THE GUDGEON. 205 



you will often find the candidates for capture increase, rather than 

 diminish, the longer you remain fishing there ; for so far are these 

 fish from being frightened away by this proceeding, that it not un- 

 frequently happens, that do what you will to drive them from the 

 spot, like pigs chased out of an orchard when the gate is left 

 open, they will return again in spite of you. Catching so 

 many without the necessity of shifting a standing has a greater 

 degree of fascination about it than some anglers who practice it 

 are willing to admit, who only requiring a few for bait are often 

 found to remain longer in the pursuit, and killing many more than 

 they can possibly require for their ostensible purpose. " But 

 one gudgeon more," so the old story goes, once caused a more 

 ardent lover of the angle than of his ladye love to be too late 

 for his wedding; a neglect the injured fair one never forgave, 

 and even carried her sentiment so far as to break off the engage- 

 ment. Rumour says the angling swain was no less a personage 

 than the celebrated Sir Isaac Newton ; but more probably some 

 enemy fastened the tale upon him, and with no more foundation in 

 real truth, than the tale that Rumour also spread of this great phi- 

 losopher's having in a fit of absence stopped his tobacco pipe with 

 the finger of a fair young lady, the latter of whom, from the air 

 of tender silence with which he took the hand to which the finger 

 appertained, must have expected a very different mode of proceed- 

 ing on his part. Yet we must bear in mind 



That Rumour is at best a lying jade ; 

 ' ' Upon whose tongues continual slanders ride, 

 Stuffing the ears of men with false reports," 

 Enlarging such slight foibles as may mark 

 The boundless path of intellect to fame, 

 Which, though but very molehills in such space, 

 She makes appear as mountains to the eyes 

 Of folk of narrow minds ; who gladly seize 

 Gloating like maggots o'er their nauseous feast 

 Each tale degrading to the gifted man, 

 As if the casting his great genius down 

 Could raise their mean capacities one jot. 



As gudgeons feed entirely on the bottom, they must be angled 

 for there only. The best bait is a small red worm, or the tail end 

 of a middle sized brandling, or of a garden worm ; but they will 

 bite very freely at gentles or the cadis, or at white paste, though 



