6 AMERICAN FISHES . 
“I pray you, sir,” said Viator, “ give me some observations and direc¬ 
tions concerning the Pearch , for they say he is both a very good and a 
bold-biting fish, and I would fain learne to fish for him.” 
Although Norris and Scott and Roosevelt and Forester pass the Perch 
by with contempt, and Jordan has pronounced it “soft, coarse and 
insipid,” it is not without its advocates in America. Seth Green admits 
that it is an “excellent fish for the people,” and a “superior table fish,” 
and that when taken on light tackle with an artificial fly it affords not a 
little sport,* and H. H. Thompson, in the American Angler for June 2, 
1883, has made an eloquent plea for this worthy little species, in which 
he is supported by such eminent anglers as D. W. Cross and A. N. Cheney. 
I venture the prediction that before many years the Perch will have as 
many followers as the Black Bass among those who fish for pleasure in the 
waters of the Eastern United States. A fish for the people it is, we 
will grant, and it is the anglers from among the people, who have neither 
time, money nor patience for long trips and complicated tackle, who will 
prove its steadfast friends. 
As an article of food a Perch taken from clear, cool water is undoubtedly 
superior to many popular marine species. Ray tells us that it was formerly 
called Perdrix aqiLammi —the partridge of the waters, and Ausonius thus 
sounds its praise : — 
“Nor will I pass thee over in silence, O Perch, the delicacy of the 
tables, worthy among river fish to be compared with seafish ; thou alone 
are able to contend with the Red Mullets. ”f 
In Venner’s “Via Recta ad Vitam Longam ” printed in 1650, we are 
told that Perch taken in pure water are for taste and nourishment 
equal to Trout or Pickerel. “Perch,” adds this writer, “is usually 
sauced with butter or vinegar, but add thereto the flavor of nutmeg, 
which to this fish is very proper, it becomes delectable to the taste and 
grateful to the stomach. The spawn of Perch is of delicate and whole¬ 
some nourishment, very good for the weak. ’ ’ 
A recent British authority writes that it is unsurpassed by any non¬ 
migrating species, except the eel, and that it more closely resembles the 
sole than any other fresh-water fish. 
There are in America many who prefer the Perch to the bass, and even 
to the brook trout, and among them are some independent enough to 
*American Angler, May 15, 1886. 
fThe Moselle, x, 115, 
