140 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
[Jan. 26, 1907. 
i: x LIBRIS 
JOHN GERARD IIECKSCIJER 
design—it so often happens that a book-plate, 
perfect in every way, except that one would 
wish the lettering absent, but in this instance 
both in proportion and value as a whole, it is 
perfectly well balanced. Mr. Fearing is a 
bibliophile who has long been known as an 
ardent collector, and whose splendid angling 
library of over four thousand volumes has a 
worthy ex-libris to adorn it. 
Somewhat similar is that of Mr. Dean Sage, 
a smaller but highly finished plate representing 
a trout with rod and net crossed behind it. 
Simple as possible, it is very effective when 
placed in the book. It is a steel engraving 
with no lettering whatever but the owner’s 
name, done in the conventional script style. 
One of the smallest book-plates I know, the 
paper measuring but two inches by one 
inch, yet it has a refined distinction and effect¬ 
iveness not attained by many more pretentious 
plates. From Mr. Sage, so closely identified to 
the salmon and trout of the cold northern 
waters a big leap is made to one of the sunnv 
south. 
The plate of Mr. John Gerard Heckscher is 
a most beautiful and highly satisfactory plate 
from every standpoint, the main feature being 
a spirited representation of a leaping tarpon, 
at once showing the owner’s pleasure and 
pastime. Ingeniously arranged are some 
angling volumes on a sort of balcony, overlook¬ 
ing a southern lagoon with cocoanut palms in 
the distance. These books rest upon a panel 
in which is the owner’s name. Above the cen¬ 
tral picture is a shield, having upon it the 
clasped hands of friendship, and behind, en¬ 
twined around a delicate piece of ornament, is 
a ribbon, upon which is placed a well-known 
German motto. I find some difficulty in making 
a choice between this and the Howland plate. 
Both are distinctively angling plates, carried 
to the highest perfection art and design can 
attain. Both, of course, are expensive plates, 
being engraved by famous experts. But this 
alone is not all. The artists have, I can well 
see, gone to infinite pains to make a design 
distinctive, individual, with the result that as 
V- //, /V 
pictures they are perfect gems for the purpose 
intended. 
The writer’s plate represents him in the act 
of landing a trout. Above is - a shield with two 
young mermaids holding a shell to represent 
sea fishing, and on the shell is placed a palette 
and book to denote his profession. The outside 
border shows a salmon and trout, with a num¬ 
ber of flies, both natural and artificial, with the 
motto used in the “Compleat Angler”: “Simon 
Peter said, ‘I go a-fishing,’ and they said ‘we 
also will go with thee’.” The design is a sim¬ 
ple pen drawing and photo-engraved. 
Mr. Henry Blackwell has an etched plate that 
in many respects is highly pleasing, drawn 
mainly in outline, suggesting closely the old 
wood-cut style of drawing, which is crude and 
yet naturalistic. I doubt if a Japanese artist 
could draw so true a kingfisher in so few 
lines, conveying as it does a natural action all 
anglers will recognize. The crane and flying 
fish are just as well drawn, but the group of 
fishes in the foreground do not show up so well. 
I take it they are intended to represent a 
speckled trout, bass, pike and eel. On one side 
is placed the rod and creel, on the other the 
net, with a few cloud lines completing the cir¬ 
cle, with the name engraved in the center. 
Another beautiful and perfectly adequate 
plate is that of Mr. Henry A. Sherwin, who is 
well known as an ardent Waltonion scholar 
and collector of piscatorial things, as well as bib¬ 
liophile, whose collection is constantly growing. 
Mr. Sherwin’s is what would be termed a “por¬ 
trait plate,” having a panel picture of Izaak 
Walton, evidently from the Houseman portrait. 
Below it is an excellent representation of a 
salmon and trout resting on crossed net and 
rod; entwined gracefully in and out are some 
bullrushes, the picture forming a vignette ef¬ 
fect, at once strong and delicate. Of the same 
character as the Howland plate, it is not 
bound together in a panel, nor has it a shaded 
background to heighten its effect, each object 
being modeled up to the highest degree of per¬ 
fection on the plain paper background. The 
owner has another plate, much smaller in size, 
exactly the same design with the exception of 
the shape of the portrait panel? Both are en¬ 
graved and designed by E. D. French, who 
also made the equally beautiful Heckscher 
plate. Personally, I should prefer this plate, 
because of the Walton portrait being intro¬ 
duced, for it at once enhances, if anything could, 
a distinctly angling plate. It would never do 
for every angler to use Walton for his ex- 
libris, but it is quite the proper thing for a 
Waltonian collector like Mr. Sherwin to do so. 
Some years ago, on a day of pleasant mem¬ 
ory, not easily forgotten, I was in the splendid 
library of the late Dean Sage at Menands, near 
Albany. Chatting of books the genial and 
kindly owner asked me what I would like to 
see down from those shelves of many books. 
Aware of my host’s love of angling, and that 
coupled with my own, naturally I replied that 
I should like to see a genuine first edition of 
Walton’s “Compleat Angler.” I half feared 
that the request could not be granted, but with 
a happy smile Mr. Sage turned and reached 
down; then he placed the precious volume be¬ 
fore me. Such a book could only be in the 
possession of the very wealthy, and aside from 
its intrinsic value, it assuredly gave intense 
pleasure to handle a volume, which perhaps 
had at one time been handled by the saintly 
Izaak himself. This little book to me seemed 
infinitely more precious than any of the rest, 
with its quaint spelling, admirably printed on 
paper that by time had been turned to a rich 
dark ivory color. The owner’s small but ex¬ 
quisite angling plate was placed on the inside 
cover beside another one, which with that choice 
good taste of a true bibliophile had not been 
removed. Mr. Sage’s ex-libris is very similar 
in character, though very superior in execution, 
to the signet ring presented to W. H. Pepys 
by Sir Humphrey Davev, of which an enlarged 
drawing is shown. Walton’s own seal has a 
representation of our Savior on the cross, or 
rather on an anchor shaped like the cross. This 
at once shows the intense piety and true faith 
of so good a man. The signature, so plain and 
readable (a rare thing at that period) stamps 
the writer of it a man of strength as well as of 
neatness and individual fearlessness. 
From among the modern book-plates, the se¬ 
lection here engraved, a fair idea can be formed 
of what fishing plates are now in use. Some 
have a separate plate for books other than 
those on angling. There are a number of well- 
known men in America whose favorite pastime 
has been, and is, that of angling. Such a few 
may be mentioned as the late Mr. Joseph Jef¬ 
ferson. Dr. Weir Mitchell, Mr. Cleveland, Mr. 
Edison, Mr. Robert B. Roosevelt and others. 
In England a much longer list could be given, 
especially among literary men, who seemed to 
have a deep affection for angling. Blackmorc 
shows it in nearly all his works. Andrew 
Lang, Christopher North and William Black 
were happiest on a salmon river, as was 
Millais the painter. Sir Edward Greay in his 
book on fly-fishing gives a delightful glimpse 
of his boyhood days at Winchester. These, and 
many others, have given us books well worthy 
whereon to place our ex-libris, when, if lent 
to a negligent friend, he may identify it by its 
book-plate as being out of place. Then he will 
feel bound to return it at once to its right¬ 
ful owner. Louis Rhead. 
Temperature and Salmon. 
According to experiments conducted in Great 
Britain, salmon are very sensitive to variations 
of temperature in the water in rising to artificial 
flies. At one of the meetings of the Royal So¬ 
ciety, of Edinburgh, Mr. George Muirhead stated 
that a series of experiments lasting four years 
showed that salmon were caught on only 131 days 
each year. When the weekly variation in the 
temperature of the water was only 3 degrees, the 
weekly average of salmon taken on each rod 
per day was 2.14, falling to .40 when the tem¬ 
perature varied as much as 12 degrees. 
