Barker Born near tlie Severn. 93 



I find that, in his "much corrected 

 and enlarged Fifth Edition," Walton says 

 (I quote from a copy of that edition in 

 my possession) : " I shall next give you 

 some other Directions for Flic-fishing, 

 such as are given by Mr. Thomas Barker, 

 a gentleman that hath spent much time 

 in Fishing : but I shall do it with a little 

 variation" 



Of Thomas Barker we have some in- 

 formation scattered here and there in his 

 pages. I have before me a charming 

 little reprint given me some years ago by 

 the editor, Mr. C. S. Bentley, F.S.A., of 

 the Gresham Angling Society. Barker 

 tells us that he was born and educated 

 at " Bracemeale in the Liberty of Salop, 

 being a Freeman and Burgesse of the 

 same City." Bracemeal or Brace-meole 

 is a parish in Shrewsbury district, Salop, 

 one mile south of Shrewsbury,* on the 

 river Severn, still one of our finest 

 salmon rivers. Doubtless Barker gained 

 his experience of salmon-fishing on that 

 river; for he is the first writer who 

 writes apparently from actual experience 

 of salmon-fishing, and in those delightful 

 tributaries of the Severn he would have 

 full scope for that fly-fishing for trout 



* Imperial Gazetteer. 



