218 THE COMPLETE ANGLER. PAKT I. 



washed her, by tumbling her up and down in the 

 water, that he may devour her without danger. And 

 Gesner affirms, that a Polonian gentleman did faith- 

 fully assure him, he had seen two young geese, at one 

 time, in the belly of a Pike. And doubtless a Pike, in 

 his height of hunger, will bite at and devour a dog that 

 swims in a pond ; and there have been examples of it, 

 or the like; for as I told you, " The belly has no ears 

 " when hunger comes upon it." 



The Pike is also observed to be a solitary, melan- 

 choly ; and a bold fish : melancholy, because he 

 always swims or rests himself alone ; and never swims 

 in shoals, or with company, as Roach and Dace, and 

 most other fish do : and bold, because he fears not a 

 shadow, or to see or be seen of any body, as the Trout 

 and Chub, and all other fish do. 



And it is observed by Gesner, That the jaw-bones, 

 and hearts, and galls of Pikes, are very medicinable for 

 several diseases, or to stop blood, to abate fevers, to 

 cure agues, to oppose or expel the infection of the 

 plague, and to be many ways medicinable and useful 

 for the good of mankind : but he observes, That the 

 biting of a Pike is venomous, and hard to be cured. 



And it is observed, that the Pike is a fish that breeds 

 but once a year; and that other fish, as namely 

 Loaches, do breed oftener : and so, we are certain, tame 

 Pigeons do almost every month ; and yet the Hawk, a 

 bird of prey, as the Pike is a fish breeds but once in 

 twelve months*. And you are to note, That his time 

 of breed ing or spawning, is usually about the end of 

 February, or, somewhat later, in March ; as the 

 weather proves colder or warmer : and, to note, That 

 his manner of breeding is thus: a He and a She-Pike 

 Will, usually, go together, out of a river, into some 



* Agreeable to the course of Providence observed in the production 

 of animals; in which the disproportion in number, between beasts 

 birds and fishes, of prey y and, those of each genus designed for the su*ie~ 

 nance of man, is obvious. The JLion : and the Sheep , the Haivk : and 

 the Hen, the Shark i and the Herring, are severally, in their kindf, 

 instances of this wonderful economy in the works of nature. 



