Juliana Berners

“ Nor should a man ever carry his amusement to excess, and catch too much at one time; this is to destroy his future pleasure and to interfere with that of his neighbours. A good sportsman too, she adds, will busy himself in nourishing the game and destroying all vermin. So will what Walton calls “the civil, well-governed angler” escape the vices which spring from idleness, and enjoy the full delights of an elevating and noble recreation. “And all those that done after this rule shall haue the blessynge of god & saynt Petyr, whyche he theym graunte that wyth his precyous blood vs boughte.” ”

“ Such men as Donne, Wotton, and Herbert, Paley, Bell, and Davy, together with many another excellent and simple dis­po­sition, have caught en­thus­iasm from her lofty sen­ti­ments, and found that not their bodily health only, but also their morals, were improved by angling. ”

“ This portion of her book is regarded by the authoress as most necessary to be known and proficiency in carrying out her rules “is all the effecte of the crafte.” She adds amusingly, “for ye can not brynge an hoke in to a fyssh mouth wythout a bayte.” A few of the quaint receipts of her age succeed; how to keep live baits, to make pastes and the like, ending with a rule which is often given to flyfishers for trout at the present day: “Whan ye haue take a grete fysshe : vndo the mawe, & what ye fynde therin make that your bayte : for it is beste.” ”

“ Therfore I purpose to begy at hym. ¶ The samon is a gentyll fysshe : but he is comborous for to take. For comynly he is but in depe places of grete ryuers. And for the more parte he holdyth the myddys of it : that a man maye not come at hym. And he is in season from Marche vnto Myghelmas. ¶ In whyche season ye shall angle to hym wyth thyse baytes whan ye maye gete theym. Fyrste wyth a redde worme in the begynnynge & endynge of the season. And also wyth a bobbe that bredyth in a dunghyll. And specyally wyth a souerayn bayte that bredyth on a water docke. ”

“ For he maye not lese at the moost but a lyne or an hoke : of whyche he maye haue store plentee of his owne makynge / as this sym | ple treatyse shall teche hym. Soo thenne his losse is not greuo | us. and other greyffes maye he not haue / sauynge but yf ony fisshe breke away after that he is take on the hoke / or elles that he catche nought : whyche ben not greuous. For yf he faylle of one he maye not faylle of a nother / yf he dooth as this treatyse techyth : but yf there be nonght in the water. And yet atte the leest he hath his holsom walke and mery at his ease. ”

“ HE scholarly angler is here pre­sent­ed with an exact fac­sim­i­le of the first En­glish trea­tise on fish­ing. The book is of extreme interest for several reasons, not the least curious being that it has served as a literary quarry to so many suc­ceed­ing writers on fishing, who have not dis­dained to adapt the authoress’s sent­i­ments to their own use, and even to borrow them word for word without ac­knowl­edg­ment. Walton himself was evidently familiar with it, and has clearly taken his “jury of flies” from its “xij flyes wyth whyche ye shall angle to ye trought & grayl­lyng;” ”

“ Thus me semyth that huntynge & hawkynge & also fowlynge ben so laborous and greuous that none of theym maye perfourme nor bi very meane that enduce a man to a me | ry spyryte : whyche is cause of his longe lyfe acordynge vnto yt sayd parable of Salamon. ¶ Dowteles thee folowyth it that it must nedes be the dysporte of fysshynge wyth an angle. For all other manere of fysshyng is also laborous and greuous : often makynge folkes ful wete & colde / whyche many tymes hath be seen cause of grete Infirmytees. But the angler maye haue no colde nor no dysease nor angre / but yf he be causer hymself. ”

“ Page 19. In “cast it in the water wyth a corde & a corke ”, the illegible mark ahead of “cord” has been tran­scribed “a ”. Also, the phrase “or ellis on ye grode” possibly should be “or ellis on ye groūde”.
Page 20. In “But whan they ben in a slough”, the original print looked like “ben|in”, with a thick black line between “ben” and “in”. In the phrase “¶ A nother take the sewet”, there was a smudge after “nother” that might be taken for a comma, removed from this ebook edition. There were no other commas in the blackletter section of the book. ”

“ F ye woll be crafty in anglynge : ye must fyrste lerne to make your harnays / That is to wyte your rodde : your lynes of dyuers colours. After that ye must know how ye shall angle in what place of the water : how depe : and what ti | me of day. For what manere of fysshe : in what wedyr How ma | ny impedymentes there ben in fysshynge yt is callyd anglynge And in specyall wyth what baytys to euery dyuers fysshe in e | che moneth of the yere. How ye shall make your baytes brede where ye shall fynde theym : and how ye shall kepe theym. ”

“ He seeth the yonge swannes : heerons : duckes : cotes and many other fou | les wyth theyr brodes. / whyche me semyth better than alle the {4} noyse of honndys : the blastes of hornys and the scrye of foulis that hunters : fawkeners & foulers can make. And yf the angler take fysshe : surely thenne is there noo man merier than he is in his spyryte. ¶ Also who soo woll vse the game of anglynge : he must ryse erly. whiche thyng is prouffytable to man in this wy | se / That is to wyte : moost to the heele of his soule. ”

“ The fyrste of theym is a mery thought. The seconde is labour not outrageo. The thyr | de is dyete mesurable. Fyrste that yf a man wyll euer more be in mery thoughtes and haue a gladde spyryte : he must eschewe all contraryous company & all places of debate where he myghte haue ony occasyons of malencoly. And yf he woll haue a labour not outrageous he must thenne ordeyne him to his her | tys ease and pleasaunce wythout studye pensyfnesse or trauey | le a mery occupacyon whyche maye reioyce his herte : & in why | che his spyrytes may haue a mery delyte. ”

“ Ne to take the fysshe awaye that is taken in theym. For after a fysshe is taken in a mannys gynne yf the gynne be layed in the comyn waters : or elles in suche waters as he hireth / it is his ow | ne propre goodes. And yf ye take it awaye ye robbe hym : whyche is a ryght shamfull dede to ony noble man to do yt that the | uys & brybours done : whyche are punysshed for theyr euyll de | des by the necke & otherwyse whan they maye be aspyed & taken. ”

“ This glyph has been in­ter­pret­ed herein as punc­tu­a­tion, sim­i­lar to our modern comma or virgule. The glyph was variously printed with no space on either side, or with space on both sides, or with space on the right side. In this ebook, the glyph has been tran­scribed as solidus (u+2f) with thin space on both sides.
There is one exception. On page 20, line 1, the following sentence appears: “Ye shall fede and kepe them all in generall : but euery manere by hymself wyth suche thyng in and on whiche they brede”. ”

“ Henne shall ye make your flotys in this wyse. Take a fayr corke that is clene without many holes. and bore it {11} thrugh wyth a smalle hote yren : And putt therin a penne iuste and streyghte. Euer the more flote the gretter penne & the gre | ter hole. Thenne shape it grete in the myddis and smalle at bo | the endys. and specyally sharpe in the nether ende / and lyke vn | to the fygures folowynge. And make theym smothe on a gryn | dyng stone : or on a tyle stone. ¶ And loke that the flote for one heer be nomore than a pese. For two heeres : as a beene. for twel | ue heeres : as a walnot. ”

“ And in somer season whan it is brennyn | ge hote thenne it is nought. ¶ From Septembre vnto Apryll in a fayr sonny daye is ryght good to angle. And yf the wynde in that season haue ony parte of the Oryent : the wedyr thenne is nought. And whan it is a grete wynde. And whan it snowith reynyth or hayllyth. or is a grete tempeste / as thondyr or ligh | tenynge : or a swoly hote weder : thenne it is noughte for to angle.
Ow shall ye wyte that there ben twelue manere of ympedymentes whyche cause a man to take noo fysshe. wt | out other comyn that maye casuelly happe. ”

“ For whanne ye purpoos to goo on your disportes in fysshyng ye woll not desyre gretly many persones wyth you. whiche my | ghte lette you of your game. And thenne ye maye serue god de | uowtly in sayenge affectuously youre custumable prayer. And thus doynge ye shall eschewe & voyde many vices. as ydylnes whyche is pryncypall cause to enduce man to many other vyces. as it is ryght well knowen. ¶ Also ye shall not be to raueno | us in takyng of your sayd game as to moche at one tyme : whi | che ye maye lyghtly doo yf ye doo in euery poynt as this present treatyse shewyth you in euery poynt. ”

“ Also the water docke leyf wor | me & the hornet worme togyder. ¶ In August & for all the yere take the talowe of a shepe & softe chese : of eche ylyke moche : and a lytyll hony & grynde or stampe theym togydr longe. and tempre it tyll it be tough. And put therto floure a lytyll & make it on smalle pellettys. And yt is a good bayte to angle wyth at the grounde And loke that it synke in the water. or ellys it is not good to this purpoos.
He carpe is a deyntous fysshe : but there ben but fewe in Englonde. And therfore I wryte the lasse of hym. He is an euyll fysshe to take. ”

“ Thenne bende hym lyke to the bende fyguryd herafter in example. And gretter hokes ye shall mabe in the same wyse of gretter nedles : as broderers nedlis : or taylers : or shomakers nedlis spere poyntes / & {9} of shomakers nalles in especyall the beste for grete fysshe. and that they bende atte the poynt whan they ben assayed / for elles they ben not good ¶ Whan the hoke is bendyd bete the hynder ende abrode : & fyle it smothe for fretynge of thy lyne. Thenne put it in the fyre agayn : and yeue it an easy redde hete. Thenne sodaynly quenche it in water : and it woll be harde and stronge. ”

“ And frette theym togyder fe | tely : soo that the croppe maye iustly entre all in to the sayd hole. Thenne shaue your staffe & make hym tapre wexe. Thenne vyrell the staffe at bothe endes wyth longe hopis of yren or la | ton in the clennest wise wyth a pyke in the nether ende fastnyd wyth a rennynge vyce : to take in & oute youre croppe. Thenne set your croppe an handfull within the ouer ende of your staffe in suche wise that it be as bigge there as in ony other place abo | ue. Thee arme your croppe at thouer ende downe to ye frette wyth a lyne of .vj. heeres. ”

“ The dyspor | te and game of hawkynge is laboryous & noyouse also as me semyth. For often the fawkener leseth his hawkes as the {3} hunter his hoūdes. Thenne is his game & his dysporte goon. Full often cryeth he & whystelyth tyll that he be ryght euyll a thur | ste. ”