be true; for though I never took a Grayling so, yet a man of mine once did, and within so few paces of me, that I am as certain of it as I can be of anything I did not see; and, which made it appear the more strange, the Grayling was not above eleven inches long. I must here also beg leave of your Master, and mine, not to controvert, but to tell him, that I cannot consent to his way of throwing in his rod to an overgrown Trout, and afterwards recovering his fish with his tackle. For though I am satisfied he has sometimes done it, because he says so, yet I have found it quite otherwise; and though I have taken with the Angle, I may safely say, some thousands of Trouts in my life, my top never snapped (though my line still continued fast to the remaining part of my rod, by some lengths of line curled round about my top, and there fastened with waxed silk, against such an accident) nor my hand never slacked, or slipped by any other chance, but I almost always infallibly lost my fish, whether great or little, though my hook came home again. And I have often wondered how a Trout should so suddenly disengage himself from so great a hook as that we bait with a Minnow, and so deepbearded as those hooks commonly are; when I have seen by the forenamed accidents, or the slipping of a knot in the upper part of the line, by sudden and hard striking, that though the line has immediately been recovered, almost before it could be all drawn into the water, the fish cleared, and was gone in a moment. And yet, to justify what he says, I have sometimes known a Trout, having carried away a whole line, found dead three or four days after, with the hook fast sticking in him; but then it is to be supposed he had gorged it, which a Trout will do, if you be not too quick with him, when he comes at a Minnow, as sure and much sooner than a Pike; and I myself have also, once or twice in my life, taken the same fish with my own fly sticking in his chaps, that he had taken from me the day before, by the slipping of a hook in the arming. But I am very confident a Trout will not be troubled two hours with any hook, that has so much as one handful of line left behind with it, or that is not struck through a bone, if it be in any part of his mouth only nay, I do certainly know that a Trout, so soon as ever he feels himself pricked, if he carries away the hook, goes immediately to the bottom, and will there root like a hog upon the gravel, till he either rub out, or break the hook in the middle. And so much for this sort of angling in the middle for a Trout. The second way of angling in the middle is with a Worm, Grub, Cadis, or any other ground-bait for a Grayling; and that is with a cork, and a foot from the bottom, a Grayling taking it much better there than at the bottom, as has been said before; and this always in a clear water, and with the finest tackle. To which we may also, and with very good reason, add the third way of angling by hand with a groundbait, as a third way of fishing in the middle, which is common to both Trout and Grayling; and, as I said before, the best way of angling with a worm of all other I ever tried whatever. And now, Sir, I have said all I can at present think of concerning Angling for a Trout and Grayling, and I doubt not have tired you sufficiently; but I will give you no more trouble of this kind whilst you stay ; which I hope will be a good while longer. VIAT. That will not be above a day longer; but if I live till May come twelvemonth, you are sure of me again, either with my Master Walton or without him; and in the mean time shall acquaint him how much you have made of me for his sake, and I hope he loves me well enough to thank you for it. PISC. I shall be glad, Sir, of your good company at the time you speak of, and shall be loath to part with you now; but when you tell me you must go, I will then wait upon you more miles on your way than I have tempted you out of it, and heartily wish you a good journey. LINNEAN ARRANGEMENT OF THE FISH FIGURED IN THIS EDITION OF WALTON AND Extracted from General Zoölogy, by GEORGE SHAW, M.D., &c., &c.; and British Zoölogy, by THOMAS PENNANT, Esq., Edit. Lond., 1812, 8vo. THE 'HE reader of Walton's most interesting and amusing work will probably be gratified by its closer connection with the science of Natural History; and for this purpose, the following list is added, containing the Systematic Names and Characters of the principal Fish described in it. Fishes form one great division of the Systema Naturæ of Linnæus; and the most generally received modification thereof, by Dr. Shaw, arranges them under two great Classes, to the former of which alone the present work has reference, — viz. those which have a Skeleton of Bone, and those which have a Skeleton of Cartilage. The Orders are founded upon circumstances connected with the Fins, which are named from their situation, Dorsal, or Back Fins; The late Dr. Richard Powell, Secretary of the Royal College of Physicians, volunteered the Linnæan Arrangement annexed, from his admiration of the original paintings, and the great pains taken to have them faithfully engraved. Pectoral, or Breast Fins; Ventral, or Belly Fins; Anal, or Vent Fin; and Caudal, or Tail Fin. The Ventral Fins are held to be analogous to the Feet of Quadrupeds; and from their absence, or relative situation to the others, the Orders are taken. Such as want the Ventral Fins are named Apodal, or Footless; such as have the Ventral placed before, or more forward than the Pectoral, are named Jugular; such as have them immediately under the Pectoral are named Thoracic; and such as have them behind or beyond the Pectoral are named Abdominal. As the ensuing descriptions of the Fish are placed according to their scientific order, and not according to that of their occurrence in the preceding work, a reference to the chapter and the page in which they are treated of and represented is placed against each of the following Articles. ORDER I. APODAL, OR FOOTLESS. No Ventral Fins. Genus ANGUILla, Eel. Head smooth. Nostrils tubular. Eyes covered by the common skin. Gill-membrane 10 rayed. Body round- ORDER II. JUGULAR. Ventral Fins before the Pectoral. No example. |