INTRODUCTORY. 



SEVERAL times of late uninitiated persons have- 

 approached me with inquiries as to whether, in 

 my opinion, any gain would accrue to them by 

 admission into the brotherhood of anglers, and if so 

 what would be the best way for them to set about 

 it. The angler, as Walton has informed the world, 

 is "born so" that is to say, he has a natural 

 disposition for the quiet pleasures of the country,, 

 for green grass, clear water, shady trees, and for 

 nature in all her moods ; he has, withal, a decided 

 taste for matching his wits against difficulties, and. 

 feels a lively pride when he has done so with, 

 success. But these qualities are, of course, not 

 vested solely in the angler as an angler; many 

 people possess them to the full who have never 

 wetted a line, and who could not tell you the 

 difference between a perch and a roach. 



