192 FLY FISHING FOR TROUT. 



any rate to every household, most people have 

 heard of' Cotton, of Gay, of Sir Humphry 

 Davy, of Stoddart, of Colquhoun, of Andrew 

 Lang, of Halford and of Lord Grey. But 

 there are many lesser men who are not known 

 even to fishermen, and they are not less interest- 

 ing. Indeed, they are worth study even more 

 than the greater ones; for they have not their 

 facility, and yet they often have much to say. 

 Fly fishing springs from a splendid source. 

 The author of the Treatise, whoever that may 

 be, was fortunate in being able to draw on the 

 noble model of French and English sporting 

 books. The Treatise too was fortunate in the 

 time of its birth, for it has all the clarity and 

 directness of fifteenth century English. Our 

 language had not then reached its full summit 

 and sweep : it was to gain in flexibility and 

 variety and colour ; but among the prose of plain 

 narrative, which can on occasion rise to beauty 

 and dignity, the Treatise stands high. Do not 

 take fish out of another man's gins or fish-traps, 

 for that is not only stealing, but robs you of 

 your sport : it *'shall be to you a very pleasure 

 to see the fair, bright, shining scaled fishes 

 deceived by your crafty means and drawn upon 

 land.' When you go fishing, too, 'you will not 

 desire greatly many persons with you, which 

 might let you of your game. And then you may 

 serve God devoutly, in saying affectuously your 



^Throughout this chapter I have modernised the spelling 

 and punctuation of the Treatise, but made no other change. 



