FOREWORD xi 



ably coloured by the use of wax. The fly so dressed 

 must have borne some resemblance to a modern 

 chub fly. The rod which they used was 6 feet 

 in length, and to it was attached a line of a similar 

 length. 



A Latin poem written by Richard de Fournival 

 about the thirteenth century alludes incidentally to 

 fishing, and from this work it appears that the fly 

 and the worm were among the lures then used by 

 anglers, and that the eel basket and spear were also 

 in use. 



The foregoing brief notes from the ancient Greek 

 and Latin authors will serve to illustrate the develop- 

 ment to which angling had attained at the time 

 when it was first introduced into England. 



Although there were many books treating more 

 or less of fishing, they appear to have dealt with the 

 art of angling incidentally ; the object of the authors 

 seems to have been more to illustrate the customs 

 and habits of fishermen and the natural history of 

 the fish, than to give instruction in angling. It may 

 therefore, I think, be fairly claimed that the Treatyse 

 of ffysshynge wyth an Angle, was not only the first 

 angling manual in England, but was also the first 

 practical work of the kind written in any language. 

 From the date of the appearance of this book, the 

 gradual and steady evolution of the art of angling, 

 etc., from the rough and ready forms of fishing then 

 in vogue, to the artistic and scientific methods now 

 practised in the various branches of the sport, can 



