The compleat troller, or, The art of trolling with a description of all the utensils, instruments, tackling, and materials requisite thereto, with rules and directions how to use them : as also a brief account of most of the principal rivers in England / by a lover of the sport.

THE Compleat Troller , OR , THE ART OF TROLLING .

CHAP. I. Of the Name and Nature of a Pike .

A Pike is called in the Latin Lucius , either a Lucendo , from shining in the Waters , or else ( which is more probable ) from {αβγδ} the Greek word for Lupus ; for as the Wolf is the most ravenous and cruel among Beasts , so the Pike is most greedy and devouring among Fishes . So that Lupus Piscis tho it be proper for the Sea-Wolf , yet it is often used for the Pike it self , the fresh water Wolf . He is of so greedy and voracious a nature , that he doth not only prey upon small Fishes , Frogs , &c. that come in his way in the Water , but sometimes upon Birds , and the Fowls of the Air : and ( some say ) he will fasten upon greater Animals . A German Writer reports for a certai●… truth , That when he had his Mule to drink a●… the River Rhine , she was caught so fast by he●… neather lipp with a Pike ; that being sorely bitten and terrified at so unexpected an Assault 〈…〉 she suddenly threw up her head , and cast th●… Fish upon the shore , which became a prey t●… the Master of the Mule . Out of this Pike wa●… taken , when it was opened , two young Gees●… or Goslins , a Fen-Duck , and the foot of 〈…〉 Maid . If this Story be not creditable , because i●… is so far fetch'd as from Germany , yet this i●… certain that a More-hen hath been found in th●… belly of a Pike taken out of our own Rivers 〈…〉 and I have seen my self that a Pike hath rise●… and struck at a Swallow , that hath dip'd he●… wings upon the Waters ; and have known the●… that have used a live Sparrow for a Bait at Snap●… An English Physician made this Observation i●… his Travels in the Low Countries , That as they were passing the Rivers in little Boats , the Pike struck so swiftly and greedily at the small Fry for feed , that sometimes they shot themselve●… so far out of the Water , that they fell into th●… Boat . This is another foreign Story , whic●… we may parallel with one at home ; how on●… that had catch'd an Eel , and was pulling of the skin and washing it in a Mote , a Pike leap●… at the Eel and fastened himself so to it , that h●… drew out both Eel and Pike . Of all the small Officers under this great Captain , a Perch is the most secure from his devouring jaws ; on which ●… e seldom adventures , except meer hunger ●… ompels him : yet Albert says he will take a ●… erch by the head , and kill it with his teeth first , ●… est if he should gorge it a-live , the finns and ●… rickles might be offensive to his maw : nor ●… oes he only tyrannize over all the small inhabi●… ants of his own dominions , and sometimes ●… respasses upon another Element , but often ●… ransgresses the laws of Generation , and those ●… f his own species he unnaturally devours . This Common-wealth among the Fishes , is much ●… ike Mr. Hobbes's State of Nature , which is ●… ut Status Belli , the Great Ones always devour ●… he less ; such is the Government , or rather ●… narchy in the Waters , where might will be ●… ure to overcome right , and the weakest go still ●… o the Walls . A Pike is a Prince in his own Li●… uid Countrey , and like an Universal Monarch , ●… an command all the Regiments of the Scaled ●… rmy , can Lord it over all his Vassals , and ●… ike a Potent Tyrant ) can enslave all the Resi●… ents in his own Territories without the least ●… esistance : Yet one profess'd enemy he hath , and ●… hat more powerful than himself , which is a ●… reature of an amphibious Nature , and can live ●… y land as well as by water : This is a cunning ●… nd a choice Fisher , for he seldom takes any but the best and the biggest Fish : He is much esteem'd of in some Countries , especially in Sweden , where he is kept tame for the purpose , and taught so much craft and dexterity , that the Cook will send him out of the Kitchin when he wants a Dish of Fish , and he will go strait to the Pond and fetch them . 't is a strange tale if true , and we had better believe it , than go so far to disprove it : I never looked upon an Otter to be such a docible and serviceable a Creature ; tho perhaps those of another Countrey may differ much in their Nature from ours .

CHAP. II . Of the Parts and Lineaments of a Pike .

AS to the shape and proportion of this great devourer , the figure of his Body is very long , his back broad , and almost square ; altogether equal to the lowest Finns : his head is lean and very bony , which bones in his head some have resembled to things of mysterious consequence : One of which they commonly compare to the Cross , another to the Spear 〈…〉 three other to those bloody Nails which wer●… Instruments of our Saviours passion : If thos●… comparisons smell any thing of superstition , yet as to Physical use , those bones may be profitable . For the jaw-bone beaten to powder , may be helpful for Pleurisies and the sharpness of Urine ; some do approve of it as a Remedy for the pain in the Heart and Stomach ; others affirm that the small bones pulverized , may be fitly used to dry up Sores , and many the like Medicinal qualities are attributed to the Pikes head . An Ancient Author writing of his Nature of things , does discover a Stone in the Brain of a Pike much like unto a Chrystal : Gesner himself the great Naturalist , testifies that ●… e found in the head of a little Pike two white Stones . As to the shape of his Head , his Snowt ●… s long , which some have compared to the Bill ●… r Beak of a Goose . His lower Jaw is far longer than his upper ; and in it are placed many Teeth , ●… ot orderly disposed , but of divers ranks and orders . His Eyes are of a golden colour , and very quick sighted , as are all sorts of Fish . Hi● Belly is always white , but his Back and Sides ●… re of a black and speckled yellow . His Ven●… ricle is very large and capacious , and his Throat ●… hort , as we may see by his prey which he hath ●… ewly taken and not digested ; part of it will come up into his mouth , but this is when he ●… eizes upon a great prize . A Credible Author ●… ffirms that he saw a Pike of that wonderful ●… igness , that had another within him conside●… ably great , and that within had a Water-Rat in its Belly ; So that the Ventricle of the great one must needs be exceeding large and extensive Gesner likewise observes that his Heart and Galls is very Medicinable to cure Agues , abate Feavors , &c. and that his biting is venemous and hard to be cured .

CHAP. III . Of the Age and growth of a Pike .

AS to the encrease and vivacity of this devouring Fish , some Historians have asserted that he will live to an incredible Age ▪ and that he will carry half as many Years a●… Scales upon his Back . Our Fore-quoted Autho●… Gesner , relates in his Natural History that a●… Pike was taken out of a Pond of the Emperou●… Frederick , that had lived 260 and odd Years ▪ which appears by the date in a Brass Ring whic●… lay hidden and grown over in his Gills , and had this Inscription written in Latin , Ego su●… illi piscis huic Stagno omnium primus impofit●… per Mundi Rectoris Frederici secundi manus di●… quinto Octobris , 1497. But whether our Fait●… will give us leave to believe this or not , it is no●… material to our Disquisitions ; for though w●… cannot prove him to be so longevous as to reac●… Hundreds , it is certain he will live to some score●… of Years ; and one of 40 or 45 inches , which are of the largest size , may possibly consist of as many Years as Inches ; and some of our own Countreymen have known and observ'd a Pike to come within Ten Years of the distinct age of Man , and had liv'd longer had not fate hastened his Death by a violent hand . One of 40 inches ( I said ) might haply be of so many years standing ; not that a Pike grow just about an Inch in a year , for that is a thing that is hard to determine , some grow faster , some slower , according to the diversity of their Water and their Feed : River Fish are thought to grow much faster than Pond Fish ; except the Pond be very large and have a good stream run through it : for there is nothing helps so much to the feeding of a Pike as fresh Water . That 's the reason why a Pike will not bite well after a great Rain . Jacks or Pickerills grow faster than great ones , and I have observed in a cleer and springing Brook , that a Jack spawn'd in March will take a Bait in October following , and will be encreased to Eighteen Inches the next March . In standing Water , as Motes and Ponds , he grows nothing so fast ; for to try the experiment , I have taken one out with a Cast-net in May , Measured him and Mark'd him on his Tail , and about Michaelmas I have taken the same fish , as appear'd by the Mark , and then measured him again and he hath not encreased in length above two Inches , and very little in Breadth . A River Fish will grow very fast till he come to be 24 or near 30 Inches , then he stands a little more at astay , and spreads himself in thickness ; after that he will grow a long time , and be much longer growing to his full bigness from 30 Inches , than he was encreasing to that proportion . He is a great Breeder and Multiplier , as we may see in those places that are preserv'd , how soon a River is full stock'd . Small Jacks shew themselves much after a Springflood , every Ditch is then full of Pickerills , and the Fenns are so abundantly stor'd with them , that you may buy an Horse load for a shilling . It s the Spring Tide that brings them up most , for about Midsummer and after they much decrease ●nd diminish in their number ; some being taken with Snares and Bow-nets , some with Trolling , and many little ones devoured by the greater : So that in the Stocking of a Pond , the wisest course is to put in all your Jacks as near as you can of a bigness , for a Pike of 30 Inches will make no bones of one of 16. As to the encrease of them , some are apt to grow more in length , others more in Breath and Thickness ; which latter sort are the best fed and the firmest Fishes ; for a lean , slender Pike , though he may seem to advance and improve in length , yet he is commonly a Waster ; for if he hath received any outward hurt , or wound , either by the Otter or by a stronger of his own species , or is inwardly pricked by the Hook or any casualty , yet still he will live and eat his Meat , and be as hungry as Pharao's lean Kine , which devoured the fat ones : he will be yet for Plunder and greedy as ever , tho he neither thrive nor grow ; this I observed in a large Pike which I took in a wasting condition , he had a long Hook in his Belly , and the end of the Wire hung out of his Mouth ; he might probably have been long in that declining estate , and so might have continued a considerable time , though he fall away , and must at last necessarily die of a Consumption . There are several circumstances of time and place which may be very advantageous and conduce much to the growth of a Pike , a still shady unfrequented place , where he is not affrighted and disturbed at his Feed is very Commodious for his rest and repast ; especially if his Shelter be thick and convenient for him : for if a Ditch joyn upon the River , or a Spring or small Brook run into it , his abode will be more pleasing and delightsome ; if it be a solitary and retired corner , not beaten with Fishers and the often visits of his flatering Friends .

CHAP. IV . Of the Seat and Harbour of a Pike .

THe Place and Harbour of a Pike is usually amongst or near a Bank of Weeds ; for he does not always confine himself to his bed and lye close like a Fox in his den , but often shoots out and sports in the cleer stream ; and ( like the great Leviathan ) takes his pastime in the middle of the Waters . The Weeds indeed are his chiefest refuge and his Sanctuary , if he be affrighted by a Net or the sudden disturbance of his approaching Enemy ; he then strikes into his accustomed Harbour , and there keeps his Garison . Those weeds where he most delights to make his Residence , are Flags and Bulrushes ; if there be none of those , then Candocks have the next honour to entertain this princely Guest . There are other Weeds where he thinks fit to make his abode , as Reeds , green Fog , and a Weed with a small leaf , which he often frequents , especially about October , when they begin to rot . If a place be very thick and weedy , you cannot so easily guess where his Lodgings are , but if the River be free from weeds , only here and there a bank or bed of Bullrushes , you may safely conclude those are his retirements and his baiting places : If your River be very broad , deep , and streight like a Scoure , it will be so much the more difficult to find his recess ; and if there be but few fish , it will be next to seeking a Needle in a Bottle of Hay ; for in such a kind of false River you may Troll perhaps from Morning till Night and scarce get a bite . But if such a place be little beaten , and have plenty of Fish you may have sport enough to encourage you to the same place ; but then you must arm your self with a great deal of patience , and fish it very true and slow . There 's not so much variety and delight in Trolling such a River , because it is all along even and alike , and you cannot conceive where your prey lies ; this you may call Hap-hazard , and expect a bite every throw , though you go three or four hours , and neither see nor feel any Fish but your own Bait . Some there are that place their sport in Hopes , and take as much delight in expectation as others doe in frution ; but a little Encouragement does well ; not only for the profits sake ( as something has some savour ) but also to save the credit and keep away despair from the Melancholy Fisherman .

The best and securest way of Fishing these wide Reaches , is by drawing the bait along the sides next to you , except you can search the breadth of it , and throw over to the farther side ; but that is but dull and slow Sport , and it will spend a great deal of time to Troll the length of a Furlong . If your River consists of pits , which is the quickest and most delightsome way of Trolling , you must have a special regard to the top and bottom of the Pit . A Pike may be taken sometimes in the middle , but his chiefest Seat and Habitation is at the bottom of the Pit ; and this I have often observed , that where one Pike hath been taken at the Mouth , another hath been found at the feet or bottom of the Pit .

These are the ordinary places ; yet according to the variety of Weather and Seasons of the Year , a Pike will alter and change his dwelling . In the Winter he usually couches very nigh the ground , and gets into the deepest and obscurest places ; about the latter end of February , or the beginning of March , he begins to be weary of his melancholly repose , and to raise himself a little from the bottom , and is more active in seeking his feed : At the latter end of March , or sometimes the middle , he shoots into the scoures , and there leaves the Spawn to multiply according to its kind . In April and May he still gets higher , and advances himself into the shallows ; and if he may lie unmolested there , he will so continue most part of Summer ; in September he begins to retreat again , and removes himself from his accustomed harbour to visit his Winter Quarters , which will be much the same as before , if no floods disorder him : This is his yearly course to change according to heat or cold , so that a Pike , like a Person of Quality , hath both a Winter and a Summer House . As to his daily Transactions , he thus disposes of himself : In a hot gleamy day , he gets to the Surface of the Water , as if he had a desire to exchange his Element , to enjoy the comfortable influence of the Airy Region , he then scorns to be tempted with a Bait , and can live all day with a little more nourishment than the Motes in the Sun : for you can no sooner offer him the kindness of a deceitful Bit , but he 's gone as swift as lightning to abscond himself in his lowest retirements . There are some that will make such brags of their Art , that they have the confidence to say , They can find a Pike as easily in his seat , as an old Hare-finder can take Puss in her Furm ; and that the same Pike will as infallibly take your Bait , as an hungry Dog will leap at a Crust : They would make you believe they are good Accomptants , and such Water Arithmeticians , that they can tell the number of the Fish in the River as well as Graziers can count their Sheep and Beasts in their Pastures . These Stories are too Romantick to gain the credit of sober Fishermen , though one that hath had much experience and made it his business , may give a near guess where the Fish lies : some places are more probable than others , though you will often meet with them in the middle as well as by the sides , and sometimes unexpectedly where there is no conveniency of shelter or repast . A Ford that is cleer and gravelly at the bottom , especially if it have a Spit adjoyning to it that is indifferent deep and weedy , is looked upon as a probable place : for though they generally affect a deep Water , yet they will get as near as they can to a Ford or Shallow ; where they delight themselves , and sport with the little fry , so a●… Scoures and Pits that are near Mills , eithe●… above or below them , commonly well stor'●… with Fish : A Mill Dam that is deep and weedy 〈…〉 is an approved Receptacle for them . Tho●… Rivers that are streight and level , are not 〈…〉 good to Fish , as those that are crooked and hav●… many corners and turnings : for the Fish wi●… get into those Creeks and Channels , an●… hide themselves in their private apartments . 〈…〉 the water be narrow , it is more pleasing for t●… Troller ; for where it is very broad and deep●… there is more uncertainty in their Seat and Ha●…bour , if it be narrow , you may Fish both side●… and sooner chop upon them , you will then g●… on the the faster ; and with more courage a●… alacrity drive forward to your journeys en●… But this is chiefly as every one fancies , for so●… desire the widest places they can find , and the●… to fix themselves two or three hours without at●… considerable motion : I never approv'd of th●… dull way , as thinking it needless and impertine●… to cast three or four times in one and the sa●… Place , because a Pike if he bites at all , common●… rises at it the first throw , tho he may sometim●… snap at it , when you have the least thoughts 〈…〉 him . As to the Nature or Constitution of the●…ver , the deeper is generally the better and the saf●… Harbour ; altho he delights much in a mid●… Retirement , about four foot in depth is a rig●… proportion , and the best pitch for the Troller ; ●… or if it be much deeper , they are the more difficult to stir , and harder to find ; and if ●… hallower , they will be apt to see you , and so ●… hun the inticements of a Treacherous Friend . Small Jacks will often lye within two or ●… ometimes one foot in Water ; it s the wisest course in such places to keep at a distance and not come nigh the River till the Bait is in .

CHAP. V. Of the best Seasons for Trolling .

THere are some that pretend to Trolling , and yet Observe no Time or Season to be better than another : A Pike indeed will bite more or ●… ess at any time , and the Fisherman may happen ●… pon some sport , let him set out when he will ; but ●… o go out so at all adventures , is a very uncrtain ●… nd unsecure way : for as to the Heat in Summer ●… nd Frost and Snow in Winter , he had better make Hay in the one , and sit by the Fire in ●… he other . Some will brag so much of their ●… ardy Constitutions , that they can break the ●… ce with one hand , and take out Fish with the ●… ther , and can slide a Trolling ( like Dutchmen ) ●… n their Scates , and not be sensible of the in●… lemeny of the Air : they will be still for Fishing , when the Weather is more proper for Fowling ; they will pretend they can charm the Fish at Christmas with a sweetned Bait , and to be more admired , will present their Landlord with a Pike at New-Years-tide ; These ( I confess ) are Artists far beyond our Profession , i●… their performances be as large as their promises .

There are some Days ( we grant ) in the depth of Winter , as in December or January , that a Man may pick out to stand two or three hours , by the River-side , but the Weather must be Open and Temperate , and about the middle of the day : such a Winter as the last was in 81 might be very favourable to the sport , and there was few days but what might have been serviceable for the Trollers Diversion ; the great Fish will be then soonest enticed with the Bait at that time of the Year , because they lye dee●… and are not so careful of their own preservation ▪ There is another great advantage for the Winter Troller , that the Weeds are then down , an●… rotten , which before were a great hinderanc●… both from throwing the Bait , as also in keepin●… the Fish from the sight of it ; for though a Pi●… delights much among the Weeds , and doe●… usually make his abode there , yet it is very diff●…cult to take him there , except it be with th●… Snap ; for if you give him the liberty of running and playing with your Bait , he winds himself so fast about the Weeds , that you may b●… in some danger of losing both your Fish and your Hook , if your Line be not very Strong : If you take a Snap too , you will be troubled with them , for they are great Enemies to that . To begin the Year then and the Fishermans Recreations , February is the first and none of the worst Months he can pitch upon for his sport , after Candlemas if the season be moderate and the water in tune ( which is very rare then ) for if it be not a flood , as it is often at that time , yet the Ditches and Brooks are commonly so rank and full , that it is but indifferent Fishing ; but if it chance to be a dry season and open , it is one of the best Months . So is March very seasonable and auspicious to the Troller , excepting the time of Spawning , which usually begins about the middle , unless the Spring be very forward ; and then they will be sick sooner . The Snap is then the only way to deceive them , for if you fish at Pouch you may have many ●… ites , but scarse take one , except it be a Male-fish . These two Months will try the Fishermans ●… atience , whether he be Wind and Weather ●… roof ; the next is April , which will make him ●… mends for his former sufferings ; and is a Month ●… o inviting to sport , that it is both pleasant and ●… rofitable ; the chirping Birds do then begin to ●… eek their Males , and the long silent Cuckee ●… hat forsook her colder Climate , does again ●… alute her sprouting branches , and tell us the News of an approaching Summer : Yo●… may then please your self to see the tende●… Swallow so ioyful at her first flight , when sh●… seems to make obeisance to your Bait , an●… displays her Wings upon the surface of th●… Waters . This Month you will find most propitious to your pastime , because the Weed●… which have couch'd all Winter , have not ye●… erected their Heads to annoy the Bait , o●… frustrate the hopes of an impatient Fisherma●… This Month ( I say ) is usually successful fo●… these diversions , both because the River is the●… cleer of Fog and Filth ; and also that the Fi●… which have lately cast their Spawn , are now mo●… hungry and ready for their prey ; there is no●… little fear of their forsaking your Bait as the●… did in March . They are not yet arrived to tha●… fatness , and firmness , which they will ge●… in Summer , but are many of them flamp an●… thin ; the individium decreasing to multiply th●… species . The beginning of May is likewise ve●… seasonable , especially if it hits with the Pr●…verb to be Cold and Windy ; towards the latte●… end of it the Weeds spring up , and are ver●… offensive to the Hook ; then begins the Trolle●… Vacation , which continues till the latter end 〈…〉 August or the beginning of September ; yet tho●… that are afraid of an Ague at Spring , or Fa●… may choose themselves the coolest cloudy d●… they can find in June or July to exercise the●… Skill ; but then they will be sure to take more Weeds than Fish .

As to the Fall of Autumnal season , October is the principal Month , the Wea●her being then temperate , and the Weeds which were st●o●g and high before , do now die and fall to the bottom . The Rivers are then generally low , which is a great advantage one way , b●cause the F●sh are more easily found in their Harbours , when they leave the Shallows and Sc●●res , and ●odge themselves in the Pits and deepest places : A P●●● is now very firm and fat , having had the benefit of the Summers feed ; and if the Weather continue dry and not extraordinary cold , you may take in part of November , which will add much ●… o your sport , because the Weeds will be the more wasted and rotten ; but if a flood comes in October , or the beginning of November , you may lay aside your Tackling for that Season : for great Rivers ( like great Vessels ) being long in filling , and slowly mounting to their full height , are again long in falling and settle●… ing ; so that the Water will be thick and out of order , except frost or much fair Weather comes to clear it . In small Brooks and Rivolets ●… t is not so , but you may Fish there again within a Week or less after the Flood . If such inconveniencies put off your designed Sport , you must be content to desist till the fol ow●ng Spring , when the days will be longer , though haply the Weather colder . Now as to the time of the day , the Morning and Evening is most delightsome in Summer ; because towards Noon the Fish get up to the top of the Water , and are more mindful of their play than their meat . If the day be clear and calm , a Snare is more proper than a Bait ; for the least motion you can make with your Line will affright a Fish that lies high ; and if he be once mov'd and put to the flight , a●l the art you can use will not entice him to your Bait again : besides that , it will then be too hot for sport ; for heat creates no appetite in any thing , much less in Fish : it s the Wind , and the cooler Clouds , when Zephirus curles the Waves with a brisk and delightsome Gale , that invites a Fish to repast ; these hot and sultrey da●s are fittest for the stote , when the Fish are for some light and slender diet ; and the Angler hath the best pastime with his Flies and Bees , &c. At such a time of year early or late is the best Fishing , if it be in the Night . But as to the Winter or Spring Quarter , one part of the day is as favourable as the other ; for then the Sun being not so hot , it neither molests the Fisher , nor takes away the Fishes stomacks ; if the day be dark and cloudy , you will find but little difference ; if any , the Noon-tide is the best , or about Ten or Eleven of the Clock ; you will be then glad of a warm blast , when your fingers can scarce feel whether they be Fish or Flesh . Some are very scrupulous concerning the Wind , and will not stir cut a foot except it stand in what corner they would have it ; though upon such a Nicety I scarse ever denied my self a day of diversion . A Northern Wind indeed is m●re sharp and piercing , and will weary the Fishermans patience , because Boreas his Breath is more nipping than that of his fellows , and the North East carries a Proverb with it , enough to discourage a fresh Water Souldier ; yet this I have observed , that in a right and seasonable time of year , the Fish will bite let the Wind-stand where it will . The South and the South-west have the general applause , because they are more pleasing and delightsome to the Troller ; and t is granted that the Fish may then rise more briskly and quicker at the Bait , and perhaps they may then have more sport , than when the Wind is contrary ; yet this is as certain , that the colder the Wind is , the closer the Fish lye to the bottom , and the farther in their harbour ; which may hinder you of having so many bites , as when they lye out and more open in a warmer day : yet the Air being cold and sharp , it makes them hungry ; and if you be careful you may have as many Fish as bites : besides a Fish of any bigness , is too cunning to be cheated of his life , if he lyes not securely in the deeps , or invisible among the weeds ; for as old Birds are too subtile to be taken with chaffe , so an old Fish that hath been already prick'd in the Gills or the Guts , is very cautious in making a s●cond adventure . All the principal and chiefest time for Trolling may be epitomiz'd into four Months , two of which attend the Spring and two the Fall ; part of March may conveniently be left out , which will only tantalize with Bites and afford you no Fish , if you use the Pouch ; neither will they then bite so freely as they will about a Fortnight after , they are then very averse and indifferent in their feeding ; the reason of which some do ascribe to the multitude of Frogs which do then engender and breed in the Waters ; though I have not been altogether of that opinion : for supposing the Fish do feed upon Frogs then , which I could seldom observe , especially in the deep Streams and running Waters , where the Frogs very rarely come ; for they generate for the most part in Pits and standing Pools amongst filth and mire : yet notwithstanding this that the Fish do prey upon them at that time , yet it will not hinder your sport so much , but that they will oft take your Bait ; for a Pike is of that greedy and rapacious Nature , that although he hath lately made a good meal of Frogs , yet he will not deny to taste of a Roach for his second course : He takes so much pleasure and delight in eating , that he never cares to stint himself ; or Physically , for his healths sake , to be content with a moderate diet : for I have often taken him so soon after his feeding , that he hath had part of his meat in his mouth ; having newly swallowed so large a Fish , that his Ventricle was neither capable to receive or digest it quickly : sometimes I have taken him with two or three Baits in his Maw ; sometimes with a great Roch or Daze ; sometimes with one of his own species , very seldom with a Frog in his belly ; a Frog is accounted a good Bait once by the year , that is about Hay-time , when it looks bright and yellow , though then it is something difficult to find ; in March they are very plentiful , but are not of that golden colour , to make the Fish so much enamoured with their beauty . This may be granted then , that a Pike will feed to that excess and fulness , that he cannot gorge your Bait , yet will he rise and shew himself , and make many offers , having such a good will to it , that you may often catch him with the Snap .

CHAP. VI . Of the Feed of a Pike , and when he is fattest .

IF you divide the Year into four Quarters , a Pike is good three of them ; the Spring only being excepted . I could never find any considerable difference in the eating of it . It is an usual saying , That a Pike and a Buck are in season together ; that is in July and August : He is then very firm , and his parts hard and solid ; you will find little alteration in September and October , which are the chiefest Months for the goodness of a Fish , he having enjoyed the quiet and unmolested feed of the fore-going Summer ; in this we suppose a Pike of a considerable growth and bigness ; for a small Jack eats always loose and washy ; for he ( like many Terrestrial Animals ) grows too fast to be fat , and therefore would be let alone till he encreases to greater dimensions . One about Two Foot or Twenty six Inches , is most grateful to the Palate , and a Male Fish of that size is generally fat and delicious . Physicians affirm that the Chyle or Juice of such a Fish concocted , is more wholesome to the Stomach , than one of the largest proportion ; though all Fish are naturally light and of easy digestion . A Pike indeed cannot be too bigg to make a present , or to spend on a publick occasion , to give noble and sumptuous Entertainment . It will then be very welcome and acceptable , when the Pike is answerable to the company , and the sawce answerable to the Pike ; for if it swims not in sawce and liquor , it had been better still swimming in the River . Such a Fish ( which may be supposed about 40 inches ) will feed to an incredible fatness ; some say far more , but I can testifie that a quart of fat hath been taken out of the belly of such a one : it must necessarily be a great charge and expence to se●d a Pike to that bigness , insomuch that some have credibly affirmed , that a Pike i● as costly and as long a feeding as an Ox● . Now a● to the difference of Fish , one out of a River that is sa● , is far better and sweeter than one fed in a Pond ; except he be taken out of the Pond , and put into a running Stream , t● clear a while before he be eaten . Some that are curious , have Stews and Fountains for that purpose , and can draw them at their pleasure , chusing the sattest , and throwing in the rest again . As to the Feed of a Pike , the small Fry wi●l keep him very well , though not so much to make him thrive and fatten ; Griggs or small Eels cut on the backs , and cast in a few at a time , are his most nourishing and fattening diet . The way of throwing Bullocks Blood into a Pond , Panches and Guts , cannot be so cleanly and wholesome Feed ; much less is their practice approvable , that allow their Fish no better fare then Carrion , young Wh●lps or Kitlins , or such kind of loathsome meat : it is possible that Fish may feed upon such stinking and noysome food , and gr●w fat withal , but they are only fit for them to eat , that feed th●m with such trash ; for it is not imaginable how those Fish should be sweet and wholesome , that live upon such foul and unclean meat : however , if they can perswade themselves that those Fish so fouly fed , are equally pleasant and toothsome with those that fare better ; yet the very conceit and fancy that works upon some queasie Sermachs , may represent that nauceous and loathsome , which is really sweet and nourishing . A●… to the difference of Fish , you may easily distinguish a Fed Pike from one in a wasting condition : for they differ in the col●ur , which is usually yellow and spotted in a fat , but white and pale in a thin lean Fish : you may also distinguish them by the weight and bulk , if they be much of a length ; observing likewise the breadth of the back and the sides : for those Fish that have full and extended bellies , are often deceitful , and may be full of Spawns instead of fat : The Male-Pike is generally firm and inviting to the Eater ; but the Spawners or Sow-Fish ( as s●me call them ) are out of season great part of Summer : for both before and after they have cast their Spawn , they are scarce worth the Trollers labour : Some do observe that they multiply twice by the year , at the beginning o●… the Spring , and again the latter end of Summer ▪ which is not at all improbable . There are many circumstances that conduce much to the feeding of a Pike , as first a convenient Harbour ; for they that lie among Weeds and foggy places do prove the fattest ; they are there secure from the assaults and disturbance of Enemies , and enjoy a more safe and contented repose : Rest and quietness being as natural and helpful to their feeding as to other Creatures : Again there is some Water may be more feeding and nourishing than other : A thicker sort of Water , if it be not soul and muddy , is of a better consistency , and the parts better disposed and qualified for nutrition , than those of a more thin and rarified substance ; for it is a Rule in Philosophy , that no Element that is pure and without mixture , is consentanteous for nourishing ; so that they have put it among their Vulgar Errors , that the Camaelion cannot live by Air alone , or the Salamander by Fire : so may we deny that Fish can live by pure Water , or by Respiration , or sucking in those slender Particles of his beloved Element , without the concurrence and assistance of some grosser and terrene qualities , which are intermingled with these Liquid Bodies . This is the reason why Fish are the fattest , though not altogether the sweetest , among Weeds and thick Fog ; when they live and thrive with a little more refreshment , than what they receive from that fatness which the soyl imparts : if there be great store of Rubbish in a Pond or River , there needs a less supply of adventitious feed : it is a common observation , that after a glut of Rain , or some great Showres , a Pike never bites well , because he hath lately fed upon those fresh Streams that come in from the Banks and the Ditches ; and indeed that reason may be probably true ; for though the Rain water of it self can have but little or no more strengthening than that already in the River ; yet it scouring through the Channels , and washing the Land and Earth as it passeth , may from thence receive a firmer and more solid substance ; which may make it more glutinous and congruous for nutrition . It is possible that a Pike may live a great while in a cleer Pool , where there is neither small Fry to prey upon , nor Harbour to shelter in , nor any quantity of Fog which might give him subsistance ; yet certainly he will be much dissatisfied with that course of life , being as much discontented with those short commons , as one that hath not been used to a Prison-life , is there put in and fed with nothing but Bread and Water . I could never hear of any that made tryal of this , meerly for experiment sake ; but this is confess'd , that some persons have put a great stock of Pikes into their Ponds , and have not regarded to put in meat proportionable to their number , yet have preserved it many years , denying both themselves and others the liberty of Fishing in it ; have drawn it afterwards , expecting a plentiful encrease , and have found nothing answerable to their expectations : so great a diminutio●… of them must either be caused by the devouring Otter , or secretly by stealth or the like ( which is scarce probable , they being kept so diligently , and watched so narrowly ) or else they must infallibly languish and die for want of their accustomed feed . Some Fish might escape in such a mortality of them , and might still live and grow , but it is to be conceived , that they are those that were bred and wonted to the place , and not those that were taken out of the River and put into the Pond to feed : for alteration of Water among Fish , as well as change of Air or Ground among Beasts , is of much consequence , being very beneficial to some , and destructive to others .

Not but that they are much advanced that are translated from a worse to a better condition : It is well known that Fen-Fish brought up into clear and higher Waters , will thrive much and be sweeter ; but whether those that are bred in Brooks and small Streams , carried and put into Fen-Ditches will change for the better or the worse , is worth our enquiring .

CHAP. VII . Of the Baits for Trolling .

HAving already discours'd of the Nature of a Pike , and discovered his Harbour and Feed , and the time and seasons most proper to take him ; the next work will be to provide Instruments and Tackling , as likewise Baits fit and suitable to every Season . Some there are that vary their Baits according to the time of the year , using small Fish in Winter , and Frogs , &c. in Summer . I cannot disapprove of that way , though I seldom made use of others then a small Fish , a Roch , or a Dace , sometimes a Gudgeon , which if it be large , is an excellent Bait , it being a sweet Fish , a Pike very rarely leave●… it ; it is of a dark colour and complexion , and therefore is most proper to be used in a brigh●… day , or when the Waters are very clear and transparent : If the River be any thing muddy ▪ or the Weather cloudy , then a Roch or a littl●… Dace , or a Bleak newly taken , are the be●… Baits can be made use of ; the fresher they ar●… the better , for if they lie dead but one night ▪ especially in hot Weather , they may fail th●… Fisher of his hopes ; for Fish are the soone●… stale of any thing , and a Pike may chance t●… catch at a stale Bait , and play with it briskly a●… first , but it is great odds that he leaves it at last ▪ if he be not extraordinarily pinched with hunger ▪ A stale Bait ( we acknowledge ) may make a goo●… shift sometimes , but it must be neither in Summer , nor in Spawning-time , in October o●… April they are not so curious but they can dispense with an indifferent diet ; and in col●… Weather a Bait may keep two or three days and yet be very servicable , especially at Snap , which makes no difference in Baits as to the sense of tasting ; if they look bright and glister in the water , it is not material whether they be old or new ; which affords a greater variety of Baits then that of Pouch : any thing that may affect the eye , may be used at Snap ; some will take a piece of hard Cheese or Pack wax , a Rasher of Bacon or a Sheeps Gut , or almost any thing that is radient and shining ; some will float on the top with a live Bird , a Swallow , or a Sparrow ; though I judge that may be more out of curiosity , then for profit or sport . I never admired this way of Snap , as thinking it too quick and surprizing , to give any diversion ; the sport of Trolling consisting more in the managing the Bite , in the playing of a Pike , and his eager biting and running with the Bait , then just a word and a blow , snapping him up and putting him into the Bag .

One time of the year indeed , the Snap is the best means to attain the end , that is in March , when they are sick and about casting their Spawn ; for then if your Snap-book be made the right way , with springs to strike sure , you may take four or five in the time the Pouch takes one : some fancy the Snap-hook plays the Bait more lively and naturally , though there may be no great difference , in that , especially if the Pouch-hook be fastened to the Line● with a Swivel , which is very conducible to the playing of a Bait . Some there are that Fish with their Baits alive , and have short Hooks fashioned accordingly with more joynts and without lead ; but that is rather a destroying and a poching way , then any fair Fishing ; it makes such a slaughter amongst the Fish , that it is not fit to be used : for I have known some Rivers that have been quickly eased of their burden of Fish by that unlawful trade : the way and method they use , is to lay it may be three or fourscore of these Hooks , which may reach almost a Mile , after they have lain four or five hours or more , or presently after they have done the last , they begin to take up the first ; so that they will kill perhaps a score of Pikes and Jacks : which way ( if allowable ) is the ready course to empty a River , and engross all the sport to themselves ; two or three at a time , or one , if considerable , is enough to content any moderate Troller , that would have others partake of the Recreation as well as himself , and not fish above once or twice in a Season in the same place ; for the means to preserve and continue this Sport , is to favour and cherish it : It is an easie matter indeed to take half a dozen or more , if he would stick at it a whole day in the beginning of the year , before the Waters are beaten or drag'd , for then they are so plentiful , that they shew themselves in every corner : As for a sweet and delicious Bait , a piece of an Eel may be preferr'd , which if once taken and tasted , a Pike will assuredly feed upon it ; this may be experienced in Ponds and Stews , when they throw in Griggs to feed the Pikes . Of all the small Fish , a Perch makes the worst Bait , yet that may be used in a case of necessity , if you first cut off the fins and prickles on his back , though when you have done all you can at him , it will be but too little purpose ; for a Perch is like a Prince among the Fish , and a Pik● is in so much fear of him , and hath that Antipathy against him , that he will much sooner fasten upon one of his own kind , then upon him ; yet I have seen small Perches taken out of a Pikes belly , but it was in a Mote where he was kept short and had little else to feed upon ; but if you be confin'd to this Bait , and can get no other to promote your sport , it is best to scrape off some of the Scales , for it being a dark Fish , it will make it look somwhat brighter , and still the Snap is the best Hook for it , because if the Scales of the Perch be on , a Pike cannot easily gorge or digest it . A small Jack is a far better Bait , though it seems unnatural , yet Fish are not bound to observe the Laws of Nature . If it be a foot long , it may be cut in two , and so made use of . A young Chub or a Shallow may be very useful , or any Fish that glisters and shines in the Water ; a Bleak is a very bright Fish . The way to keep and preserve your Baits till you have occasion to use them , is first to take a Cast Net and throw it , choosing those that are most fit for the purpose ; and so lay them up in store : which must be done by having a Trunk ready to put them in , and then to take them out by two or three as occasion serves . In Summer time you may take them with an Angle , but that is very uncertain ; nor can you have any choice that way , because they will often be too little or too big , besides it spends too much of the day that is intended for Trolling : sometimes you may take with one Bait fresh out of the Trunk , three or four Jacks or more ; for a Fish that bites greedily and swallows the Bait , presently does not tear it so much , as one that plays with it in his mouth and then leaves it ; for a Bait is not much worse for being chopt and full of holes , provided it hang well upon the Hook , and the lead is not seen ; for one Pike will feed very well after another , and the Bait will be still the sweeter the more it is bitten , if it be not used so long to be water-sopt : the Scales of a Roch or Dace are a great preservation to it , as also light and perspicuous , which render it more visible to the eyes of the great devourer : As to the definite number of Baits , it cannot be positively determined ; two or three if fresh , will last long enough , if you have not very ill luck with them ; for sometimes the first Fish that bites will tear the Bait : so that it will make it unserviceable , and yet not take the Pike , but the Weeds are most destructive to your Baits , especially when they are strong and tuff ; so that if you be not careful in tying the tail of the Bait fast to the joynt of the Wire , the Weed will consume it , before the Pike comes . Some Fish will hold better than others ; a Dace is one of the hardest , and will endure the longest ; but a Gudgeon is but a tender Fish , and will soon burst : one fresh Bait will wear out two or three stale ones : Besides these natural Baits , there are a sort of Artificial ones , which are made so exquisitely to resemble the other , that they will delude the eyes of some Men , much more of the Fish ; for if they be only look'd on , and not felt or touch'd with the finger , there is no doubt to be made of the reality of the Fish . Some pretend to Fish at Pouch with these Artificial deceits , though 't is more probable they were designed for the Snap ; for a Pike is endued with a perfect sense of tasting , and therefore will scarce be courted to gorge and digest that which he can neither taste nor smell : There are indeed some of those Artificial Baits made after the Pouch fashion , whether for sight or service , to look upon rather then to use , I cannot conceive ; for I more admired the curiosity and ingenuity of the Artificer , then any extraordinary excellency or usefulness in the thing . A Pike must be very hungry that gorges one of them , and he must do it hastily and greedily , for if he stays to consider of it and plays much with it , as some of them do , his curious and delicate Palate will presently distinguish a fresh and well relishing Morsel , from a dry and insipid bit .

Those that are covetous , may have two strings to their bow ; by taking a Gudgeon of a middle size or a large Minow , for then they may be in hopes of taking large Perches as well as Pikes , for a Minnow is an excellent Bait for a Perch ; great Baits do most invite a Pike , but little ones are more secure to take him .

CHAP. VIII . Of the Pouch-Hook .

OF Pike-Hooks or Jack-Hooks , there are several sorts , both for the Snap and Pouch , the latter of which , we shall only endeavour to describe in this place ; for though the Spring-Hooks are esteemed excellent , and strike sure , yet the ordinary plain Snap-Hook will miss almost as often as it hits . Of Pouch-Hooks there are many fashions , some with a round bent , almost after the figure of a Perch-Hook ; that may be very good , though I never made use of that fashion ; for there is another sort which have a sloping bent outward , turning a little inwards under the beard , and withal bending the lead at the point of it , which point must be as sharp at it can be made ; much after this fashion

woodcut of pouch hook

It is the best to choose them of a black and somewhat blewish colour , indifferent thick and strong , the lead not very gross , but neatly covered , without any flaws or hollows in it , you may lead it your self if you buy them bare ; by putting your Hook into a Reed , or a piece of Elder , or any such hollow thing ; provided you do it fair and smooth , making it thicker in the middle or towards the bottom , then at the top , which must be narrow and slender . It will require an indifferent quantity of lead , for if it be pretty weighty , it plays the Bait the better ; this is supposed of a single Hook , though the double one is the same as to the lead and joynts of the wire : I commonly made use of the single Hook , which strikes as sure as the other . The double Hook hath one advantage above the other , that if it meets with such resistance in the Water , that it loses one side of it , the other part with a little plaining and filing , may be still as serviceable as it was before ; it is more troublesome in the Water , and more apt to check and take hold of the Weeds and Roots ; it is the fittest for a great Bait , for if you put a small and slender Bait on a double Hook , it will hang out and bear off so much in the bendings , that a Pike may not only discover the delusion and craft of it , but if he chance to take it , it may check him in his feeding , and so hinder him from gorging of it : There are two or three sorts of double Hooks , besides that of the Snap , some of them are flat and are bent back to back , after this manner :

woodcut of double hook Another sort there is that is more sloped and the bents closer together ; others there are that have a round bent , much after the form of the Snap , which must always have a full bent , and very large ; That is baited by fixing the Hook in the middle of the Bait , and may have the lead fastened to the Wire ; the way to use that , is to strike soon after the Fish bite , and as the Pike runs one way to strike the contrary .

In the choice of Hooks , you may have some regard to the Wire , lest that be rugged or knotty , for if that be not found and strong , you may lose both your Fish and your Hook . The first joynt of it which is next the Lead , must be so long that the tail of the Bait may not reach over it , for if it does , you cannot well fasten it to the joynt , though in a time of necessity you may untwist the wire of the upper joynt , and there fix the thred ; some Baits are short , as Roches and Shallows ; some are longer , as Daces , Bleaks , or large Gudgeons , which require that the Hook and Wire be both long proportionable to it . The other joynt which is fastened to the Line , must be twice or thrice the length of the other ; lest when the Pike hath gorged the Bait deep into his Ventricle , the Wire be not long enough to reach out of his mouth , and so he shear and cut the Line with his Teeth ; this joynt had need be very fine and smooth , lest if it be rugged , it tear the Bait when you put it on ; if this be stiff and strong , you need not that which they call the Arming Wire to help you thrust it out of the tail of the Bait ; you may sometimes search your Wire , least it be faulty or broken , especially the lowest joynt , for there it often breaks , and may deceive you in your intended pastime .

There are another sort of Hooks which are made purposely for the Ledger Baits ; those are used with live Fish , and are not leaded , the Hook is rather shorter than the other , but the Wire hath usually more joynts . The Lines for these need not be so long as the Trolling Line , for they may be thrown into the Water , and so gaged with a stick ; for a Pike will not so soon take a Bait off the ground , as if it swims about a foot or more from the bottom . The way of Fishing with Ledger-Baits is too destructive to be made a common practice , and far below the diversions of a fair Fisherman .

The best Hooks may be chosen by their Mettal , which is the hardest and best temper'd Steel ; these are so well composed , that they break and snap , rather then stand bent , or be the least moved from their first frame and figure ; there is much variety in Hooks , and a great deal of deceit in them , and therefore it requires skill and caution to choose the best .

When you fasten the Wire to the Line , you must be sure to tie it with a right knot ; least it catch a Weed that is far stronger then a Pike , and it slip the knot and get from you ; but if all your Tackling be new and sound , you need not fear to adventure among Fog or Weeds , or any thing but Roots and Stumps of Trees , which may hold play with a Cart-Rope . To this end the safest and most secure way of fastening , is first to tie one single knot , and then one that will slip , or else only the slipping not , allowing it an inch or two of Line , and then girding and drawing it close , first making tryal of it with all your strength before you put it into the Water it 's a neat and handsome way to fasten it with a Swivel , tying it close with a bit of Thred ; this seems to play the Bait better , giving it a turn when you stir it , which makes it glister and swim like a live Fish .

There are a sort of course Hooks made of Iron and thick Wire , which may make a shift to serve those that can get no better .

CHAP. IX . Of the Trolling Line .

NOw as to the Line it self , it is one of the chiefest and most necessary Member that is required to the Constitution of the body of a Fisherman : for an ordinary and indifferent Hook may be sometimes dispenc'd withal to shew good sport , as also the Pole ; but if your Line be not strong and of a considerable length , you can have but little hopes of any competent success : The best materials for the composure of your Line , is green or blew Silk , which Cerulcan colour is most resembling and agreeable to the Water ; but it is possible it may be only a fancy that that colour is of more consequence than another ; yet sometimes the pleasing of the fancy , does so much enliven and encourage the Fisherman , that it makes him the more active and laborious , and so by that means is the occasion of all his sport ; and if his fancy divert him another way , he will take the less care and pains in his present pastime .

Next to Silk , the best sort of green Thred is to be preferred , which though it be neither so handsome or so durable as Silk , yet it may last very strongly a year or two : but that wears like other things , according to the care and good keeping of the user ; for if it be laid up wet , and on an heap , as soon as you have done Fishing , and take no more care of it , you may haply rot out as many Lines as you catch Pikes : The best way then of preserving it , is to wax it sometimes with Bees-wax , and when it is wet to wind it up loosly in long foldings , that the Air may come in to dry it , or else let it dry at length , and then wind it upon a Roll : with such usage , a Silk Line will last beyond your expectation .

There are some that make their Lines of Sheep or Cats Guts ; but I cannot conceive they are so suitable and agreeable to the Water as Silk , or Thred ; Silk and Hair may be fitly mingled in the making of a Line ; some make them of Silk and Silver , thinking that way to preserve it ; tho the addition of Silver may be rather to please their fancy and the gaity of their humour , then to keep their Line from perishing ; such as they should have Silver Hooks to their Silver Lines , that if it cannot take Fish it self in the Water , it may take them ready caught , and so be useful in saving their credit .

There are other sorts of course Lines very short , not above half the length of the Trolling Line , which are either to Fish with a Ledger-Bait , or to lie all night , being tyed to a Float , and cast into the water .

These are not made of such fine stuff , neither are so well twisted as the other , and only serves in some exigencies , as when a Pike that will not be invited by Trolling , may be better pleased with a Bait that is laid for him : he will sometimes so humble himself as to take it off the bottom ; but it is the wiser course to tie a stick or a cork to the Line , that it may hang about a foot or more from the ground , observing the Wind withal , for if you throw it in against the Wind , it will drive it backwards , and carry the Bait close to the side , and though a Pike often harbours by the side , yet the middle hath more scope and advantage of drawing him to it ; for these laying Lines the worst sort will serve , because the lying so long in the Water is the ready way to rot them .

As to the length of the Line , it is good to have enough , and far better to leave than to lack ; for though a short Line may do very well in a Brook or some narrow place , where the Pike must either run upwards or downwards , and so you may follow your sport , yet if you come to a broad Reach , where the Fish run cross the Stream to the far side , you may often miss of your Pike for want of a few yards of Line ; for if he be the least curb'd or stopt in his so speedy Career , and may not have his full swing , he is presently check'd , and leaves his suspicious prey . This I have often found by experience , though my Line was long enough , yet having a knot in it that would not quickly pass , as also being so entangled that it much shortened it , I have by that means lost very good Fish .

As to the precise length of it , that need not be determined , about 30 yards is a good medium for the Pouch , I cannot see any reason why it need be so long at Snap , for though they may throw out as far at Snap , yet that strikes as soon as he bites , and lets him run no farther , whereas at Pouch he may go farther with it still , though it be far cast .

It 's true that for the Line at Snap ought to be thicker and stronger , for a sudden jerk may break that which might hold a good pull by degrees ; but as to the length , it need not be so long , because that is only for casting in , and a Pike will sometimes run farther with it then it can be thrown : so that I have seen those that have fish'd at Snap , with no longer a Line then what was tyed to the Pole , and so cast it up and down like an Angle : this was too short to be confin'd to no more Line then what was commanded by the Pole .

As to the managing of the Line and fitting it for your sport , you may wind it upon a Roll that turns upon a ring of Iron with your finger in it , having no more in your hand then you make use of at the present : so that if occasion be , you may unwind it at your leasure .

Some draw it after them at length , which I approve as a very good way ; if there be no impediments in the way ; as Shrubs or Bushes to interrupt or make them go back ; it will be very ready to cast out , and may throw it the farthest ; for if you hold a great deal loose in your hand , it will be apt to knot and tangle , which will try the Fishermans patience . Some object that the drawing the Line upon the ground will be apt to wear it out sooner , but that is questionable , for it sooner dries so , and when it is dry , it can take but little harm : besides a Pike will sometimes be so hasty and furious , that he will scarce give you leave to unwind fast enough for him , and therefore the surest way to trapan him , is to make preparation for him , by having your Line at command in a compleat readiness .

CHAP. X. Of the Pole .

SUpposing your Hook be good , and your Line strong , you may make the better shift with an indifferent Pole ; though some that are more curious in their Tackling than painful and patient in their Fishing , will not stir a foot without all the formalities of an exquisite Fisherman : such precise Crafts-Masters as these , can spend their time in admiring their Instruments , and sufficiently delight themselves with the commendation of their own Materials . This is certain and undeniable , that the longer the Pole is , if it be streight and light , you will find the more benefit in playing the Bait and throwing it from you ; for if there be Flags or Reed between the Bank and the main deep , you can very hardly play your Bait with a short Pole . I confess I have often put a Ring upon my Hand-stick and made use of that instead of a Rod , and have had the fortune sometimes to take a Pike well nigh as long as my Pole : sometimes I have taken nothing with me , but confided in the Willows that grew next to the place designed for that days Recreation , cutting down as good a Stick as I could find , and so making a bent at the end for the Line to slip ; and have left it at the conclusion of the Sport : In a broad River or a Pond , being at a pinch , I have had no Pole at all , but only took the Bait in my hand , and cast it from me like a stone to the length of my Line , the end of which I was sure to fasten about me , least I threw it quite out , and then have repented of my folly when it was too late to amend it . In some places they fish altogether that way where the River is deep and clear from Weeds . I never accustomed my self to a long Pole , lest I might seem like them that make a great bustle , and take but few Fish . I generally made use of an Alder as long as I could get , commonly about three yards long , which I bark'd and kept dry for lightness and easie carriage ; when it was throughly dry it would be tough , and so light , that I could scarce feel it in my hand ; and there is no objection to be made , that such a stick is too weak ; for any thing is strong enough at Pouch that will play the Bait and throw it from you ; there is no weight or stress upon the Pole , and but little upon the Line ; if you strike the Fish gently and play him slightly and dexterously , you may tire him with a slender Line , if it be long and can keep him from Weeds and Roots ; at Snap indeed your Tackling must be all fitted accordingly , your Line very strong , and your Pole on purpose of a good Ash , or Withy , or Hazel well dryed ; streight and tuff , that it may be able to draw him out nolens volens , by meer force and compulsion : He that uses that way is scarce a word and a blow , for the mistaken Fish no sooner lays his Mouth upon the deceitful Bait , but he is catch'd up into another Element . The way of Pouch is far more mild and flattering , though as much destructive and pernicious . If you use an Ash or an Hazel Pole , you must have a Ring fixed at the end , some have two ; that is one in the middle , though I see no necessity of that superfluity . If it be an Alder or a Cane , or any hollow Wood , you may have an Iron Ring made to screw in at the top about an handful or more in length , or else that which may be at well , a piece of dry Alder that is cut sharp and sloping about three or four Inches long , which you may stick fast in the end of the Pole ; some have only a Ring with a little Screw very short . If your Pole be of Alder , it will be apt to crack , you may secure that by binding the end of it hard with a Waxed Thred , and then you may thrust in at the top without any danger of breaking or cleaving the Pole . A dry Withy or Hazel , bored about twelve or fourteen Foot , will make an excellent Pole ; which may serve for Angling if it be so long , only putting a top into it , as also at Snap . It is a great ease to have a light Pole , and therefore the best course is to get them in the season of the year , and let them stand near the Fire , or in some dry place , for the space of half a year or more ; for if your Rod be green and heavy , it will make you weary of your Sport , and be a great hinderance and discouragement to your Fishing .

The truth is , if sport be quick and good , scarce any thing can vex or discompose the Fisher ; for he is then so attentive on his pleasure , that he takes little notice of those inconveniences which otherwise might be a trouble and vexation to him ; he then regards neither Wind nor Weather , and disdains those slight perturbations of Cold , Thirst , or Hunger ; he hath then gotten the Philosophers Stone which sweetens all his other crosses , and turns all disasters into Gold . His Sport is a Cordial for all his Distempers , and the Pike ( like a good Water-Physician ) can cure him of all his Diseases : if he be weary , his sport refreshes him , if cold , it warms him ; if melancholly , it cheers him ; if drowsie , it revives him ; if in pain , it eases him ; if sick , it recovers him : he then fee's not the weight of his Pole , nor is concern'd that his Tackling is no better . This is the prosperity of the Fisher , but if you see him in adversity , when fortune does not smile on his endeavours , you shall , find him much altered , and in a contrary condition ; supposing ( I say ) the thing called Luck does not attend him , and his beloved Sport does not sweeten all other Ingredients , which should refine all the dross of outward misfortunes , he it then so much at a loss and dejected , that he can expect but a bitter potion : Patience and Hopes are the tw●… chiefest Pillars that support the Building of 〈…〉 Fisherman ; for if they be once disturbed or shaken , you may easily foresee the ruins of Piscator .

If you desire to be private at your Sport , an●… to go undiscovered to the River , you ma●… walk out with an Oak stick or the like in you●… hand , taking a Ring with a Screw at it ; yo●… may deceive the expectations of others , an●… pass on without the least suspicion .

CHAP. XI . How to Bait the Hook , and to play the Bait .

THough it be supposed that you are perfectl●… furnish'd with all sorts of Tools and Instruments that are required to the making up th●… very Essence of a Fisherman , and that you ar●… as throughly accoutred with all the Materials and Utensils for Fishing as Piscator himself could possibly be , yet if you know not how to use these Implements , you will be soon weary of your Sport , and despair of learning the Art of Trolling ; provided then that your Baits are ready , take a couple of Hooks at least with you ; if you have a mind , you may Bait them before you set out , especially if the Weather be cold , that it may not trespass too much upon your patience when you come to the River : The way then to Bait your Hook , is first to thrust your Wire into the mouth of the Fish , quite through the belly and out at the tail ; some have besides the running Wire a Knitting Needle on purpose , but if the first joynt of your Wire be stiff and strong , it may very well be done with that ; the point of the Hook must be even with the belly of the Bait ; for if it hang on either side , it may hinder and check the Pike , who will probably lay his mouth upon it ; for when he chops cross the Fish , he may be pricked , and so leave you only the hopes of another Bite ; when you have so put through the Fish , then tie the Tail of the Bait fast to the joynt of the Wire with strong Thred , which will both make it hang streight upon the Hook , and preserve it from outward violences ; for if it be not well fastened , the Weeds will have so much power over it , that they will soon tear it down to the Gills , and so separate the Hook from the Bait ; some fasten it with a Needle .

The best way of fixing your Hook to the Line , is with a Swivel , which if you have not , you may make it fast with one slipping knot , which you may untie without cutting your Line .

When you are thus fixed for your intended Sport , then drop in your Bait first even before you , then cast it on each side to search them , and let the third throw be before you into the middle , afterwards cast about all places where you conceive your Game lies , or any where that you can fish without annoyance ; for a Pike often delights himself in a very unlikely and improbable Harbour ; and therefore the surest way to meet with him , is to fish true and close ; missing as little of the River as you can : which though it be tedious , yet it is the only way to search and see what store of Fish a River affordeth ; and you may often have a Bite , when you think least of it .

Now the farther you throw in your Bait , the more advantage you gain by it , and more hopes of a Bite , provided there be no impediments is your way , as Weeds , Roots , or the like ; fo●… if the place be foul or weedy , you canno●… make out so far , but only drop in your Bai●… here and there by the sides and in holes that an●… clear and deep : The Weeds are bad Enemie●… to the Bait and Hook ; though a good Hook and a Line answerable to it , will pull up the strongest of them ; for I cannot remember that I ever lost a Hook by a Weed alone , except it had some stump or root of a Tree to be assistant to it ; the Candocks indeed , and Bullrushes will much disfigure and annoy your Bait , and almost quite discountenance a young Undertaker ; for if the smallest bit of weed hang upon the Hook , a Pike will be very sqeamish to gorge it ; though some affirm that he feeds upon a Weed one time of the year , which they call from thence Pickerill Weed .

Supposing then that you have cast out a very fair throw , it may be a dozen or sometimes twenty yards , which may easily be done if the River requires it ; let it first have a little time to sink , then feel it , and draw it gently towards you ; for a Pike often takes it at the first sight before it gets to the bottom , and if you snatch it hastily , you may chance to give him such a discouragement , that you may be deprived of your expected sport : after you have given it an easie motion towards you , let it have the liberty of sinking again , then draw it slowly and softly , for if you jerk it too quick and hastily , you will not give him leave to lay hold upon the Bait ; for he will often shoot himself from the farthest sides , and at a great distance , being so quick sighted in the Water : when you have got your Bait near the Bank , then play it longer there ; first deep : for the deeper you Fish the better , especially in cold Weather ; afterwards raise it higher and higher by degrees till you see it , and then you may often have the pleasure of being an Eye-Witness to your own bite ; and though you have before been often deceived in your hopes , and have caught a Weed instead of a Fish , yet now you may assure your self , if the Proverb hold true , That seeing is believing : there are indeed some sort of Weeds , and the stream together , which may often give encouragements , by promising Sport , and performing none ; they will sometimes so exactly imitate a real Bite , that an old and experienced Fisherman m●y be mistaken with all his craft and cunning . The best way then to be sure , is to pull your Line gently till you come to feel it , and if it be a Fish , the moving of the Bait , will make him more eager and greedy , he will then strike out and gorge it ; whereas if he lay still and not stirr'd , he would very probably leave it . When you have raised your Bait so high towards the top , it may be within two or three foot , that you can perceive it to glister ; you may then comfort your self with the hopes of a Pike that may rise at it , as he often does , and therefore it is not prudence to bee too hasty in taking out the Bite .

When a Pike is once stirr'd , he will lie as it were watching for the Bait , and catch greedily at it , if he does not see you ; therefore you must be careful to keep a little distance upon the Bank , for they will often take it at the very top , and sometimes leap out of the Water at it ; but they are then commonly so much affrighted that they will not be courted to Bite any more ; you may Fish as close as you will , though it be not material whether you throw two or three times in one and the same place ; for he is so hungry , that he usually imbraces the first opportunity to lay hold upon his Feed .

Some there are that Troll with great Corks and Floats on their Line , which may do the best with the Ledger-Bait , though I never approv'd of that way ; for the Weeds will make the Flote dance as exactly as a Pike , except he bite very greedily , and so you may often be deceived in your expectation ; sometimes I grant , you may distinguish and be sensible of your Bite if he runs with it , and especially up the Stream ; but if he goes downwards and bites slowly , you cannot assure your self whether it be a Fish or a Weed . If a place be free from Weeds , you may make the best shift with a Cork ; though you may be often mistaken when you lay a little too deep ; for the Hook will draw along the bottom , and you will be ready to comfort your self with the hopes of Sport .

In some places they Troll without any Pole or any playing of the Bait , as I have seen them throw a Line out of a Boat , and so let it draw after them as they Row forward ; but that must needs be a careless and unsafe way , for though they may have Bites and Offers so , yet it must certainly check the Fish so much that he will never Pouch it ; I cannot tell what Art they may have at the Snap , though it is very improbable to have any as they go to work , without either Pole or Stick .

Now besides them that are not indued with that excellent gift of Patience , there are some of our young Pretenders that have too much confidence or rather too little skill ; these will stand an hour or two in one place , as immovable as the Trees they stand by , they are so importunate with the Fish , that they would force them to bite ; and if there be never a Pike in the place where they are , they do their endeavou●… to wait till one comes : these are indefatigable Crafts-men , which can weary the Fish soone●… than themselves , and are neither discourage●… with ill fortune , nor transported wit●… good .

As to the baiting the Hook with a Frog , 〈…〉 spoke nothing , because I never made that an●… part of my practice ; s●me Frogs are though●… to be venemous , as the Land Frog , or that whic●… breeds by Land ; it is observ'd by some , that 〈…〉 Pike hath an Antipathy against this . And of these there are several sorts , some speckled , some greenish , which are the most dangerous to touch ; these breed by flime and dust of the Earth , which turn to slime in Winter ; and in Summer to a living Creature again . Cardan gives a reason for the raining of Frogs , which proceed from putrefaction , and are not supposed to be that sort of Frogs which engender in February or March , and breed in Ditches by slime and blackish Eggs. If you intend to Troll with a Frog , you must choose out of these the yellowest you can get ; first then put your Hook into his Mouth , which you may do from May day to the end of August , afterwards some say his Mouth grows up , and so con●inues at least six Months without eating , and is sustained , no one knows how ( but the great Creator . ) Put in the arming Wyre in at his Mouth , and out at his Gills , and then with a fine Needle and Silk sow the upper part of his Leg , with only one stitch to the arming Wyre , or tye the Frogs Leg to the upper joynt of the Wire ; use him gently and he will live the longer : when you have thus baited it , you may fasten your Line to a bough , a bunch of flags , or a bundle of straw , and by the help of the wind they will more cross a Pond or Mere . Some will tye four or five live Baits to Bladders , and let them swim down the River , whilst they walk softly a long the shore . Others will fasten baits to Ducks or Geese , and so let them swim about the Pond ; if there be store of Pikes you may see excellent sport this way , for sometimes a great Pike will draw the Duck under the Water . This is the most proper to Fish with live Baits , and so to gage your Line with a Forked stick , with a nick or notch at one end of it , and put in Line enough for him to have his full liberty of Pouching . This is the ordinary way of Fishing after that manner , if you have none of the fore-spoken things to move your Bait .

CHAP. XII . How to strike a Pike and land him .

WHen you have diverted your self as long as you think good with the pleasure of a Bite , and can guess by the running of the Pike , what progress he hath made in his repaste , by his ranging about for more ; you may then hook him with a small jerk , and so take your fill of your contented sport : for though we say of a Pike as of a Thief , give him Rope enough and he will hang himself , yet a fine gentle stroak will do no harm , but rather secure him , and entangle him the faster : supposing then that he hath fed a little , you may observe what motions he makes . If he takes the Bait greedily at bottom , and marches up the Stream with it , or strikes cross the River towards his hold , he will then probably lie still a little time , while he is Pouching , as you may feel him check and tug at it ; from which place if he goes quick , you may let him alone a little longer , for you may come to lose all for want of two or three minutes forbearance : if he hath lain still a while the second time and then runs with it , you may let him go with it still , if you have a desire to prolong the Sport ; if not , you may draw your Line streight , and with your Pole give him an easie stroke , and so feel him by degrees , till you come to see him ; but if he makes much resistance and is very furious , let him have Line enough , and give him his full swing : he will be very angry at first , till he is better pacified by losing of his strength .

As soon as you strike him , you may conjecture of what bigness he is , for if he be large you will find him strong and unruly in the Water ; but if small and light , you can scarce tell whether you have any thing or not , or perhaps he may ( for madness ) leap out of the Water as soon as he is prick'd ; but if he be a good one , at ( I say ) you may either see or feel him : you must be very cautious , and take a great deal of care and diligence in getting him to shore ; for if the River be broad and your Line short , you may very well lose him ; for he will launch out with that extremity and violence , that though he cannot break the Line , yet he will tear his own Entrails , if he be there hung .

Now if a Fish takes your Bait at the top of the Water , and runs fiercely with it into the deep , and there lies still for some time , and you perceive that he does not Pouch it , your remedy for that is to stir him a little , to make him run and be more eager of it ; then after he hath lain still and runs with it again , there is no great danger of losing that fish ; for when they leave it they commonly throw it up at their first stage , that is the first time they lie still . Sometimes he will take it again after he hath left it , and run to his hold and play with it more than he did at first , shewing very good sport for a while , and and after all leave you in the lurch . A fish that takes it most greedily at the beginning , and carries it the furthest , does notwithstanding often forsake it ; for as the proverb says , Nil violentum est diuturnum . So a Pike that bites so eagerly at first , is too fierce to last ; for it happens that he often leaves it : the only way to be even with such a Fish , is to take the Snap , and that may chance to stop his career .

Now when you have a Bite , and the Fish goes down the Stream with it , we are apt to conceive it is a small Jack ; but on the contrary , if he sails slowly upwards with the Bait , it is a sign of a good one ; for the greater sort bite more calmly and moderately than the less ; for they snatch , and away with it without any care or deliberation : Old Fish are more wary and cunning , they are sooner taken with a Line laid for them all night , then by Trolling . It is something difficult to know of what size a Pike is , before he is Stricken , and therefore there 's none but may be mistaken in their Conjectures ; for an indifferent Fish , I mean about 20 or 22 Inches , will often make as good Sport as one twice as big , however before you strike him ; but then generally the bigger the Pike is , the more delightful will the Sport be . Sometimes he will take the Bait very hastily , and run out to the length of your Line , and never lie still at all , but all along he will play up and down with it , till you think fit to strike him .

When the Water is clear and not very deep , you may see him rise at it and take it ; so you may see the Bait glister as it lies cross his mouth ; you may then see when he hath Pouch'd , and know your time to strike .

When you have first stricken him , you must be sure to have your Line ready and slack , that he may take as much liberty as he will ; for when he finds himself gull'd , and trapan'd with the Hook , he will use all his might and cunning to give you the lose . As you feel him come easily towards you , you may be still drawing , till you feel him make resistance again , then you may let him have his swing , till the heat of his fury is over , then gather your Line to you again , till he starts away , and if you can get him to the top , it will the sooner tire him ; for the more he strives and throws himself from you the sooner he will be weary ; after this manner by drawing him up and letting him loose again , you may tire him and tame him , till you bring him to your hand , and then he will lie so quietly , that if the Hook was out , he could scarce strike off and get away .

If you have hung him in the Gills , you cannot lose him , though you pull him out by meer force and violence , but if it hang loosely either in his Gorge or his Throat , he may deceive you , though he destroys himself , leaving you part of his Guts on the Hook for a Legacy , and dying soon after of his received Wounds . When you have after all this divertisement brought him to the Bank , you will find something to do , before you can confidently call him your own ; for if you go unadvisedly to take him out , either by the Back or the Tail , or any part of his Body , though you think his best is past , and his dancing days are done , yet he may cut yo●… another Capor ; and if he has had a little breathing time , he may give another leap , when you do not expect it ; the best way then , is to use fair means , and invite to the land by perswasions , not compulsions , taking him by the Head , and putting your fingers into his Eyes , which is the fastest hold . If the Water be low , so that the Bank rises some distance from it ; you must not fear catching an Ague , by laying your Belly level with the ground , especially if you have no contrivance to guide him outwards to a more commodious place : some will adventure to take him by the Gills , though ●… hat hold is neither so secure nor so safe for the Fisher ; because the Fish in that heat of passion , may accidentally take revenge upon his Adver●… ●ry , by letting him blood in his Fingers , which way of Phlebotomizing is not esteemed so good , ●… ecause some are of opinion , that the Teeth of a Pike are Venemous , and those Wounds very ●… ifficult to be healed .

If there be Reeds and Shallows between you ●… nd the deep , or if the River be in that Ebbe that ●… ou cannot reach him to lay hands on him , you ●… ust contrive some other means to conduct him ●… a more convenient landing . You may have ●… Eye of that when you first strike him , looking ●… pwards and downwards , and forecasting for ●… our best advantage : but if it be all along so ●… eedy ( as it is commonly in Ponds or Meres ) that it will be so prejudical to your Sport , that you can have no conveniency of his safe arriving , by bringing him to your hand , you must then be content with the hopes of success , by committing your self unto the hands of fortune , having nothing to trust to at that juncture of time , but that which you may call the Fishermans luck . If you have as well debilitated his strength as tired his patience , you may probably draw him out with no great reluctancy ; especially if the Weeds be not so strong and friendly to their Watry Element , that they interpose themselves to part the fray between the Fish and the Fisher .

Those that are more nice and curious , then painful and industrious , have their Net ready by them , least their stooping might be injurous unto them : this Net ( I suppose ) is made in the fashion of a little Sparrow Net , with a long Trail , and a Pole at it , to translate Mr. Lucius out of his own into the Airy Element .

This is a very quaint and delicate way of Trolling ; such as use it must have their Attendants to assist them ; that as the Philosopher said , Omnia mea mecum Porto . So they will have their Servitors to carry their Implements and Tools after them ; these are of more power on Shore , then in the Water , and have more Authority to command their retinue by the Land , than the Fish in the Waters .

CHAP. XIII . How to preserve a River for Trolling .

THe way and means to preserve a River for your own Sport , is to secure it from all those Enemies that are hurtful and destructive to it . The first and greatest , which may be called the Arch-Enemy , is the Drag , which is as unmerciful as an Epidemical Disease , that sweeps all into the dust ; or as a greedy and covetous Monopolizer , engrosseth all into its own possessions , and so verifies the old Proverb , That all are Fish that come to that Net . Some there are that commend the following of the Drag to Troll immediately after it ; these love to fish in troubled Waters , for they say , The Dragging the River , stirs up the Fish and makes them more ready to catch at their prey : I cannot applaud the practice of these , nor judge it any ways consentaneous to reason ; for though it be confess'd that it s an hard Battel where none escapes , and that the Drag like an Universal Distemper cuts off the major part , yet still there will be some left to renew their Species , which after a short time of quiet and forbearance will multiply and replenish the Waters . This I suppose , if there was none to come in and succeed them in their place , as there are continually ; though ( I say ) they may propose these ends as encouragements to their Sport , yet they will find such a scarcity and diminution among the Fish , that their pastime will be very cold and uncomfortable , having nothing to hope for or trust unto but those few Scape-Drags , which are only as the Gleanings when the Harvest is gone .

Another Enemy to the Sport is the Bow-Net , which though it be far more favourable and sparing , and of a far lower Classis than the Drag , yet it is by so much the more dangerous by how much it is private and undiscovered ; for the Drag is a profess'd and a publick Foe , which gives some notice and intimation to avoid those places it hath lately cleansed ; but the Bow Net is so close and secret a Murtherer , that it cunningly slays and leaves no visible Wound .

Another Plea there is that may be alledged for the Drag , which is this , that it is seldom used above once , sometimes not so often as once by the year ; but the Bow-Net kills and destroys , spoils and plunders all the year long ; the Spring time indeed is the fittest for it , when the Fish run and get into the Scoures ; or else immediately after a Flood ; to lay many of these in small Rivulets and Ditches , they that use them , may then make their Harvest of them , especially after a Spring-flood .

The third Enemy that presents it self to be taken notice of for avoiding , is the Stall or Tramel : a Net which is made up of great Mashes , as it is so much the more tolerable and allowable , because it holds only the great Fish , and gives the lesser leave to escape . This Net is not so common , nor so much to be condemn'd as the Bow-Net , because it is usually assisting to the Drag . In Washes and back Dikes it may do good service , because there they may both draw it , and plunge on both sides it ; but in the main River it can do no great Execution , but only set as a Stall to stop the Fish : In one respect it is very Murdering , because the Mashes are made so alike on both sides , that it takes the Fish which way soever they come . They that use this Sport , have commonly two to set at a little distance , and then they may meet , and take most that are between them .

As to the Cast-Net , it is rather a Friend and subservient to the Troll , than an Enemy to the Sport : for there is no way so good to take Baits as with that ; because out of a multitude of Fish which it takes , you may have your choice of Baits . An Angle indeed may make a shift sometimes in Summer , but that often takes either those that are too little or too big for Baits .

Again , a Cast-Net is helpful for the taking small Fry , to feed Pikes in a Pond or the like , so that it may be necessary and beneficial many ways . Those that use it as destructively as they can imagine , will not revenge themselves much upon the Pikes ; they may kill many small Jacks with it in shallow Streams , but the great Fish that lie deep and close , are too secure from the narrow compass of a Cast-Net : It may chance to fall upon a great one sometimes , yet if there be any Weeds or Fog in the place , and the Net be not strong and well bulleted , as also the Caster very wary in drawing it up , the Pike will deceive the expectations of the Fisher . In a clear place , where there are no impediments or obstructions , and the bottom smooth and level , it may haply enclose and draw up a good Pike ; but where there are the least encombrances to annoy the Net , it is to be supposed , the Fish will make his escape : The new sort of Nets that are hung with Chains instead of Bullets , are too light for this service .

Next to the Nets which kill by whole sale , the Trollers are often the greatest Enemies one to another , especially the way of the Ledger-Bait , which is very destructive to the Game , for that enticing way which they use with a live Bait , and laying such an Army of Hooks , must needs weaken the Forces of the Watry Militia .

Dead Baits are not so pernicious , yet if they be too often used , they will much lessen the Fish ; for at some seasons of the year they will bite almost till there is none left in the place : The way to favour it , is to be moderate , and not to beat a River too much or with too many Hooks ; to Fish more for pleasure than for profit , and to come but once or twice in a Season to the same River .

The Snare may do some harm at the beginning of the year in a Sunny day and a clear Water , that is only for by-places and narrow Scoures .

One of the greatest Enemies is still to speak of , which must not be forgotten , because he is such a cunning and expert Fisher , that he generally preys upon only the greatest and the best Fish of all kinds . This is the Water-Dog , or Dog-Fisher , as some call him ; which will walk five or ten Miles to a Pond in a Night , and some have disputed whether he be a Beast or a Fish : he can smell a Fish above an hundred yards from him , and then he devours them , and spoils more than he eats , leaving the Head and great part of the Back untouched . Gesner says , that his Stones are a good Remedy against the Falling Sickness ; and that there is an Herb called Benione , which being hung in a Linnen Cloth near a Fish Pond or any haunt that he uses , it makes him to avoid the place . There is so many of them in a River in Cornwall , that Camden says the Name of it is called Ottersey , from the abundance of Otters that there breed , and are fed in it . Though this amphibious Creature be chief Regent , and is Triumphant in the Waters , yet the greedy and audacious Pike , will sometimes set him at defiance , and is so bold as to give him Battel ; as some have seen and observed it , that a Pike hath fought with an Otter for a Carp that he had gotten .

It would not be amiss for the Conservation of the Waters , to keep the fence Months , which are three at the Spring in Spawning-time , for if the taking the Dam on her Nest when she hatches her young , were a sin so much against Nature , that it was forbidden in the Old Law , certainly the taking Fish in the time of their Spawning may be something unlawful as well as unnatural .

Besides such unnatural Fishermen and all the Enemies before-mentioned , the Fish have many more , as the Bitterne , the Cormorant , the Osprey , the Sea-Gull , the Hern , the King-Fisher , and many others ; which though they dare not make their prey upon the great Luce or Pike , yet they lessen the small Fry which should feed and sustain the greater ; and sometimes they may devour young Jacks and Pickerils .

CHAP. XIV . A Description of the Rivers .

THere are in the Kingdom of England and Wales 555 Rivers . I cannot conceive how the number jumps so equal , or comes to be so great ; but that I suppose some small Brooks and Rivulets are taken in .

Now of those 555 , England alone claims the greatest share , having in it 325 , though there may not be so many main Streams which either have the denomination , or the fulness and capacity of so vast a Current . As to their Diversities , is their Situations , their Distance and Remoteness , or their Nearness and Vicinity to the Sea ; so they are different both in the qualities of their Water , as also their various kinds and species of Fishes .

Those that have a more immediate intercourse with the Ocean , partake of its Influences , and have the same Vicissitudes , the same Fluxes , and Refluxes , the same Salt Water , and the same Scaly Army attends them which rules and bears sway under Neptunes Government : These are too deep to be fathom'd by the short Cordage of a Line , and therefore cannot be brought within the compass of our designed Treatise . Those that are more in-land and farther distant from the common Receptacle of Waters , may be brought into the Lists , and fall under the Notion of our intended Subject .

To begin then with the nearest , and to set forth the praises our Native Countrey , we may prefer the Neighbouring Avon , which hath afforded opportunities for our frequent Visits , and may challenge the greatest share of our own experience .

This River consists chiefly of Pike and Perch , some good Bream , few Carpe , Chevins , Gudgeon , Roches , &c. and very good Eel ; it is a clear , fine Stream , in most places broad , and very deep . Some call it by the Name of Nine , because it hath its Original from Nine Fountains , though I cannot discover above five Rivulets that flow in to the increasing of it : Springs indeed there are many , that joyn Forces to augment it , the first of which arises about Daventree .

There are several other Rivers that go by the Name of Avon , one of which takes its course through the middle of Warwickshire .

The next in order to Avon is Welland , which may claim the second place in our Description , having much encouraged our Diversions , and contributed very freely towards the perfecting and compleating of this Art.

These two , like loving Sisters , meet and salute each other at Crowland , and then part again . The Welland cannot boast of that store and plenty of Fish as her Neighbour Avon ; with Pike and smaller Perch she is abundantly furnish'd , many Bream of a middle size , store of Chubs , Dace , Gudgeons , Eels , &c. She hath many turns and windings in her Current , which makes her the more Commodious for Trolling , though slow in running ; so that after a great Flood , there will be no Fishing for a long time .

The Third , and next to these , is the Ouse in Bedfordshire , a fair River and full of Fish , much the same as that of Avon , a good Trolling River .

From thence to the famed Cham , which gives Name to our Mother Academia ; for Historiaus and Antiquaries say , That by setting a Bridge over Cham , it was called Cambridge .

This River is broad but shallow , and is not so Commodious for the Troll as the Cast-Net ; here are many Gudgeons , Ruffs , small Jacks , some Trout and Chub ; great part of it is Navigable ; and therefore not so favourable for our Sport , not only because the sailing of the Vessels much disturbs and thickens the Waters with their Oars and Spreads , but because those continual motions that keep the Water from settling , keep the Weeds from growing , which might harbour and shelter the Fish from the violence of Nets . The Stream of this Cham is somewhat Rapid and Velocious , both by reason of the shallowness of it , as also the level and streightness of it ; it having but few Pits and Crooks which might render it serviceable for our Recreation . However if its Fountains cannot send forth such Waters , that will multiply and generate Fishes to furnish the Adjacent Countries , yet from that ancient Scource of Liberal Arts and Pious Literature , have flowed full Streams of Learned Sciences , which have refined all parts and corners of this Land .

Next to this Seminary of good Education , may we place her Sister Oxonia the other Nurse and Breast of Learning : This , as well as the other , hath the denomination from the River the Foord of Oxen ; or as some derive it Oxford , quasi Ouseford , from the River Ouse adjoyning to it .

From thence we hasten to the River Swift , whether so called from the swiftness and velocity of its motion , is disputable ; it waters and washeth Lutterworth in Leicester shire , and then kindly greets the greater Avon .

The renowned Trent is generally known , being remarkable in the very Name and Derivation , which some have it called from Triginta , because it is stor'd with Thirty sorts of Fishes . If that be true , she must certainly borrow some of her Mothers Brood , the Salt Off-spring of the Sea ; since there are not so many distinct kinds of Fishes that have their being and habitation in the Fresh Waters .

Bordering to this , is the Capacious Humber , and many more spreading through the Northern Climate , the most Antient of which , is the greater Ouse , Commodious for Enriching the City of York . Some say , Humber is not a distinct River of its self , but only the Mouth and Aestuarium of diverse Rivers here confluent and meeting together , as Youre , Darwent , especially Ouse and Trent , which there changeth its Name .

More Northerly still is the noted Tweed , on whose Bank is seated the Impregnable Town of Berwick .

The River Tine , so famous for New-Castle , and her Inexhaustible Coal Pits . Kent boasts much of her Princely Medway , famous for harbouring the Royal Navy .

Swift-running Severne is a special Glory and Ornament to the Ciry Glocester , then which ( says an Ancient Author ) there is not any for Channel broader , for Stream swifter , or for Fish better stored . There is in it a daily rage and fury of Waters , which may be called a Gulph or Whirl-pool of Waves , raising up the Sand from the bottom , winding and driving upon great heaps ; sometimes she overfloweth her Banks , and roveth a great way upon the face of her Bordering grounds , and again retireth as Conqueror into her usual Channels ; unhappy is the Vessel which she taketh full upon the sides ; for if the Watermen are aware of it , they turn the Vessel upon it , and cut through the middest of it , whereby they check , and avoid that violence and danger : she is called Sabrina , from the name of a Maid that was there drowned .

There are many noted Rivers in Darbyshire , Lancashire , Devonshire , Shropshire , &c. the Description of which would be fit for a larger Volum , and cannot be reduced into this Epitome .

The most considerable of them all may be summ'd up , and comprehended in these following Verses .

Queen Thames the First , for Ships and Swans is Crown'd ; The Chrystal Trent for Fords and Fish Renown'd : And Stately Severn for her Shore is prais'd . Newcastle's Tine to Albion's Cliffs is rais'd ; West Chester brags much of her holy Dee , The Peake her Dove , whose Banks so fertile be . York many wonders of her Ouse can tell , And Kent will say her Medway doth excell . Cotswoll commends her Isis to the Tame , Our Western parts extol the Avon's Fame . The Northern Borders boasts of Tweed's fair flood , And the old Lee brags of Danish blood .

A Receipt to dress a Pike .

TAke your Pike , and open him , rub him within with Salt and Claret Wine , save the Milt , a little of the Blood and Fat ; cut him in two or three pieces and put him in when the Water Boils ; put in with him sweet Marjorum , Savory , Time or Fennel , with a good handful of Salt ; let him boil near half an hour : For the Sauce , take sweet Butter , Anchovies , Horse Raddish , Claret Wine , of each a good quantity ; a little of the Blood , Sherlotte , or Garlick ; some Lemon sliced , beat them well together , and serve him .

FINIS .