162 THE COMPLETE ANGLER. [parti. 



The age of Carps is by Sir Francis Bacon, in his 

 History of Life and Death, observed to be but ten 

 vears, vet others think they live longer. Gesner 

 savs, a Carp has been known to live in the Palati- 

 nate above a hundred years : but most conclude, 

 that, contrary to the Pike or Luce, all Carps are 

 the better for age and bigness. The tongues of 

 Carps are noted to be choice and costly meat, espe- 

 cially to them that buy them : but Gesner says, 

 Carps have no tongue like other fish, but a piece 

 of flesh-like fish in their mouth like to a tongue, 

 and should be called a palate : but it is certain it 

 is choicely good, and that the Carp is to be reckoned 

 amongst those leather-mouthed fish, which I told 

 you have their teeth in their throat ; and for that 

 reason he is very seldom lost by breaking his hold, 

 if vour hook be once stuck into his chaps. 



I told you that Sir Francis Bacon thinks that the 

 Carp lives but ten years ; but Janus Dubravius has 

 writ a book " Of Fish and Fish-ponds," in which he 

 says, that Carps begin to spawn at the age of three 

 years, and continue to do so till thirty : he says 

 also, that in the time of their breeding, which is in 

 summer, when the sun hath warmed both the earth 

 and water, and so apted them also for generation, 

 that then three or four male Carps will follow a 

 female ; and that then she putting on a seeming 

 coyness, they force her through weeds and flags, 

 where she lets fall her eggs or spawn, which sticks 

 fast to the weeds, and then they let fall their melt 



