CONTINENTAL STATES 273 



the varied and rippling streams, and lively scenery, of 

 this division of France. 



"Having furnished myself vi'ith a small stock of 

 necessaries, two dozen of good Limerick flies, and half a 

 score of cast-lines, I set oif for Honfleur, purposing to 

 pay a visit to a friend there for two or three days, and 

 then proceed to Pont Aiidemer — an angling station on 

 the north boundaries of the province, of some little 

 notoriety and reputation. And I shall take the liberty 

 of mentioning here, for the comfort and convenience of 

 angling Continental tourists, that I derived much benefit 

 in my subsequent rambles from a tin digester, which I 

 had got made at Havre, and which enabled me to cook 

 either fish or flesh with scarcely any trouble whatever. 

 This utensil was made of block tin ; round like a dish, 

 and about nine inches in diameter ; had three small feet, 

 and a little tin cup to hold about an ordinary wineglass- 

 ful of any kind of spirit, by the ignition of which the 

 cooking was efiected. I carried the entire apparatus in 

 my fishing - basket among other articles. It did not 

 weigh more than ten ounces, and it often was the 

 means by which I obtained a comfortable and palatable 

 dinner, when I would otherwise, to all appearance, have 

 had to go without. 



" Having arrived at the fishing - stream of Pont 

 Audemer, I took the rod, and ascended the waters some 

 little distance from the town. I found several French 

 gentlemen had been trying their piscatory skill in this 

 locality a week before my arrival, and, according to 

 report, had been very successful. One of the party 

 had caught a trout with minnow, near the mouth of the 

 stream, which weighed three pounds ten ounces ; a very 

 fine, short, thick fish, which had been preserved, and 

 was about being placed in a glass case to ornament one 

 of the sitting-rooms of the inn. I found in my rambles 

 that the streams were very rippling and finely turned 

 for a single-handed rod-fisher, and that red bodies and 

 grey wings were my most successful colours. The first 

 day's sport yielded me ten very fine trout, nearly all of 

 a size, measuring about eleven inches, and weighing on 

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