ANCIENT ANGLING AUTHORS 13 



unto his taylle. Many other suche I cowde tell : but 

 drede of magre makith me for to leue. Thus me 

 semyth that huntynge & hawkynge and also fowlynge 

 ben so laborous and greuous that none of theym 

 maye perfourme nor bi very meane that enduce a 

 man to a mery spyryte : whyche is cause of his longe 

 lyfe acordynge vnto ye sayd parable of Salamon. 

 Dowteles thenne folowyth it that it must nedes be 

 the dysporte of fysshynge with an angle. For all 

 other manere of fysshyng is also laborous & greuous : 

 often makynge folkes ful wete & colde, whyche many 

 tymes hath be seen cause of grete Infirmytees. But 

 the angler maye haue no colde nor no dysease nor 

 angre, but yf he causer hymself. For he maye not 

 lese at the moost but a lyne or an hoke : of whyche 

 he maye haue store plentee of his owne makynge, 

 as this symple treatyse shall teche hym. Soo thenne 

 his losse is not greuous. And other greyffes may he 

 not haue, sauynge but yf ony fisshe breke away after 

 that he is take on the hoke, or elles that he catche 

 nought : whyche ben not greuous. For yf he faylle 

 of one he maye not faylle of a nother, yf he dooth as 

 this treatyse techyth : but yf there be nought in the 

 water. And yet atte the leest he hath his holsom 

 walke and mery at his ease : a swete ayre of the 

 swete sauoure of the meede floures : that makyth 

 hym hungry. He hereth the melodyous armony of 

 fowles. He seeth the yonge swannes : heerons : 

 duckes : cotes and many other foules wyth theyr 

 brodes ; whyche me semyth better than alle the 

 noyse of honndys : the blastes of hornys and the 

 scrye of foulis that hunters : fawkeners & foulers 

 can make. And yf the angler take fysshe : surely 

 thenne is there noo man merier than he is in his 

 spyryte. ... <* 



Thus haue I prouyd to myn entent that the 

 dysporte & game of anglynge is the very meane 

 & cause that enducith a man in to a mery spyryte. 



