Moses Browne. 209 



very good, especially that of Trout Hall. 

 The fishing-house must have been drawn 

 from imagination. Browne was the 

 author of Piscatory Eclogues, which con- 

 tain some of the most poetical verses 

 ever written in connection with angling, 

 after those of J. D. There is plenty of 

 verse about our art, but not too much 

 poetry. Browne took the unpardonable 

 liberty of correcting some of the "inaccura- 

 cies " and " redundancies " of the original, 

 for which he has been mildly anathema- 

 tised by Mr. Westwood in his Chronicle 

 of " The Compleat Angler? to which work 

 of more than a hundred pages I would 

 again refer the reader who wishes to get 

 full bibliographical descriptions of the 

 various editions. 



Here is a specimen of Browne's verse 

 from an eclogue entitled " Renock's De- 

 spair." Renock, " a slighted swain," thus 

 addresses his mistress : 



" O cold as morning dews, as mid-day bright, 

 And more than Primrose sweet, than daisy 



white, 



Softer than down that on the thistle grows, 

 Which ripe September gives the frolic wind, 

 And cruel as the thorn which arms the rose 

 Must I unpity'd ever wail my woes, 

 Thy lips all pouting, and thy brow severe ; 

 While scornful of my fate and abject pains, 

 You, to my grief, withhold a soft'ning ear." 



