THE RIVER LEA. 115 



That which a being was, what does it show ? 

 That being- which it was, it is not now j 

 To be what 'tis, is not to be : you see 

 That which now is not, shall a being be. 



SHEPHERD'S WATER. 



The next place to Stanstead, is Mr. Shep- 

 herd's water, near the Rye-house.* At Mr. 

 Shepherd's, I would strongly recommend the 

 angler to take up his quarters as long as his 

 convenience will allow him, for here he will 

 meet with good sport in fishing, and the best 

 accommodation at the house, which is a neat 

 inn, and much frequented by the lovers of 

 angling. In consequence of its distance from 

 the metropolis (eighteen miles), the company 

 which use this house are more select than at 

 many others nearer London ; the house has a 



* The Rye-house, (now a workhouse) is famous for being 

 the place intended to assassinate Charles the Second, on his 

 returning this way from Newmarket. See Hume's History of 

 England. 



