Decs, 1903.] FOREST AND STREAM. 4 41 
ANGLING IN THE SEVENTEENTH CENTURY. 
From the ''Gentleman's Recreation," published in the year ItiSG. 
This is a facsimile of one of the plates in Blome's 
"Gentleman's Recreation," printed by Roycroft in 
i6S6, or thirty-three years after the first edition of Izaak 
Walton's "Compleat Angler." The work treated of 
horsemanship, hawking", hunting, fowling, fishing and 
agricnltvare. It comprised also a treatise on cock- 
fighting. Blome's inchision of the pastime of the pit 
as one of the recreations of a gentleman indicates that 
the sportsman of the seventeenth century was pos- 
sessed of more catholicity of taste than his brother of 
the twentieth century, Times change; sentiment, 
fashions, sports change with them. Of all the popular 
recreations of Blome's day, none has held its place 
more securely than angling: no other, if we may judge 
by tfie persisting taste of sportsmen, is likely to endure 
longer in the favor of mankind. There may come a 
time when for a Christmas Number of some Forest 
AXT) Stream of the twenty-fourth century there sliall 
be drawn from the angling prints of 1903 something 
which to the eve of the reader of that time shall seem 
as quaint and old-fashioned and crude as this Blome 
print does to us. But of this we may be certain, that 
in whatever costume he shall array himself, with what- 
ever tackle he shall angle, and whatever lish he shall 
draw forth, the angler of that day will be animated by 
the spirit of the angler now; and the gentle art will 
haA'e for him the same allurements and the same com- 
pensations it had for the fisherman of Blome's day and 
has for us. Times may change, but the compelling charm 
of angling will last while sun shall shine and waters run. 
