120 NOTES ON FISH AND FISHING. 



river, his journies may be more certaine and lesse wearisome. Hee 

 should have knowledge of proportions of all sorts, whether circular, 

 square, or diametricale, that when hee shall he questioned of his 

 diurnall progresses, hee may give a geographical description of the 

 angles and channels of rivers, how they fall from their heads, and 

 what compasses they fetch in their several windings. He must also 

 have the perfect art of numbering, that in the soun'ding of lakes or 

 rivers, hee may know how many foot or inches each severally con- 

 tayneth, and, by adding, subtracting, or multiplying the same, hee 

 may yield the reason of every river's swift or slow current. Hee 

 should not be unskillfull in musick, that whensoever either melancholy, 

 heavinesse of his thought, or the perturbation of his owne fancies, 

 stirreth up sadnesse in him, he may remove the same with some godly 

 hymne or antheme, of which David gives him ample examples. 



" Hee must then he full of humble thoughts, not disdaining, when 

 occasion commands, to kneele, lye down, or wet his feet or fingers, as 

 oft as there is any advantage given thereby unto the gaining the end 

 of his labour. Then hee must be strong and valiant, neither to be 

 amazed with stormes nor affrighted with thunder, but to hold them 

 according to their natural causes and the pleasure of the Highest : 

 neither must he like the foxe which preyeth upon lambs, imploy all 

 his labour against the smallest frie, but, like the lyon, that seazeth 

 elephants, thinke the greatest fish which swimmeth a reward little 

 enough for the paines which he endureth. Then must hee be prudent, 

 that apprehending the reasons why the fish will not bite, and all other 

 casuall impediments which hinder his sport, and knowing the remedies 

 for the same, he may direct his labours to be without troublesome- 



I have said there is no " finality " in the Art of Angling. 

 Indeed, judging from experience, it is a question whether 

 the high and still progressing education of modern fish 

 will not eventually so baffle the art of the fisherman that 

 he will consider the propriety of retiring from an 

 unequal contest. Can we advance our art so as to keep 

 pace with the advancing intelligence of our fish ? We 

 certainly must try. Nil disperandum is one of the most 

 significant of the fisherman's mottoes. We must make 



