we came with a Casting-net and at the first throw covered a great quantity of fish as hereafter will appear but not one seem'd to stir a jot under the Net being all struck into the Mud. Hereupon the Gentleman fell a laughing heartily saying Sir If I had no other provision to trust to but what fish you shall catch this night I believe I shall go supperless to Bed Hearing him say so I desired that he would have a little patience for the fish were asleep and I was as yet loath to disturb them but half an hour hence if he would stay so long I should make bold to awake them with a witness So the Gentleman having smoaked a pipe of Tobacco a Carp began to play in the Net and after this in a very little time a great many more began to dance and skip whereupon I lifted up the Crown that they might play in the Tuck and when I thought they were all got out of the Mud I began to draw and at one draught drew up in the Net Seventy odd Carps great and small to the admiration and great satisfaction of the Owner and the rest of the company having in all their life-time not seen the like before The Tench hath but small Scales and they smooth yet very large Fins with a red Circle about his Eyes and a little Barb hanging at each corner of his Mouth The Slime of a Tench is very medicinal to wounded Fishes and therefore he is commonly called the Fishes Physitian The Pike is so sensible of his vertue that he will not injure the Tench though he will seize on any other fish of his size that comes in his way And when the Pike is sick or hurt he applies himself to the Tench and finds cure by rubbing himself against him The Tench hath a greater love for Ponds than clear Rivers and delights himself amongst Weeds and loves to feed in very foul Water and yet his food is nourishing and pleasant The time of Angling for him is early and late both morning and evening in the moneths of June July and August or all night in the still parts of the River He is a great lover of large red Worms and will bite most eagerly at them if you first dip them in Tar. The Tench loves also all sorts of Paste made up with strong-sented Oyls or with Tar or a Paste made of brown Bread and Honey He will bite also at a Cad-worm a Lob worm a Flag-worm green Gentle Cad-bait Marsh-worm or soft boyled Bread-grain Of the TORCOTH THe Torcoth is a fish having a red Belly but of what estimation I know not for that let the Welshmen speak who best know him for as I have heard he is only to be found in the Pool Lin-peris in Carnarvanshire I only name him that you may know there is such a fish Of the TROUT IT is observed that the Trout comes in and goes out
of season with the Stag and Buck and Spawns about October or November which is the more to be wondred at because most other fish Spawn in warm weather when the Sun by his heat hath adapted the Earth and Water making them fit for generation All the Winter the Trout is Sick Lean and unwholsome and you shall frequently then find him Louzy These Trout-lice are a small Worm with a big Head sticking close to his sides and sucking moisture from him that gave them being and he is not freed from them till the Spring or the begining of Summer at which time his strength increaseth and then he deserteth the still deep waters and betakes himself to gravelly ground against which he never leaves rubing till he hath cleansed himself of his Louziness and then he delights to be in the sharp Streams and such as are swift where he will lie in wait for Minnows and May-flies at the latter end of which month he is in his prime being better and fatter in that Month especially at the latter end thereof than in any other throughout the whole year There are several sorts of Trouts highly prizable as the Fordidge-Trout the Amerly-Trout the Bull-Trout in Northumberland with many more which I shall forbear to mention but only tell you what is generally observed and that is that the red and yellow Trouts are the best and as'to the Sex the Female is the best having a less head and a deeper body then the Male. By their Hog-back you shall know that they are in season with the like note for all other fish The Trout is usually caught with a Worm Minnow or Fly natural or artificial There are several sorts of Worms which are baits for the Angler the Earth-worm the Dug-worm the Maggot or Gentle but for the Trout the Lob-worm and Brandling are the best or Squirril-tail having a red head streakt down the back and a broad Tail The Brandling is found commonly in an old Dung-hill Cow-dung Hogs-dung or Tanners-bark Here note that whatever Worms you fish withal are the better for keeping which must be in an Earthen pot with Moss which you must change often in Summer that is once in three or four daies and in twice as long time in Winter When you fish for a Trout by hand on the ground take a Lob-worm and clap your Hook into him a little above the middle and out again a little below the same then draw your Worm above the arming of your Hook making your first entrance at the Tail end that the point of the Hook may come out at the Head-end When you fish with a Minnow take the whitest and middle-sized for those are the best and place him so on your Hook that he may turn round when he is drawn against the Stream The best Instructions for putting the Minnow on the Hook which I can lay down are these Put your Hook in at his Mouth and out at his Gill drawing it through about three Inches then put the Hook again into his Mouth and let the point and beard come out at his Tail then the Hook and his Tail you must tie about with a fine white Thread and let the body of the Minnow be almost straight on the Hook then try against the Stream whether it will turn where note it cannot turn too fast If you want a Minnow a small Loach or Sticklebag will serve the turn if none of these can be gotten you may in their season have an Artificial one made of Cloath by one that is living which I have found to be every whit as good a Bait as what are natural If you fish with a Natural or Artificial Fly then follow such directions as I have already prescribed in a foregoing Chapter which particularly discourses of Flies Natural and Artificial Of the UMBER IT is the opinion some that the Umber and Grailing differ onely in Names and are of a Trout-kind but seldom grow to the bigness of a Trout I having never seen nor heard any exceed the length of eighteen Inches He frequents such Rivers as the Trouts do and is taken with the same Baits especially the Fly and being a simple Fish is more bold than the Trout is In the Winter he absconds himself but after April he appears abroad and is very gamesome and pleasant He is very tender-mouth'd and therefore quickly lost after he is struck For what more may be said I refer you to the Chapter of the Grailing THus have I given you an Alphabetical and summary account of the Nature of Fish and the several ways to take them according to ancient and modern experience I shall onely give you more a short discovery of their Haunts and so I shall conclude this Treatise Next to the Art of taking Fish the knowledge of their Haunts and proper places to find them in according to their kinds is rightly to be considered for not knowing what Rivers or what parts of them are fittest for your Baits or what Baits best sute with each River and the fish therein contained you onely angle at adventure and instead of reaping satisfaction you onely lose your pains and your labour Wherefore in the first place you are to understand that fishes change places with the season Some in the Summer keep always near the top or rim of the Water others are continually at the bottom For the first you may angle with a Float or Fly the latter are to be found at the Arches of Bridges Mill-ponds Wears Flood-gates c. In Winter all fish in general fly into deep Waters The Barbel Roach Dace and Ruff delight in sandy gravelly ground The deepest part of the River and the Shadows of Trees are equally grateful The Bream Pike and Chub choose a Clay and Ouzie ground The Bream delights most in the midst of a River whose Stream is not too rapid but gently gliding the Pike is for still Waters full of Fry and that he may the better and securer seize his Prey he frequently absconds himself amongst Water-docks under Bushes or Bull-rushes Carp Tench and Eel frequent still Waters and what are foul and muddy Eels lie lurking under Roots or Stones The Carp is for the deepest place of the Water and where there are green Weeds the Carp and Tench delight most of all Pearch delight in gentle Streams not too deep yet they must not be shallow and a hollow Bank is their chiefest refuge Gudgeons love sandy ground in gentle Streams they affect small Rivers above the large or small Brooks and bite best in the Spring till they Spawn The Salmon delights most in Rivers which ebb and flow are large and have a swift current in such Rivers are the greatest plenty If the Rivers are rocky or weedy so much the better Shad Thwait Plaice and Flounder have the greatest love for salt or brackish Waters which ebb and flow The Umber affects Marly Clay grounds clear and swift Streams but they must then be far from the Sea
Spade which is useful to dig amongst Roots having very sharp edges the flat broad Spade to dig withal when the Trench is better opened and the ground softer Mattocks and Pick-axes to dig in hard ground where a Spade will do but little service the Coal-rake to cleanse the Hole and to keep it from stopping up the Clamps whereby you may take a Fox or Badger out alive to make sport therewith afterwards And it would not be amiss to have a Pail of Water to refresh your Terriers after they are come out of the Earth to take breath In this order you may besiege a Fox or Badger in their strongest Holes or Castles and may break their Casmats Platforms Parapets and work to them with Mines and Counter-mines until you have obtained your satisfaction But there is a shorter method than this which by reason of its commonness I shall forbear to mention Of the Otter IT is supposed by some that the Otter is of the kind of Beavers being it is an amphibious creature living both in the Water and on the Land besides the outward form of the parts beareth a similitude of that beast Some say were his tail off he were in all parts like a Beaver differing in nothing but habitation For the Beaver frequenteth both the Salt-water and the Fresh but the Otter never goeth to the Salt Though the Otter live in the Water yet it doth not breath like Fishes through the benefit of the Water it doth breath like other four-footed beasts yet it will remain a long time underneath the Water without respiration If he want prey in the Waters then will he quit them for the Land and if by painful hunting ashore he cannot fill his belly he will feed on Herbs Snails or Frogs neither will he take less pains in the water to satisfie hunger for he will swim two miles together against the stream that so when his belly is full the current of the stream may carry him down again to his designed Lodging which is near the water very artificially built with boughs sprigs and sticks couching together in excellent order wherein he sitteth to keep him from the wet In the hunting of Fish he often pops his Nose above water to take breath It is a creature of wonderful swistness and nimbleness in taking his prey and for greediness takes more than he knows what to do with It is a very subtile and crafty beast and indowed with a wonderful sagacity and sense of smelling insomuch that he can directly wind the Fishes in the waters a mile or two off The flesh of this beast is both cold and filthy because it feedeth on stinking Fish and therefore not fit to be eaten yet it is eaten in Germany and the Carthusian Fryers who are forbidden to eat all manner of flesh of other four-footed beasts yet they are not prohibited the eating of Otters There are those in England who lately have highly valued an Otter-pie much good may it do them with it These Otters must be hunted by special Dogs such as are called Otter hounds and also with special Instruments called Otter-spears When they find themselves wounded with a spear they then come to Land where they fight with the Dogs furiously and except they be first wounded they forsake not the Water for they are not ignorant how safe a refuge the Waters are un to them and how unequal a combat they shall sustain with Men and Dogs upon the Land yet because the cold Water annoyeth their green wounds therefore they spin out their lives to the length of the thread chusing rather to die in torments among Dogs than to die in the Waters The Food of an Otter as I said is Fish and her abode is commonly under the Root of some Tree near Rivers Brooks Pools Meers or Fish-ponds and sometimes she will lie in a hollow Tree four or five foot above ground and no Vermin can be more destructive to a Warren than the Otter is to a Fish-pond for she diveth and hunteth under water after that most wonderful manner that few fish escape her unless they are very swift and great An Otter and Ferret grow salt much about the same time and bring forth their young much after the same manner neither having their constant number There is much craft and cunning in the hunting them yet with pains-taking you may ensnare them under the water and by River-sides as you may a Hare with Hare-pipes and such-like Gins. They bite sore and venomously and when occasion serves they will desend themselves stoutly If after their ensnaring they chance to abide there long they will soon enlarge themselves with their teeth These creatures are footed like your water-Fowl having a web between their claws and have no heel but a round ball under the soal of their Feet and their Track is called their Mark as the Slot of a Hart and their Excrements are called Spraints An Otter will not abide long in a place for he is apt to be afraid and take distasle having an excellent Ear and Nose for hearing and smelling and then he will forsake his Couch and shift a mile or two up or down the River and this he will do according as he findes scarcity of fishing In hunting of the Otter observe this to send some to one side of the River whilst you are on the other and so beat on the banks with your Dogs and so you will soon find if there be an Otter in that quarter for an Otter cannot endure long in the water but must come forth to make his Spraints and in the night sometimes to feed on Grass and such Herbs as the fields afford If any of the Hounds find out an Otter then look in the soft grounds and moist places to see which way he bent his head if the marks make no discovery you may partly perceive it by the spraints and so follow the Hounds and lodge him as a Hart or Deer If you find not the Otter quickly you may then imagine he is gone to couch somewhere farther off from the River for sometimes he will seek his food a mile from the place of his rest chusing rather to go up the River than down because upwards he meets with better scent of Fish and bearing his nose into the wind he shall the sooner finde any fault that is above him Remember in the Hunting of the Otter that you and your friends carry your Otter-spears to watch his Vents for that is the chief advantage and if you perceive where the Otter swims under water then strive to get to a stand before him where he would vent and there endeavour to strike him with your spear but if you miss pursue him with the Hounds which if they be good Otter-hounds and perfectly entred will come chaunting and trailing along by the River-side and will beat every Tree-root every Osier-bed and tuft of Bull-rushes nay sometimes they will take the Water and beat it like a Spaniel And
they stagger and reel to and fro and then by a secret instinct they remedy the straightness of their guts by eating an herb called Arum in English Wake-robbin or Calves-foot by the acidity whereof their guts are enlarged and being recovered they remain more fierce and cruel than at other times during the time their young are with them and this is the herb some say which they eat to make them sleep so long in winter without sense of cold or hunger They are whelped most commonly in March sometimes two and not above five in number the most part of them are dead one whole day after they are whelped but the Bear doth so lick them and warm them with her breath and hug them in her bosom that she quickly revives them again It is commonly received as a truth though it be a palpable vulgar errour That the whelps of Bears at their first littering are without all form and fashion and nothing but a little congealed blood like a lump of flesh which afterwards the old one frameth with her tongue by licking them to her own likeness This opinion may be easily disproved for they are onely littered blind without hair and the hinder-legs not perfect the fore-feet folded up like a fist and other members deformed by reason of the immoderate humour or moistness in them which also is one cause why she cannot retain in her womb the seed to the perfection of the young ones whereof Joachimus Rheticus is an eye-witness As soon as the dam perceiveth her cubs to grow strong she suckleth them no longer by reason of their curstness for they will sorely bite her if they cannot get suck enough After this she preyeth abroad upon any thing she can meet with which she eates and casts up again to her young ones and so feeds them till they can prey for themselves They will climb a tree for the fruit If they be hunted they will follow a man but not run upon him unless they are wounded They are very strong in their paws in such sort that they will so hug a man or dog till they have broke his back or squeez'd his guts out of his belly with a single paw they will pull a lusty dog to their tearing and devouring mouth They bite very severely for they will bite a man's head to the very brains and for an arm or leg they will crash it as a dog may do a slender bone of mutton When they are hunted they are so heavy that they make no speed and so are always in sight of the dogs They stand not at bay as a Boar but fly wallowing but if the hounds stick in they will fight valiantly in their own defence sometimes they stand up straight on their hinder-feet and then take that as a sign of fear and cowardize they fight stoutest and strongest on all four They have an excellent scent and smell further off than any other beast except the Boar for in a whole forest they will smell out a tree laden with mast They may be hunted with hounds mastiffs or grey-hounds and they are chased and kill'd with bows Boar-spears darts and swords so are they also taken in snares caves and pits with other engines They do naturally abide in great mountains but when it snoweth or in hard weather then they descend into valleys and forests for provision They cast their lesses sometimes in round croteys and sometimes flat like a bullock according to their feeding They go sometimes a gallop and at other times an amble but they go most at case when they wallow When they come from their feeding they beat commonly the high-ways and beaten paths and wheresoever they go out of the high-ways there you may be sure they are gone to their dens for they use no doublings nor subtilties They tumble and wallow in water and mire as swine and they feed like a dog Some say their flesh is very good food let who will eat it for me who are not so nicely palated as my self The best finding of a Bear is with a leam-hound and yet he who is without one may trail after a Bear as we do after a Buck or Roe and you may lodge and hunt them as you do a Buck. For the more speedy execution mingle mastiffs among your hounds for they will pinch the Bear and so provoke her to anger until at last they bring her to the bay or else drive her out of the plain into the covert not letting her be at rest till she fight in her own defence Of the Beaver A Beaver differeth but a little from an Otter but in his tail his colour is somewhat yellow and white aspersed with ash-colour which stand out beyond the shorter hairs double their length and are neat and soft like an Otters There is plenty of them in the river Pontus whence the Beaver by some is called Canis Ponticus They are also bred in Spain some few in France Germany Polonia Sclavonia Russia Prussia Lithuania and abundance of them in New-England These beasts are amphibious living both on land and water both fresh and salt keeping the last in the day-time and the first in the night Without water they cannot live for they participate much of the nature of fish which may be gathered from their tails and hinder-legs They are about the bigness of a country cur their head short their ears small and round their teeth very long the under-teeth standing out beyond their lips three fingers breadth and the upper about half a finger being very broad crooked strong and sharp standing very deep in their mouth wherewith they defend themselves against beasts take fishes as it were upon hooks and will gnaw in sunder trees as big as a man's thigh Their fore-feet are like dogs and their hinder like geese made as it were on purpose to go on the land and swim in the water but the tail of this beast is most strange of all being without hair and covered over with a skin like the scales of a fish it being like a Soal and for the most part six fingers broad and half a foot long They are accounted a very delicate dish and eat like Barbels the manner of their dressing is by roasting them first and boiling or stewing them afterwards they must be food that is very sweet since this proverb proceeded from them Sweet is that fish which is no fish at all As for the wonderful manner of their building I shall let that alone since it is at large described by Gesner in his History of Beasts page 36. There is nothing so valuable in this beast as his stones for they are in great esteem and a precious commodity It hath been the opinion of some that when a Beaver is hunted and is in danger to be taken he biteth off his own stones knowing that for them onely is he thus pursued but this is found to be a meer fiction for their stones being small and placed like a Boar's
desire to attain to the compleat and perfect Art of Angling BY no means fish in light and dazling Apparel but let your Cloathing be of a dark dusky colour Wheresoever you use to angle for the Angler hath his peculiar haunt cast in once in four or five days Corn boiled soft if for Carp and Tench oftner also you may cast in Garbage Livers of Beasts Worms chopt in pieces or Grains steeped in Blood and dried This will attract the Fish unto the place and to keep them together as you fish throw in half a handful of Grains of ground Malt. This must be done in still water but in a Stream you must cast your Grains above your Hook and not about it sor as they float from your Hook so will they draw the Fish after them If you will bait a Stream get some Tin-boxes made full of holes no bigger than just fit for a Worm to creep through then fill these Boxes with them and having fastned a Plummet to sink them cast them into the Stream with a string fastned thereto that you may draw them forth when you please by the smalness of the holes asoresaid the Worms can crawl out but very leasurely and as they crawl the Fish will resort about them If you would bait for Salmon Trout Umber and the like in a Stream then take some blood and therewith incorporate fine Clay Barley and Malt ground adding thereto some Water make all in a Paste with Gum of lvy then form it into Cakes and cast them into the stream Some will knead or stick Worms therein fast by the head If you find your bait take no effect in the attracting of the Fish you may then conclude some Pike or Pearch lurketh thereabout to seize his Prey for fear of which the Fish dare not venture thereabout you must therefore remove these obstructions of your sport by taking your Trowl and let your Bait be either Brandlings or Lob-worms or you may use Gentles or Minows which they will greedily snap at Keep your Rod neither to dry nor to moist lest the one make it brittle and the other rotten If it be very soultry dry Weather wet your Rod a little before you Angle and having struck a good Fish keep your Rod bent and that will hinder him from running to the end of the Line by which means he will either break his hold or the Hook If you would know what Bait the Fish loves best at the time of your fishing having taken one slit his Gill and take out his Stomach and open it without bruising and there you will find what he last fed on and had a fancy to by which means you may bait your Hook accordingly When you fish shelter your self under some Bush or Tree or stand so far from the brink of the River that you can only discern your Float for Fish are timorous and are affrighted at the least sight or motion The best way of Angling with the Fly is down the River and not up as you will find by experience You never need make above half a dozen trials in one place either with Fly or Ground-bait when you angle for Trout for by that time he will either offer to take or refuse the Bait and not stir at all If you will have Fish bite eagerly and freely and without suspition you must present them with such Baits as naturally they are inclined to annd in such manner ar they are accustomed to receive them If you use Pastes for Baits you must add Flax or Wool mix a little Butter therewith and that will preserve the Paste srom washing off your Hook The Eyes of such Fishes as you kill are most excellent Baits on the Hook for almost any sort of Fish Lastly make not this or any other Recreation your dayly practice lest your immoderate Exercise therein bring a Plague upon you rather than a pleasure Astrological Elections for Angling in general IF as the Wise man saith and I think there is none that dare question his Authority that There is a proper time and season for every action under the Sun I hope it will not be offensive nor impertinent to show what time and seasons the intelligent Angler ought to make choice of that may answer his expectation For my own part I have so often experimented the truth of these Rules that by my good will I would never Angle but at an elected time the ingenious will not despise them and for others they were not intended And they are these If you would Neptune's scaly Subjects get Nights horned Queen in the Midheaven set ☽ Thence let her on the Paphian Goddess shine ♀ I th'West and greet her with a friendly Trine Be sure you always fortify the East And let the Maiden-Star possess the West ♠However let some Aquatick Sign ascend ♋ ♠♓ And let all power his happy Lord attend Then see the setting Constellation be Afflicted by some hateful Enemy ♂ At least his Lord the sixth with strength defend Let active power his Radiant Lord attend Then may you boldly venture to the Flood And take from thence what Fishes you see good What provision is to be made for Angling-Tools THE time of providing Stocks is in the Winter-Solstice when the Trees have shed their Leaves and the Sap is in the Roots For after January it ascends again into the Trunk and Branches at which time it is improper to gather Stocks or Tops Let your Stocks be taper-grown and your Tops the best Rush-ground-shoots you can get not knotty but proportionable aud slender otherwise they will neither cast nor strike well and by reason of their unpliableness your Line will be much endanger'd Having gathered your Stocks and Tops all in one season and as straight as you can bathe them saving the Tops over a gentle fire and use them not till fully seasoned till about a year and four months they are better if kept two years Now to preserve these Stocks or Tops from rotting or worm-eating rub them over thrice a year with Sallet or Linseed-oyl sweet Butter will serve if never salted and with any of these you must chafe well your Rods if bored pour in either of the Oyls and let them bathe therein twenty sour hours then pour it out again and this will preserve your I ops and Stocks from injury How to joyn the Stock or Top together or how to make all sorts of Rods for Fly Ground or otherwise with what lengths are best for several sorts of Fishing I need not here relate since without putting your self to the trouble you may purchase them of such as sell them at no dear rates How to make a Line after the best manner LET your Hair be round and twist it even for that strengthens the Line and let your Hair as near as you can be of an equal bigness then lay them in Water for a quarter of an hour bv which means you will find which of the Hairs do shrink than
of which these are the principal The first is to use his own words the Dun-fly in March made of dun Wool and the Feathers of a Partridge's Wing The second is a Dun-fly too and made of black Wool and the Feathers of a black Drake the Body made of the first and the Wings of the latter The third is the Stone-fly in April the Body is made of black Wool made yellow under the Wings and Tail The fourth is the Ruddy-fly in the beginning of May the Body being made of red Wool and bound about with black Silk with the Feathers of a red Capon which hang dangling on his sides next his Tail The fifth is the Yellow or Greenish Fly in June the Body is made of black Wool with a yellow List on either side and the Wings taken off the Wings of a Buzzard bound with black braked Hemp. The sixth is the Moorish-fly the Body made of duskish Wool and the Wings made of the blackish Mail of the Drake The seventh is the Tawny-fly good until the middle of June the Body made of tawny Wool the Wings made contrary one against another of the whitish Mail of the white Drake The eighth is the Wasp-fly in July the Body made of black Wool lapt about with yellow Silk the Wings made of Drake-feathers The ninth is the Shel-fly good in the middle of July the Body made of greenish Wool lapt about wirh the Herle of a Peacock's Tail and the Wings made of Buzzards Wings The tenth and last is the Drake-fly good in August the Body made of black Wool lapt about with black Silk his Wings of the Mail of the black Drake with a black head And then having named two more he concludes wittily Thus have you a Jury of Flies likely to betray and condemn all the Trouts in the River This in my opinion seems a tedious and difficult way I should rather think it better to find the Fly proper for every season and that which the Fish at that time most eagerly covet and make one as like it as possibly you may in colour shape and proportion and for your better imitation lay the natural Fly before you There are several ways of making these artificial Flies which I shall forbear here to relate thinking it more proper to leave it to the ingenuity of every particular person which will be very much help'd by seeing and observing the Artist's method in their composition The best Observations I can collect for artificial Fly-fishing are these First Observe to fish in a River somewhat disturbed by Rain or in a cloudy day when the Waters are moved by a gentle breez the South-wind is best the West indifferent but the East is stark naught But as to this I give not much credit for let the Sky be cloudy and the Season not too cold I 'le bid defiance to any Wind that blows not too hard If it blow high yet not so high but that you may conveniently guide your Tackle they will rise in plain Deeps where you shall kill the best Fish but if the Wind be small then is the best angling in swift Screams and be sure to keep your Fly in continual motion Secondly Keep as far from the Water-side as you can whether you fish with a Fly or Worm and fish down rhe Stream having the Sun on your back not suffering your Line to touch the Water but your Fly onely Here note that the light Fly makes most sport in a dark night and the darkest or least Fly in a clear dry Thirdly In clear Rivers ever Angle with a small Fly with slender Wings but in such as are muddied by Rain use a Fly that is larger bodied than ordinary Fourthly When the water beginneth to clear after Rain and becomes brownish then use a Red or Orange Fly if the day be clear a light-coloured Fly and a dark Fly for dark Waters if the Water be of a wheyish complexion then use a black or brown Fly I will not say these Directions or Rules are without exceptions Fifthly Let your Line for Fly-fishing be twice as long as your Rod unless the River be cumbred with Wood. Sixthly For every sort of Fly have several of the same differing in colour to sute with the different complexions of several waters and weathers Seventhly You must have a nimble eye and an active hand to strike presently with the rising of the fish or else he will be apt to spew out the Hook finding his mistake Eighthly Let your Fly fall first into the Water for if your Line fall first it scares the fish and therefore you must draw again and cast Ninthly When you angle in slow Rivers or still places with your Artificial Fly cast it over cross the River and let it sink a little in the water and draw it gently back again so as you raise no Circles nor break the Water and let the Fly float gently with the Current and hereby you will find excellent sport Lastly Take notice that your Salmon-flies must be made with their Wings standing one behind the other whether two or four He delights in the finest gawdiest colours you can choose in the Wings chiefly which must be long and so must the Tail Of Ground Angling IF you fish under the Water for a Trout it must be without a Float onely with a Plumb of Lead or a Bullet which is better because it will fowl on the ground And this way of fishing is very good in cold weather when the Fish swim very low you must place this Bullet about nine Inches from the baited Hook your Top must be very gentle that the Fish may more easily run away with the Bait and not be scared with the stifness of the Rod. You must not strike as soon as you feel the Fish bite but slack your Line a little that he may the better swallow the Bait and Hook When you strike do it gently for the least matter does it Let your Tackle be fine and slender for that is better than your big and strong Lines which serve onely to fright the Fish You will find it a better way of Angling to do it without Float or Lead onely making use of a Garden-worm drawing it up and down the Stream by which you will take more Trouts than any other way especially if it be in a clear day The Morning and Evening are the chiefest seasons for the Ground-Line for Trout but if the day prove Cloudy or the Water muddy you may Angle at Ground all the day Of Night-Angling GReat Fish especially Trouts are like Bucks wary and circumspect in their self-preservation and know the seasons most fit for them to feed without danger and that is the Night as they suppose thinking then they may most securely range abroad In your Night-angling take two great Garden-worms of an equal length and place them on your Hook then cast them a good distance and draw them to you again upon the superficies of the Water not
suffering them to sink to which end you must not use a Plummet You may easily hear the Fish rise and therefore give him some time to swallow your Bait then strike him gently If he will not take it at the top sink your Bait by adding some Lead and order your self as at Day-angling on the Ground I have frequently experienced it that the best Trouts bite in the Night rising most commonly in the still Deeps but unusually in the Streams Instead of these Garden-worms you may use a black Snail or a piece of Velvet in its likeness this is a most excellent Night-bait for a Trout and nothing like the black Snail for a Chub in the Morning early You may bait your Hook with a Minnow for a Trout thus put your Hook through the point of his lower Chap and draw it through then put your Hook in at his Mouth and bring the point to his Tail then draw your Line straight and it will bring him into a round compass But be sure you so order his Mouth that the Water get not in What times are seasonable and what unseasonable to Angle in CAlm and clear weather is very good to angle in but cool cloudy weather in Summer is best but it must not be so boisterously windy as that you cannot guide your Tackle The cooler the weather is in hottest Months the better it is and if a sudden violent shour hath disturbed and muddied the River then is your time to angle in the Stream at the ground with a red Worm Likewise a little before the Fish spawn is a very good time for Angling for then their Bellies being full they come into sandy Fords and there rub their Bellies to loosen them at which time they will bite very freely If you intend to fish for Carp and Tench you must commence your sport early in the Morning fishing from Sun-rising till eight of the Clock and from four in the Afternoon till Night and in hot Months till it be very late In the heat of Summer Carps will shew themselves on the very Rim of the water at which time if you fish with a Lob-worm as you do with a Fly natural you will have excellent sport especially if it be among Reeds In March April September and all the Winter in which season Fish swim deep very near the Ground I say in those Months it is best fishing in a clear serene warm day for then they bite fastest But all the Summer-time Mornings Evenings and cool cloudy weather are the best times for Angling Here note that by experience you will find that Fish rise best at the Fly after a shour of Rain that have onely beaten the Gnats and Flies into the River without muddying them The proper Moneths and times of the day for the Fly are March April May and the beginning of June in which Months let your times be in the Morning about nine and between three and four in the Afternoon A warm Evening is very seasonable if the Gnats play much After a clear Moon shiny-night if the day succeeding prove cloudy it is a very good time for Angling for having abstained from food all the night for they will not stir for fear in bright nights the next day they become hungry and eager and the gloominess of the day makes them bite boldly At the opening of Sluces or Mill-dams go along with the course of the water and you will find Trouts and other fish will then come out to seek for what food the water brings down with it Having shewn you what seasons are most proper and profitable to Angle in I will demonstrate to you such as are not And First In the extremity of Heat when the Earth is parched with Drought there is little sport to be obtained especially in muddy or clear shallow Rivers Secondly In the Winter or Spring-time when there happeneth any hoary Frost then will not the fish bite kindly all that day unless it be in the Evening and if that prove serene and pleasant but it is not convenient to fish at any time when the Wind bloweth so high that you cannot manage your Tools to advantage Thirdly Sheep-shearing time is an an Enemy to the Angler for then the Fish glut themselves with what is washt off the Sheep and will scarcely bite till that season be over Likewise sharp East and North nipping-winds do very much prejudice the Anglers Recreation neither is it good to fish immediately after Spawning-time for at that time their appetite is much abated It is a very strange thing to consider the natural instinct in Fish in foreknowing the approach of a showr of Rain for I have tried that upon the rise of a Gloud that threatned a sudden Showr they would not bite from which observation I have often sav'd my self from being wet to the Skin Lastly If the preceding night prove dark and cloudy the succeeding day will prove ineffectual for fishing unless for small fish for at such times the great ones prey abroad for the lesser who by instinct knowing the danger hide themselves till the Morning and having fasted all night become then very hungry whilst the great ones having gorg'd themselves lie absconded all the day long The next thing we shall insist on is the way of taking several sorts of fish as they are here alphabetically set down with several proper Baits according to the best of experiences Of the BARBEL THE Barbel is so called by reason of the Barb which is under his Nose or Chaps He is a leather-mouth'd-fish that is such a one as will not break his hold when hook d but will frequently break if big both Rod and Line They swim together in great Shoals and are at worst in April though not very good at any time The places where he loves most to resort are where Weeds grow or in a gravelly rising ground wherein he will dig and root like a Hog with his Nose not but that he frequents the strongest swifts of water sometimes as deep Bridges or Wears where he will so settle himself among the Piles and hollow places or amongst Moss or Weeds that let the Water be never so swift he will remain immoveable This is his custome in the Summer-time after which times he retires into deep waters and there helps the Female to dig a hole in the Sand for her to hide her Spawn from being devoured by other Fish This Fish is of a delicate Cast and handsome shape with small Scales placed after a most curious manner and as his shape is curious so is his palate for he will not eat any thing but what is clean and therefore if you intend to make any sport with him your Bait must be very well scowred The best for him is a Lob-worm at which he will bite boldly if you bait your ground the night before with big worms cut in pieces For him you can never bait the Ground too much nor can you fish for him too
early or too late Gentles also are a very good Bait for him if green and so is Cheese made tough by keeping it in a wet Linnen Bag a day or two This Cheese steeped in clarified Honey and the Ground where you intend to fish baited therewith will give you an opportunity to catch store enough of Barbels if there be any thereabout You may do well to bait your Hook with Cheese that is sost and Sheeps-tallow wrought into a Paste but there is no bait like the well-scowred Lob-worm or Cheese steeped in Honey an hour or two When you fish for this Barbel let your Rod and Line be both loug and strong on your Line let there be a running Plummet that is a Bullet with a hole throw the middle let a knot or little bit of Lead be placed a Foot or more above your Hook to keep your Bullet from falling down on it so your Worm lay at the bottom where they always bite and when he takes your bait the Plummet will lye and not check the fish and you may know by the bending of the top of your Rod when he bites and likewise feel him with your hand make a strong snatch then strike and you rarely fail if you play him well and tire him for as he is very subtile so is he extraordinary strong and dogged to be dealt withal and will so struggle that if you manage him not dextrously he will break your Line His best time of biting is about nine of the Clock and the chiefest time of fishing for him is at the latter end of May June July and the beginning of August Of the BREAM THere are two sorts of Breams the one a fresh and the other a salt water-Fish yet neither differ much in shape nature or taste I shall onely speak of the fresh-water Bream which at full growth is a large and stately Fish and breeds either in Ponds or Rivers but chiefly delights in the former which if he likes he will not onely grow exceeding fat but will fill the Pond with his issue even to the starving of the other Fish As for his shape it is very broad and thick scaled very excellently with a forked Tail his Eyes are large but he hath a very little sucking Mouth disproportionate to his Body The flesh of this Fish is accounted more pleasant than wholesome by some but as for my part I am of the judgement of the French who have a great estimation for it and if you will but taste his Belly or Head you will say it is most excellent food The Bream spawneth in June or the beginning of July and is easily taken for after one or two gentle turns he will fall upon his side and so you may draw him to Land with ease The best time of Angling for him is from St. James-tide till Bartholomew-tide for having had all the Summers food they are exceeding fat The Bream is a great lover of red Worms especially such as are to be found at the root of a great Dock and lie wrapt up in a round clue also he loves Paste Flag-worms Wasps green Flies Butter-flies and a Grass-hopper with his Legs cut off The way of taking Breams is thus First bait the ground where you know they resort with a convenient quantity of sweet-ground Barley-malt boyled but a little while and strained when it is cold go with it to the place about nine a Clock at night then take your Malt and squeezing it between your Hands throw it into the River and it will sink If the stream run hard cast in your squeezed Balls a little above the place you intend to angle in Having thus baited your ground in the Morning bait your Hook with the greatest red Worm you can get you may find them in Gardens or Chalky Commons after a showre of Rain of which you must store your self beforehand keeping them a Month at least in dry Moss changing the Moss every three daies Having baited your hook so that the worm may crawl to and fro for the better inticing of the Fish to bite without suspition observe where your fish play most and stay longest which commonly is in the broadest deepest and stillest part of the River generally in deep and still back Waters then plumb your ground and fish within half an Inch of it for although you shall see some Breams play on the top of the Water yet these are but the Sentinels for them beneath You may have three or four Rods out at a time stuck in the Bank-side and let them be long the Floats Swan or Goose-quills which must be sunk with Lead the tops bearing above water about half an Inch. Let your Rods be cast in one above the other about a yard and a half distant and then withdraw your self from the Bank so far that you can perceive nothing but the top of the Float and when you perceive it sink then creep to the Water-side and give it as much Line as you can if it be a Carp or bream they will run to the other side then strike gently and hold your Rod at a bent a little while but do not pull for then you spoil all but you must first tire them before you can land them being very shie Of the two the Carp is the worst being more brisk and strong Here take notice by the way if Pike or Pearch be thereabout it will be but a folly to think of killing Carp or Bream and therefore you must remove those obstacles by fishing them out first And to the intent you may know whether there be those Fish of Prey thereabout take a small Bleak or Gudgeon and bait it setting it alive among your Rods two foot deep from your Float with a little red Worm at the point of your Hook if a Pike be there he will certainly snap at it Of the BLEAK THE Bleak is an eager fish and is caught with all sorts of Worms bred on Trees or Plants also with Flies Paste Sheeps-bloud c You may angle for them with half a score Hooks at once if you can fasten them all on Also in an Evening the Bleak will take the natural or artificial Fly If it be a warm clear day there is no Bait so good for the Bleak as a small Fly at the top of the water which they will take at any time of the day but especially in the evening there is no fish that yields better sport for a young Angler than this for they are so eager that they will leap out of the water at the Bait. If the day be cold and cloudy Gentles or Cadice are best about two foot under water This same Bleak by some is called a Fresh-watersprat or River-swallow by reason of his continual motion Some would have him called Bleak from the whitish colour and that is onely under his Belly for his Back is of a pleasant Sea-green There is another way of taking Bleaks by whipping them in a Boat or
on a Bank-side in swift Water in a Summers evening with a Hazel-top about five or six foot long and a Line twice the length of the Rod but the best way is with a Drabble that is tie eight or ten small Hooks along a Line two Inches above one another the biggest Hook the lowermost by which you may sometimes take a better Fish and bait them with Gentles Flies or small red Worms by which means you may take half a dozen or more at one time Of the BULL-HEAD or MILLER'S-THUMB THE Bull-head is a Fish which hath a broad Head and wide Mouth with two broad Fins near his Eyes and two Fins under his Belly instead of his Teeth his rough Lips assist him in nibbing at the bait He hath Fins also on his Back and one below the Vent and his Tail is round his Body being all over covered with whitish blackish and brownish spots They begin to spawn about April and are full of Spawn all the Summer-season The Bull-head's common habitation is in Holes or among Stones in clear Water in Summer but in the Winter he takes up his quarters with the Eel in the Mud So doth the Loach and Minnow or we cannot guess otherwise where their Winter-abode should be He is easily taken in the Summer for he is lazie and simple You may see him in hot weather lie Sunning himself on a flat Stone or gravelly Ground at which time you may put your Hook which must be baited with a small Worm very near the Mouth at which he seldom refuseth to bite so that the veriest bungling Angler may take him He is an excellent fish for tast but of so ill a shape that many women care not for dressing him he so much resembles a Toad Of the CHEVIN THE Chevin spawneth in March and is a very strong yet unactive fish yielding in a very little time after he is struck The larger he is the quieter he is taken As for his food he loveth all sorts of Worms and Flies also Cheese Grain black Worms slitting their Bellies that the white may appear he loveth to have his Bait large and variety of Baits at one Hook He delights very much in the Pith that grows in the bone of an Ox-back os which you must be careful in taking off the tough outward Skin without breaking the tender inward Skin Early in the Morning angle for your Chevin with Snails but choose some other Bait for him in the heat of the day for then he will not bite at them In the Afternoon fish for him at Ground or Flie. There is no Fly he loveth better than a great Moth with a great head whose Body is yellow with whitish Wings which is to be found commonly in Gardens about the Evening He will not stick sometimes to snap at a Lamprey Of the CHAR. I Could never read nor hear that the Char was taken any where but in a Mere in Lancashire called Winander-mere the largest according to report that is in the Kingdom of England being ten miles in length and as smooth as a Bowling-green at the bottom This Char is spotted like a Trout and its dimension seldome exceeds seventeen Inches or a foot and half This Fish is delicate food having scarce a Bone but what is on the Back Now since the place is so remote from London where these Chars are taken I shall for bear to trouble our City-Angler with Rules and Directions how to angle for him and pass to such Fish as are frequently found in every River here near adjacent Of the CHUB THis Fish hath several appellations for he is called a Chub a Chavender by the French by some a Villian by others a Cheven As for my part call him what you please I like him not for these reasons first he is full of small forked Bones dispersed every where throughout his Body next he eats very waterish and lastly this Fish is unfirm and in my opinion in a manner tasteless Of all fish he is the best to enter a young Angler for he is very easily taken however give me leave to prescribe you some more Rules than what I have already shewn in the Angling for the Cheven which is the same with the Chub or Chavender You must find out some hole where you shall have twenty or more of them together in a hot day floating almost on the very surface of the water let your Rod be long and strong and your Line not above a yard or two long very strong and an indifferent large Hook then bait your Hook with a Grashopper bob your Grashopper up and down one the top of the water and if there be any Chub near he will rise but so abscond your self that you may not be seen for he is a very fearful fish and therefore the least shadow will make him sink to the bottom of the water yet he will rise again suddainly this is called Bobing Having baited your Hook drop it gently some two foot before that Chub you have elected by your eye to be the best and fairest and he will instantly bite greedily thereat and be held so fast by reason of his Leather-mouth that he can seldom break his hold and therefore you may do well to give him play enough and so tire him otherwise you may endanger your Line If you cannot find a Grashopper then bait your Hook with any kind of Fly or Worm as I said before as Dors Beetles Bobs Cod or Case-worms When you fish for the Chub with a Fly Grashopper or Beetle it must be at the top of the water if with other baits underneath In March and April angle for your Chub with Worms in May June and July with Flies Snails or Cherries Where note he will rarely refuse a Grashopper on the top of a swift Stream nor at the bottom the young Humble-bee In August September c. make use of a Paste made of Parmisan or Holland cheese pounded with Saffron in a Mortar adding thereunto a little Butter Others make a Paste of Cheese and Turpentine for the Winter-season at which time the Chub is in his prime for then his forked Bones are either lost or converted into a Gristle and he is excellent meat baked In hot weather angle for him in the middle of the water or near the top thereof but in cold weather fish for him near the bottom To finish all other discourse of this Chub Cheven or Chavender I shall only say that his Spawn is excellent and if he be large the Head when the Throat is well washt is the best part of the Fish Of the CARP IT is confess'd by all that the Carp is the Queen of all fresh-water-Fresh-water-fish being not only a good but subtile fish and living longest of all fish excepting the Ecl out of his proper Element Those that die soonest are Herrings for salt-salt-water and for fresh-water Trouts Carps are observed to breed several Months in one year and for this reason you shall hardly
ever take either Male or Female without Melt or Spawn They breed ever more naturally in Ponds than in running water in the latter very seldom or never and where they breed they breed innumerably He that intends to Angle for a Carp must arm himself with a world of Patience by reason of the extraordinary subtlety and policy of that Fish They alwaies choose to lie in the deepest places either of Ponds or Rivers where is but a small running Stream Next you are to observe that the Carp will seldom bite in cold weather and in hot weather you cannot be too early or too late at your sport and if he bite you need not fear his hold for he is one of those leather-mouth'd-fish who have their Teeth in their Throat When you angle for the Carp your Rod and Line must be strong and because he is so very wary it is good to intice him by baiting the Ground with course Paste In March he seldom resuseth the red Worm the Cadice in June nor the Grashopper in July August and September The Carp takes delight in Worms or sweet Pastes of which there are great variety the best are made up of Honey and Sugar and ought to be thrown into your Water some hours before you intend to angle or if you throw in your Paste made into small Pellets two or three days before it will not be the worse especially if you throw in also Chickens-guts Garbage or Bloud incorporated with Bran or Cow-dung You may make your Paste in this manner Take a convenient quantity of Bean-flour or any other Flour and mingle it with the flesh of a Cat cut small make up this Composition with Honey and then beat them all together in a Mortar so long till they are so tough as to hang upon a Hook without washing off For the better effecting thereof mingle therewith some whitish Wool and if you would keep it all the year add thereunto some Virgins-wax and clarified Honey If you fish with Gentles anoint them with Honey and put them on your hook with a piece of Scarlet dipt in the like This is the most approved way to deceive and captivate the subtile Carp Honey and crums of White-bread mixt together is a very good Paste for a Carp An approved way how to take Carp in a muddy Pond Vide Chap. Of the Tench Of the DACE and DARE THE Dace Dare and Roach are much of a kind both in manner of feeding cunning goodness and commonly in size The Dace or Dare will bite at any Fly but especially at the Stone-cadice fly or May fly the latter end of April and the begining or most part of May is a most excellent bait floating on the top of the water which you may gather great quantities of from the Reeds and Sedge by the water side or from Hawthorne bushes which grow near the bank of a shallow Gravel-stream on which they very much delight to hang also at Ant-flies of which the blackish is the best which are found in Mole-hills about the Months of June July August and September The way of preserving them for your use is to put them alive into a Glass-bottle having first laid therein some of the moist Earth from whence you gatherd them with some of the Roots of the Grass of the said Hillock having laid your Ant-flies in gently without premdicing their Wings lay a clod of Earth over it thus you may keep them a Month if you bruise them not If you would keep them longer put them into a large Rundlet having first wash'd the inside with water and Honey having thus kept them three Months they are an incomparable Bait in any Stream and clear Water either for Dace Dare or Roach and are good also for a Chavender fishing within a handful from the bottom The best time for making use of the Ant-flie is when they swarm and that is generally about the latter end of July and begining of August they will cover a Tree or Bush with their multitude and then if you make use of them you may load your self with Roach or Dace in a small time In a warm day he rarely refuseth a fly at the top of the water but remember that when you fish under water for him it is best to be within an handful or something more of the ground If you would fish for Dace or Dare in winter then about Alhallontide where ever you see Heath or Sandy grounds ploughing up follow the Plough and you will find a white worm with a red head as big as the top of a mans little finger You may know where most of them are by the number of Crows and Rooks which sit on the plowed land The worm is very soft and is by some termed a Grub which is nothing but the Spawn of a Beetle Gather what quantity you think fit and put them into a Vessel with some of the Earth from whence they were taken and you may keep them all the Winter Lastly the young brood of Wasps and Bees having their heads dipt in Blood are an excellent bait for Dace or Dare. Of the EEL I Shall not trouble you with variety of discourses concerning the being of an Eel whether they breed by some Generation or Corruption as Worms or by certain Glutinous dew drops which falling in May and June on the Banks of some Ponds or Rivers are by the heat of the Sun turned into Eels and these are by some called Yelvers of which I have seen Cakes made and have eaten thereof when fried with much satisfaction I say waving away all Discourses of this nature I shall onely tell you that some have differented Eels into four sorts chiefly namely the Silver-Eel a Greenish Eel which is called a Creg a blackish Eel with a broad flat head and lastly an Eel with reddish Fins I shall onely speak of the first which is the Silver Eel This Eel is generally believed to have its being from Generation but not by spawning but the young coming from the Female alive and no bigger than a small Needle This Eel may be caught with several sorts of Baits but principally with powder'd Beef A Garden-worm or Lob or a Minnow or Hen's-gut or Garbage of Fish is a very good bait but some prefer a Pride which others call a Lamprey beyond any yet named As Eels abscond themselves in Winter taking up their constant residence in the Mud without stirring out for six Moneths so in the Summer they take no delight to be abroad in the day and therefore the most proper time to take them is in the night with any of those Baits aforesaid fastning your Line to the Bank-side with your Laying-hooks in the water Or you may throw in a Line with good store of Hooks baited and plumb'd with a Float to discover where the Line lieth that in the Morning you may take it up with your Drag-hook There is another way of taking Eels and that is by Sniggling This Sniggling
is nothing else but taking in the day-time a strong Line and Hook baited with a Lob or Garden-worm and marking such Holes and places where the Eels use to abscond themselves in the day-time near Wears Mills or Flood-gates and gently by the help of a Stick putting your bait into such holes where you imagine Eels are and if there be any you shall be sure to have a bite but then have a care you pull not too hard lest you spoil all Here note that the Top of your Stick must be cleft wherein you must put a strong Hook but of a narrow compass which Stick must guide the Bait into the Hole where the Eel is by which means if your Tackling hold you may get as large Eels as any are in the River Mill-pond or Flood-gate c. And as this way of fishing is called Sniggling so it is called Broggling for Eels Bobbing fot Eels is done after another manner that is Take very large Lobs scowr them well and with a Needle run some strong-twisted Silk through them from end to end take so many as that you may wrap them about a board a dozen times at least then tie them fast with the two ends of the Silk that they may hang in so many Hanks then fasten all to a strong Cord and about a handful and a half above the Worms fasten a Plumb of three quarters of a pound in weight and fasten your Cord to a strong Pole having so done fish in muddy Water and you will feel the Eels tug lustily at them When you think they have swallowed them as far as they can gently draw up your Line till you have brought your Eels to the top of the water and then bring them ashore as fast as you can The Gentleman and an experienced Angler from whom I received this Instruction told me he hath taken six or seven large Eels at a time this very way There is another way also for taking of Eels though it be somewhat laborious and for that reason is best to be made use of in cold weather and that is by an Instrument called an Eel-spear it is made for the most part with three Forks or Teeth jagged on the sides but those are better that have four This you are to strike into the Mud at the bottom of the River and if you chance to light where they lie you need not fear taking them if your Instrument be good If you would take verv large Eels indeed bait your Night-hooks with small Roaches und let the Hooks lie in the Mouth of the Fish Of the FLOUNDER I shall not go about to tell you the nature of a Flounder or give you his description since he is a Fish so well known to every one In April May June and July you may fish for the Flounder all day long either in a swift Stream or in the still Deep but best in the Stream Your most proper Baits are all sorts of red Worms Wasps and Gentles Of the GRAILING WHen you angle for the Grailing you must head your Hook upon the Shank with a very slender narrow plate of Lead and let it be slenderest at the bent of the Hook that the Bait which must be a large Grashoper may with more facility come over it At the point let there be a Cad bait and keep the bait in continual Motion and forget not to pull off the Grashopper's Wings which are uppermost In the Months of March and April there is an excellent Bait for the Grailing which is called a Tag-tail This worm is of a pale Flesh-colour with a yellow Tag on his Tail somewhat less then half an Inch long which is to be found in Marled Grounds and Meadows in fair weather but not to be seen in cold weather or after a showre of Rain Of the GUDGEON THe Gudgeon though small is a fish of so pleasant a taste that in my opinion it is very little inferiour to the Smelt I need not describe him he is so well known He spawns three or four times in the Summer season His feeding is much like the Barbel's in sharp Streams and on Gravel slighting all manner of Flies He is easily taken with a small red Worm fishing near the ground This Fish is Leather-mouthed and will not easily be lost off the Hook when struck You may fish for him with Float your Hook being on the ground or by hand with a running line on the ground without either Cork or Float Wasps Gentles and Cad-baits are good baits for the Gudgeon but the small Red worm the best you may fish for them with two or three hooks at once and find very pleasant sport where they rise any thing large When you Angle for them stir up the Sand or Gravel with a long Pole which will make them gather to that place and bite faster and with more eagerness Of the GUINIAD I Cannot say much of this Fish only that it is excellent food and therefore I shall conclude my discourse of the Guiniad with a very strange observation and that is This Fish is not found any where but in a large Water called Pemble-Mere but that which is most remarkable is this That the River which runs by Chester hath its Head or Fountain in Merionith shire and in its course runs through this Pemble-Mere which abounds as much with Guiniads as the River Dee doth with Salmon of each both affording great plenty and yet it was never known that any Salmon was ever caught in the Mere nor ever any Guiniads taken in the River When d ee that in his course fain in her lap would lie Commixtion with her store his stream she doth deny By his complexion prov'd as he through her doth glide Her Wealth again from his she likewise doth divide Those white fish that in her do wondrously abound Are never seen in him nor are his Salmons found At any time in her but as she him disdains So he again from her as wilfully abstains Draytons Polyolb Song 9. Of the LOACH THe Loach though a small yet a dainty fish his breeding and feeding is in little and clear swift Brooks or Rivulets here and in sharp Streams Gravel is his usual food He is small and slender seldom exceeding three Inches in length he is bearded like a Barbel having two Fins at his sides four at his Belly and onely one at his Tail and is freckled with many black or brown spots This Loach is commonly full of Spawn which is with the flesh a very grateful food to weak Stomacks affording great Nourishment He is to be taken with a very small Worm neer the ground for he delights to be neer the Gravel and therefore is seldom seen on the top of the water Of the MINNOW THe Minnow is a fish without Scales and one of the least of the watry Inhabitants but for excellency of meat he may in my opinion be compared to any fish of greatest value and largest size and little things
may let him lie almost a quarter of an hour before you strike and then have a care you do it not too fiercely lest you endanger your Tackle and lose the Fish to boot If you fish at Snap you must give him leave to run a little then strike striking the contrary way to which he runneth For this way of Angling a Spring hook is best and your Tackle must be much stronger than that for the Trowl because you must strike with greater force Here note that a large Bait more invites the Pike to bite but the lesser takes him more infallibly either at Snap or Trowl If you fish with a dead bait for a Pike this is a most excellent bait Take a Minnow Frog that is yellow Dace or Roach and having dissolved Gum of Ivy in Oil of Spike anoint your baith therewith and cast it where Pikes frequent Having lain a little while at bottom draw it to the top and so up the Stream and you will quickly perceive a Pike follow it with much eagerness A Pike will bite at all baits excepting the Fly and bites best about three in the afternoon in clear water with a gentle gale from the middle of Summer to the latter end of Autumm he then bites best in still places or a gentle Stream but in Winter he bites all the day long In the latter end and beginning of the Spring he bites most eagerly early in the morning and late in the evening Of the PEARCH THE Pearch is a fish that is hook-backt somewhat bow'd like a Hog and armed with stiff Gristles and his sides with dry thick Scales He is a bold biter which appears by his daring to adventure on one of his own kind with more courage than the Pike by much Some say there are two sorts of Pearches the one salt-water and the other fresh the first hath but one Fin on his Back the latter two which is more than most Fishes have He spawns but once a year and that is in February or March and seldome grows longer than two foot His best time of biting is when the Spring is far spent at which time you may take at one standing all that are in one hole be they never so many His Baits are a Minnow or little Frog but a Worm called a Brandling is best if well scoured When he bites give him time enough and that can hardly be too much The Pearch biteth well all the day long in cool cloudy weather but chiefly from eight in the Morning till ten and from three till almost six You may angle for him with Lob-worms well scoured Bobs Oak-worms Gentles Colewort-worms Minnows Dors Wasps and Cad-baits He will not bite at all the seasons of the year especially in Winter for then he is very abstemious yet if it be warm he will bite then in the midst of the day for in Winter all fish bite best about the heat of the day If you rove for a Pearch with a Minnow which of all baits yields the most delightful recreation to the Angler it must be alive sticking your Hook through his upper Lip or back Fin and letting him swim about mid-water or somewhat lower for which purpose you must have an indifferent large Cork with a Quill on your Line I always make use of a good strong Silk-Line and a good Hook arm'd with Wyre so that if a Pike do come I may be provided for him and have by this means taken several I use also to carry a Tin-pot of about two quarts or three pints in which to keep my Minnows or Gudgeons alive the Lid of the Pot is full of little holes so that I can give them fresh Water without opening it which ought to be about every quarter of an hour lest they die If you take a small Casting-net with you you may at a cast or two take baits enough to serve you all day without farther trouble When you fish with a Frog you must fasten the Hook through the skin of his Leg towards the upper part thereof The Pearch is none of the Leather-mouth'd sort of fishes and therefore when he bites give him time enough to pouch his bait lest when you think all sure his hold break out and you lose your fish and your patience too The best place to fish for Pearches is in the turning of the Water or Edwing in a good Gravel Scoure where you will not fail of them and Ruffs before spoke of He that will take a Pearch must first take notice that this fish feeds well and bites freely Let the Angler over-night bait his ground with Lob-worms chopt in pieces and in the morning let him come to the place where he must first plumb his ground then gage his Line and bait his hook with a red knotted worm or a Minnow which is better in my opinion the hook must be put in at the back of the Minnow betwixt the fish and the skin that the Minnow may swim up and down alive being buoyed up with a Cork or Quill that the Minnow may have liberty to swim a foot off the ground Let these directions be carefully observed and followed and the Angler need not fear the frustration of his expectations Of the RUD. THE Rud hath a forked Tail and is small of size some say he is bred of the Roach and Bream and is found in Ponds in some they are in a manner innumerable There is little less difference between the Rud and Roach than there is between the Herring and Pilchard their shape being much alike onely differing in bulk or bigness Since the Rud is but a Bastard Roach I shall speak no more on him but discourse of the genuine Roach onely Of the ROACH THE Roach is not looked on as any delicate Fish at all if there be any thing prizable it is his Spawn The Roach is a very silly fish being every whit as simple as the Carp is crafty They are more to be esteemed which are found in Rivers than in Ponds although those that breed in the latter are of a much larger size yet the Thames below Bridge abounds with very large fat Roach such as I may confidently affirm exceed in magnitude all others either in Ponds or Rivers The Roach is a leather-mouth'd-Leather-mouth'd-fish having his Teeth as I said before in his Throat as all Leather-mouth'd Fish have In April the Cads or Worms are proper Baits to angle for Roaches in Summer fish for them with small white Snails or Flies but note they must be under water for he will not bite at the top Or take a May-fly and with a Plumb sink it where you imagine Roaches lie whether in deep water or near the Posts and Piles either or Bridge or Wear having so done do not hastily but gently pull your Fly up and you will see the Roach if any there pu sue and take it near the rim of the water lest by flight it should escape In Autumn you may fish for them with Paste
onely made of the crums of sine White-bread moulded with a little water and the labour of your hands into a tough Paste colour'd not very deep with Red-Lead with which you may mix a little sine Cotten or Lint and a little Butter these last will make it hold on and not wash off your Hook With which you must fish with much circumspection or you lose your bait In like manner in Winter you may angle for Roach with Paste but Gentles are then the better bait Take these next Observations experimentally tried by some of us viz. There is another excellent bait either so Winter or Summer and that is this Take an handful of well dried Malt and put it into a Dish of Water and then having grubbed and washed it betwixt our hands till it be clean and free from Husks put that water from it and having put it into a little fresh water set it over a gentle Fire and let it boil till it be pretty fest then pour the Water from it and with a sharp Knife turning the sprout-end of the Corn upward take off the back-part of the Husk with the point of your Knife leaving a kind of inward Husk on the Corn or else you spoil all then cut off a little of the sprout-end that the white may appear and also a very little of the other end for the Hook to enter When you make use of this bait cast now and then a little of it into the water and then if your Hook be small and good you will find it an excellent bait either for Roach or Dace Another good bait is the young brood of Wasps or Bees if you dip their Heads in Blood So is the thick blood of a Sheep being half dried on a Trencher and then cut into such small pieces as will best fit your Hook a little Salt will keep it from turning black and make it the better Or you may take a handful or two of the largest and best Wheat you can get boil it in a little Milk till it be soft then fry it gently with Honey and a little beaten Saffron dissolved in Milk The Roach spawns about the middle of May and the general baits by which he is caught are these small white Snails Bobs Cad-baits Sheeps blood all sorts of Worms Gnats Wasps Paste and Cherries The way of fishing for Roach at London-Bridge is after this manner In the Moneths of June and July there is great resort of those Fish to that place where those that make a trade of it take a strong Cord at the end whereof is fastned a three-pound weight a foot above the Lead they fasten a Packthread of twelve foot long to the Cord and unto the Packthread at convenient distances they add a dozen strong Links of Hair with Roach-Hooks at them baited with a white Snail of Perriwinkle then holding the Cord in their Hands the biting of the Fish draweth the Packthread and the Packthread the Cord which admonisheth them them what to do whereby sometimes they draw up half a dozen sometimes less but commonly two or three at one draught Of the STICKLEBAG THis fish is small prickly and without Scales and not worth the consideration but that he is an excellent bait for Trouts especially if his Tail on the Hook be turned round at which a Trout will bite more eagerly than at Penk Roach or Minnow The Loach is every whit as good a bait as the Sticklebag provided you place either aright on the Hook To the intent you may do it take this observation the nimble turning of the Penk Minnow Loach or Sticklebag is the perfection of that sort of fishing That you may attain thereunto note that you must put your Hook into the Mouth of any the aforesaid Baits and out at his Tail tying him fast with white thread a little above it in such manner that he may turn after this sow up his mouth and your design is accomplished This way of baiting is very tempting for large Trouts and seldome fails the Angler's expectation This fish in some places is called a Banstickle Of the SALMON THE Salmons evermore breed in Rivers that are not brackish yet discharge themselves into the Sea and spawn commonly in August which become Samlets in the Spring following The Melter and Spawner having both performed their natural duty they then betake themselves to the Sea I have known that when they have been obstructed in their passage they have grown so impatient that clapping their Tails to their Mouths with a sudden spring they have leapt clear over Wear or any other obstacle which stood in their way Some having leapt short have been taken by that means If they are so obstructed that they cannot find their way to the Sea they become sick lean and pine away and die in two years If they spawn in the mean time from thence proceeds a small Salmon called a Skegger which will never grow great It is the Sea that makes them grow big but it is the fresh Rivers that makes them grow fat and so much the farther they are from the Sea up in the River the fatter they grow and the better their food From a Samlet which is but little bigger than a Minnow he grows to be a Salmon in as short time as a Goslin will grow to be a Goose. A Salmon biteth best at three of the clock in the Afternoon in the Moneths of May June July and August if the water be clear and some little breeze of Wind stirring especially if the Wind bloweth against the Stream and near the Sea Where note that he hath not his constant residence like a Trout but removes often coveting to be as near the Spring-head as he may swimming generally in the deepest and broadest parts of the River near the ground and he is caught like a Trout with Worm Fly or Minnow The Garden-worm is an Excellent bait for the Salmon if it be well scoured and kept in Moss about twenty days after which time those Worms will be very clear tough and lively There is a way of fishing for Salmon with a Ring of Wyre on the top of the Rod through which the Line may run to what length is thought convenient having a Wheel also near the hand I have been told that there is no bait more attractive of and eagerly pursued by the Salmon and most other fish than Lob-worms scented with the Oil of Ivy-berries or the Oil of Polypodie of the Oak mixt with Turpentine nay Assa Foetida they say is incomparably good The Artificial Fly is a good bait for a Salmon but you must then use a Trowl as for the Pike he being a strong fish As the Salmon is a large fish to must your Flies be larger than for any other with Wings and Tails very long You shall observe when you strike him that he will plunge and bounce but doth not usually endeavour to run to the length of the Line as the Trout will
for they seldom come near it There are many more Rules to be observed which generally hold good but I will not conclude them infallible since I have found some of them well credited very false wherefore let every man's experience be his guide in the knowledge of the nature of Rivers and the Fish their Inhabitants And therefore it will be very requisite for him that would be compleat in the Art of Angling diligently to observe whatever River or water he fisheth in whether it be muddy slimy stony gravelly swift or of a slow motion And as he must have a competent knowledge in Rivers Ponds or all fishable waters he is acquainted with so must he know the nature of each Filh and what Baits are most proper for every kind or he shall never attain to the reputation of a good experienced ANGLER I shall conclude this Treatise with the experimental observations of an ingenious Gentleman who hath practiced the Art of Fishing many years and therefore the more fit to give Directions for the right use of the Angle Experimental Observations and useful Directions for the right use of the Angle and is a true and brief Epitome of the whole Art and Mystery of the Fishing Recreation NOne certainly is so ignorant to address himself to the River for Recreation but he will be mindful to carry necessary Tackle with him being compleatly furnished therewith let him in the first place consult Sun Wind Moon Stars and change of Air for without observing Times and Seasons his Tackle though never so good will prove ineffectual Wherefore observe if the Sun be obscured with Clouds and his Face hidden from your Eyes then set forth your Ground-baits and use your brightest Flies If the Sun shine out gloriously then use the darkest of your Flies Here note If that the Wind be in the South It blows the Fly in the Trout's Mouth If the weather be warm it is no matter in what point of the Compass the Wind lieth so that it blow not too high the same observation holds good at Night as well as Day If the Sun shine bright the Moon prove clear or the Stars glitter there is but little sport to be expected Gentlemen I write to you that have more than common experience in the Art of Angling and therefore I hope you will not expect that I should here inform you how to prosecute the little recreation of the Thames how to catch Bleak Dace c. since there is hardly any young beginner that is ignorant thereof Whereof omitting such trifling discourse I shall fall upon that which is somewhat more material and first how to take Eels When the Angler stays a night or two let him take five or six Lines or what number he thinks fit each of them about sixteen yards long and at every two yards long make a Noose to hang on a hook armed either to double Thread or Silk-twist for it is better then Wyre His Hooks must be baited with Millers-thumbs Loaches Minnows or Gudgeons to every Noose there must be a Line baited and all the Lines mustly cross the River in the deepest place either with Stones or pegged lying in the bottom you must watch all night or rise as soon as ever it is break of day or else you will lose divers that were hung and draw up the Lines on each of which I have known two or three Eels or Grigs Every one that delights in Fly-fishing ought to learn the way of making two sorts of Artificial Flies the Palmer ribbed with Silver or Gold and the May-fly both which are the ground of all Flies In the making of the Palmer-Fly he must arm his Line on the inside of the Hook then with a pair of Sizers let him cut so much of the brown of a Mallards Feathers as he shall think sufficient to make the Wings then let him lay the outermost part of the Feather next the Hook and the point of the Feather towards the Shank of the Hook let him whip it three or four times about the Hook with the same Silk he armed the Hook then make his Silk fast then let him take the Hackle of the neck of a Cock or Capon but a Plovers Top is best and let him take off the one side of the Feather and then he must take the Hackle-silk or Gold or Silver thread and let him make all these fast at the bent of the Hook working them up to the Wings every bout shifting his Fingers and making a stop then the Gold will fall right and let him make fast then work up the Hackle to the same place and make it fast after this let him take the Hook betwixt his Finger and Thumb in the left hand with Needle or Pin and part the Wings in twain then with the Arming-silk having fastned all hitherto let him whip it about as it falleth cross between the Wings and with his Thumb he must turn the point of the Feather towards the bent of the Hook then let him work it three or four times about the shank so fasten it and view the proportion for other Flies If he make the grounds of Hogs-wool sandy black or white or Bears-wool or of a red Bullock two years old he must work these grounds on a waxed Silk and must arm and set on the Wings as aforesaid The body of the May-fly must be wrought with some of these grounds which will be admirably well when ribbed with black Hair The Oak-fly he must make with Orange-Tawny and black for the body and the brown of the Mallards Feather for the Wings The next thing to be observed is the Floating for Scale-fish in Pond or River First take notice that the Feed brings the Fish together as the Sheep to the Pen and there is no better in all Angling for Feed than Bloud and Grains though Paste is good yet inferiour to these Next let him observe to plumb his ground Angling with fine Tackle as single hair for half the Line next the Hook round and small plumbed according to his Float There is a small red worm with a yellow tip on his Tail which is an excellent bait for this sort of Fish or any other Other special baits are these Brandlings Gentles Paste or Cadice otherwise call'd Cock-bait They lie in Gravelly husk under the stones in the River There is a way of Trowling for Pike with an Hazle rod of Twelve foot long with a Ring of Wyre on the top of the Rod for the Line to run through within two foot of the bottom of the Rod there is a hole made to put in a Wind to turn with a Barrel to gather sip the Line and loose it at pleasure This is the best manner of Trowling There is another way to take more Pikes either in Meere Pond or River than any Trowler with his Rod can do which is done after this manner Take a forked stick with a Line of Twelve yards long wound upon it at the upper
year long Morning and Evening whether Windy or Cloudy Weather But if the Air prove serene he may then imitate the Hawthorn-fly which is all black and very small and the smaller the better In May let him take the May-fly and imitate that which is made several ways Some make them with a shammy Body 't is best with black Hair Others make them with sandy Hogs-wool ribbed with black Silk and winged with a Mallards Feather several ways according to the humour of the Angler Another called the Oak-fly is made of Orange coloured Cruel and black with a brown Wing Lastly there is another Fly the Body whereof is made of the strain of a Peacock's Feather which is very good in a bright day These several sorts of Flies will serve the whole year observing the times and seasons Here note that the lightest Flies are for cloudy and dark Weather the darkest for bright and light and the rest for indifferent seasons for which his own Judgement Discretion and Experience must guide him Of late days the Hogs-wool of several colours the Wool of a red Heifer and Bears-wool are made use of which make good grounds and excellent pastime The Natural-fly is a sure way of Angling to Augment the Anglers Recreation Now how to find them take notice that the May-fly is to be found playing at the River side especially against the Rain The Oak-fly is to be found on the But of an Oak or an Ash from the beginning of May to the end of August It is a browntsh Fly and stands always with his head towards the Root of the Tree very easy to be found The Black-flly is to be found on every Hawthorn-bush after the Buds are come forth Now with these Flies he must use such a Rod as to angle with the ground bait the Line must not be so long as the Rod. Let the Angler withdraw his Flie as he shall find it most couvenient and advantageous in his Angling When he comes to deep Water whose motion is but slow let him make his Line about two yards long and dop his Fly behind a Bush and he shall find incomparable sport The way to make the best Paste is to take a convenient quantity of fresh Butter as much Sheeps-suet that is fresh a sufficient quantity of the strongest Cheese can be gotten with the pith of an old stale white Loaf Let all these be beaten in a Mortar till they come to a perfect paste and when the Angler intends to spend some time in Angling let him put hereof the quantity of a green Pea upon his Hook and let him observe what pleasant effects it will produce An Angling SONG COme lay by all cares and hang up all sorrow Let 's Angle to day and ne're think of to morrow And by the Brook-side as we Angle a long Wee 'l cheer up our selves with our sport and a Song Sometimes on the Grass our selves we will lay And see how the watery Citizens play Sometimes with a Fly stand under a Tree And choose out what Fish our Captives shall be Thus void of all care we 're more happy then they That sit upon Thrones and Kingdoms do sway For Scepters and Crowns disquiet still bring But the Man that 's content is more blest than a King An Abstract of such Penal STATUTES As Relate to FISHING 13. EDw. 1. cap. 47. No Salmons shell be taken from the Nativity of our Lady unto St. Martin's day Young Salmons may not be destroy'd nor taken by Nets nor other Engines at Mill pools from the midst of April until St. John Paptist The Penalties you may see in the said Statute at large I. Eliz. cap. 17. None shall take and kill any young Brood Spawn os Fry of Eels Salmon Pike or any other Fish in any Flood-gate Pipe at the tail of a Mill Wear or in any Straights Streams Brooks Rivers fresh or salt Nor take or kill any Salmons or Trouts not being in season being Ripper Salmons or Ripper Trouts Shedder Salmons or Shedder Trouts II. None shall take or kill any Pike or Pickeril not being in length ten inches Fish nor Salmon not being in length sixteen inches Fish nor Trout under eight inches nor Barbel under twelve inches III. None shall take Fish with any manner of Trammel c. in any River or other places but onely with Net or Trammel whereof every Besh or Mask shall be two inches and ½ broad Angling excepted IV. Nevertheless this Statute allows Smelts Loaches Minnows Gudgeons Eeles c. to be taken by Net c. in such places and such ways as heretofore they have been V. The penalty for every offence is 20s and the Fish so taken as also the Engine or Device whatsoever whereby the offence was committed 5 Eliz. cap. 21. None may by day or night break down cut out or destroy any Head or Dam of any Ponds Pools Motes c. where any Fish shall be put in or stored withal by the owners thereof Nor shall Take Kill or Steal away any of the said Fish in the said Ponds c. against the will of the Owner 22 23 Car. 2 cap. 25. It is not lawful for any person to use any Casting-net Thief-net Trammel Shove-net or other Net nor to use any Angle Hair Noose Spear or Trowl Not to lay any Nets UUears Pots Fish-hooks or other Engines Or to take any Fish by any other means or device whatsoever in any River Sew Pond Bote or other UUater Nor be aiding or assisting thereunto without the License or consent of the Lord or Owner of the said Water And in case any person be convict of any of these Offences by his own confession or by Oath of one sufficient Witness within one moneth after the Offence be committed before any Justice of the Peace of such County Riding Division or Place wherein such be committed every such person in Taking Stealing or Killing Fish shall for chery such Offence give to the Party or Parties grieved or injured such recompence for his or their Damages and within such time as the said Justice shall appoint not exceeding treble Damages And over and above pay down presently unto the Overseers for the Poor where such Difence is committed such sum of Money not exceeding 10s as the said Iustice shall think meet And in default of payment as aforesaid the same to be levied by distress of the Difenders Goods by Warrant under the Hand and Seal of such Iustice before whom the Difender shall be convicted rendring the overplus if any be And for want of Disteess the Difender or Difenders shall be committed to the house of Correction for such time as the Iustice shall think fit not exceeding one Month unless the party offending shall enter into Bond with one competent Surery or Sureties to the party iniured not exceeding ten pounds never to offend in like manner II. And rvery Iustice of Peace before whom such Difender shall be convict may take cut in pieces and destroy all