INTRODUCTORY ESSAY. xxxv 



treats of, have joined in giving it their mutual suf- 

 frage and commendation." 



In the year 1760, appeared the first of those edi- 

 tions edited by Sir John Hawkins ; from whose life 

 ofWalton prefixed, we extract the following encomium. 



" And let no man imagine, that a work on such a 

 subject must, necessarily, be unentertaining, or tri- 

 fling, or even uninstructive ; for the contrary will 

 most evidently appear from a perusal of this excel- 

 lent piece, which, whether we consider the elegant 

 simplicity of the style, the ease and unaffected hu- 

 mour of the dialogue, the lovely scenes which it de- 

 lineates, the enchanting pastoral poetry which it 

 contains, or the fine morality it so sweetly inculcates, 

 has hardly its fellow in any of the modern languages." 



From Walton's latest* and most copious biogra- 



lzaak Walton," ) observed to me, " one often sees a pretty 

 book which is interesting to a particular class ; but you have 

 hit on a work that pleases everybody ! " and Mr. Alexander 

 Chalmers was pleased to say, that I had given quite a new 

 tone to the subject, and had — " Waltonised the land," — for 

 my own part, I can only say, that I had long been asking my- 

 self in the language of Abraham Cowley — " What shall I do 

 to be for ever known ? " and my good genius whispered " give 

 your days and nights to emblazon the worth of Izaak Walton." 

 * Sir Harris Nicolas's elaborate and circumstantial Life 

 of our author — so far as it was possible for the most indus- 

 trious and skilful research to make it so — has appeared since 

 the above was written. Sir Harris has here, continued for 

 Walton, all that has been done in the way of literary and 

 personal illustration for Shukspeare himself! 



