John Rayner
/off fi tlayner
Books on Angling.
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THE
RIVER DOVE
WITH SOME QUIET THOUGHTS ON
THE HAPPY PRACTICE OF
ANGLING
LONDON
WILLIAM PICKERING
1847
'Epa<rp/>j IIEAEIA,
IIo'0y rtoQsv Tf&fatra-ai;
nd0v jw-o'pwv rotrovrwv
fs xai 4/Ka'^<f ;
Anacreon, Ode IX.
TO THE READER.
Sir,
THE book I here prefent to you was put into
the Printer's hands for the entertainment
of a few Gentlemen Fijhers ; and I hope you take
a pleafure in the harmlefs recreation of Angling,
otherwife I may not hope you will overlook its
defefts. I heartily wijh it were a more worthy
tribute to the memory of thofe bejl majters of
our art, Mr. Izaak Walton, and Mr. Charles
Cotton :
' ALAS, THAT THEY ARE DEAD !'
But I befeech you to be civil, and moderate in your
cenfures ; for I undertook thofe pleafant walks,
to which I here invite you, by the banks of the
DOVE (now ten years are paji) to unbend my
mind from fame ferious cares. And that 1 may
not detain you from the perufal, I have only this
IV
To the Reader.
further to dejire, that we may all have a fouth
wind when we go a-fijhing, and be blejl with a
virtuous cheerful fpirit, a peaceful confcience, and
at lajt eternal rejoicings in the kingdom of angels.
Tour loving friend
and humble feru ant,
from my Houfe at
Feftival of St. Peter, 1687.
THE RIVER DOVE;
WITH SOME QJJIET THOUGHTS ON THE
HAPPY PRACTICE OF ANGLING.
CHAPTER I.
A Meeting at Derby, between an Angler
and a Painter.
Painter.
ELCOME, Mr. Gentleman An-
gler : welcome to Derby.
Angler. Good morrow, brother,
I am glad to fee you look fo cheer-
ing and courteous ; for I muft confefs I am
later than our fix't appointment.
Painter. Sir, now I poflefs you, I'm too
glad-hearted to chide your lagging : yet, to fay
the truth, I expected you this hour agone ; for
methought your fprightful anglers were apt to
The River Dove.
prevent the fun's rifing on a delicate May
morning.
Angler. Give me your pardon this turn, and
doubt not to find me ftirring with the lark
every day that you and I purpofe to walk in
each other's company by the banks of the
Dove.
Painter. My pardon you shall have the more
willingly, if you fail not a traveller's good fto-
mach for breakfaft.
Angler. You may truft me. I am as keenly
fet as a mofs trooper.
Painter. I am glad to hear it, for I have
told the civil hoftefs to treat us well.
Angler. You are worthy to be a brother of
the angle ; and this I am refolved you mail be
when we are come to the river that I love fo
well : but let us fee what we may have for
our breakfaft, and fall to it merrily.
Painter. Here it is, and all of the beft ;
fo let us fay grace, and begin.
Angler. With all my heart ; and that will
give it a relifh.
Painter. How now, brave Sir ! What fay
you ?
Angler. By pick and pie 'tis all excellent.
When I am Lord Great Chamberlain you
mall be my caterer. Come, Sir, for a glafs of
The River Dove.
ale ; my fervice to you. Now I envy not the
daintieft court gallants in the land, that are
afleep on their beds of down.
Painter. I am amazed how fome fluggards
will lie a-bed almoft till dinner time.
Angler. They know none of the ingenuous
delights of fifhermen. So let us blefs God,
that we have not only a mind to rife with the
fun, but the power to it, for that is flill better.
And, as plain-hearted Mr. Walton fays, c that
4 our prefent happinefs may appear to be greater,
4 and we the more thankful for it, I will beg
4 you to confider with me, how many do, even
' at this very time, lie under the torment of the
c ftone, the gout, and the tooth ache, and this
' we are free from ; and every mifery that I mifs
4 is a new mercy.'
Painter. And how many are now languim-
ing in the fad captivity of dungeons, 4 feeding
4 on bread of affliction, and water of affliction.'
But, come ; tell me how it has fared with
you, fince we parted from each other's com-
pany, now two days agone, when you refolved
to entertain yourfelf with fome hours fiftiing in
the lower parts of the River Dove, near to the
town of Uttoxeter.
Angler. That I will relate to you by and by,
as we journey towards Afhbourne ; and be-
The River Dove.
caufe the morning wears apace, let us take
another cup of barley wine and be gone ; for
we have fome hours, and many more miles, on
this fide Alftonfields, where you and I muft
lodge to-night.
Painter. It is well thought ; fo Miftrefs
Hoftefs here is payment for your choice break-
faft, and thanks for your civility, and fo we
wifh you good morrow. And now, brother,
feeing we are paft Derby Bridge, and are come
out of the town, look forth on the freflinefs of
the landfcape, and the dewdrops that hang on
every blade and bum, fparkling in the beams of
the fun.
Angler. What happy thoughts poflefs a
man's mind when he breathes the air of the
morning, and contemplates the bounties of na-
ture !
Painter. Aye ; then the heart is full of un-
fpeakable thoughts that foar upward from earth
to heaven, and fo higher ftill on the fpiritual
wings of reverential love unto HIM, who is
above this vault fo beautiful, fo vaft, and is the
Creator and Suftainer of all.
Angler. And liften to the very fong-birds
chirping their untaught morning harmony to
God, who c caufeth the day-fpring from on high
c to know his place'
The River Dove.
Painter. This fimple feathered choir teaches
mankind to be cheerful, and to fing joyful
pfalms, and to make melody in their heart to
the Lord : nay, what can be pleafanter than to
do this, ' w hen the very morning ft ars fing toge-
4 tber.' And what fays even the learned hea-
then, Epictetus ? * ' If we have any wifdom,
1 what is more becoming in public and in pri-
c vate, than to fing hymns to the Deity ? If I
4 were a nightingale, I mould do as the nightin-
c gales do if a fwan, as the fwans ; but becaufe
4 1 am a reafonable creature, I muft the rather
4 praife God. So I will never leave that practice
4 myfelf, and I do exhort all others to it.' And
now give me leave to put you in mind to tell
me fomething of your lonely walks round
about Uttoxeter, that we may beguile the way
with cheerful converfation between this and
Ambourne.
jfngler. That I mail willingly do : and firft,
you are to know, I paffed by the great foreft of
Needwood, that has fome of the pleafanteft
chafes and parks in all England, and is fo full
of marvellous big oaks and fat bucks ; then,
after Needwood I came to Tutbury.
Painter. Indeed !
* Arrian. Epift. 1. i.e. 16. ED.
'The River Dove.
' The battle was fought near Titbury town,
' When the bagpipes baited the bull ? ' *
Angler. Come, Sir, if you have that choice
ballad by memory, pr'ythee let us hear it.
* Kind gentlemen, will ye be patient awhile ?
' Aye, and then you (hall hear anon,
' A very good ballad of bold Robin Hood,
' And of his man, brave little John. 1
Painter. Some parts I could repeat ; but
rather let me hear of your walk from Tutbury :
and pr'ythee when thou waft thereabouts, didft
' fcemauntte one bacon flpfee, ganging in tlje
'$alle of tge Horti of oaigicgenotj?'t
dngler. Nay do you take me for a Bene-
dick ? Let the flyke be claimed by the won-
drous wight that 'tooulti not rtjaunge fji'0
for none ortjer, farec ne fotoler,
* ' A new ballad of bold Robin Hood ; /flowing his
' birth, breeding, 'valour, and marriage at Titbury Bull-
' running. Calculated for the meridian of StaffordJJiire ,
' but may ferve for Derby/hire or Kent.'' ED.
f See Plott's Hiftory of StafFordmire, p. 437, for an
account of the primitive right to claim the Flyke of
Bacon, which Sir Philip de Somerville was bound to
keep hanging in his Hall, in token of his fealty to John
of Gaunt, Duke of Lancafter, for the manors of Which-
enovre and others. The fame cuftom prevails at Dun-
mow in Eflex. ED.
The River Dove.
rpcfjer ne pouter of allc tlje topmeti of ttje
Painter. And how is his highness, the ' king
of the minftrels ? ' *
Angler. Gone to his reft, with brave John
of Gaunt, and the Prior of Tutbury. Alas !
fmce the roundheads once kept watch and
ward in Tutbury Caftle, the merry minftrelfy
is hufhed in the hall. But now you may con-
fider me to be arrived in the town of Uttoxeter,
full of compofed thoughts, and there I found a
tidy houfe of refrefhment, and put myfelf to
bed betimes, that I might be away before the
day dawn ; and fo I was, and let me tell you
my firft waking thoughts, after remembering
my prayers, were of the River Dove, and my
happy practice of angling.
Painter. That indeed was natural, and I
make bold to think you caught fome brace of
trouts before breakfaft ?
Angler. Not fo, brother ; for you are to note
* No doubt, in allufion to the Charter granted in
1381, by John of Gaunt, to the troop of minftrels
maintained at Tutbury Caftle, in that time of its fplen-
dour. The chief was appointed by the title of ' King
of the Minftrels ; ' and he had wardens and other offi-
cers under him to maintain the rules of the Fraternity,
and to levy fines for any diforders. PlotCs Hift. ED.
7
The River Dove.
every angler muft needs be bleft with a hopeful
and patient difpofition, fince he may fometimes
look to come home as he went forth, that is to
fay, with an empty pannier
Painter. As the reward of his patience !
Well, patience is an herb, they fay, makes a
' good boiled fallad : ' why, Sir, an angler need
to be 'Patience on a monument,' that he may fit
filently by the river, and look down at nothing
but his float.
Angler. Well ! I give you leave to cenfure,
fince you know none of thofe fweet pleafures
that attend on angling : and I remit you .to
Mr. Izaak Walton, ' that dear lover and fre-
quent pra6ticer of my art,' for many clear rea-
fons and examples to prove that it may be
efteemed one of the moft honeft and com-
mendable recreations a gentleman can pradtife.
Painter. A hopeful entertainment, truly !
Neverthelefs, I cannot but fmile at your dump-
im anglers that wait fo meekly for their for-
tunes, as to feem fixed with all the gravity of
fculptured images on the margin of their
ftreams.
Angler. So, fo ! good brother, you may
fmile and wonder too ; nay, I will laugh with
you, and after that will not be amamed to con-
fefs how I am poflefTed with a conftant love of
'The River Dove.
my gentle craft. But for the prefent let me
bring your thoughts towards the Dove, near to
Uttoxeter.
Painter. Aye, let us hear more of that ;
then you made fome contemplative trial of the
trouts ?
Angler. But it was all in vain ; for the wind
was contrary, and they took no liking to my
flies, and fo I miffed my fport : but I hope for
better acceptance the next time I go a-courting
that way.
Painter. Then I befeech you, gentle Mr.
Angler, how did you pafs the hours, fince the
trouts, out of their coynefs, declined from your
acquaintance ? If I might conjecture, you
ftraightway fell into a confideration of Mafter
Izaak Walton's praife of fifties and fifhing.
Angler. And if I did ? Give me leave to tell
you, he hath fet forth the delights of this
recreation with fuch refined and ingenuous ar-
guments, as to perfuade many a man to become
a fifher, who was before very averfe to it.
Nay, I fhall hope to make you put on new
thoughts of angling before we part company}
for, of all men, limners have moft caufe to love
my art, feeing they may recline by the fide of
a lake or river, and leave their angle-rods c to
fifh for themfelves,' and this Mr. Walton de-
IO
The River Dove.
clares, and truly, to be ' like putting money to
4 ufe ; for then thefe angle-rods work for the
1 owners when they do nothing but fleep, or
' eat, or rejoice '
Painter. Or paint pictures !
Angler. Even fo : and I may declare to you
I have feen fuch pleafant profpects of wood-
lands, and rivers, and ftreams, that have flowed
along the valleys and through many a mead in
England, when I have been a-fifhing, as the
beft limner might defire to look at ; and yet
not be able to imitate with all his daintinefs of
hand. And fome of thefe I made a difcovery
of, within a little mile or two round Uttoxeter,
by the banks of the Dove ; for feeing I was
not like to fifh to profit, I confidered within
myfelfwhat I fhould do; and after a while I
refolved to examine into thofe parts of the river,
and fo be admitted into a more familiar ac-
quaintance with its landfkips.
Painter. Well thought ; and I declare to
you I am ready to efteem it my lofs that I was
not in your company.
Angler. There are many parts thereabouts
would have touched you mightily : for nature,
that is fo excellent an artificer, hath contrived
her works on either fide the river with a moft
unimitable difpofition and fkilfulnefs. And
The River Dove.
I I
you are to note, the river I fpeak of is the
Dove ;
' Whofe dainty grafle,
' That grows upon her banks, all other doth furpaffe,'
as old Michael Drayton * declares : and there-
abouts I found the Churnet, that gives her the
contribution of its ftreams, and is contented to
receive nothing from her in exchange but her
fpeckled trouts, and this for the fweet fatisfac-
tion of an attendance upon her, till her efpou-
fals with the Trent below Eggington. Then I
may not omit to mention that pleafant river the
Blythe, whofe fountains fpring up near to
the c ancient caftel ' of Caverfwall, gathering
ftrength as me flows along by the Earl of
Derby's great park and Caftle of Chartley, and
then
' Bears eafey down tow'rds her deere foveraign Trent.'
Painter. Blythe ! the very name is full of
promife ; and I doubt not her banks are lined
with profpe&s of mountains and vales.
Angler. All variegated with moorlands and
woodlands ; fuch alluring fcenes for an angler
or a painter, and fo decked by nature's hand as
to be little fpots of enchantment, which caufed
* Drayton's Polyolbion : Song 12, p. 207. ED.
12
The River Dove.
me a double forrow that you were not my fel-
low traveller : and I refolved I would fome time
or other fee thofe landfkips again, if it mould
pleafe God to let me live long enough, and give
me the diverfion of fome leifurable days.
Painter. Your commendations of the Dove
inflame my defires to make acquaintance with
her ftreams ; and I rejoice that I am now like
to do this in your company ; and I befeech you
tell me fomething more of the Churnet, that
joins itfelf thereabouts to the Dove.
Angler. That would I willingly, if time might
ferve ; but we are come within fight of Brails-
ford.
Painter. Then make me this promife, that
we may beguile fome future hours together by
thofe lower paflages of the Dove, and fee
where me difcharges herfelfinto the Trent.
Angler. Let that be a match between us ;
and I promife you nothing can be pleafanter for
an artift than the lights and fhadows of their
umbrageous banks, and the paftures, and lowing
herds by the river, and the native cafcades and
rocks, and the peaceful villages with antient
churches, that lend their aid to the compofure
of thofe retired profpedls.
Painter. How did you call this pleafant look-
ing place we are come to ?
'The River Dove.
Angler. Now you are arrived at Brailsford ;
and there is the Saracen's Head, that is kept
by honeft John Bembridge ; this way, fo pleafe
you ; and look, here is a well of water, called
St. Bernard's Well, so like to chryftal, that
almoft a blind beggar may fee the pebble ftones
at the bottom.
Painter. It is furprifmgly clear.
jfngler. Then, I befeech you, take your
pencil, and give me a defign, in remembrance
of this pleafant walk we have undertaken to-
gether.
Painter. I cannot deny any requeft of yours,
for I have left my home for no other end than
the fatisfa&ion of your company and civil dif-
courfe, and to give you in return all the con-
tentment that my poor art is capable of.
Angler. Why that's heartily and kindly fpoken ;
and I will be fo bold to promife you fbme en-
tertainment on our journey ; for, look you,
here is the neweft imprefiion of Mr. Walton's
COMPLETE ANGLER, and here is Part the
Second^ that is lately printed for a companion
to it.
Painter. Indeed ! another volume from the
fertile pen of Mr. Izaak Walton ! what more
that is new can he have to fay on Angling ?
Angler. Stay a while ; for this is a Treatife
The River Dove.
of Fly Fifhing, l being Injlrufiions how to an-
' gl e f or a Trout or Grayling in a clear Stream,
writ by Mr. Charles Cotton, of Beresford Hall,
his adopted fon ; fo they are printed together
in teftimony of their mutual affection. It is a
cheerful dialogue between Pifcator Junior, that
is, Mr. Charles Cotton himfelf, and Viator,
who was a gentleman-traveller he overtook on
horfeback, between Derby and Afhbourne, half
a mile from this place. And if thefe two trea-
tifes together do not kindle in your mind alove
for the art, I am certain you will at leaft gather
from the perufal a charitable difpofition towards
anglers.
Painter. It would be uncivil to deny Mr.
Cotton's merits before I have read his treatife ;
and for Mr. Walton, I may confefs he has a
fingular vein of wit and affability, and fome
parts of his other works, that I have dipped
into, are writ with fo happy a pen, and are fo
full of judicious difcourfe, as teftify to his
modeft difpofition, and exa6t diligence and dif-
cernment.
Angler. I'm glad you think fo.
Painter. But furely it cannot be denied, that
he hath fometimes fpun a long line for the
readers of his difcourfe on fiming ?
Angler. Yet are his lines fpun with a curi-
The River Dove.
ous magical contexture of learning and wit, to
allure his readers no lefs than to deceive all
kinds of fifh.es ; for his book extremely abounds
with innocent mirth, and what is better than
all, you may not deny that in every part he
difcourfes fweetly on the unfeen world, and
things after death.
Painter. There is not a doubt he hath a
thankful and reverential heart.
Angler. Aye, and is an orthodox chriftian,
that loves our dear mother THE CHURCH, her
primitive orders of apoftolic miniftry and go-
vernment, her holy facraments and her fervice
book, which are even now a mark for the
butt-fhafts of unquiet carking feparatifts, who
difpute againft the laws both ecclefiaftical and
civil.
Painter. Oh ! I am grieved to think how
thofe cenfurers be fo full of their own whimfies,
and unconformable to difcipline, that if you
fpoke to them with angels' tongues they would
not be perfuaded to hold to the Catholic Church
in England, which learned Lord Bacon declares
to be as found and orthodox in the doctrine
thereof as any church in the world.
dngler. True, and Mr. Walton is of the
fame opinion : and fome of his writings are
choice pieces of chriftian philofophy ; and a
1 6 The River Dove.
life of innocency, and his modeft peaceablenefs
of mind have endeared him to many of our
moft grave and pious prelates now living.
Painter. Neverthelefs for his COMPLETE
ANGLER it is pleafant to fee with what feriouf-
nefs he dilates on the antiquity and other qua-
lities of his art. He is like Mafter Shake-
fpeare's dauphin in a panegyric on his palfrey.
4 When I beftride him, I foar, I am a hawk :
1 he trots the air ; the earth fmgs when he
* touches it ; the bafeft horn of his hoof is more
4 mufical than the pipe of Hermes '
jfngler. 4 No more, coufm,' I befeech you.
Painter. ' Nay, the man hath no wit, that
4 cannot, from the rifmg of the lark to the
' lodging of the lamb, vary deferved praife on
4 my palfrey : it is a theme as fluent as the fea ;
c turn the fands into eloquent tongues, and my
4 horfe is argument for them all : 'tis a fubjeft
* for a fovereign to reafon on, and for a fove-
4 reign's fovereign to ride on, and for the world
4 to lay apart their particular functions and
4 wonder at him.'*
Angler. Ha ha ha ! would my dear maf-
ter were by to defend his poor jennet.
Painter. Well, well ; I would not deny
* Henry V. Aft in. Scene vii. ED.
The River Dove.
him the privilege of riding aftride on his hobby
horfe, feeing how the greateft fcholar of the laft
age compofed a panegyric on Folly, and made
a dedication of it to Sir Thomas More, that
wife Chancellor of England.
Angler. Since I perceive how you are re-
folved to run at tilt againft poor, civil, honeft
anglers, I will forbear, and c Jludy to be quiet ,'
after the example of my matter, who, if he has
not the meeknefs of Mofes, (and that I will not
declare,) yet is the meekeft man I know of in
this difputing age.
Painter. Nay, brother, I did but jeft : and
doubtlefs Mr. Walton is a man of primitive
piety, for his lives of Dr. Donne, Sir Henry
Wotton, venerable Mr. Richard Hooker, and
Mr. George Herbert, could only be compofed
by one of like religious affections with thofe
memorable men.
Angler. And call to mind that picture he has
drawn of Dr. Donne's laft ficknefs that ended
in his death.
Painter. I remember the words, how he de-
clares that good man was at length 4 fo happy
4 as to have nothing to do but to die ; ' and how
4 he lay fifteen days earneftly expecting his
4 hourly change, and in the laft hour of his laft
4 day, as his body melted away and vapoured
i8
The River Dove.
4 into fpirit, his foul having, I verily believe,
4 fome revelation of the beatifical vifion, he faid,
4 " I were miferable if I might not die;" and
4 how afterward, being fpeechlefs, and feeing
4 heaven by that illumination by which he faw
4 it, he did, as St. Stephen, look fteadfaftly into
4 it, till he faw the Son of Man ftanding at the
4 right hand of God his Father, and being fatif-
4 fied with this blefled fight, his foul afcended,
4 and his laft breath departed from him.' For
he was fo rooted and grounded in celeftial love,
he fhook the king of terrors, and difarmed him
of his fting, and the dark grave was (horn of
his victory.
Angler. True ; for he had long had his blame-
lefs converfation in heaven : he was a fpiritual
foldier that had quenched all the fiery darts of
the myfterious wicked one by the fhield of
faith, and now, like holy Paul, he yearned to
be releafed from things below, and to take part
in the invifible harmonious choirs in heavenly
places. And what a natural picture of primi-
tive manners Mr. Walton hath drawn in his
life of the ever-memorable Mr. Hooker, who,
when he was in his eighteenth year, and as
foon as he was perfectly recovered from a
dangerous ficknefs at Corpus Chrifti College
in Oxford, took a journey to Exeter, to fatisfy
The River Dove.
and fee his good mother, who in all that time
of his fickness had 4 in her hourly prayers as
1 earneftly begged his life of God, as Monica,
4 the mother of St. Auguftine, did, that he
4 might become a true Chriftian.'
Painter. I have never read, or have forgot
that journey of his.
Angler. Well then, I may tell you, he walked
from Oxford unto Exeter, 4 with a companion
4 of his own college, and both on foot ; which
4 was then either more in fafhion, or want of
1 money, or their humility, made it fo : but on
1 foot they went, and took Salifbury in their
'way, purpofely to fee the good bifhop' (that
was Bifhop Jewel, his conftant and dear patron
and the beftower of an annual penfion for his
comfortable fubfiftence ;) l and the good bifhop
4 made Mr. Hooker and his companion dine
4 with him at his own table : and at his part-
4 ing the bifhop gave him good counfel and his
4 benediction, but forgot to give him money ;
4 which, when the bifhop had confidered, he
4 fent a fervant in all hafle to call Richard back
4 to him : and at Richard's return, the bifhop
4 delivered into his hand a walking-ftaff, with
4 which he profefled he had travelled through
4 many parts of Germany,' and he called it
4 his horfe which had carried him many a mile
20
The River Dove.
4 with much eafe.' And he said, c Richard, /
c do not give but lend you my horfe : be fur e you
4 be honejl, and bring my horfe back to me at
4 your return this way to Oxford. And I do
1 now give ten groats to bear your charges to
1 Exeter : and here is ten groats more, which I
4 charge you to deliver to your mother, and tell
1 her I fend her a bijhop's benediflion with it,
' and beg the continuance of her prayers for me.
4 And if you bring my horfe back to me, I will
c give you ten groats more to carry you on foot
4 to the college ; and fo God blefs you, good Ri-
4 chard.'
Painter. I may promife you I fhall remem-
ber that pilgrimage on foot of 4 good Richard,'
to his poor mother's houfe at Exeter, and the
bifhop's walking-ftafF and his bleffing, and his
fo nigh-forgotten groats.
Angler. And fo in Mr. Walton's COMPLETE
ANGLER you will find many paflages that ex-
hibit his own ferenity of mind, and fuch touches
of rural life as will requite you for the pains of
reading : but now let me fee the picture you
have drawn of Brailsford Well.
Painter. Here it is.
Angler. I declare 'tis fimply and clearly de-
figned.
Painter. I perceive you are refolved to be
The River Dove. 2 1
gentle with my firft eflaye ; but I am glad it
contents you, and now let us be going.
Angler. With all my heart.
Painter. How now ! here is a cheerful ri-
vulet, that I fee running from the meadows
into the road.
Angler. This is Brailsford Brook, and look
you, here is a bridge.
Painter. And yonder is a handfome church
and tower. I muft, with your leave, ftep into
thefe meadows and draw the landfkip.
jfngler. Aye, I befeech you ; for here is the
fpot of ground where the pleafant conference
began between Mr. Charles Cotton and his
new friend, that he accofted on the road as
they were both going to Aflibourne.
4 You are happily overtaken, Sir,' faid he ;
4 may a man be fo bold as to inquire how far you
4 travel this way f"
Painter. They were ftrangers, then ?
Angler. Neverthelefs they fo affeled one
another, after that falutation and other pleafant
difcourfe, as not to part company till they had
enjoyed fome days' innocent recreation a-fifhing
at Beresford Hall. Nay more, Viator declared,
on the fecond day, that he was 4 fo far in love
4 with Pifcator and his country, and pretty moor-
4 land feat, as to refolve to Jiay with him long
22
The River Dove.
' enough, by intervals, to hear all he had to fay
' of his art'
Painter. And pr'ythee, how did Mr. Cotton
reply to this familiar declaration ?
Angler. How did he reply ! with all the
politenefs of an angler ; * Sir, you cannot oblige
1 me more than by fuch a promife'
Painter. Well faid ! Then here they made
their firft acquaintance ?
Angler. And here is one of thofe little fpark-
ling brooks that you {hall meet every where in
this country ; nay, Mr. Cotton declares, 4 they
c are full of trouts, and fame of them the beft (it
4 is faid} by many degrees in England.'
Painter. Trouts ! and in fo mean a ftream
as this ?
Angler. But I do not fay they (hall be all big
trouts ; for, as Mr. Walton hath it, 4 fome
4 rivers, by reafon of the ground over which
4 they run, breed larger trouts, like as fome
4 paftures breed larger fheep ;' and fome ftreams
there are, not many times broader than Brails-
ford Brook, that breed trouts three and four
pounds in weight : but you may not think to
find the biggeft trouts at all times the beft meat.
And he that ftudies the nature and feafons of
fifties may obferve how fometimes the trouts
will change their haunts, and travel up a ftream
The River Dove.
for many miles, in their natural defire after the
frefh waters ; nay, to the very fountain head of
fome brook, and there wade among the clear
fandy mallows ; indeed, I have feen trouts
taken out of the dark fprings that rife in the
caverns of the Great Peak underneath Caf-
tleton.
Painter. After what you fay, I doubt not
but Brailsford Brook may breed good trouts ;
and I care not whence they come, fo we have
a brace for fupper.
Angler. That I promife you, and fkilfully
dreft too :
' For mark well, good brother, what now I doe fay,
' Sauce made of anchoves is an excellent way,
' With oyfters, and lemon, clove, nutmeg and mace,
' When the brave fpotted trout hath been boyled apace,
' With many fweet herbs.'
And this was the fafhion of an experienced
angler, that hath difcovered ' many rare fecrets^
c very neceffary to be known by all that delight
c in the recreation both of catching the fi/h, and
' drejjing thereof.''*
Painter. Aye, aye ; your meditative fimers
* ' The Art of Angling, written by Thomas Barker,
' an ancient practitioner in the faid Art.' izmo. Lon-
don. 1651. ED.
2 3
The River Dove.
have always fome fingular difcoveries to enhance
the practice of their art. I remember one
honeft gentleman,* of a moft fertile wit, called
angling the 4 Pleasure of Princes, or Goodmen's
4 Recreation.'
Angler. In that he did no more than was
both reafonable and true.
Painter. And the fame notable gentleman
unravelled this myftery, ' that the angler's ap-
4 parell fhould by no means be garifh, light
4 coloured, or fhining, for whatfoever hath a
1 glittering hue refleð upon the water, and
4 immediately it affrighteth the fifh.'
Angler. And this, before you and I have
done walking, you may prove to your coft, with
your gayfome doublet and jerkin.
Painter. So, Mafter Pifcator, c let your ap-
4 parell be plaine and comely, of darke colour,
* as ruflett, tawney, or fuch like, clofe to your
4 body, without any new fafhioned flames or
4 hanging fleeves waving loofe like fayles about
4 you.'f
Angler. Well, well ; in every art 'tis good
* Gervafe Markham. This book contains a Dif-
courfe of the general Art of Fifhing with the Angle or
otherwife : and all the hidden fecrets belonging thereto.
4-to. London. 1614. ED.
-f- Pleafure of Princes, ch. iii. p. 15. ED.
The River Dove.
to have a mafter ; and that this is one of our
1 Secrets ,' thefe verfes of a happy angler may
declare :
' And let your garments ruflet be or gray,
' Of colour darke and hardeft to defcry,
' That with the raine or weather will away,
' And leaft offend the fearful filhes' eye.
' For neither fcarlet, nor rich cloth of ray,
' Nor colours dipt of frefti Affyrean dye,
' Nor tender filkes of purple, paule of gold,
' Will ferve fo well to keepe off wet or cold.' *
And pr'ythee look to your own tooles ; for you
will do well, if you have one of honeft Gervafe
Markham's Twelve Virtues of an Angler to
wit : 4 A knowledge in proportions of all forts,
* to give a geographical defcription of the an-
' gles and channels of rivers, how they fall from
' their heads, and what compafles they fetch in
4 their feveral windings. f
Painter. You mall fee you (hall fee but
I am ready to attend you, for I have drawn
this carelefs picture ; and fo let us towards
Afhbourne. Why, how is this ? We are
* The Secrets of Angling ; teaching the choiceft
tooles, baytes, and feafons for the taking of any fifti in
pond or river ; pra&iced and familiarly opened in three
Bookes. By J. D. Efq. 8vo. London. 1613. ED.
-f- Pleafure of Princes, ch. iii. p. 16. ED.
2 5
26 'The River Dove.
fcarce two miles from Brailsford, and here we
have another rivulet ruftling through the grafs.
Angler. This brook before us, at the foot of
yon fandy hill, has been noticed by Mr. Cotton
to have ''fcarce any name amongft us, and to be
4 too woody for the recreation of fijhing?
Painter. That I may eafily believe, for it
feems but a narrow thread of water, winding
along the meadows, and almofl hid beneath
thofe am trees.
Angler. Yet, you may take a ftore of trouts
in this namelefs rivulet by Longford Mill, which
is not far from where we ftand ; and I have
the undoubted authority of Mr. John Davors
to fay, * the trout makes the angler moft gen-
4 tlemanlie and readieft fport of all other rimes.'*
But look before you, for we are now come
to the top of Spittle Hill, over againft Am-
bourne.
Painter. Indeed ! and there the town lies
in a bottom ; and I declare a goodly church !
and beyond it, on the other fide, I fee fome
ftately mountains, and one that lifts his top as
high as the clouds.
Angler. And therefore called Thorpe Cloud ;
and you are to note the Dove winds round
* Secrets of Angling, p. 20. ED.
The River Dove.
27
the bafe, through her rugged channel of rocks.
Would I were there ! But I am fo bold as to
requeft a fketch of this chequered profpecl: be-
fore us from your lively pencil.
Painter. It {hall be done ; for it is, indeed,
a fine and fpacious landfkip ; and I mall be
happy if my poor drawings can give you fads-
faction.
Angler. They do, indeed ; fo I pray you
begin, and forget not yonder hills that are be-
hind the town, for we may hope ' to ftretch
c our legs up' fome of them by and by. But
how will you draw the natural perfpedtive of
the road, which now drops with fo great a
fteepnefs from before us ?
Painter. Thus it is here Viator and Pif-
cator difcourfe together. You may fee them in
outline, both on horfeback, and there is the fall
in the ground.
Angler. It is ingenioufly contrived ! But I
muft tell you Mr. Cotton travelled with his
ferving man therefore, fo pleafe you, let us
have a third rider that mould follow behind the
other two, for they were all mounted on horfe-
back. So ! that is admirable ; and I can now
fee before me the polite angler that allured
his companion to vifit his 'pretty moorland
feat' in Staffbrdmire. Oh, how the hours
28
'The River Dove.
do lag ere we come to that l marvellous pretty
place.'
Painter. Was that the Beresford Hall you
fpoke of?
Angler. The fame : but if you defire to know
how they converted together as they arrived
at Spittle Hill, I will read it to you in Mr.
Cotton's own words, whiles you are to finim
the landfkip.
Painter. I am ready to hear it, and what is
more, to take a pleafure in liftening.
Angler. Well, you may note Pifcator was fo
pleafed with his companion, that he had ear-
neftly and honeftly invited him to his houfe,
and promifed he fhould be extremely welcome;
then Viator felt a furprife, 4 with fo friendly
4 an invitation upon fo J})ort acquaintance^ and
faid ' he could not in modejly accept his offer,
4 and mujl therefore beg his pardon ; ' but Mr.
Cotton would not be denied ; and at length, as
they drew near to Spittle Hill, where you and
I at this moment ftand, he repeated his invita-
tion, and faid, 4 Now, Sir, if I am not mijtaken,
4 I have half overcome you ; and that I may
4 wholly conquer that modefty of your' s, I will
4 take upon me to be fo familiar as to fay, you
1 muft accept my invitation^ which that you may
4 be the more eafily perfuaded to do, I -will tell
The River Dove.
4 you, that my houfe Jlands upon the margin of
4 one of the fineft rivers for trout and grayling
4 in England^ (which you are to obferve was
the Dove,) ' and that I have lately built a little
4 fifhing-houfe upon it, dedicated to anglers, over
4 the door of which you will fee the two firft
4 letters of my father Walton's name and mine
4 twijled in cypher ; that you Jhall lie in the
4 fame bed he has fometimes been contented with,
4 and have fuch country entertainment as my
4 friends fometimes accept, and be welcome, too, as
4 the bejiofthem all:
Painter. Mr. Cotton has a cheerful natural
way with him ; and what a delight he takes in
his river Dove above all others, and his little
fiftiing-houfe upon the margin.
Angler. As witnefs thefe verfes he ad-
drefled to his adopted father, Mr. Izaak Wal-
ton :
' Such dreams, Rome's yellow Tiber cannot (how,
' The Iberian Tagus, or Ligurian Po ;
' The Maefe, the Danube, and the Rhine
' Are puddle water all, compared with thine :
' And Loire's pure ftreams yet too polluted are
' With thine much purer to compare :
' The rapid Garonne, and the winding Seine,
' Are both too mean,
' Beloved Dove, with thee
' To vie priority j
3
The River Dove.
1 Nay, Thame and Ifis when conjoin'd, fubmit,
' And lay their trophies at thy filver feet.' *
And we fhall find it as pleafant as he has
reprefented it. And all this benevolence be-
tween Pifcator and Viator was, becaufe they
both affe&ed the perfon of Mr. Izaak Walton
and his art of angling.
Painter. How love will temper the fpirits
of men ! furely it is a fpark of the divine mind,
a fecret charm implanted in our nature to
mould us to the image of the Higheft. But
how came it to pafs that Viator participated in
Mr. Cotton's happy difmterefted friendfhip for
Mr. Walton ?
Angler. It is moft certain he did ; for when
they difcourfed on fifhing, and accidental men-
tion was made of Mr. Walton's Complete
Angler, Pifcator afked, c what is your opinion
4 of that book?' to which Mr. Cotton replied,
4 my opinion of Mr. Walton's book is the fame
c with every man's that under/lands any thing
1 of the art of angling^ that it is an excellent
c good one ; ' and he then added, ' but I muft tell
* RETIREMENT. Irregular ftanzas, addrefled to Mr.
Izaak Walton, and prefixed to Mr. Cotton's Inftruc-
tions how to angle for a Trout or Grayling in a clear
ftream. 1676. ED.
The River Dove.
1 you further, that I have the happlnefs to know
4 his perfon, and to be intimately acquainted with
4 him, and in him to know the worthieft man,
1 and to enjoy the beft and the trueft friend any
4 man ever had; nay, I Jh all yet acquaint you
4 that he gives me leave to call him father, and
4 I hope is not yet ajhamed to own me for his
4 Adopted Son.' Whereupon Viator replied,
4 In earnejl, Sir ! I am ravijhed to meet with a
4 friend of Mr. Izaak Walton's, and one that
4 does him fo much right in a good and true cha-
4 rafter, for I muft boajl to you that I have the
4 good fortune to know him too, and came ac-
4 quainted with him in the fame manner I do
4 with you ; that he was my majler who firjl
4 taught me to love angling, and thus to become
4 an angler ; and to be plain with you, I am the
4 very man decyphered in his book under the name
4 of Venator.'
Painter. Excellent ! that was a pleafant fur-
prife to him !
Angler. 4 For,' (he continues) 4 / was wholly
4 addifted to the chafe, until he taught me as
4 good a more quiet, innocent, and lefs dangerous
4 diver/ion.' And this alfo Mr. Roger Jackfon
declares, who undertook the printing of the
SECRETS OF ANGLING, 4 out of a virtuous de-
4 fire to give his countrie fatisfa&ion ; ' for he
3 1
3 2
The River Dove.
declared, in his dedication of that book to his
much refpected friend Mr. John Harborne, of
Tackley, in the county of Oxford, Efquire,
that, c the art of angling is much more worthy
c practice and approbation than hunting and
4 hawking ; for it is a fport every way as plea-
4 fant, lefs chargeable, more profitable, and
c nothing fo much fubjedt to choller and impa-
4 tience as thofe are.' And now liften to the
anfwer of Pifcator, for he faid, 4 Sir, I think
' my felf happy in your acquaintance, and before
1 we party jhall entreat leave to embrace you.
c You have faid enough to recommend you to my
4 bejl opinion, for my father Walton will be feen
4 twice in no man's company he does not like ; and
4 likes none but fuck as he believes to be very
4 honejl men.' Thus you may note how the
declaration of Viator, that he was acquainted
with Mr. Walton, touched a chord which vi-
brated to the other's affections, and harmonized
their fpirits to a moft innocent friendfhip.
Painter. What an engaging encounter of
the two ftrangers, who thus difcovered to each
other their affection for pious and peaceable
Mr. Walton ! With what a grace doth holi-
nefs encircle him that wears it ! furely 'tis a
crown without thorns or cares, decked with
fpiritual jewels. I declare to you, I am moved
The River Dove.
to a better acquaintance with all three : not-
withftanding I have always looked upon angling
to be a folitary recreation, not worthy fo much
as our vacant hours.
Angler. I hope before we part company you
will be undeceived, and learn how we anglers
can recreate our fpirits, when the fun rifes over
the hills ; and this I promife in reward for
your fudden refolve to come on your travels
with me, only to the intent that by your art
and fociable converfation you might give me
pleafure.
Painter. I now thank you heartily, becaufe
you moved me to this journey ; nay more, if
I might believe my prefent thoughts, I {hall be
furprifed into a defire to try and angle in the
river Dove, that you take fo great a delight in.
Angler. That were ftrange indeed, to fee
your leifure divided between the pencil and the
angle rod ! yet if I could once inveigle you to
the practice of our harmlefs fport, fb full of
hopes and compofure, you would foon confefs
to its excellency, and fay with the unknown
poet,*
* ' Unknown,' becaufe Walton afcribes the ' SE-
* CRETS OF ANGLING' to the pen of Jo. Davors,
Elquire : but Mr. Roger Jackfon, by whom they were
publifhed, ' after the death of the author,' entered them
33
34
The River Dove.
' Oh let me rather on the pleafant brink
' Of Tyne and Trent pofTefs fome dwelling place,
' Where I may fee my quill and cork down fink
' With eager bite of barbel, bleik, or dace.
' Let other men their paftimes, then, purfue,
' And on their pleafmg fancies feed their fill :
' So I the fields and meadows green may view,
' And by the rivers frefli may walk at will,
' Among the daifies and the violets blue,
' Red hyacinth and yellow daffodil,
' Purple narciffus like the morning rays,
' Pale ganderglafs and azure culverkayes.
' The lofty woods ; the forefts wide and long,
' Adorn'd with leaves and branches frefh and green,
' In whofe cool bow'rs the birds with chaunting fong
' Do welcome with their quire the fummer's queen,
' The meadows fair, where Flora's gifts among
' Are intermixed the verdant grafs between.
' The filver fcaled fifti that foftly fwim
' Within the brooks and cryftal wat'ry brim.
' All thefe and many more of His creation
' That made the heavens, the angler oft doth fee,
' And takes therein no little delegation
' To think how ftrange and wonderful they be.'
Painter. Why, Sir, your faithful memory
is like a cafket, well ftored with curious gems,
at the Stationers' Company, * 1612, 23 Martii, as prac-
f tifed and opened in three books, by JOHN DENNYS,
' Efquire. 1 ED.
The River Dove.
that you unlock at will to embellifh your dif-
courfe withal : and now here is my pi&ure of
Spittle Hill.
Angler. It is an obvious copy of nature, and
a fweet view over Afhbourne.
Painter. The brow of fuch a hill gives the
advantage of a large profpecl:.
Angler. And now, if you pleafe, we may fol-
low the fteps of thefe gentlemen riders, and
defcend into Afhbourne. See, we are come
to the town, and here is the River Henmore,
that runs under this ftone bridge ; and this is
the way to the market-place.
Painter. What is there ? methinks I fee an
ivy bum ; and the fign of an inn.
Angler. That is the Talbot, and a very de-
cent hoftelry ; fo let us c drink a glafs of barley
1 wine at the Talbot, and awayj after the ex-
ample of Mr. Cotton and his new friend.
Painter. With all my heart. Was this Mr.
Cotton's Inn ?
Angler. Aye, truly. What, oh ! good man,
will you pleafe to bring us a cup of ale ?
Painter. Come, brother, here's to Mr. Wal-
ton, and his adopted fon, Mr. Charles Cotton?
Angler. I thank you for that pledge ; and
here is my loving fervice to you.
Painter. And now let us be gone ; for fmce
35
The River Dove.
we are come into this valley, I am all impa-
tience to find your River Dove, which, me-
thinks, fhould be hereabouts.
Angler. Not fo faft, Sir ; we muft climb
that fteep hill on the other fide of the town ;
and after that we have fome hours before we
{hall fee the moft pleafant river in England.
Painter. How ! methought Afhbourne was
clofe upon the margin of the Dove !
Angler. It is but a furlong or two off; never-
thelefs we have to make a circuit before we
come to that moft delightful of rivers ; for
truft me the road to Beresford Hall is over
4 an odd country.'
Painter. It was but now you promifed I
mould fee ' fuch alluring fcenes, decked by
c Nature's hand as to be little fpots of enchant-
' ment ;' and now you tell me I muft be fatis-
fied to fee an odd country !
jfngler. Nay, good brother ; remember how
you are to exercife the meeknefs and patience
of an angler ; and you fhall confefs, when you
fee my Dove, that it l covers the faults of the
' road;' and fo let me perfuade you to breaft the
hill.
Painter. Well, Sir, lead on ; and I mail en-
deavour to be even with you. Heigho ! at laft
we are clambered up.
The River Dove. 37
Angler. It was done with a gamefome fpirit,
worthy of an angler.
Painter. But it has made me pant : and
here's a fhady am tree, fo let us reft awhile,
that I may recover myfelf.
Angler. With all my heart ; and ftretch our
limbs on this green bank : and I may tell you,
this pretty fpot is Sandy Brook. And now,
if you are refted, let us not loiter, but hither
away to the left, down by this green lane.
Painter. I am with you ; but what have
we here ? another fwift bubbling ftream, that
flows over a rocky bed, and is fcarce a foot deep.
Angler. 'Tis Bentley Brook, that whirls
haftily along to meet her playmate, the Dove.
Painter. And, by my word, a very pretty
rivulet it is.
Angler. I have Mr. Cotton's authority to
fay, ' it is full of good trout s and graylings^ but
4 fo encumbered with wood in many places as is
c troublefome to an angler?
Painter. Whereabouts does it rife ?
Angler. That I cannot refolve you ; but you
are not to wonder if the ftream comes to us,
as you now fee it, like to tranfparent cryftal :
for the flowering wells of Tiffington empty
themfelves, with a conftant frefhnefs, into Bent-
ley Brook.
'The River Dove.
Painter. Thofe Tiffington Wells, which are
flowered on holy-days by the country folk ?
Angler. The fame ; and of a fingular clear-
nefs ; nay, they are more tranfparent than the
filvery waters of famed Sabrina, where
' The fhepherds, at their feftivals,
' Carol her goodnefs loud in ruftic lays,
' And throw fweet garland-wreaths into her ftream,
' Of pancies, pinks, and gaudy daffodils ; '
and, indeed, I have fometimes feen on Holy
Thurfday fuch dainty devices of flowers wrought
by ruftical artifts at Tiffington, in rofes, and
violets, and marygolds, and ladyfmocks, as I
could not but admire how it was all contrived ;
and for this the country folks and fhepherds
fcatter themfelves, fome days before, in bufy
cheerful companies, like bees, over the hills
and down the dales, to cull their ftores of wild
flowers ; and every one willingly robs his gar-
den, for a contribution to the bowers and ar-
bours that overhang the wells : and there they
weave them into curious inventions of mottoes
and fcripture texts. And when the happy holy
morning breaks, they come together to church ;
and after fervice they walk, with their loved
and loving parfon at their head, in a proceffion
round about their ornamental wells, with mufic
The River Dove.
and Tinging of pfalms : and fo they pafs the reft
of the day in innocent mirth and country fports.
And I may tell you, the many-coloured flowers
of Dove Dale are offered for a tribute to this
calendar feftival.
Painter. You have made we wifh and re-
folve to fee this well-flowering, come next Holy
Thurfday ; and I mall love thofe facred fprings
the better, fmce they help to cryftallize the
waters of Bentley ; for I have not feen a more
inviting brook.
Angler. I will not fay we mall come to
clearer ftreams ; neverthelefs, I hope we may
walk and angle by fome others that are as
good : but thither me hurries on her way, re-
joicing and being rejoiced ; and I warrant me
will find the Dove before you and I may do fo.
But come, here is another hill before us, hard
by Thorpe Cloud ; and I'll requite your pa-
tience by a vernal profpecl:. Follow me but a
ftep to the left, and now what fay you ?
Painter. Blefs me, what an unufual land-
fkip.
Angler. There before you are the mountains
in Staffordmire over againft Ham ; and yonder
the Dove, which glides far off through the val-
ley by Oakover Bridge, and after that mean-
ders as far as Mayfield. There you may fee
39
The River Dove.
hill and dale, and green paftures, with their
thronging flocks and herds. Now tell me,
Sir, is not merry England a place moft fit for
free-hearted gentlemen to live in ? And he that
makes a journey throughout the different re-
gions of our land fhall meet a thoufand vales
as pleafant as this we now fee : nay, fbme I
could name are better, where you may look on
all the diverfity of golden corn fields, and paf-
tures, and vallies and hills, rivers and plains ;
and round about many fine country manfion-
houfes, and bright fteeples, gleaming through
village-woods ; and in the cities high cathedrals
and collegiate churches, more venerable and
facred by reafon of their daily appointed fer-
vices and chaunts.
Painter. But a man may travel fome miles
ere he mall light on a finer champagne than
this before us. It calls to my mind how the
prophet, from the top of Mount Pifgah, in the
field of Zophim, lifted up his eyes, and faw
Ifrael abiding in his tents according to their
tribes, and faid, c How goodly are thy tents, O
4 yacob ! and thy tabernacles, O Ifrael / as the
4 valleys are they fpread forth, as gardens by the
1 river's Jide, as the trees of lign-aloes which the
4 Lord hath planted, and as cedar-trees beftde
4 the waters .' Long may the people of Britain
The River Dove.
be holy and ftedfaft in the church, and loyal to
their king ! then {hall they refemble the tribes
of Ifrael, having, as it were, c thejtrength of an
' unicorn ; they Jhall eat up the nations, their
4 enemies , and Jhall break their bones, and pierce
4 them through with their arrows? Then they
fhall l couch, they Jhall lie down like a lion, and
c as a great lion ; who fl)allftir them up ?' Then
c blejfed is he that blej/eth thee, and curfed is he
c that curfeth thee.' But what have we here,
that is like a huge conical barrow ? Let us
climb to the top, that we may get a wider prof-
peel: of the landfkip.
Angler. The fame Thorpe Cloud you faw
fo towering in the diftance from Spittle Hill ;
but he now appears under another afpe6t, and
before you could fcale the height you muft
needs defcend into a deep valley which lies be-
tween us.
Painter. Say you fo ? I can fcarce believe
it ; for the diftance looks to be lefs than a
bow-fhoot.
Angler. It is, neverthelefs, true ; and yonder,
to the left, is Bunfter Hill, in Staffordfhire,
that is like the back of a gigantic elephant : and
between thefe two mountains flow the happy
ftreams of the Dove ; and that to the right
hand is Black Moor : we have but two miles
The River Dove.
hence, and then our Dove.
Painter. If fo, let us mend our pace ; but
tell me, is this the way Mr. Cotton brought his
friend ?
Angler. The fame ; and all the while he
entertained him with a difcourfe of the trouty
rivers of his county of Derby, as, namely, the
Dove, the Wye, the Derwent, and the great
Trent, that wanders through many rich towns
and forefts, until it lofes its name and waters
in the fea.
Painter. And is all Mr. Charles Cotton's
treatife of fly fifhing in the form of a dialogue ?
jfngler. Aye ; and full of pertinent obferva-
tions and exceeding plaufiblenefs.
Painter. Although I am willing to confefs
Mr. Walton's Angler to be a moft perfuafive
book, becaufe he knows how to qualify his
difcourfe with all kinds of graceful changes and
defcriptions ; yet methinks Mr. Cotton had no
need to model his writings after the unufual
example of a dialogue.
jfngler. By your leave, not fb unufual ; for
have you forgot the many patterns that almoft
every age hath produced, of treatifes, both
learned and witty, in the form of colloquies ?
Let me bring to your mind that moft fubtle
and philofophic dialogue, the ' Sympofiac, or
The River Dove.
Banquet' of Plato, the moft learned of the
Grecians, wherein his mafter, Socrates^ is made
to difcourfe with a wifdom that feemed to be a
fcintillation of divine truth. And not only
Plato's c Banquet,' but his ' Alcibiades,' and
others, fo full of invincible arguments in fup-
port of virtue, as charmed the underftanding of
that age.
Painter. Well, if you will go back to an-
cient times, there are Tully's five days' difputa-
tions at his retired Tufculan villa with Marcus
Brutus, where he perfuades his hearers by the
moft notable arguments to the contempt of
death.
Angler. And what fay you of that banquet
of Xenophon, at the Athenian feftival of Mi-
nerva ? for he gives us to underftand how,
after the (how was finifhed, as he walked out
of the city, he fell in with Socrates and others,
difcourfmg together, and invited them civilly
to fupper ; which they accepted, and went with
him to his houfe at Piraeus.
Painter. I remember ; and there they enter-
tained each other with learned and profitable
converfation.
Angler. But neither the philofophy of So-
crates and Plato y nor the eloquence of TH//X,
could match with that exalted wifdom of the
43
44
'The River Dove.
apoftolic fathers and doctors, who have de-
livered to the Church the moft clear interpre-
tations of holy writ. And fome of them un-
locked the boundlefs treafures of celeftial truth,
and pointed the way to heaven, through the
fhadowings and darknefs of error, by the me-
dium of colloquies. As Hermas (who was the
friend of St. Paul, that great apoftle of the
Gentiles) in his c Paftor or Shepherd.'
Painter. Have not fome learned men of our
times, and, indeed, of the ancient fathers, quef-
tioned the authority of that book of Hermas ?
Angler. I may not deny that the cautious
judgments of fome are yet divided upon it : but
Irenasus, Origen, and others, have pronounced
it to be c a very profitable book,' and it was
appointed to be read in many of the earlieft
chriftian churches.
Painter. I believe it is true, that Hermas
was the friend of St. Paul, and is thought to
have fealed his holy life by a glorious martyr-
dom.
Angler. And it is certain his book was com-
pofed in the form of a dialogue : for he declares
how, when he had prayed at home, and was
fat down upon the bed, an old man came to
him in the habit of a fhepherd, clothed with
a white cloak, having his bag upon his back,
'The River Dove.
and his ftaff in his hand, and faluted him ; and
thereupon they moft lovingly converfed toge-
ther : for the (hepherd inftructed him what
things he was to avoid, and what good works
to perform, that he might be faved.
Painter. And what followed ?
Angler. Then Hermas, from time to time,
queftioned the holy fhepherd with a modeft
confidence, and afked an explanation of many
fublime points of our belief, that were then
to him an incomprehenfible myftery, all which
the accoftable ftranger revealed to him, fpeak-
ing with authority and wifdom : and fo they
continued to difcourfe, until the paftor rofe up
and departed.*
Again I will put you in mind how, in a later
age of the church, holy Juftin Martyr records
a moft learned and fpiritual dialogue, which he
held at Ephefus with one Trypho, a Jew,
wherein he fets forth his own firft blefled con-
verfion to Chriftianity. For, having in vain
fought after the knowledge of the true God in
the fchools of the Stoics and Peripatetics, and
* Originally written in Greek ; but that being loft,
there is only a Latin verfion, fuppofed to have been
made by Rufinus in the 4th century. Editio princeps,
PASTOR a Nic. Gerbellio. Lat. Argent. 1522. 4 ED.
45
4 6
The River Dove.
found them to be unfatisfying to the high de-
fines of his foul, he gave himfelf up to folitude
and meditation : and, in one of his retired walks
on the fea-fhore, meeting with an aged perfon
of a mild and reverend afpe&, he entered into
a converfation with him. Then he told the
ftranger how fervent a zeal was kindled in his
breaft to come to a perfect intelligence of the
nature of God, and fo fell to a commendation
of the ftudy of philofophy. Whereupon the
venerable Trypho endeavoured to cure him of
his ignorant admiration of Plato and Pythago-
ras^ and exhorted him to an examination of the
writings of the Hebrew prophets, as being
more ancient than any of thofe heathen philo-
fophers ; and by his admonitions and clear ar-
guments he opened to him the joyful know-
ledge of the facred myfteries of Chriftianity.
Above all things, he perfuaded him to pray
that the beams of heavenly light might mine on
his benighted foul ; for that the truths of the
Gofpel muft be fpiritually difcerned through the
power of God.
Painter. Did Juftin continue his acquain-
tance with the ftranger, whofe calm and meek
way of difcourfing had perfuaded him to a bet-
ter judgment of divine things ?
Angler. After that firft meeting he never
The River Dove.
faw him again ; but he was ftirred with a holy
defire to attain a more familiar knowledge of
the prophets, and his wifhes foared up on high ;
and at laft he was convinced that he had all
along wandered in darknefs, and that the Holy
Scriptures contained the only true philofophy.
Painter. All this brings to my recollection
fbme other examples of books compofed after
the form of converfations: as namely, Petrarch's
imaginary dialogues between himfelf and Auguf-
tine, where the faint endeavours to withdraw
the poet from the willing thraldom of his love
for Laura, and to perfuade him to the ftudy of
wifdom, as alone capable to beftow true liberty :
and, again, the facetious Colloquia of Erafmus,
fo full of wit and biting fatire ; and the ' Ana-
4 tomie of Abufes whipped and ftripped,' by the
precife Mr. Stubbes, proceeding from his own
dogmatical whimfies.
Angler. Then, forget not the three books of
colloquies, on the art of {hooting in great and
fmall pieces of artillerie, written in Italian by
Nicholas Tartaglia.* And again, that royal
dialogue of riding the great horfe, compofed in
* Tranflated into Englifh by Cyprian Lucas, Gent,
folio, 1588. Tartaglia was a famous mathematician.
ED.
47
The River Dove.
the French tongue, by Monfieur Antoine Plu-
vinel ; * and I can declare it to be a moft cour-
teous, gentle, and ingenious converfation be-
tween the young King Louis, the Duke of Belle-
garde, and Monfieur Antoine himfelf. With
what a rare eloquence does he commend and
teach the art of making demivoltes, cabrioes, and
courbettes, with all the other graceful motions
on horfeback, moft fit for gentlemen of quality !
Painter. And his book is adorned v/ith ex-
cellent copper cuts by Crifpin Pafs, the inge-
nious engraver of thofe living effigies of the
HEROOLOGIA.
Angler. The fame : but I forbear all further
mention of dialogues, except a little book I
lately faw at the houfe of an ingenious and
modeft friend, dwelling in Chancery-lane, in
London, who is a conftant lover of Mr. Walton
and his art of angling, and endeared to many
of his profefled difciples ; and hath been fo
exact and fkilful a promoter of letters, as to be
called ALDI DISCIPULUS ANGLUS, as witnefs
the fign of the Dolphin and Anchor, engraved
on the title of his imprinted books, after the
fafhion of Aldus Manutius. And becaufe he
* A gentleman of Dauphiny in the reign of Henry
IV. Par. 1640. Fol. ED.
The River Dove.
has a happy fortune in the difcovery of ancient
books, you may find at his houfe a ftore of all
kinds. It was a few days before my laft de-
parture from London, I made him a vifit, when
he conducted me into his parlour, to mow me
his little cabinet of rarities : and there, after
fome cheerful converfation on fifhing, when I
told him I purpofed my fummer travels to the
Dove, he prefented me with a letter writ by
Mr. Cotton to his ' dear and worthy father,'
Mr. Izaak Walton.
Painter. Indeed ! and I dare believe you
treafured it up with your many other written
epiftles of noted men in your ftudy at home.
Angler. Pardon me ; I have made it my
companion here in my wallet ; and fome day I
will indulge you with the reading of it, when
you are worthy, and put on better thoughts of
anglers. But to return to the book I told you
of; it is an ancient difcourfe * Of the Nature of
' GOD,' which the writer calls < a little treatife
' of a great argument.'
Painter. The argument was great indeed,
and I befeech you proceed to your account of
it.
Angler. The work was writ by the learned,
pious and painful Bimop of Durham (Morton),
who made Dr. Donne the offer of his own
H
49
5
The River Dove.
benefice, if he would be perfuaded to enter into
Holy Orders, and fo become 4 an Ambaffador
for the God of glory ; that God^ who^ by a vile
death opened the gates of life to mankind :' and
it is fit to tell you that I fet the greater ftore
by this book, becaufe I am convinced Mr.
Walton hath taken a pleafure in the perufal of
it, infomuch as to make the opening chapter of
his COMPLETE ANGLER after that model. It
is a converfation betwixt a gentleman and a
fcholar, who were travelling on horfeback from
the north, by the fame road, to the city of York ;
and thus it begins
4 Gentleman.* Well overtaken, Sir.
* Scholar. You are welcome, gentleman.
4 Gentleman. No great gentleman, Sir, but
4 one that wifheth well to all that mean well : I
c pray you how far do you travel this way ?
* Scholar. As far as York.
4 Gentleman. I mould be glad if I might have
4 your company thither.
4 Scholar. And I, if my company might ftand
4 you in any ftead.'
Thereupon enfued a gentle and moft inge-
* London, Printed by Thomas Creede for Robert
Dexter, dwelling in St. Paul's Church-yard, at the fign
of the Brazen Serpent. 1599. izmo. ED.
The River Dove.
5 1
nious converfation : and they argued the myf-
terious matter of the omnipotency and incom-
prehenfible greatnefs of God, to their mutual
contentment and confirmation in the truth, until
they came to Newcaftle, where the fcholar's
little nag would fcarce hold foot with the ftrong
gelding of the gentleman ; and fo they put up
at fome honeft houfe where the fcholar was
acquainted, and were both heartily welcome,
c and honeftly ufed for their money.' And there
we will leave them to their entertainment and
reft, and crofs this meadow of buttercups.
Painter. You have angled me on, and be-
guiled the way with thefe colloquies moft plea-
fantly ; for we have walked fbme miles, and I
heartily thank you.
Angler. Look, Sir ; now you have a view
of fome rocks before you in a little diftance ;
there are the fteep declivities overhanging the
other fide of the Dove, which is at a great
depth below. A few fteps more, and we are
come to Hanfon Grange.
Painter. It is a pretty fequeftered fpot ; and
the houfe ftands on the very brow of the cliff,
which is ornamented with wood j and I hope
we are arrived at Dove Dale.
Angler. Have patience : not yet, Sir ; this
is Nab's Dale : but turn again this way to the
5 2
'The River Dove.
right, for there is Hanfon Toot. And look,
yonder is the church at Alftonfields ; and, I
befeech you ; deny me not the contrivance of a
picture.
Painter. I'll do it cheerfully ; and the hills
array themfelves to an advantage. What a
general harmony is in the works of nature !
Here, by a few lines, with feeming careleflhefs
put together, even thofe bleak and craggy hills
are made to the congruity and order of beauty ;
and the afpecT: of the church on the hill is pretty
for a diftance.
Angler. And when you are come there, you
fhall find a retired village, and a decent houfe
of entertainment ; where we may have fupper
and a clean bed.
Painter. Was it there Pifcator cheered his
companion after his journey ?
Angler. Not fo : for Mr. Cotton conducted
him to his handfome feat at Beresford, and there
you may believe he made amends, as he pro-
mifed to do, for bringing him ' an ill mile or
4 two out of his way ;' for he gave him a hearty
welcome ; and after that they made no ftran-
gers of each other, but with good Moorland ale
and a pipe of tobacco pafled an hour or two in
converfation before they went to bed.
Painter. And I am ready to do the fame ;
The River Dove.
fo let us be going, for there is my poor copy of
Alftonfields church.
Angler. It is the church itfelf, and thofe
diftant hills, that ftand behind it with a natural
gloom. Come on, Sir.
Painter. Gently, fo pleafe you j and let me
take care of myfelf down thefe flippery ftones.
How the path winds and turns in a zig-zag ! I
fhall tumble ere I get to the bottom.
Angler. Never fear, Sir ! never fear ; every
flippery ftone and every ftep of the way has a
charm for me ; for here it was Mr. Cotton
travelled with his friend, who was in a ftrange
taking as he crept or flided down.
Painter. And well he might be, for it is an
uncouth precipice : it is the land of break-neck.
Angler. A little fteep, I grant you; but
come on, for methinks we are near c tbejign
' of a bridge J which is fb narrow, Viator thought
it was fit only for wheelbarrows, and declared
he was inclinable to c go over on all fours : ' fo
look out.
Painter. Nay, Sir ; but to look out for any
thing beyond my footing, is more than man can
do in fuch a ribble rabble place as this.
Angler. Come, brother, give over this com-
plaining: for, look you, there is the l wheel-
c barrow bridge ; ' and liften to the river below.
53
54
The River Dove.
How the noife of her waters falls on mine ear
[ike the voice of melody ! Welcome, cryftal
Dove ; for we purpofe to caft away fome inno-
cent hours in thy cool recefles.
' Oh my beloved nymph, fair Dove,
' Princefs of rivers, how I love
' Upon thy flowery banks to lie,
* And view the filver ftream
' When gilded by a fummer's beam !
* And in it all thy wanton fry
* Playing at liberty ;
' And with my angle upon them
' The all of treachery
' I ever learned induftrioufly to try.' *
Painter. Now we are fafely down ; and the
river ruftles merrily under the bridge, crifping
itfelf into foam. And what hamlet is yonder,
on the Staffordmire fide, with a cheerful mill ?
Angler. That is Mill Dale, and there lies the
road to Alftonfields.
Painter. Let us be forward ; for the fun
finks down apace,
* Bidding farewell unto the gloomy fky.'
Angler. Stay a while : if you have any affec-
tion for me, you will not pafs by this enchant-
* THE RETIREMENT. Irregular ftanzas by Charles
Cotton. ED.
The River Dove.
ing glen, and leave me no record. Look again
fee how the evening gleams linger over the
tops of the mountains. I befeech you, fit on
' this broad Jionej and draw me a picture.
Painter. This landfkip needs a better hand
than mine to give the natural fall of the rocks,
and throw that bridge and the mill into a deep
perfpective.
Angler. You are too modeft ; fo pr'ythee
begin, and I'll fit by your fide, and repeat you
fome paftoral verfes compofed by famed Sir
Walter Raleigh.
Painter. Come, then, tune your voice to the
air.
* And loudly fmg a roundelay of love.'
Angler. Shall I give you c Phillida's love-call
' to her Coridon^ and his replying ? '
Painter. Aye, do fo.
Angler, [fings.j
' Coridon, arife my Coridon.'
Painter. Sing, I pray you, boldly, that the
rocks may anfwer with an echo.
Angler. I'll do my beft ; for the Paftoral is
worthy, and full of an innocent love. Let me
fee if I can remember me how it runs, [/ings.]
The River Dove.
PHILLIDA'S LOVE-CALL TO HER CORIDON,
AND HIS REPLYING.
Phil. Coridon, arife, my Coridon,
Titan fhineth clear.
Cor. Who is it that calleth Coridon ?
Who is it that I hear ?
Phil. Phillida, thy true love calleth thee ;
Arife then, arife then ;
Arife, and keep thy flock with me
Cor. Phillida, my true love, is it fhe ?
I come then, I come then ;
I come to keep my flock with thee.
Phil. Here are cherries ripe for my Coridon ;
Eat them for my fake.
Cor. Here's my oaten pipe, my lovely one,
Sport for thee to make.
Phil. Here are threads, my true love, fine as filk,
To knit thee, to knit thee
A pair of ftockings as white as milk.
Cor. Here are reeds, my true love, fine and neat,
To make thee, to make thee
A bonnet to withftand the heat.
Phil. I will gather flowers, my Coridon,
To fet in thy cap.
Cor. I will gather pears, my lovely one,
To put in thy lap.
Phil. I will buy my true love garters gay,
For Sundays, for Sundays,
To wear about his legs fo tall.
Cor. I will buy my true love yellow fey,*
* Silk. ED.
'The River Dove.
57
For Sundays, for Sundays,
To wear about her middle fmall.
Phil. When my Coridon fits on a hill,
Making melody.
Cor. When my lovely goes to her wheel,
Singing cheerily.
Phil, Surely, methinks, my true love doth excel,
For fweetnefs, for fweetnefs,
Our Pan, that old Arcadian knight.
Cor. And, methinks my true love bears the bell,
For clearnefs, for clearnefs,
Beyond the nymphs that be fo bright.
Phil, Had my Coridon, my Coridon,
Been, alack ! my fwain :
Cor. Had my lovely one, my lovely one,
Been in Ida plain :
Phil. Cynthia Endymion had refus'd,
Preferring, preferring
My Coridon to play with-all.
Cor. The Queen of Love had been excufed,
Bequeathing, bequeathing
My Phillida the golden ball.
Phil. Yonder comes my mother, Coridon !
Whither mall I fly ?
Cor. Under yon beach, my lovely one,
While me pafTeth by.
Phil. Say to her thy true love was not here.
Remember, remember,
To-morrow is another day.
Cor. Doubt me not, my true love ; do not fear :
Farewell, then, farewell then.
Heaven keep our loves alway.
Painter. Thank you, thank you ; that is a
The River Dove.
well-tuned gladfome paftoral, and as well fung
as it is compofed ; and I will now confefs, this
walk to the Dove, and the frefhnefs of the
Derbyfhire hills, and, above all, the ingenious
delight you take in following Mr. Cotton's
footfteps, have put new thoughts into my mind.
There is the beft picture I can make for you ;
but I am not a limner to fix thofe intricate
lights and fhadows that flit from one rock to
another with the pafling clouds.
Angler* Truly, Sir, it could not be better
compofed ; and now let us towards Alftonfields,
and over the wheelbarrow bridge.
Painter. With all my heart : but not c on all
4 fours' Obferve how the water hurries away,
rippling over the rocky bed.
Angler. Ah ! faw you that, Sir ?
Painter. I faw nothing : what was it ?
Angler. It was a hungry trout rofe at a fly :
now, by your leave, I muft have the delight to
try my poor fkill in the Dove. That trout has
tranfported me beyond difcretion.
Painter. You have my permiflion ; fo fix
your tackling and go to work.
dngler. There again : did you not fee him
rife ?
Painter. I faw him not.
Angler. Well, then, if I have any luck, you
The River Dove.
mall fee him by fupper time at Alftonfields.
Painter. I wifh you good fport with all my
heart, and do you call me if you chance to hook
him ; meantime I'll contrive another Iketch of
thefe glades and rocks.
Angler* Do not forget to make the Dove a
part of your picture.
Painter. And remember, you have promifed
to requite me with a good trout for fupper.
Angler. I faid a brace.
Painter. Better and better ; fo farewell, and
good luck go with thee.
Angler. Halloo !
Painter. How now, Brother Pifcator ?
Angler. Hoi ! quickly, that you may par-
take of the delights of angling: here is a heavy
fim, and my line being {lender give me the
net.
Painter. Nay, I befeech you, let me land
him, that I may have the honour of a helping
hand with our firft trout in the Dove.
Angler. You fhall, and welcome too; but
manage him with difcretion.
Painter. Truft me : I'm ready haul him
now to the bank ; ah, me ! he's gone away
again : he was defperate.
Angler. Fear not, I have him fafe : I but
play with him ; fee, he begins to tire ; and now
59
6o
'The River Dove.
you may take him : gently, gently fo, 'twas
bravely netted.
Painter. Do but look how his belly and fides
are fpotted with bright red fpots.
Angler. It is a goodly fifh j but I muft give
you a brace : and there was another rife under
the further bank ; wait a moment, and he is
mine.
Painter. Then I'll call you a mafter of your
art, and fince you have entertained me with
the pleafure of this trout, I'll go finifh my
picture of the Dove, for it is worth all my
little fkill in drawing. So ; how is it with
you?
Angler. Here is the brace of trouts I pro-
miled you.
Painter. You are as good as your word.
And I have not been idle.
Angler. I thank you ; they are the very rocks
and my Dove ; and here is the bridge and, I
declare, two anglers landing a trout ! So hither
away for Alftonfields with merry hearts ;
' There roaft him and bade him with good claret wine,
' For the calvor'd boyl'd trout will make thee to dine
' With dainty contentment.'*
* Barker's Delight ; or the Art of Angling, wherein
are difcovered many rare fecrets both for catching fifli
and dreffing thereof, &c. 12 1657. ED.
The River Dove. 61
Painter. Step on, brother, for you cannot
defire to be at fupper more than I do ; and now
we have trudged up the hill, and are come to
the church we faw from Hanfon Toot, on the
other fide.
Angler. And there is the l honeft alehoufe'
I told you of and fee, mine hoft ftanding under
the porch, ready to welcome loyal travellers to
the c King's Head.'
Painter. Kept by < Herbert Marjb'for
there's his name printed in large underneath.
CHAPTER II.
A Conference at Supper between the Angler,
the Painter, and the Hoft.
Angler.
OW do you, Mr. Marfh ?
Hoft. Gentlemen, your fervant
at command.
Painter. Can we have good en-
tertainment and clean beds at your houfe ?
Hoft. Sir ! we fhall do our utmoft to give
you fatisfaclion : and for beds, I may fay there
are not better in the Peak, with c flieets laid up
' in lavender.' What, ho ! boy, take thefe
gentlemen's fifh pannier and angle rods. Will
it pleafe you, Sirs, to walk into the parlour ?
Angler. It is well ; and the fooner you can
make ready for fupper the better pleafed we
mail be ; for we have walked all the way from
Derby ; and here is a brace of trouts : but look
you, Mr. Marfh, one condition I would make,
The River Dove.
and that is, you drefs them according to a fancy
I have.
Hojt. Sir, you fhall be obeyed ; neverthelefs
we have a notable method for boiling a trout or
grayling in thefe parts, that I never knew to
difpleafe any anglers.
Angler. But if you know not the manner
recommended by Mr. Cotton, who lives at
Beresford Hall, I fhall not be perfuaded to
think them Ikilfully done.
Ho/I. Sir, I am now your moft humble fer-
vant, and willing to drefs thefe trouts according
to your wiflies, feeing you approve the method
of noble Mr. Cotton.
Painter. Then you know Mr. Charles Cot-
ton, of Beresford Hall ?
Hoft. That, Sir, by your leave, I mould do,
and know him well too ; for I was a fervant
in the family when his right honourable father
lived at the hall, of whom only this I may
declare, he was loved and efteemed for his
gentle qualities of nature by the late moft
learned Lord Chancellor* of Oxford and Eng-
land, and was united with him in the fame bold
* LORD CLARENDON, who greatly praifes him in
his ' Charafters of Eminent Men, ' in the reigns of
Charles I. and II. ED.
The River Dove.
and generous zeal for the fervice of the late
king, of pious memory : and I was the firft
that taught Mr. Charles Cotton, in his happy
youthful days, to fifh in the River Dove, when
he was a mere fchoolboy, and to mew and caft
and lure his falcon-gentles, and all manner of
hawks. And fince that time he has often had
me to a day's fifhing with him, and by his na-
tive condefcenfion makes me find myfelf ateafe
in his company, notwithftanding my humble
conditions.
Angler. Indeed ! then I may tell you this
gentleman and myfelf have come all the way
from Derby, and fome miles beyond that, to
find his fifhing-houfe, and to fpend a day or two
angling in the vallies of the Dove.
Hojt. You are not the firft gentlemen by
many, that have done this ; and you will not
think your labour loft when you have feen the
Fiftiing-houfe ; for that it is a wonderful inge-
nious place, and moft fkilfully adorned, no per-
fon, who has feen it, can deny. But will you
be pleafed to fit down in thefe elbow chairs, and
reft yourfelves till the trouts are ready.
Painter, Willingly : for I could not walk
another Derbyfhire mile, if it were to purchafe
a king's ranfom. And now, Mr. Marfh, I pray
you, look to the fupper, that it be ferved quickly,
K
66
'The River Dove.
for we are nigh famifhecl.
Angler. And remember to give the trouts
' three fcotches with a knife.'
Ho/I Aye, Sir, ' and to the bone on one fide
c only.'' I go to fee it done as you defire.
Angler. Did you obferve, brother, how this
honeft hoft, for fuch I doubt not he is, took up
the words of Mr. Cotton ? you may depend he
hath read the ' Injlruflions how to angle for a
1 trout or grayling in a clear Jlream.' We are
like to pafs a pleafant evening here at Alfton-
fields, and to learn more of Mr. Cotton, and of
his ' pretty moorland feat' than we had any hope
to do when we began our journey. What a
neat parlour is here, and the boards all fanded
over !
Painter. And fee how mine hoft has gar-
nifh't out his walls with little pictures ; here's
the hiftory of Judith, and Sufanna, and Daniel
in the lion's den ; and the furniture not amifs ;
the oaken cabinet, and tables polifhed like a
mirror.
Angler. And here are books in the window ;
look you, Fox's Book of Martyrs, and Bifhop
Taylor's 4 Holy Living and Dying ;' and here
before all other books, is the GREAT BIBLE,*
* THE HOLY BIBLE, conteyning the Old Teftament,
The River Dove.
that King James caufed to be tranflated out of
the Hebrew and Greek tongues by thofe forty
feven moft pious and learned divines of our holy
church, thereby opening to the people of thefe
realms thofe fountains of living waters, more
precious than rivers of gold ; for he that thirfteth
after them in an honeft and believing heart, (hall
hear THE SPIRIT AND THE BRIDE SAY, c C01H0;
4 let Ijim t&at t'0 atijtrft come ; anfc toljofo-
< efoec to ill, let fjim take of tfje toatec of life
'freelp.'t Happy were they to be chofen
thrice happy to unlock and deliver to all ages
the myfterious treafures of God's Holy Word.
Of thefe I may not forget charitable Dr. Launce-
lot Andrewes.
Painter. He that refufed to be confecrated a
biftiop, becaufe he would not be perfuaded to
give a helping hand in the fpoil of the ecclefiaf-
tical revenues.
and the New ; newly tranflated out of the Originall
Tongues : and with the former Tranflations diligently
compared and revifed by His Majefties fpecial Com-
mandement.
Appointed to be read in Churches.
IMPRINTED at London by Robert Barker, Printer
to the King's Moft Excellent Majeftie. ANNO DOM.
1611. ED.
J- Rev. xxii. 17.
67
68
The River Dove.
Angler. Nor lefs happy in this furpafling work
was Dr. Adrian Saravia, of fo fweet a nature,
and difpofitions fo notable, that he was joined
to Mr. Hooker in a bofom friendfhip, which
was only ended by death, when that judicious
champion of our church thought himfelf happy
to die in the arms of him he loved with fo con-
fiding a love.
Painter. This gift to his people of the Eng-
lifh Bible was indeed a BA2IAIKON AOPON'
worthy of a king,* and feeing thefe books of
our hoft, I am more inclined to entertain good
thoughts of him : but here he comes.
Angler. And the fupper too. You have loft
no time, Mr. Marfh.
Hojl. Gentlemen, I hope you may find it
to be as well done as quickly, for that is what I
defired ; and I have fpared nothing to make
them to your tafte, even to the 4 little hand-
4 fame faggot of rofemary^ thyme^ and winter
' favor }',' that Mr. Cotton bids us ' throw into
4 the liquor.'
Angler. Well then, let us fay grace for thefe
* ' BASILICON DORON,' or a royal gift, written by
James the Firft, and addrefled to his fon Prince Henry.
Originally printed at Edinburgh, by R. Waldegrave in
1599. ED.
The River Dove.
mercies we have, and now fall to it. Come,
this is excellent, and, as I profefs myfelf to be
an angler, I have not tafted trouts more feafon-
able : Apicius himfelf could not have defired
them more daintily drefled.
Hojl. Sir, I am glad you find them to your
liking.
Angler. And now, what fay you of your bar-
ley wine ?
Hojf. Sir, it is well known how the Stafford-
fhire ale is the beft in England, or as good as
any ; and though I would not be thought a
braggart, I may fay that mine is fecond to none
in the county.
Angler. Then bring us a good flagon ; for I
long to drink Mr. Cotton's health in a full cup
at Alftonfields : Now brother.
Painter. With all my heart here's to Mr.
Cotton.
Angler. Mr. Cotton, the dear friend of Mr.
Izaak Walton !
Hoft. Sirs, I thank you for your kind
thoughts towards my mafter, and there is not a
worthier gentleman lives than Mr. Cotton ; and
may I be fo bold to afk how you find our Staf-
fordfhire ale ?
Angler. It is excellent, and no lack of malt
in't.
69
7
'The River Dove.
Hojl. And now, Gentlemen, here is meat,
with a frefh fallet ; and my good dame has
prepared fome confedtions, and tofled a fweet
pancake.
Angler. This mutton is as good as your ale.
Painter. It is all excellent ; thanks to you
and our good hoftefs : ' fmall cheer and great
1 welcome make a merry feaft ; ' but you are
liberal with both : and now we have fmifhed
our fupper, what fay you, brother, have you an
inclination to a pipe ?
Angler. I am nothing loath.
Painter. And I'm for another jug of that
nappy ale, if you do not fear it.
Angler. I fear nothing in your difcreet com-
pany : fo, Mr. Marm, bring us pipes, and fome
more of your Staffordfhire ale, and let there be
a toaft and fugar in't, with a little fpice of nut-
meg.
Painter. Aye, aye, and a race or two of gin-
ger.
Ho ft. Sirs, it fhall be as you defire ; and with
all diligence.
Angler. And now, brother, what think you
of our hoft ?
Painter. In footh, a modeft, well-fpoken
man, with a decent compofure of carriage ; not
like fome of your would-be-witty tapfters, that
The River Dove.
have * a finger in all trades, and an oar in every
c man's boat.'
Angler. And that is my opinion of him ; and
fo, when he returns, if you ftand not on fcruples,
let us invite him to fit with us awhile ; for I
would afk him fome queftions about Mr. Cotton
and his fiming-houfe.
Ho/}. Gentlemen, here is a tankard of fpiced
ale, with pipes, and the beft tobacco I have.
Angler. I doubt not the quality of your to-
bacco, but I always carry my own ; and now,
Mr. Marfh, if you will give us the pleafure of
your converfation awhile, and fmoke a pipe from
my box, you mall be heartily welcome.
Hojl. Sirs, I humbly thank you ; but I pray
you to excufe me : I would not be thought to
grow prefumptuous becaufe you are pleafed to
be familiar.
Painter. Nay, Mr. Marfti, ftay not on a
punctilio ; we would have your company, if it
be only to drink Mr. Cotton's good health ; and
here's my Virginia, fo fill your pipe.
Angler. One cup to the noble matter of Be-
resford : pr'ythee be feated, Mr. Marfh.
Ho/}. Gentlemen, fince you defire me this
honour, I mail obey as I ought, and heartily
thank you. Sirs, I make bold to drink your
health, wifhing you all poflible pleafure here-
The River Dove.
abouts on the banks of the Dove, and good
fuccefs with your angle-rods.
Painter, It promifes fo many natural beau-
ties, that I expe<5t to find it as pleafant a river
as I have feen.
Angler. Say the pleafanteft of all, good bro-
ther.
Painter. Firft let me fee the fifhing-houfe ;
and then, perhaps, I may be brought to join in
your opinion. Shall we be permitted to vifit
that fpot ?
Ho/I. Doubt it not, Sir : you that have read
Mr. Cotton's fecond part of the COMPLETE
ANGLER, may readily believe how he inclines
to Gentlemen fimers, feeing he has therein
clearly depicted his own likenefs ; for I may
declare to you my matter has an alluring fuavity
and a fingular freedom of fpirit. Therefore he
will never refufe a liberty to civil ftrangers, to
fee his fifhing-houfe : indeed, I have known
him to fend his fervants to the river, with meat
and ale for their refrefhment ; or fometimes, if
they be anglers, invite them to the houfe. And
it was after this manner the firft accidental ru-
diments of that friendfhip fprung up betwixt
himfelf and brave Colonel Richard Lovelace.
I remember he found that gentleman to be en-
dowed with fuch a ripenefs of wit, and zeal for
The River Dove. 73
the king's caufe, that he perfuaded him to a long
forgetfulnefs of his intended journey to Lon-
don, and then was fo unwilling to lofe his con-
verfation and company, that he made anoccaflon
to go to Aflibourne, that he might conduct him fo
far on horfeback by Hanfon Toot and Bentley.*
Angler. I have heard fay that Colonel Love-
lace was afterwards, in his diftrefs, a conftant
partaker of Mr. Cotton's open and generous
difpofition.
Hojl. Alas ! Sir, his difpofition is over gene-
rous for his fortunes ; and it is famous in all
the Peak, that Mr. Cotton is now detained
* That this friendship, fo happily begun between the
two poets, was a lafting one we have undoubted evidence
in Mr. Cotton's Elegy ' To the Memory of 'my worthy
Friend Coll. RICHARD LOVELACE/ appended to a poft-
humous edition of Lovelace's Lucafta, printed in 1659,
the year after his death. In this collection of poems is
one addrefled by Lovelace ' To the nobleft of our Youth,
'and beft of Friends, CHARLES COTTON, Efquire, being
' at Beresford, at his houie in Stafford/lure j ' in which
is the following teftimony of gratitude for Mr. Cotton's
having contributed to his neceflities, when he was in
prifon.
' What fate was mine, when in mine obfcure cave,
' Shut up almoft clofe prifoner in a grave,
' Your beams could reach methrough the vault of night,
' And canton the dark dungeon with light.' ED.
74
T'he River Dove.
from Beresford againft his defires, left his ene-
mies mould incommode him.
Angler. Say not fo : I would not have it
true, that a gentleman of fo high a candour
and of fuch worth mould be an exile from his
eftates.
Hojl. Were it other than true, I mould in-
deed be happy : he has none but friends in all
this country, unlefs it be fome remnant of
thofe injurious and rank weeds that fprung up
through the Commonweal under the late ty-
ranny. He is of a clear courage, like his noble
father ; and both manifefted a conftant loyalty
for the king, during the frenzy of thofe rugged
times.
Painter. It may be this brought againft him
a part of his prefent cares.
Hofl. Alas, it did that ; for it is a known
truth how the eftate was encumber'd on his
Majefty's behalf: and indeed my mafter mowed
himfelf to be a loving fubjecl: in thofe fad dif-
traitions, when there was a danger fo much as
to be thought of the royal party. And another
great charge was to enrich his houfe and
grounds with all manner of curious ornamental
o
art, in fo much that they be noted in thefe parts
for a garden of devices. And fome of our
chiefeft nobility think themfelves happy in Mr.
'The River Dove.
Cotton's friendfhip ; as Lord Jermayne, and
the moft noble Earl of Devonfhire,* who lives
in his {lately manfion at Chatfworth, and per-
mits a familiarity with him ; nay, I have feen
them practife with foils in our great Hall, and
notwithftanding the Earl has the longer arm
and is efteemed a very dextrous fencer, he
cannot, with all his parries^ defend himfelf
againft Mr. Cotton's counterpoint and fkilful
disengagements.
Painter. I pray you, what age is Mr. Charles
Cotton ?
Ho/I. Sir, Mr. Cotton was born forty-feven
years, gone the 28th of laft month : but he is
yet in the morning and flower of his life ; and
to look at him you might believe him to be lefs
than forty, by reafon of his youthful carriage
and comelinefs ; and when he converfes with
his inferiors, fuch as myfelf and others, who
have the happinefs to call him our mafter, the
fweetnefs of his difcourfe and his difcreet fami-
liarity expels every fear. And then, Sir ! if you
could fee him, (as I have often,) in his fuit of
flamed velvet, or rich taffeta, you would be fure
he was bred at court ; indeed, he is notable for
* William, Earl of Devonfhire, mentioned in Cot-
ton's Wonders of the Peak, p. 24. 1681. ED.
75
The River Dove.
his comportment and alluring perfon. Never-
thelefs, I have fometimes feen him tranfported
beyond his ufual behaviour : and I cannot help
me from fmiling at a ftory of himfelf, I have
heard him relate to his friends.
Angler. I befeech you let us have it.
Hoft. Well, Sir ! you are to know Mr. Cot-
ton will fometimes have a flight hindrance in
his fpeech ; and fb on a time he found a ftout
beggar that fat under the great yew tree, near
to the door of the Hall ; whereupon he afked
him, with an hefitation, l What d-doft d-do
here f-friend ? ' Now it chanced the beggar
had the fame infirmity of fpeech with noble Mr.
Cotton, but greater ; fo he began to ftammer
in his anfwering, and make wry words and
looks ; upon this, Mr. Cotton, thinking he
mocked at him, feized the man on a fudden,
and declared he was a fturdy rogue, and he
would teach him his manners, and have him
put in the ftocks. Thereupon the other, in his
fright, could not but ftut the more, feeing how
obnoxious he was to fo fine a gentleman ; till
at length Mr. Cotton, finding it to be a real
entanglement in the fellow's fpeech, was all at
once mollified, and did humbly afk pardon for
his firft feverity ; and after that fell a laughing,
and with pleafant perfuafions called him into
The River Dove.
his houfe, and feafted him there, till the beggar
thought himfelf as g-great as a L-Lord.
Painter. Ah ! ha ! ha ! a mighty pleafant
ftory.
Angler. I dare to think the beggar was not
the only gueft at the Hall that has tafted of Mr.
Cotton's good cheer.
Haft. Sir, you are right ; and I well remem-
ber, when my mafter refolved to build the
fifhing-houfe, and that Profpeft Tower, that
you {hall fee to-morrow, he engaged a mafter
architect from the town of Nottingham, to fee
that the ftone-work was fkilfully managed.
This was Mr. Lancelot Rolfton,* a man of
folid abilities, and inftruted in many arts ; and
becaufe he was of a fertile wit, and withal a
brother of the angle, Mr. Cotton held him to be,
as he always proved himfelf, a brave gentleman
and a fcholar, and after a time, entered into a
familiarity with him, which hath continued to
this day : but Sirs, I humbly afk your par-
don ; I would not be thought to venture myfelf
on your civility, nor take too much of the con-
verfation.
* Probably the fon of Mr. Thomas Rollefton, who
built the church at Mayfield, in Dove Vale, in 1616.
Pitfs Survey of Stafford/Jure, p. 225. ED.
77
'The River Dove.
Painter. Truft me, we think ourfelves happy
in thefe teftimonies of Mr. Cotton ; but fee, the
ale tarries with you ; fo fill your cup, and let us
hear further of Mr. Rolfton.
Hojl. Well then, Sir, as I told you, that ar-
chitect was often perfuaded by Mr. Cotton to
come to him at Beresford j and I cannot doubt
was largely rewarded ; and this was only rea-
fonable, feeing he was a famous man in thefe
parts, and above all a delicate limner. And fo
it happened on a time, when he came all the
way from Nottingham to give order for the
works, that Mr. Cotton greatly defired his com-
pany one day more at Beresford, that he might
finifh fome landfldp pictures in the fifhing-houfe.
This the other could not do with convenience to
himfelf, at that time ; therefore he afked leave
to be gone after dinner. But Mr. Cotton did
fo entertain his gueft with good wine, and better
converfation, that the architect forgot, or would
not care for his journey, until the night was
come. Then Mr. Cotton told him how there
was no moonlight, and he might chance to break
his neck between this and Ambourne, whither
his occafions called him, and endeavoured to
perfuade him it would be more prudent to take
his bed at the Hall, and promifed he might
depart early the next morning. But the other
'The River Dove.
declared he was able to find his way by Hanfon
Toot and Bentley Brook, though he were hood-
winked.
Well, Sirs, Mr. Cotton feeing him bent on
his dark journey, fecretly defired his fervants
fhould bring one of his own horfes from the
ftable ; and when the architect mounted into
his faddle with alacrity, not feeing how he had
another man's jennet, Mr. Cotton wifhed him a
good journey at the gate with a fecret mirthful
compofure. And fo the other got to Afhbourne
and flept at the Talbot Inn ; and on the morrow,
when the hoftler brought him the nag, how was
he then aftonifhed to find he had not his own
beaft ; and declared the man was not awake to
give him fuch a forry jade. Then the other
humbly difabufed him, and faid, he knew the
horfe thefe many a year, for it was noble Mr.
Cotton's at Beresford Hall.
Angler. Bravely done : and what followed ?
Hoft. Then the architect began unwillingly
to perceive how my mafter had ferved him this
facetious turn ; and becaufe the exchange was
not to his advantage, he considered it was beft
for him to come again to Beresford ; and fo he
did, as Mr. Cotton hoped he would : then
they laughed together at the innocent fraud
thus put upon him, and Mr. Rolfton, being in
79
8o
The River Dove.
a happy mood, fet his thoughts to work, and
painted all that day, and the day after, in the
fifhing-houfe, and contrived fome natural imi-
tations of the rocks and other profpecls there-
abouts.
Angler. Excellent !
Painter. I doubt not the limnings are traced
with a dextrous freedom.
Hoft. Aye, truly ; and fome ornaments of
his workmanfhip are there, which I hope to
make you welcome to, more worthy than the
landfkips : for it chanced in the laft fummer,
when Mr. Izaak Walton paffed fome peaceful
days at Beresford, this artift rode thither from
Nottingham ; and nothing would content my
mafter, but he muft have Mr. Walton's por-
traiture, painted from the life in colours on
the pannel of the beaufet, oppofite to the man-
tel in the fifhing-houfe. But Mr. Rolfton de-
clared, with many proteftations, he was not
fkilful painter enough for fuch endeavours.
Thereupon a friendly conteft arofe between all
three ; for Mr. Walton liked not the motion,
and was fo modeft as to infift that the fifhing-
houfe mould be better graced with the picture
of Mr. Cotton himfelf, who was the happy in-
ventor of it. Neverthelefs my mafter would,
for this time, have his pleafure, and did entreat
The River Dove.
Mr. Walton to fit with an angler's profefled
patience, and fuffer Mr. Rolfton to paint his
likenefs ; and moreover, he promifed he would
read them a book and converfe the while.
And then he opened the beaufet, and faid gaily;
Now, Sir, can you refift the temptation of ' The
' Shepheards' Oracles^ delivered in certain Eg-
4 logues, by Francis Quarks ?' Whereupon Mr.
Walton replied, There you touch me nearly,
and I promife to fit and liften quietly, if you
will be pleafed to read aloud Canonicus\ the
Shepheard's, reproofs againft the fcifmatical
Anarcbus. That will I, (then my mafter faid,)
but firft I crave leave to entertain Mr. Rolfton
with your friend John Marriott's addrefs to the
Reader ; and he will not think it the lefs inge-
nious when I make bold to declare that fome
other pen than the Printer's (then he looked
with a meaning at Mr. Walton) hath touched
the defcription of Francis Quarles, as he* walked
c down towards the brook, furnifhed with all
' proper angle rods, lines, and flyes.'
Angler. I remember, he fell in with fome
Arcadian fhepheardefles, keeping the feftival of
their great god Pan. Would I could repeat it,
for it is a fparkling allegory, efpecially fuitable
to all fifhermen.
Ho/I. Sir, I have the book itfelf, locked up
M
81
82
'The River Dove.
in this cabinet.
Angler. Indeed ! then, I befeech you, let us
look into it, that my brother may judge whether
or no Mr. Walton had a hand in the compofi-
tion of that addrefs to the Reader.
Hoft. Sir, here it is.
Angler. The 4 SHEPHEARDS' ORACLES :' *
and look, brother, at this fignificant frontifpiece,
engraved by W. M. ; there is the tree of the
Church, that a mixed clofe-cropped rabble of
fchifmatics are picking and digging at, if by
any means they may uproot it from the earth.
And there is that man of a tub who has pierced
through and through the books of the Liturgy
and the Canons : and the Jefuit, with his
Roman knife, ftripping the bark. But our
late pious king, with his fword and fceptre,
makes a rout of them, whilft the careful Bifhop
holds the loved tree in his embrace, and nur-
* Printed by M. F. for John Marriott and Richard
Marriott, and are to be fold at their fhop in St. Dunftan's
Church-yard, Fleet Street, under the Dyall, 1646. A
pofthumous work, as the poet died in 1644. Francis
Qjiarles, author of Divine Emblems, had been cup
bearer to Elizabeth, Eleftrefs Palatine, daughter of
James I., and afterwards Secretary to Archbifhop Ufher.
His loyalty expofed him to perfecution during the Re-
bellion. ED.
'The River Dove.
tures the roots with the waters of found doc-
trine.
Painter. And from above the fword of the
Spirit invincibly fp read out to protect His church,
as if to fay, 4 1 will contend with him that con-
4 tends with thee, and 1 will fave thy children.'*
But for the Printer's addrefs ?
jfngler. Liften. After fome notice
of the lamented death of Francis Quarles, the
reader is 4 requeued to fancy that the author
4 was walking a gentle pace on a fummer's morn-
4 ing towards a brook, not far dijtant from his
4 peaceful habitation, fitted with angle, lines,
4 and flyes, proper for the fruitful! month of
4 May, intending -all diligence to beguile the ti-
4 morous trout ; when he obferved a more than
4 common concourfe ofjhepheards, all bending their
1 unwearied fteps towards a pleafant meadow
4 within his prefent profpeft, and had his eyes
4 made more happy to behold two fair Jhep-
' heardejjes Jlrewing the foot paths with lillies
4 and lady-fmocks,fo newly gathered by their fair
4 hands that they yet fmelt more fweet than the
4 morning, and immediately he met (attended with
4 Clora and Clorinda, I think were their names,
4 and many other wood nymphs,) the fair and
* If. xlix. 25.
The River Dove.
4 virtuous Parthenia, who after a courteous fa-
' lutation, told him that the neigkbour-Jhepheards
1 of that part of Arcadia had dedicated that day
4 to be kept holy to the honour of their great god
' Pan ; foe told him alfo that Orpheus would be
4 there, and bring his harp, Pan his pipe, and
4 Titerus his oaten-reed to make mujic at the
< feaft ; Jhe therefore perfuaded him not to lofe,
4 but to change that day's plea fur e.'' And (not
to detain you with the whole) you are to be-
lieve this firft acquaintance of the Author with
the {ingle-hearted fhepheards grew into a friend-
fhip ; and he would often 4 reft himfelf among
i them and their flocks feeding about them, in
4 the calm evening, as he returned from his river
4 recreations, and heard that difcourfe which
1 (with the Sbepheards' names) is prefented in
4 thefe Eglogues.'
Hoft. Thus Mr. Walton was enticed to pa-
tience ; for my mafter knows his humour, and
is never fo happy as when he can give him
pleafure.
Painter. And, if I may judge by thefe images
of rural life, Mr. Walton himfelf had fome par-
ticipation in the addrefs.
Angler. And doubtlefs he knew that he might
claim Francis Quarles for a worthy brother of
the angle.
The River Dove.
Painter. What would I not have given to
witnefs the freedom of thofe three contented
gentlemen in the fifhing-houfe !
Hojt. Sirs, I would that you, who are fo
great lovers of angling, had there feen the fweet
compliance and refignation of Mr. Walton :
his particular fmiling gravity feafons all his ac-
tions, and by little and little the limner be-
came fb enamoured of his countenance that he
ftamped his very image againft the pannel of
the cabinet; yet all the while he profefled he
could not manage it with truth to the original.
I well remember what a joy Mr. Cotton ex-
prefled by his words and countenance, when
the portrait was rimmed, becaufe he mould
never be in want of a lively image of his ' dear
c adopted father.'
Angler. And I may prophecy that the por-
traiture of our excellent matter will be cherifhed
for ages yet to come by all anglers, who may
gather from his lineaments the bleflednefs of a
peaceful fpirit.
Hofl. After this was finimed, Mr. Walton
declared he would have a reward for his con-
formablenefs, and be permitted to take his re-
creation by the river: and fo it was agreed
that he and Mr. Cotton mould have a bout of
fifhing.
86
'The River Dove.
Angler. Pr'ythee 1 eave not a word untold of
his methods of angling.
Haft. Well, then, Sir ! Mr. Cotton gave
order to his ferving-boy to bring the rods and
fifhing-harnefs from the Hall : and to work they
went. Then my matter, feeing how Mr. Walton
filently bufied himfelf in fixing a worm on the
arming of his hook, challenged him to fifh with
the fly ; whereat the other with his own fmile
(that fhews he hath no other feafon than a con-
tinual fpring within) anfwered him ; * Nay, Sir,
' I hope to catch more pounds of fifh with my
4 brandlings before fupper time, than you mail
' do with all your choiceft flies.' To this Mr.
Cotton replied : c Say you fo ? Let that be a
c match between us ; hither boy ! bring my
' landing net and pannier, and let us down the
' ftream below the fwifts.' Then he defired I
would attend carefully on Mr. Walton ; and
faid, c FarewelJ Mr. Pifcator, and look how you
1 put your angle to good ufe, for now you are
4 not on the banks of your Lea, but muft fifli
c in clear Derbyfhire ftreams:' to which the
other returned him a pleafant nod of the head ;
and all the while he had prepared his tackling,
without any noife, and dropped his line with a
fober mifchievous look into the Pike Pool : then
feeing his quill to dip fuddenly, he anfwered
The River Dove.
with a gaiety, c Anon, Sir ! look you there ;
4 for I am certain I have a nabble.'
Hojt. And true it was, for he hook'd a trout,
and, you may believe me, a big one.
Painter. I fufpet he had an old acquaintance
with that pool.
Haft. And he handled his fifh with a fmgular
difcretion, and then I landed him by his defire
in the net. No fooner did Mr. Cotton fee this,
than he was fuddenly refolved to be away, and
faid : ' Marry, Sir ! that is an ill omen for my
4 match. Come, boy ! the wind fets from this
1 bank, keep aloof from the ftream : ' and with
that he went towards a choice part lower down,
where an angler, that is an artift, may fcarce
mifs his entertainment.
Angler. You waited then on Mr. Walton ?
I am ready to envy you fuch a pleafure, and
the advantage of learning fome of his devices in
angling.
HO/I. Believe me, Sir, you would alfo love
to hear him difcourfe ; for he proportions all he
fays with a moft pleafing contexture of grave
and cheerful things, and delights in contem-
plating the beauty and order of the works of
God ; and he naturally turns the thoughts of
his companions to the Great Architect, that
contrived the wonderful ftructure of them ; per-
The River Dove.
fuading them to the belief that the moft true,
and only fecure, happinefs is in virtue.
Painter. That is a cheerful induftrious
Chriftian, who doth not lay up religion like a
fuit, to be kept for holidays ; but fucks divinity
out of every flower, and in a fecret way turns
it into honey.
Ho/I. And all the while he difcourfes, you
may fee him handle his rod with a mafter's
fkill : and he has fome commixture of oil and
gums, or other experimental artifices, that moft
anglers have no knowledge of, to tempt the
trouts to his hook.
Angler. I have not a doubt it is that receipt
of his friend, Richard Roe, as given by Mr.
John Davors, in his Secrets of Angling ; and I
can avouch that it is an excellent good one.
Waubfft thou catch fijfi ?
Then here's thy nvifli ;
Take this receipt
To anoint thy bait.
' Thou that defireft to fifh with line and hook,
f Be it in Poole, in River, or in Brook,
' To blifle thy bait, and make the fifti to bite,
* Loe, here's a means, if thou cans't hit it right,
' Take Gum of Life, fine beat, and laid to foak
' In Oyle, well drawn from that which kills the Oak :
' Fifh where thou wilt, thou (halt have fport thy fill,
' When twenty fail THOU (halt be fure to kill.'
PROBATUM.
The River Dove.
Ifs perfect and good,
If well under/load,
Elfe not to be told
For fil-ver or gold,* R. R.
Ho/t. Sir, I know not if this or any other
were his charm to tempt the fifties to his bait j
but having quickly landed his fecond trout, he
faid, c We fhall have no more prefent bites in
' Pike Pool, feeing we have difturbed the water ;
4 fo come, Mr. Marfh, if you pleafe, let us not
c lofe our time hereabouts, but try fome other
' parts, that we may win our match from the
c fldlful fly-fiftier.' After that he took a walk
higher up the ftream to the fifhing-houfe, and
fhewed his trouts to Mr. Rolflon, who was
(till there to give fome laft touches to the por-
traiture. Then he fo perfuafively entreated
the limner to paint him a trout in colours, on
one of the pannels, that the other could not find
it in his thoughts to refufe his requeft. But
Mr. Walton did not beguile his time in the
fifhing-houfe ; for he remembered how he was
to kill more fifties than Mr. Cotton, and fo he
continued his induftrious angling until my maf-
* The Secrets of Angling ; teaching the choiceft
tooles, baits, and feafons for the taking of any fifh in
pond or river : praftifed and familiarly opened in three
Books. By J. Davors, Efquire. 1652. ED.
9
The River Dove.
ter returned again, a little before fun-fet, and
brought with him many brace of trouts. And
then Mr. Cotton faid gaily, * My fervice to you,
' good gentleman, moft patient angler, what
c have your brandlings done for you ? haft
4 caught any fifh ? it is time to give over.' To
this Mr. Walton replied, < Hold, Sir, but half a
1 minute, and I'll tell you : ' for at that very time
he had hooked his laft trout, and was playing
him ; and indeed he managed him with fuch a
craftinefs and would not give him a quiet mo-
ment to himfelf, but forced him with a moft
gentle violence up and down the ftream, till he
was brought to the laft extremity ; in fo much
that Mr. Cotton could not but applaud his (kill,
when he faw the fifh at his length languiming
on the bank. And after that, Mr. Rolfton was
called from the fifhing-houfe to be a judge of
the conteft ; and all the trouts were counted
out on the grafs ; but Mr. Walton's fifhes were
more than the other's by fome pounds in weight;
and fo it was declared his bottom riming had
won the match for him ; and upon that they all
returned with merry hearts to the Hall. And
now, Gentlemen, it may be expected I mould
a(k your pardon, feeing I have occupied your
attention with this long difcourfe.
Angler. We are greatly beholden to you for
The River Dove.
fo pleafant a hiftory.
Painter. And I am glad our walk to-mor-
row will be along the banks of the river, and
that I am to fee thofe choice limnings in the
fifhing-houfe.
Angler. Andnowlet'stobed. Come,brother,
you and I will read a chapter out of Mr. Marfh's
great Bible ; and that will make our fleep the
fweeter, and not hinder our fport to-morrow.
Painter. It is well thought, fo do you choofe
for us.
Angler. Where all are fo exceeding good,
I {hall not be long before I fuit you. Here is
the 23d Pfalm of King David, where he tefti-
fies to the loving mercy of God, and how his
foul repofed in confidence, that He would be
near to comfort him, and fweeten all his trials.
Shall I read from that ?
Painter. By all means : for I am of the
opinion of St. Bafil, that if all the other books
of Scripture could periih, that of the Pfalms
would be a fufficient holy amulet to put to flight
the enemy of mankind ; and I remember how
that Pfalrn begins c The Lord is my Shepherd^
4 / Jball not want : He maketh me to lie down
1 in green pajiures ; He leadeth me bejide the
<-Jlill waters.'
Angler. [Reads.]
9 1
9 2
The River Dove.
Painter. How furprifing high are the ftrains
of this joyful hymn, wherein David pours out
the breathings of his faith, which eftablifhed
him the man after God's own heart. No lan-
guage or thought can furpafs thofe high celef-
tial eulogiums, which have been the prayers of
the church from age to age.
dngler. Yet was King David loved of his
c Shepherd' before he loved Him in return ; as
holy Auftin writes, ' God crowns with accept-
c ance not our works, but the gifts of His own
' grace.'
Painter. And although David thought it his
high eft privilege, ' to dwell in the houfe of the
1 Lord ;' yet doubtlefs he looked further than
the fan&uary of Jerufalem to the courts of the
heavenly Zion, and to the eternal abiding of
fpirits, glorified in the divine prefence. For
furely the beatific fights and voices, vouchfafed
in after days to the beloved and holy John,
were not unknown to 4 the fweet finger of
1 Ifrael.' He underftood how the fold and paf-
turage of his Shepherd did, after a fpiritual fort,
forefhadow the final gathering of c Chrift's
' fheep, that are now difperfed abroad in the
4 midft of this naughty world,'* into the folds of
* Ordination Service : charge to the priefts. ED.
The River Dove.
glory. And now, brother, let us betake ourfelves
to reft, with King David, praifmg God for all
the health and other bleflings we enjoy, which
are but as one drop out of that boundlefs ocean
of joy and treafure He will hereafter beftow for
a life of holinefs. Good night.
All. Good night.
93
'The River Dove.
95
CHAPTER III.
The Hoft conducts the Angler and Painter to
Beresford Hall and Mr. Cotton's Fijhing
Houfe on the River Dove.
Painter.
O, brother, you are c ftirring with
' the lark.'
Angler. Aye, Sir, I have been
wakeful this hour and paft; and
becaufe I heard you were a-bed, I fauntered out
awhile, that I might have the enjoyment of the
frefh morning.
Painter. And I'll warrant, you wandered
down to the banks of the river, like a crane, to
look after fifties.
Angler. You have made a wrong guefs for
this turn : becaufe after a while I chanced to
find myfelf in the church-yard, and quietly
walked up and down.
Painter. Surely that was a fad employment !
9 6
'The River Dove.
Angler. Penfive, fo pleafe you, but not fad :
and there I met the fexton, not c an ill wilier
4 to human nature,' but an honeft good man,
who had the key of the church : and I have
feldom feen a country church more embellifhed
with rare carving and joiners' work : you may
believe me, it is quite unmatchable.
Painter. Indeed !
Angler. And Mr. Cotton's family feat is
carved with delicate ornaments ; and his ar-
morial bearings chifelled in oak, with a canopy
over head, in rich tracery work. Indeed, the
whole church, as the baptifmal font, and chan-
cel, the pulpit and altar, and a lofty organ, all
worthy of thofe earlier and better ages, when
the fame fpirit pervaded the Church as poffefled
the heart of Mary Magdalene, who beftowed
upon her loved Mafter that alabafter box of
ointment of fpikenard, as the moft precious tef-
timony of her reverence and affection. For
then mankind were of opinion that the houfes
of God, dedicated to His fervice and worfhip,
were deferving of all the honour they could pay
to them, as being His temples who hath confe-
crated the Church by His own blood.
Painter. They were better times indeed.
Alas ! the day when the feparatifts of this nation
like the heathen of old, l raged^ and the people
River Dove.
1 Imagined a vain thing ! ' when * the rulers took
c counfel together again/} the Lord and againft
1 His anointed' fad workers of pillage, who
defaced the fancluary, ftripped the altars, over-
turned the holy fonts, broke the ornamental
paintings of the windows, and rich tracery work
in ftone,made free booty of the facramental plate,
and {tabled their troopers even beneath the holy
vaulted roofs, which had wont to refound to
the voices of the choirs, chaunting the praifes
of God ; but then, alas ! made to re-echo their
unhallowed imprecations againft all ordinances
and government.
Angler. But fear not, brother. God is ever
with His Church ; and hath He not faid, c /
' will rejlore to you the years that the locufi and
' the cankerworm hath eaten ? ' * Believe me,
a bright day of joy mall come, when our village
churches, and thofe fair ftately minifters through-
out the land, and efpecially their daily fervices
and the appointed feftivals, mail be reftored
as in ancient times. What ! did not God
ftir up the fpirit of the heathen king of Per-
fia to caufe His holy temple to be rebuilt after
the long captivity of His people in Babylon ?
' Then Jo/hua and yerubbabel^ and their bre-
* Joel ii. 25.
97
The River Dove.
' thren builded the altar of the God of Ifrael,
1 and offered the DAILY OFFERINGS, according
c to the cuftom, as the duty of every day re-
' quired, and afterward the continual fervices
c of all the SET FEASTS THAT WERE CONSE-
4 CRATED.' f Did the Spirit of God thus kin-
dle the affetions of the Ifraelites ' as one man f
And is His arm (hortened that He cannot deli-
ver ? Then I may never believe that our kings,
and the nobles and people of this chriftian land,
and her ' merchants and traffickers, who are
' princes and the honourable of the earth J J will
ornament their own ceiled houfes and tables
with the pride of gold and precious things, and
leave the temples of their mafter, who died for
them, ' as a cottage in a vineyard, as a lodge in
4 a garden of cucumbers.'
Painter. I declare, dear brother, your fond
hopes make my heart burn within me ; and I
will believe and pray that our altars and fonts,
and the holy facraments, mail be eftablifhed in
the affe&ions of the people of England : and
this branch of the CATHOLIC CHURCH fpread
her fhadowing influence far and near, and carry
forth our name and religion to the moft diftant
regions. Then may we fee that onenefs of the
f Ezra iii. % Ifa. xxiii. 8. If. i. 8.
The River Dove.
church reftored, which holy Ignatius fpeaks of,
when ' the Prefbytery was fo fitted together into
1 the Bijhop as firings into a harp, and when
c Jefus Chrijt was fung in unity of mind, and
' the ancient one-voiced hymn of love was fung,
c the people, man by man, being the harmonious
1 chorus.'* But no more of this.
Angler. Well then, tell me how you flept.
Painter. To be honeft, I was fo weary after
our walk from Derby, I could not roufe myfelf
till mine hoft entered my chamber, and told me
you were up and dreft.
Angler. Well ! do not mock at me, if I
confefs I had many dreams glided into my
mind, concerning the Dove and that meek
matter of angling, Mr. Izaak Walton. And
fuch was the confufion of my thoughts, I was
deluded into a belief that I went a fiftiing with
him.
Painter. Went a-fifhing in your dreams, with
Mr. Izaak Walton ! that's brave ! an excellent
conceit !
Angler. It is a truth ; and yet by a ftrange
perverfity I was ever detained on the oppofite
fide of the river from him ; and as he looked
upon me with a benevolent afpect, his very
* S. Ignatius : Epift. ad Ephefiois, iii. 4.
99
IOO
'The River Dove.
garb and gefture were full of primitive com-
pofure.
Painter. Worthy difciple of a benevolent
matter ! And there you could perufe the very
drefs and bearing of PISCATOR, as you went a-
fifhing with him. Oh ! the myfteries of this
craft of angling ! And did you converfe nothing
with the ferene old gentleman ?
dngler. Sometimes I eflayed to fpeak with
him, but he placed his finger on his lip, in token
of a mutual filence. Then I dreamed that he
caught a bafket full of fifties with his worms,
and I meanwhile was not able to take one.
Whereupon methought I climbed a rock to
come at him, that I might have a part in his
recreation on the other fide the river ; but when
I would have ftruggled to go over the rock,
I was hindered by an invifible check; and
being in danger of falling, I attempted to call
out to him for afliftance ; but then my voice
faulted, and I could not perfuade him to give
me an anfwer ; for he would only beckon me to
filence by placing his finger on his lip.
Painter. Ah ! ha ! ha ! And all the while
this meek mafter of anglers went on to ply his
art, and catch fifties, and now and then was fo
condefcending as to look upon you with a be-
nevolent afpecl: ?
The River Dove.
101
Angler. Neverthelefs methought it uncivil in
him not to be more troubled to fee me dangling
on the rock.
Painter. It was all becaufe of his fweetnefs
and ferenity ; for doubt not he felt a pity for
your unpleafantnefs : and what other accidents
befell you in this pleafant dream of yours ?
Angler. I was all in a confufion of thoughts ;
fometimes I tangled my fifhing-harnefs on the
branches of the trees ; and after that a great
fim carried it all away with the top joint of
my rod, juft as I thought to land him ; then
again I found myfelf on the flippery fides of
Hanfon Toot ; and juft as but here comes
the hoft.
Hojt. Gentlemen, your fervant. I hope
you flept foundly, and found the beds to your
liking ?
Painter. Excellent well : and pleafant dreams
to boot : for this gentleman
Angler. Hum ! hum ! your ' finger on
c your lip.'
Painter. I underftand : come, Mr. Marfh,
let us have a light breakfaft, a morning cup of
barley wine, with a manchet or two, or an oaten
cake, and then for Beresford Hall, and Mr.
Cotton's fifhing-houfe. What are you for,
brother ?
102
The River Dove.
Angler. I care not if it be ale, or fweet whey
frefh from the cheefe-vat, fo you give me fuch
an oaten cake as we had yefterday.
Ho/}. Gentlemen, here they are at your fer-
vice. And now, if it pleafe you, I'll be your
willing guide to Beresford Hall.
Angler. If you are in earneft and your own
bufinefs will permit, we {hall be greatly beholden
to you.
Ho/I. I have occafion towards Hartington ;
and the Hall ftands by the road.
Painter. I'm glad to hear it : fb, by your
leave, we'll light our pipes, and whiff a coun-
terblaft* to King James, of peaceable memory.
Now, brother, c en avant;' I am ready for as
many meafures of Derbyfhire miles as a reafon-
able, courteous gentleman may challenge.
Angler. You are mettlefome betimes ; and
we may chance to put you to the trial.
Ho/}. Sir, two miles will fuffice to bring us
* His Majefty had fo great a diftafte to the ufe of the
iveed, that he wrote a treatife againft it, intituled, * A
' COUNTERBLAST TO TOBACCO/ It was re-publifhed
in 410. in 1672, with * a learned difcourfe by Dr.
' Everard Maynwaring, proving that tobacco is a pro-
' curing caufe of the fcurvy.' This royal pedantic trea-
tife is thought to be a confiderable ' counterblaft'' to His
Majefty's fame as an author. ED.
The River Dove. 103
to the Hall ; but I fhould firft tell you there are
two ways ; one is the coach road, and the other
a bridle-way through the Narrow Dale ; and
this laft is the fhorteft.
Angler. I incline to whichfoever Mr. Cotton
travels by, when he is on horfeback, becaufe
that was the road he took with VIATOR, when
he pointed to the houfe, and faid, c This is now
c like to be your inn for want of a better'
Painter. If I may choofe, let it be whichever
will give us the beft profpec} over Beresford Hall.
Angler. You are in the right, brother : I
yield me to your better opinion.
Ho/t. Well, then, Gentlemen, you {hall both
have your defires, if you will take to the right
hand path, which leads to Narrow Dale.
Angler. Now we are out upon the hills, what
a fpacious profpe6t is before us ! and here's a
fweet-fcented morning, fit for honeft anglers.
Painter. But what a rocky barren place ! and
what lines of ftone walls, that have coft more
money to build than the land is worth J
Ho/t. Give me leave to tell you, Sir, the paf-
turage hereabouts is very fertile ; and you may
remember how Mr. Cotton declares ' thefe bills
1 breed and feed good beef and mutton.'
Angler. Aye, and make the beft cheefe that
goes to Derby market.
104
'The River Dove.
Painter. But you will not deny this to be a
lone country of moorifh mountains, and no or-
nament of woods to give them a relief ?
Ho/I. Very true, Sir, when you are upon the
hills ; but down in the dales and glens, and by
the banks of our trouty ftreams, I may under-
take to find you fome rich landfkips, fo grown
over with fhady fycamore, and all kinds of trees,
that you will not think it tedious to walk along
them.
Angler. And forget not, brother, thefe are
the very fcenes, where the two great matters of
my art have loved to wile away their cheerful
hours, in the moft excellent of all recreations,
and have been poflefled with thofe happy
thoughts which they have recorded in the firft
and fecond parts of the Complete Angler. And
fo long as truth and virtuous inclinations have
any power to move the affections, their book
mail continue to be embalmed in the judgments
of men. Who that has read thofe pages can
wander on the banks of never-ceafing Dove,
where they have whifpered their filent joys, or
tread the paths they have trod, linked in a ge-
nerous friendfhip, without fome touch of a mu-
tual feeling ! But come, Mr. Marfh, we are
ready to follow you.
Ho/f. Gentlemen, fo pleafe you to turn down
The River Dove.
this lane ; and now we are come to the top of
Narrow Dale, look through the opening of the
hills, and there is Beresford before you.
Angler. There, Sir, there ! what fay you now ?
Painter. Indeed, a goodly manfion in the
diftance : and thofe mountains which bound
the profpecl: rife up with a natural variety, and
blend themfelves into an harmonious landfkip.
Angler. And does not c the houfe Jtand pret-
' tily?'
Painter. Aye, truly : and now, brother, as
we approach fo near to the object of our happy
pilgrimage, I glow with a part of your zeal.
Forgive me that I have been merry againft
anglers, and couched my doubtful meaning be-
neath fome quips and quibbles. But now I
open my heart to you, that I may participate
in all your pleafures, and therefore do you guide
and govern me, for I am wholly yours.
Angler. And there's my hand in teftimony
that I return all your friendly thoughts : and
I doubt not you will be better entertained on a
nearer acquaintance with Beresford Hall.
Painter. But, methinks, there is fomething
of a Tower.
Angler. Nay, I fee it not.
Painter. There, above the woods, to the
right of the manfion.
I0 5
io6
The River Dove.
Angler. At the top of the hill ?
Ho/?. The fame ; and it is called the Flam-
beaux Tower.
Painter. It is all a choice fubjeft, therefore
give me leave to make a hafty defign.
Angler. In this, brother, you mow your love
for me. And pr'ythee, mine hoft, is the Tower
of Mr. Cotton's building ?
Ho/I. Aye, Sir, and of free-ftone, brought
from the quarry that lies a few miles off. But
I mail not here enlarge to particulars, becaufe
a clofer view will teftify how it is done by the
cleareft rules of order.
Angler. But wherefore the name of the Flam-
beaux Tower ?
Hoft. Sir, I am to tell you that is a fancy of
Mr. Cotton's ; for he will often ride a diftance
from home, to vifit the Earl of Devonfhire at
Chatfworth, or to Haddon Hall, and other
great houfes, that he may take the paftime of
hunting the red deer, and hawking, and fuch
like diverflons, as gentlemen in England love
to exercife themfelves in : fo you may believe
he will fometimes return to the Hall by night.
Painter. Methinks he mould be a fkilful rider
to truft his neck over thefe precipices and hills
in the dark.
Hoft. Sir, you may truft my matter's well-
The River Dove.
bred fteeds, and if you could but once fee him
on horfeback, you would have no fears about
him : for he has learned to ride the great horfe
in the fchools ; and no bounds or faults can
move him. And when he is mounted for the
field, in his clofe doublet and large round hofen,
with his high boots, he is like a part of his horfe,
and you would prefently afk, c what noble ca-
valier is yonder ?' and I have but this more to
fay, when I was once in attendance upon him
at the Earl of Derby's with his caft of hawks,
I heard the ' loyal Duke* of Newcaftle,* that
excellent judge of horfemanftiip, declare before
a great company of gallants that he knew no
gentleman who carried himfelf more gracefully
in the manage of a horfe than Mr. Cotton.
And thus it is, when he is expected home o'
dark nights, my lady will caufe the beacon to be
lighted at the top of the Tower, that he may
have a fure guide acrofs the hills, and an early
* William Cavendifh, Duke of Newcaftle, a finished
gentleman, and a moft diftinguimed patriot, was author
of the well-known work on horfemanfhip, originally
publifhed in French at Antwerp in 1658, fol., and af-
terwards in Englifh under the title of ' A new Method
' and extraordinary Invention to drefs Horfes, and work
' them according to Nature, as alfo to perfeft Nature by
1 the Subtilty of Art.' 1667. fol. ED.
lO/
io8
'The River Dove.
diftant welcome to cheer him.
Painter. A brave thought, and like the beau-
tiful Hero, in ancient ftory, when fhe waited
impatiently on the rocks for her Leander to
fwim acrofs the Hellefpont, at a great hazard,
and only for the fweet ihort joy of breathing
out his love ; then fhe fet up a blazing torch,
to be his guiding ftar through the darknefs of
the night and the deep waves.
Hoft. Indeed ? now I fee why Mr. Cotton
will fometimes call it his 4 Hero's Tower ! ' * and
I was too unlearned to underftand the reafon
of it before ; but this I know, there is none
* In a poetic epiftle to John Bradfhaw, Efq. defcrib-
ing his journey from London to Basford Hall, in his
coach and four, he thus alludes to the Tower :
' Tuefday at noon at Lichfield town we baited,
' But there fome friends, who long that hour had waited,
' So long detained me, that my charioteer
' Could drive that night but to Uttoxeter.
' And there the Wedn'fday, being market-day,
' I was conftrain'd with fome kind lads to ftay,
' Tippling till afternoon, which made it night,
1 When from my Heroes Tovfr I faw the light
* Of her Flambeaux, and fanci'd, as we drave,
' Each rifing hillock was a fwelling wave,
' And that I fwimming was, in Neptune's fpight,
* To my long-long'd-for harbour of delight.'
Poems on feveral occafions, 1689, 8. ED.
The River Dove.
within the Hall but is ready to bid the mailer
welcome when he comes.
Angler. That I believe ; and I remember
how VIATOR fays to Mr. Cotton ; c that your
1 meal is fo foon ready is a ftgn your feru ants know
1 your certain hours.' No doubt, they attend
upon him with alacrity.
Ho/i. It were ftrange elfe ; and I would you
might fee the gladnefs of the commonalty and
poorer forts that live hereabouts, to have him
amongft them ; as on Sundays, when they
expect him at the church-door in Alftonfields,
at the fix't hour of fervice ; or on feftivals and
holidays, when the young men and maidens
look for him to be a witnefs of their country
paftimes, and think their May-day games, and
Lamb-ale at fheep-fhearing feafts, want half
their joyfulnefs, if any accident hinders him ;
fuch is their natural affection for his perfon.
But now, Gentlemen, we are to take this fide
of the Narrow Dale, for in fome parts it is
boggy and moory ; you may fee the path winds
by a moderate declivity ; and now we are
come to the bottom, and here is Beresford
Lane ; fo we may pafs under this row of afh-
trees to the outer gate : will you be pleafed
to enter ?
Angler. Surely this fteep road was cut out
109
I 10
The River Dove.
of the rock, and here is a young wood about
it, which feems to be of Mr. Cotton's own
planting.
Hojt. Aye, Sir : for he loves the ornamental
art of planting gardens and orchards ; nay, he
hath writ a book of inftrudtions for the fame,
and caufed it to be printed in London.*
Painter. Indeed ! I knew not he was author
of any book, fave his COMPLETE ANGLER.
Ho/}. Sir, Mr. Cotton has produced various
compofitions : and to fay the truth, I know not
if angling or books have the greater charms
for his vacant hours. Some of his writings are
of a poetic caft, and there is one writ in praife
of His prefent Majefty ;t and, as I have heard,
fome ufeful hiftories have been Englifhed by
his pen out of the French tongue. J
Angler. And I cannot doubt his writings re-
* The Planter's Manual of raifmg, planting, and
cultivating all Sorts of Fruit-trees. London: 1675.
8vo. ED.
f A Panegyric to the King's Moft Excellent Majefty,
1660. Folio. ED.
% The Moral Philofophy of the Stoics. Tranflated
from the French of Monfieur de Vaix. 1664. 8vo.
And the Life of the Duke of Efpernon, in 12 Books,
wherein the Hiftory of France is continued, &c. Tranf-
lated from the French of M. Girard. London : "1670.
Folio. ED.
The River Dove. 1 1 1
fleet the image of his ingenuous difpofition, and
fhow his reverence for virtue.
Painter. I hope they do. If they could be
oppofite to this which I will not believe, un-
lefs you can tell me of your own knowledge,
I fhould wifh that he had not compofed them.
Hoft. And now, Gentlemen, this is Beref-
ford Hall before you.
Angler. On my word, a handfome manfion.
Painter. I did not think to find fuch a fair
houfe, fo adorned with architecture : and what
a fpacious garden, full of contrivances to pleafe
the eye and plantations growing upon the rocks,
and thofe open fhady groves and viftos !
Hojt. Well, Sirs, I am proud to think it is
not behind your expectations.
Painter. It hath a choice mixture of natural
and compofed beauties that I have not often
feen furpafled.
Ho/I. And within you will find every thing to
be worthy of fo honourable a gentleman as my
matter. By your leave, I'll go and warn the
fervants of your coming.
Angler. Well, brother, what fay you
to all this ? I pray you look at the peaceful
walks underneath thofe yew trees and chef-
nuts.
Painter. And the ftruture and workman-
112
The River Dove.
{hip of the houfe are deferving of note : fee you
the bear rampant carved in (tone over the door-
way ? but the hoft returns.
Ho/I. Gentlemen, you have the liberty to
make yourfelves welcome : will you pleafe to
walk in, and a fervant will attend you.
Angler. What a noble hall is here, wain-
fcotted and pannelled in oak, with handfome
furniture ! Obferve this mantel with the Cot-
ton arms carved in oak : and here the family
quarterings let into the lattice in ancient co-
loured glafs : and thefe high chairs and ebony
coffers.
Painter. Above all, fome exceeding good
limnings, and doubtlefs portraitures ?
Hoft. Sir, they are pictures of the family.
Painter. I pray you, whofe is this of fo noble
a mien ?
Hoft. That is my matter's late father, Mr.
Charles Cotton the elder, of Ovingden, in the
county of SufTex, who died twenty years are
now part. And here is the portraiture of my
late miftrefs : {he brought the manfion houfe
and lands to the Cottons, in right of her mo-
ther, who was a defcendant of the noble family
of Beresford.
Angler. What a fweet modefty of difpofition
{nines in every lineament of her face !
The River Dove.
Ho/}. You may believe me her look is but
the mirror of her mind ; for fuch was the native
meeknefs, difcretion, and innocence of Miftrefs
Olive Cotton, fhe was a pattern of women, and
loved by the poor and rich.
Painter. It is the very image of candour :
and the effects of the colours are fo true to life,
and the lights and fhadows difpofed with fuch
a knowledge of the art, it is plain they are
done by no lefs a hand than Sir Anthony Van-
dyke's. And who is this gentleman with his
hunting-dogs befide him, and a hooded hawk on
his wrift ?
Ho/I. That, Sir, is another of this honour-
able family, and one who loved hunting and
fowling; he it was brought thofe antlers you fee
on either fide of the mantel-piece, from fome
diftant place in Ireland.
Painter. It is painted in the manner of that
noted limner of Oueen Elizabeth, Frederico
^_/ *
Zuchero ; and I incline to believe it reprefents
the queen's falconer in Ireland, when me com-
manded Sir Henry Sydney, her deputie of that
Realm^ to provide the Marquis of Savia, a no-
bleman of Spaine, ' with hawkes^ doggs^ and
other fuch pleafures in exchange for certayne
c perfumed gloves he prefented to her Majejiy,
< much to her lyking and contentation.'
The River Dove.
Angler. And mark thefe ancient fpurs, hunt-
ing-horns, and bits for bridles, and all kinds of
implements for the chafe, hanging up by the
fides of the windows ; and here a bundle of
falcons' hoods, bells, and jefles.
Servant. Sir, next to the diverfion of angling,
my mafter loves falconry ; and I have feen him
caft and reclaim his hawks as fkilfully as the
beft gentleman in the county. He entertained
a noble large company of falconers, it is now
three months paft, and there were ib many
hounds and horfes they could fcarcely be pro-
vided withal. Neverthelefs, my mafter rather
applies himfelf to the practice of angling.
Angler. That I believe : and here is every
kind of harnefs for fifhing : fly rods and nets,
and fpears for eels.
Servant. So pleafe you, Sir, on thofe two
pegs yonder you may fee an old angle rod, that
my mafter lays great ftore by : it is roughly
made, but has killed a huge quantity of trouts
in its time ; for it belongs to a worthy gentle-
man, Mr. Izaak Walton.
Angler. Say you fo ?
Servant. And I have many times feen him
with that fpliced rod and a little bag of brand-
lings, with a line and a float for bottom fifhing,
fill a good fized pannier within a little diftance
The River Dove.
from this, up and down Dove Dale. Indeed,
it is wonderful to fee his artful methods.
Angler. I perceive you are well acquainted
with his perfon.
Servant. Sir ! he is the moft familiar of my
mafter's friends : I have oftentimes waited upon
him a-fifhing, when he has vifited the Hall,
and hope to do fo again ; for there is none of
my mafter's guefts we are all fo pleafed to
ferve; he is fb condefcending, and always thinks
himfelf obliged. We have a chamber that my
mafter calls c Mr. Walton's own chamber?
Angler. Indeed ! I muft tell you I profefs
myfelf to be a fcholar of his, and we call him
the father of anglers : may we, therefore, have
permiflion to fee that apartment ?
Servant. With pleafure, Sir.
Angler. Come, brother, have you done with
your admiration of thofe limnings ? If you
pleafe, we may pafs on to fee Mr. Walton's
bed-chamber.
Painter. I am ready to attend you.
Servant. This way, Gentlemen, to the great
ftaircafe.
Angler. Lead on, and we will follow.
Servant. Sirs, here is the chamber I told
you of.
Painter. I declare, a goodly apartment ; and
1 1 6 The River Dove.
his bed with handfome coverlid and hangings :
and I obferve three angels' heads flamped on
the ceiling in relief.
Angler. A fit emblem of the peaceful flum-
bers of the innocent ; and fo, I am fure, are
Mr. Walton's. And whofe picture is that over
the mantel ?
Servant. That is my mafter, Sir j it was
painted at Court, and brought laft fummer from
London.
Angler. What a lively exprefiion of eye, and
a great fweetnefs in the lips !
Servant. It is the very look of my mafter j
and I have heard fay it was done by the king's
painter, after the exprefled defire of Mr.
Walton.
Painter. Aye, methought it was the touch
of Lely, who hath been fo defervedly ho-
noured by his Majefty with the dignity of
knighthood.
Angler. And is celebrated by the beft poets*
and wits of the age.
Painter. This portraiture is fo delicately
* Colonel Richard Lovelace infcribes a panegyric to
him in his Lucafta. And the following lines of Mr.
Charles Cotton, addreffed to the painter on another oc-
cafion, are applicable to his own portrait, and teftify
to the familiarity between the poet and the painter :
The River Dove.
117
limned, and the colours fo admirable, it could
only be of a mafter's hand.
Angler. Befeech you, brother, may not this
chamber deferve to be highly efteemed of all
anglers ; think here it was VIATOR had his
lodgings, when Mr. Cotton brought him to his
houfe.
Hojl. There is the very bed where he was
promifed c Jheets laid up in lavender ,' and you
may be fure he had them.
Painter. And fee the pannels of oak-wood
in figured patterns over the chimney.
Angler. It is a rich work, and falls in with
the reft of the chamber : look at this fine cabi-
net chifelled in oak and inlaid with paintings.
Hofl. And here again the lattice windows
fet with the arms of Beresford and Cotton.
Painter. And whofe creft is that ? An eagle
with wings expanded, argent beaked and legged,
and holding in his dexter a belt azure !
' Nature and art are here at ftrife ;
' This fhadow comes fo near to life,
' Sit ftill, dear Lefy, thou'ft done that
' Thyfelf muft love and wonder at.'
From a poem of Mr. Cotton's, ' To my friend Mr. Lefy,
' on his pifture of the excellently virtuous lady, the Lady
' Ifabella Thynne,' POEMS ON SEVERAL OCCASIONS.
Printed 1689, 8. ED.
n8
The River Dove.
Hoft. That is my matter's creft, and you
may fee three cotton hanks for arms ; that agrees
with the name.
Angler. With a chevron azure between.
Painter. And a bear falient, fable armed
gules, muzzled and chain'd or.
Hoft. Thefe are the Beresford arms : and
here the quarterings of the noble family of the
Stanhopes.
Painter. Stanhope, fay you ? Quarterly er-
mine and gules How is that ?
Hoft. Sir, you are to note, my late miftrefs
Olive, the mother of Mr. Cotton, was the
daughter of Sir John Stanhope, Knt. by the
heirefs of Beresford.
Angler. I thank you ; it is all of a piece, and
excellently finimed.
Hojl. Gentlemen, if I may be fo bold to
remind you, we have many other things which
will entertain you for fome hours as the Flam-
beaux Tower, and the Fifhing Houfe, and the
River.
Angler. True ; our prefent pleafing thoughts
had made us forgetful : but we are ready to
follow you.
Hoft. Then, if you pleafe, we may defcend
once more to the hall, and fo into the garden.
And now I will lead you by this rifing
The River Dove.
ground to the Tower.
Angler. What is here ? a handfome terrace
of grafs, fet round with a double row of trees.
Hojl. This is the bowling green : if you will
take the trouble to look over this parapet, you
may fee a precipice fome hundred feet deep.
Angler. It is quite a gulph, but overgrown
with trees and briars. Here is a fmooth ground
for bowls ; and I remember PISCATOR fpeaks
of this bowling green, and declares himfelf to
be c no very great bowler ; ' but he fays, c I am
4 not fo totally devoted to my own pleafure y but
c that I have a If o fome regard to other men's.'
HoJJ. That was but his modeft opinion of
himfelf; for I have feen him play and win great
matches at bowls and quoits, both here and on
Wolfscote Hill, which is a little diftance on
the other fide of the Dove. But here we have
the Profpe6l Tower : you may fee how it ftands
on the higheft top of the rock, and within is an
ornamented fummer room.
Painter. It is a coftly building, and in due
proportions of architecture.
Angler. Then I befeech you deny me not a
picture, if it be but an outline, only a me-
mento.
Painter. I am free to do your bidding. And
would you have thqfe handfome ftone fteps and
120
'The River Dove.
ballufters leading to the porch, and that ftone
feat near the door ?
Angler. Aye, fo pleafe you ; and do not for-
get fome of thofe fhady trees : but above all,
the beacon on the top, which has ferved his
beloved Hero to bring her Leander home, and
recalls the olden times of our forefathers : for
learned Mr. Lambarde,* in his Perambulation
of Kent, brings this word from the * Saxon
' Becknian, which is to call by figne, or beck-on,
1 when they were made of great ftakkes of
4 wood, but were ordained by King Edward
c the Third to be highe ftandards with their
pitch-pots,' in the fafhion you here fee it.
Painter. 'Tis worthy of all my little fkill :
an enchanting fpot, and nothing neglected for
its adorning.
Angler. Was it built by merry Mr. Rolfton ?
Hoft. The fame ; and thofe fmooth ftones
were brought from the quarries of Sheen, fome
miles off; and my mafter told him to do his
utmoft ; becaufe his refolution was to have a
* A PERAMBULATION OF KENT, containing the
Defcriptive Hyftorie and Cuftomes of" that Shyre, by
William Lambarde, of Lincolnes Inne, Gent. 1576. 12.
He was one of the moft eminent antiquaries of this
country, and declared by the great Camden to be as
diftinguifhed for learning and piety. He was appointed
T'he River Dove.
121
little apartment for his own efpecial privatenefs,
where he might feaft his eye with thefe prof-
pe6h, and fo retired from the world, that no
one might interpofe between him and the vein
of his thoughts. For he is fo inclinable to
be in love with books, that he will fometimes
pafs his day in a continual ftudy.
Angler. I remember, in that poem prefixed
to his COMPLETE ANGLER, he fays,
' Dear folitude, the foul's beft friend,
' That man acquainted with himfelf doft make,
' And all his Maker's wonders to intend ;
' With thee I here converfe at will,
' And would be glad to do fo ftill ;
' For it is thou alone that keep'st the foul awake.
' How calm and quiet a delight
' It is, alone,
' To read, and meditate and write,
' By none offended, and offending none ! '
Painter. Well, it is a place, of all others,
where a man may create a phantaftic world
around him, free from all the accidents of for-
tune. And how tempered in our thoughts and
Keeper of the Records in the Tower, of which he pre-
fented an account to her Majefly, under the title of
Pandefta Rotulorum. This, with other great works,
did not fee the light till publifhed by his grandfon in
1635. His tomb may be found in the church of Seven-
oaks. ED.
122
'The River Dove.
wifhes ftiould we all be, if we could oftener
regale ourfelves with fuch fpiritual repafts of
ftudy and contemplation ! But come, I have
defigned the tower in black and white ; and
now let us within.
Hoft. This way, Sirs, and fo to the top.
Here is the beacon and the marks of the torch-
lights, that have many a night guided my mafter
on his return to the Hall.
Angler. Look over this mirador, and fee the
garden below embroidered with rofes, and other
choiceft plants and flowers.
Painter. It is a little paradife : there is fuch
a concealed artfulnefs in thefe contrivances, as
makes them like a cultivated nature.
Hojl. This we ufe to call the garden of the
tower, and every flower and fhrub hath been
planted and watered by the hand of his Coun-
tefs.*
Angler. And here Mr. Cotton occupies many
hours with great pleafantnefs to himfelf, in writ-
ing thofe hiftories you fpoke of?
Painter. It is not to be wondered at ; for fo
peaceful a fpot might well kindle the thoughts
* The fecond wife of Mr. Cotton ; Mary, the daugh-
ter of Sir William Ruflell, and widow of Wingfield
Cromwell, Earl of Ardglafs. ED.
The River Dove.
of a lefs cheerful writer.
Angler. But look ! what is yonder ? a houfe
by the fide of the river, in the fhade of fome
trees !
Hoft. That, Sir, is the FISHING-HOUSE.
Angler. And the Dove, l that winds through
4 the vale like a fnake ?'
Ho/}. The fame.
Angler. What a fylvan profpect is here ! I
am tranfported with the defire of a nearer view.
Painter. Say you fo ? then let us proceed
towards it ; for I am no lefs impatient.
Hoft. Well, Sirs, now you are come down
from the tower, I will bring you to the river,
along a by-path.
Angler. Aye, here it is, by the fide of that
bench of ftone underneath the chefnut trees :
but have a care, brother, or you may ftumble
down.
Hojl. This way, fo pleafe you, Gentlemen ;
by this unorderly path under the am trees ; but
look to your heels ; for here are high rocks, and
fomewhat difficult.
Painter. So-ho ! Mr. Marfh, I cannot hold
pace with you.
Angler. Why what's the matter, Brother ?
Painter. Not fo faft ; I am like to tip
over.
123
124
'The River Dove.
Hoft. Here, Sir, take my hand, and put your
foot on this root ; fo, you are fafely down.
Angler. And here is the DOVE ! as limpid as
the Heliconian fprings !
Painter. Come, mafter, give over your ec-
ftatics, or clothe your thoughts in fome poetic
lines.
Angler. Stay a while : for I fee a little temple
before us, fit for the ftirine of the mufes.
Hoft. It is the FISHING-HOUSE ; and I have
brought the key, that you may go in and look
about you.
Angler. Then I befeech you unlock at once ;
for I have a paflionate defire to put my foot
into this retreat ' dedicated to anglers ! ' What
do you think of this, brother ? c is it not prettily
' contrived?' mark the cipher carved in the
front, on the keyftone of the door, which re-
prefents the firft letters of Mr. Walton's and
Mr. Cotton's names, underneath thofe inviting
words, PISCATORIBUS SACRUM, 1674.
Painter. Indeed a choice fpot for a fiming-
houfe !
Angler. Aye, you fee ' it Jlands in a kind of
' peninfula.' And you may remember how Mr.
Cotton promifed VIATOR, he fhould fee his
fifhing houfe ' upon the margin of one of the
' finejt rivers for trout s and grayling in England.'
The River Dove.
125
Mr. Walton's name and his twifted in cipher
declare the near affinity of love between thofe
happy anglers.
Painter. By and by I muft make a draught
of this, for the neat building, and this grove of
trees, and the Dove, make it all a moft engag-
ing landfkip.
Angler. And now we could only defire one
thing more ; to enjoy the company of thofe
loving fifhermen, and fee them take their recrea-
tion, and hear them fing together fome choice
fongs. But come, I am full of expectation for
what we may find within.
Hojt. Gentlemen, the door is open !
Angler. This is marvelloufly contrived : what
a delight for fifhers ! all the wainfcoting covered
with landfcapes, and cheerful anglers on the
banks of the river, fitting in the made of rocks,
or cafting their flies into the ftream.
Painter. And fifties moft delicately painted
on the oak wainfcoting.
Angler. Aye, fpotted trouts, and graylings
done to the life.
Hofl. And here are the portraits of Mr.
Walton and Mr. Cotton, on the pannels of the
beaufet.
Angler. And indeed very handfome and be-
coming figures.
126
The River Dove.
Hoft. Nor could they be more refembling ;
there is Mr. Walton in his ' fad coloured fuit,'
leaning againft a rock, who is now going to
bait his hooks ; and Mr. Cotton has his fly rod
in his hand, and a waiting boy behind with his
landing net.
Angler. Is this the portrait of Mr. Walton,
defigned by the gentleman architect from Not-
tingham ?
Hoft. The fame ; then Mr. Rolfton under-
took to paint this of Mr. Cotton, to be a com-
panion picture to him he loves fo dearly.
Painter. I declare I have never feen any
thing to pleafe me more. They are worthy of
each other.
Angler. Dear brother ! I dare not afk you
for what I now defire.
Painter. You may dare afk anything I can
pleafure you in.
Angler. If you could make me a true copy of
all we fee here, I mould be the happieft man alive.
Painter. I (hall do it willingly.
Angler. It is kindly fpoke, and that I may
entice you to the work, I will read to you that
pafTage in Mr. Cotton's book, where he brought
hither his happy companion.
Painter. Pr'ythee begin, and I'll prepare the
while.
The River Dove.
Angler. Well then, you are to underftand,
Mr. Cotton and his gueft being up and dreft
early the next morning, after their journey from
Derby, PISCATOR faid to his boy, * Take the
4 key of my fijhing-houfe and carry down thefe
4 two angle rods in the hall window thither with
4 my fijh-pannier, pouch, and landing net, and
'flay you there till we come? And then down
they went cheerily together, and a delicate
morning it was ; and when they were arrived
at the door, PISCATOR invited the other to walk
in, and there fit and talk as long as he pleafed.
And VIATOR declared he was * more pleafed
1 with this little houfe than any thing he ever
1 faw : it Jiands in a kind ofpeninfula too, with
4 a delicate clear river about it. I dare hardly
4 go in, left I Jhould not like it fo well within as
4 without, but, by your leave, Pll try. Why,
4 this is better and better, fine lights, fine wainf-
4 coted, and all exceeding neat, with a marble
4 table and all in the middle.'
Painter. Here is the very table made out of
fine black marble.
Hojt. Taken from our Derbyshire pits, and
as you fee, clearly polifhed, and all rounded at
the corners.
Angler. And thefe chairs, carved in oak, with
the handfome pavement in black and white, are
127
128
'The River Dove.
all of a piece with the other ornaments.
Painter. He was an exceeding fkilful limner,
and worthy of Mr. Cotton's friendfhip, that
painted thefe profpects and figures ; for the
hills and rocks are to the very nature, and for
the portraits, they are not inferior to any artift
of this day ; and it was a clear difcerning tafte
imagined all thofe ornamental fittings.
Angler. And fo thought his happy gueft,
VIATOR ; but Mr. Cotton civilly interrupted
his praifes, and faid, c Enough, Sir, enough ; I
' have laid open to you the part where I can
' worft defend myfelf, and now you attack me
' there. Come, boy ! fet two chairs, and whilft
4 I am taking a pipe of tobacco, which is always
4 my breakfajl, we will, if you pleafe, talk of
< fomething elfe ;' and fo thefe affable gentlemen
agreed to converfe together about fly-fifhing
in clear rivers : but firft of all VIATOR faid to
Mr. Cotton, ' If you will lend me your Jleel,
1 I will light a pipe the while, for that is com-
* manly my breakfajl in a morning too : ' and
then down they fat, and PISCATOR gave him
fome inftru&ions in making of artificial flies,
which I have read attentively, and I may de-
clare them to be worthy of all remembrance
and practice by every hopeful angler. And after
that away they went to the river for their amufe-
The River Dove.
129
ment, and to try the flies they had themfelves
twifted after nature.
Painter. And what then ?
Angler. I think you need not be told that
they had good fport of trouts ; and the ftranger
proved himfelf to deferve the character Mr.
Walton gave of him in his firft part of the
COMPLETE ANGLER.
Painter. And pray what was that ?
Angler. Why, Mr. Walton declared that he
was fo fuitable to his own humour, which is to
be free and pleafant, and civilly merry, that his
refolution was to hide nothing that he knew
from him. And I have no doubt Mr. Cotton
entertained the fame opinion of him; and fo they
fiftied the ftream till the fervant came to tell
them it was dinner time. And Mr. VIATOR
was fo allured with the fport, that the next
morning he longed to be at the river again ;
and when he heard the wind fmg in his cham-
ber window, could forbear no longer, but leapt
out of bed, and had juft made an end of drefling
himfelf as Mr. Cotton came in to call him
up. And now I will leave you to your-
felf ; only, I befeech you, as far as your patience
will allow you, reprefent all you fee : yet I
would not be unreafonable.
Painter. I am fo in love with the place,
130
The River Dove.
that I hope to fatisfy you in every particular ; fo
do you go and catch me a brace or two of trouts.
Angler. That I'll do willingly, and when your
work is finimed, come to me and you fhall try
your luck too. And now, Mr. Marfh, you
and I will walk forth and look at the river ;
good bye, brother, and remember this is to be
your mafterpiece.
Painter. I'll do my beft to give you plea-
fure : let me but find you with fome trouts
when I come.
Angler. Doubt me not ; farewell.
Ho/}. Now, Sir, will you pleafe go higher up
the ftream ?
Angler. With all my heart : but let me
untie my angle and line, that I may be ready :
and now what fly do you recommend ? here is
a cafe, full of all forts of my own making :
but I remember, Mr. Cotton fays, l they who
1 go to Rome^ mujl do as they at Rome do;' and
as I have a certain fort of pride, and have no
mind to be laughed at by that fatirical gentle-
man in the fifhing-houfe, I mail be glad to
make a good choice ; and I dare fay you know
the likings and diflikings of the trouts in the
Dove ?
Hofl. Well, Sir, I will not put on a falfe
modefty in that matter ; and if you'll let me fee
'The River Dove.
your cafe of flies, I may be able to find one or
two will make fome execution.
Angler. Here they are.
Ho/}. Aye, indeed ! Are thefe of your own
twifting ? They are very fkilfully done : nay,
Sir, Mr. Cotton himfelf could not tie them
better, and I am bold to fay you are no ftranger
to our Derbyfliire ftreams ?
Angler. It is not my firft feafon in the Dove
by many : and I know fomething of the Wye
and Derwent, and the clear Lathkill too.
Ho/I. Then, Sir, if you can fifh in the
Lathkill, which is beyond all emulation the
brighteft water in Derbyfliire, and perhaps in
England, and breeds the reddeft trouts, you
muft be well (killed in the art ; and fo I might
take you to be from thefe flies, which for
a clofe imitation of the natural fly are quite
mafterly.
Angler. I fee you would encourage me with
a little praife : but pr'ythee which do you re-
commend : it is early in the feafon for a GREEN
DRAKE, but here is the STONE FLY : or would
you prefer the DUN CUT ?
Ho/I. Sometimes I have known the GREEN
DRAKE to appear before this, and you may de-
pend he will be out in a few days, for I have
examined the caddis and thev are almoft come
132
The River D
ove.
to maturity ; but you cannot have a better fly
than this DUN CUT, and it is an excellent piece
of workmanfhip.
dngler. I'll make the trial of it ; and now
the wind is whittling, and the water curls mer-
rily, fo let us begin.
Hoft. There, Sir, was a rife.
Angler. Nay, he came fhort ; but there he
is again. I have him ; fo, fo ; now, Mr. Marfh,
for the net : 'twas well landed, and a fine fifh
it is ; but I have feen fome in better feafon
ah ! there is another ; methinks he's yet bigger :
and now I come to look at him, he's better fed :
and there's a third ! Well, this is a gamefome
river.
Hoft. Indeed, Sir, you have a gentle wrift.
I wim Mr. Cotton could fee you ; he would
not part with you for fome days ; but would
entertain you with fo many pleafures, that you
would be contented to remain at the Hall, and
almoft forget yourfelf to be a ftranger.
Angler. Would he were here !
Hojt. Alas ! I would he were with all my
heart.
Angler. I have the greateft defire poflible
to fee a gentleman endowed with fo many ac-
complifhments, and of fuch a generous fpirit.
But let us move upwards.
'The River Dove.
Hoft. Aye, Sir ; yonder, where the river
makes a bend, 'tis a deep water, and ftill ; but
it is ruffled by a good breeze of wind, and you'll
find fome large trouts lie there.
Angler. Wherever you recommend. What
a green turfy walk is here ! I could almoft
envy Mr. Walton his angling with a float, to
fit on fuch a bank, and recline himfelf under
the (hade of thefe trees : the grafs is fo well
mowed, 'tis as foft under foot as velvet, and
fit for a bowling ground.
Hoft. Sometimes Mr. Cotton and his friends
will have their pleafure here at bowls inftead of
yonder by the Tower.
Angler. Well, it muft take the work of fome
labouring men to keep all this grafs plot fo
fmooth, for there is near two acres of it.
Hoft. Yes, Sir, the gardeners have enough
to do : and this brings to my mind a ftory of
Mr. Cotton but it is not worth your hearing.
Angler. I pray you let me have it whatever
it is.
Hoft. Well, Sir, I need not tell you my
mafter is the fartheft poflible from an avari-
cious man, for his hand and purfe are open to
the poor ; and he will always have his fervants
well provided : but the cook is fometimes a
pinch-cruft, and then the fervants will grumble.
'34
The River Dove.
Now it chanced one day, in the laft fummer,
as Mr. Cotton walked down this way to fifh,
the mowers were cutting the grafs badly, and
fo he cried out to them, ' How now, fellows !
4 what do you call this ? a grafs plot or a mea-
' dow land ? I pray you let me fee it better
' done, and fmoothly.' Thereupon they looked
at one another doubtingly, and whifpered among
themfelves : at length one that was known to
be fomething of a dry wit among them, after
fome little perfuafive winks and nods of the
others, came forward with his hat in his hand
to be their fpokefman. Then in a very hum-
ble tone, and with fomething of a facetious
look, which always takes with Mr. Cotton,
he faid,
' Little meat, and half enough,
' Makes the fcythe cut high and rough.'
So becaufe Mr. Cotton has no aufterity of be-
haviour towards the loweft and pooreft man
that fpeaks to him civilly, he enquired what his
meaning was, and then the truth came out.
' Well, well, honeft man,' he replied, ' go to
' your work, and I'll prefently fee to it.' And
fo he walked home to the Hall, and there he
made a rout at the cook, and ordered a fervant
to take down provifions enough, and plenty ;
and in the afternoon he found his rafcals hard
The River Dove.
at work, bending luftily over their fcythes.
Then he goes and looks at them ; and then out
fteps the poet with his hat in his hand as before,
and fays to him,
' Now we've meat, and fome to fpare,
' It makes the fcythe both wipe and pare,'
meaning the grafs mould be cut fmooth and
fine. So Mr. Cotton laughed at his ruftical
wit, and faid c go to go to, thou art a wag ; '
and fo he turned away, and took his recreation
a-fifhing, and I am fure he was more entertained
than he chofe to tell them.
jfngler. They are happy fervants to be under
a mafter who is fb accoftable and fweet tem-
pered. But here comes the gentleman from
the fifhing-houfe.
Painter. So, brother, what fport ?
Angler. Excellent good. And how have you
fped ?
Painter. Thofe paintings in the fifliing-houfe
have detained me longer than I thought ; but
I have done them with all the correr,nefs I am
mafter of.
Angler. A thoufand thanks to you. But look
ye, a large fifh has come to me : I have him
faft ; now do you take the rod, and you mall
have the praife to kill this trout within view of
Mr. Cotton's fifhing-houfe.
'35
136
The River Dove.
Painter. It may be the ill luck to lofe one ;
for I fhall but bungle at him.
Angler. Come, be perfuaded, and quickly.
Painter. Well, then, I'll try a bout with
him. Ah me ! what an unmannerly glutton
it is.
Angler. Point your rod high keep him with
a fteady hand ; fo it is well done.
Painter. Ah me ! how he ftruggles there !
faw you that tumble he made ? Shall I jerk
him out ?
Angler. Oh, by no means j but have patience :
give him his play, and a little more line fo-ho !
that's enough hold up your rod there, now
wind him up with a difcretion, and we fhall
bring him to land prefently.
Painter. Where is the net ?
Angler. I have it ready ; fetch him round
hither.
Painter. There was a tug he gave : I fhall
lofe him befeech you take the rod again.
Angler. Pardon me, you fhall have your
fport : worry him a bit : fee how he lies on the
water this way, and now you have him, as you
well deferve.
Painter. That was exceeding fine fport; I
never thought the pleafures of angling were fo
great. I'm quite hot and confufed. He is a
The River Dove.
handfome fifh, fpotted red all over. How many
have you taken ?
Angler. Three trouts ; but this laft you have
fo handled like a fkilful 'prentice in the art is
worth them all : it is a heavy fim, and fee what
fine condition he's in. You (hall make another
trial lower down the ftream, where the water
is in rapids. But before we go let me fee your
paintings.
Painter. There they are ; and I was never
more in love with my employment, than when
I fat in the fifhing-houfe, and faw Mr. Walton
and Mr. Cotton looking upon me from the doors
of the beaufet. I have endeavoured all I could,
(but in vain) to delineate honeft Izaak, who
looks fo meekly.
Angler. Nay ; it is an exaft copy of yonder
portrait : what can be more winning than to
fee his mute calmnefs, which only happy anglers
know ! And Mr. Cotton, whofe native difpo-
fition {nines in that mirthful countenance, which
can be no other than his own. What fay you,
mine hoft, to this limning ; hath my brother
caught Mr. Cotton's look ?
Ho/I. Aye, Sir, to the life : indeed I con-
fefs myfelf furprifed how this gentleman hath
handled it. And fo for Mr. Walton, you
may now declare yourfelf to be acquainted
138 The River Dove.
with his perfon, and garb, and gefture.
Painter. I hope you fpeak freely as you
think, and then I am fatisfied ; and here is the
external of the fifhing-houfe, at a near view.
Angler. It is all exceeding good ; the lights
and fhades of this inviting fpot painted with a
perceptible truth.
Painter. And here is one more which is the
fifhing-houfe within doors ; and that, I muft
fay, is the beft of all.
dngler. I proteft this is even beyond your-
felf. ' Give me leave to embrace you' Why,
Sir, it is a matchlefs piece of art. Look you,
Mr. Marfli, there we all are, as like as poffible,
talking in the fiming-houfe.
Ho/t. I have never feen fuch a natural
painting.
Painter. Come, come, Sirs ; you fo en-
hance my poor deferts, you make me blum,
indeed you do.
jfngler. I fpeak nothing more than the truth :
the colours are admirable, and the whole is
breathing with life and there is the beaufet in
fmall and the rocks and river, and contented
anglers fitting befide them : every touch of
Mr. Rolfton glowing with an equal vivacity.
I cannot thank you enough.
Painter. Well, brother, the pleafure you ex-
'The River Dove.
prefs is a full reward for all my pains. So, if
you pleafe let us return towards thofe rocks we
pafled in our way from the ProfpecT: Tower.
Anglrr. Moft willingly ; and there it was I
had a purpofe in my mind, to put you in the
way to catch another trout.
Painter. But what have we yonder, oppofite
to this bend of the ftream ? It feems a fantaf-
tical place.
Ho/I. That, Sirs, is a green recefs, built up
by my matter, where he will fometimes have
his friends to dine in fummer, and now and
then give them a game of bowls for their en-
tertainment in the cool, of the evening. You
may fee the {helving fides are of foft mofly turf,
and made to lean upon at your length. I have
often been a witnefs. to the innocent mirth of
Mr. Cotton when he has entertained his guefts
underneath thofe trees ; as Mr. Alexander
Brome,* and Mr. Flatman, of the Inner Tem-
ple, in London, and others. And I remember,
it is many years now paft, (indeed it was that
memorable joyful year of the king's return from
* Alexander Brome, a poet, born i6zo, and died
1666, eminent for his loyalty. His congratulatory poem
on the miraculous and glorious return of Charles znd,
fol. was publimed 1660 ; and his fongs and poems, 1664.
8vo. ED.
'39
140
The River Dove.
his forced exile,) Mr. Walton fent my mafter
word, that he and their mutual friend, Mr.
Brome, chancing together to be in Stafford,
had challenged one the other to walk on pil-
grimage to Beresford, and make free with the
trouts in his river Dove. Well do I remember
the joy of my mafter, when he received the
letter : alas ! methinks thofe happy days fhall
never return.
Painter. Nay, Mr. Marfh : it is the per-
mitted liberty of an honeft reafon to * hope all
4 things ;' fortune will fometimes flout the beft
of men, and lead them forcibly through all forts
of contrary meanders and labyrinths ; but me
can never deject the fpirits of brave chriftian
men.* I befeech you entertain more cheerful
* Mr. Cotton's hopeful temper amidft his cares has
been well exprefied in thefe lines ' To my dear and moft
' worthy friend, Mr. Ifaac Walton.
' And fome delight it is the while,
' Though nature now does weep in rain,
* To think that I have feen her fmile,
' And haply may I do again.
' If the all-ruling Power pleafe
* We live to fee another May,
* We'll recompenfe an age of thefe
f Foul days in one fine fifliing day."
Poems on feveral Occafions. ED.
The River Dove.
thoughts : and did the introduction of Mr.
Brome follow this felf-invitation of the Stafford
pilgrims ?
Hoji. Aye, Sir : and Mr. Thomas Flatman
chanced at the time to be a gueft at the Hall,
a moft ingenious and alluring companion, who,
as I have heard my mafter jocofely fay, was the
happy accepted lover of two miftrefles.
jfngler. And yet, methinks, in his younger
days, he wrote a ballad againft the peaceable
joys of matrimony.
Painter. Mr. Cotton jefted merrily with his
friend, well knowing how at once he woo'd the
fifter arts of Poefy and Painting : * and, indeed,
fb evenly divided his affections between them,
that it may be doubted to which .he paid moft
fuccefsful courtlhip.
* Thomas Flatman. His poems were firft publifhed
in 1674, 8vo. The ballad here alluded to will be found
at p. 121. He afterwards took to him a wife, and was
ferenaded by his companions with his own contumelious
fong againft marriage. His own portrait defigned by
himfelf, is prefixed to his Poems : and the following
lines, in his * Pindarique Ode, The Reiiie-iv,'' are a tef-
timony to his praUce of limning ;
' To extricate myfelf from Love,
' Which I could ill obey, but worfe command,
' I took my Penfils in my hand ;
142
The River Dove.
Hojt. Well, Sir, when the meflage came
from Mr. Walton, my mafter and Mr. Flat-
man could fcarce exprefs the happy thoughts
that poflefled them ; only this I may fay, every
hour feemed to be an age till the arrival of
their friends ; and the fervants in the houfe
participated in the bufy expectation of their
coming ; and Mr. Walton's lodging chamber,
and one for Mr. Brome were prepared. Then
at length thefe friends had the happinefs to em-
brace each other ; and feeing it was in the heat
of fummer, Mr. Cotton brought them, after
dinner, to this recefs, and there entertained
them with pipes, and fruits, and wine ; and
becaufe it was foon after the king's happy and
glorious recovery of his throne, they fung fome
loyal fongs, and drank the king's health in old
Canary.
Angler. It was worthy of honeft cavaliers ;
and who is there would not gladly have joined
in fuch a merry-making ?
' With that artillery for conqueft ftrove :
' Like wife Pigmalion thus did I
' Myfelf defign my Deity.
' If (he did frown, one dam could make her fmile,
' All bickerings one eafy ftroke could reconcile :
' Thus did I quiet many a froward day,
' While in my eyes my foul did play.' ED.
The River Dove.
' Oh how happy was their leifure,
' Oh how innocent their pleafure !
' Oh ye vallies, oh ye mountains,
' Oh ye groves and cryftal fountains !
' How they loved to vi/itye,
' And too/} the king at liberty.''
Think, what a happy concurrence of four poets !
Methinks I now fee them, feated round this
ftone table, beneath the fhadowy fycamore-trees
and elms.
Painter. Four poets, fay you ? Thou haft
a creative fancy ; for Mr. Walton was but a
writer of profe ; notwithftanding, I am ready to
grant his images of rural life are as poetical as
any in our language, and his COMPLEAT AN-
GLER a continued paftoral, abounding in natural
refinement nay, equal to thofe of Phineas
Fletcher* or Michael Drayton.f
Angler. Doubt not, Sir, that Mr. Walton
may claim his niche in the Temple of the Mufes :
* Author of the Purple Ifland, printed 1633, 410.
and Pifcatory Eclogues, 1633, 4to. ED.
f Michael Drayton was an admirable poet, and
amongft other numerous works, wrote the Shepherd's
Garland, fafliioned in 9 Eglogs, which was printed in
1593, 4to. Alfo the POLY-ALBION, a chorographical
defcription of all the traces, rivers, mountains, forefts,
and other parts of this renowned ifle of Great Britain,
1611, 1613, and i6zz, all in folio. ED.
144
The River Dove.
and indeed, of all thofe who fung joyful quar-
tettes that day within this recefs, he had as clear
a title as any to be crowned with the bays of
Parnaflus : for when you read, as I hope you
will do, the ingenious poems of loyal Mr. Brome,
you will find in the prefix of'friendly encomiums
beftowed upon it, a moft joyous eclogue of Da-
mon and Dorus, and writ by Mr. Walton that
very day of the King's Majeftie's reftoration ;
indeed, I cannot give it a higher teftimony of
praife than that it is worthy of his fertile pen ;
and thus it begins ;
Damon.
' Hail happy day ! Doms, fit down ;
' Now let no figh, nor let no frown,
' Lodge near thy heart nor on thy brow :
* The King ! the King's return'd ! and now
' Let's banifh all fad thoughts, and fing
' ' We have our laws, and have our King.'
Dorus,
' "Pis true, and I would fing, but oh !
* Thefe wars have funk my heart fo low,
< 'Twill not be raifed.
Damon.
' What not this day ?
' Why, 'tis the twenty-ninth of May :
1 Let rebels' fpirits fink ; let thofe
That like the Goths and Vandals rofe
' To ruin families, and bring
' Contempt on our Church and King,
The River Dove.
H5
' And all that's dear to us, be fad ;
* But be not thou ; let us be glad.
* Yea, let us dance, make hands, and fing
' 'We have our laws : GOD SAVE THE KING.'*
Iz. Walton.
Painter. I fay Amen : and may we always
4 have our laws and have our King /' and now
let us walk higher up the ftream, which may
vie with the poetic Caftalia as the happy refort
of the Mufes.
Hojt. Gentlemen, you will find the river very
pleafant below, and when you are acrofs the
bridge by that rock, not many fteps paft the
fifhing-houfe, you will fuddenly find yourfelves.
in Derbyfhire.
Angler. I am ready for any thing, where all
is fo full of pleafure.
Hojt. And now that we are come to it, fo
pleafe you, I'll take my leave, for I have bufi-
nefs at Hartington : and here is the wallet with
a ftore of provifions for dinner ; and fo, Gen-
tlemen, my humble fervice to you ; I wifh you
good luck a-fifhing.
Angler. Farewell. Now, Brother, let us
crofs to the other fide into Derbyfhire, for fb
* To my ingenious friend, Mr. Brome, on his various
and excellent poems : an humble eglog. Damon and
Dorus. Written the 29th May, 1660. ED.
'The River Dove.
Mr. Cotton did with his friend VIATOR, and
promifed c a good fijb Jhould fall to bis Jhare.
Painter. I pray you ftay yet a moment within
this profpe6t, for I am wholly pofTefied with
fome peaceful thoughts, that I would not drive
away for any recreation you can promife me.
There is a murmur of the waters over that
ledge of rock, which keeps time with a mufical
meafure, and invites us to linger on the margin.
Think how many thoufand years the Dove
has flowed along this rocky dale, and (hall flow
for ages yet to come. So God provides for the
fuftaining of His works ; ' He fendeth the
c fprings into the valleys He watereth the hills
'from His chambers.''* And as the River is
to the natural world, fo is the CHURCH to GOD'S
fpiritual people on earth. In the 'firft begin-
nings flowing from the fountain of the precious
blood of His own eternal SON : alas ! a little
defpifed ftream that burft forth from Calvary ;
but deftined by His myfterious will to flow
through the world, gathering into herfelf and
purifying all the tributary branches to fwell her
into an unknown dignity and grandeur.
Angler. And who can exprefs the bleflings
me hath imparted to the nations by her admi-
* Pfalm civ. 10.
The River Dove.
niftration of holy facraments, and united wor-
mip, according to the infpired oracles, moulding
her children, after the pattern of their Saviour,
in innocency and love. Think of the happy
multitudes who have been warned in her facra-
mental element, as the appointed laver of rege-
neration ! Think how her ordinances and har-
monious doctrines, her miniftry and her creeds,
founded by the holy apoftles, have been the
fufficient cure of all heart-aches and corroding
cares, the refuge of all unquietnefs, and the very
bond of unity to all Catholic Chriftians fcattered
over the world !
Painter. And as me hath proceeded onwards
from the diftant apoftolic ages, bearing the image
of Chrift, fo me will continue to be the mother
of all, who are baptized into His death.
Angler. And notwith {landing profane fece-
ders, turning to their own inventions, mail fall
away, and vainly hope to ftop her courfe, and
fully the purity of her ftreams ; frill the promife
is fure, and (he mail flow on with her unceafing
tide, until at laft me mail pour all her collected
waters into the boundlefs ocean of eternity.
But come, let us purfue our quiet walks ;
for I verily believe there is nothing in all this
to forbid poor creatures of the earth taking their
innocent enjoyment. Indeed, all thefe vifible
148
The River Dove.
beauties of nature are but fweet expreffions of
the divine mind, that we mould rejoice in Him
who hath created them. But remember, when
the wifeft of men fays, l go thy way, eat thy
' bread with joy, and drink thy wine with a
1 merry heart,'* he adds, ' it is the gift of God^
whereof we fhall one day give an account. And
now I am ready to accompany you.
Painter. Come, then, for I have a great de-
fire to make my large trout a brace, fo let us to
our angles.
Angler. Look you, Brother, here I have a
fecond angle rod, that we may both fifti in
company ; now fay, whether it fhall be a fly
or a worm ? You are at liberty to make a
choice.
Painter. Not a doubt, but a worm and a
quill for me.
Angler. Nay, nay, let me perfuade you to
be a fly-fimerj aflure yourfelf it is a delicate
fport, worthy of an ingenious artift as you are ;
and all anglers are agreed that it is the plea-
fanteft and moft fkilful way to deceive trouts.
Painter. I will not lofe time in arguments ;
but remit you to honeft Izaak Walton, that is
henceforth my mafter of angling.
* Eccl. ix. 7.
'The River Dove.
Angler. As you will : here is your tackling ;
and now you are fitted ; fo let us go over the
bridge, that we may follow Mr. Cotton's foot-
fteps ; for be fure he muft know the likelicft
holes in his own river. And he faid to his
companion, 4 You Jhall now go downward to
4 fame jir earns between the rocks, below the little
4 foot bridge you fee there, and try your fortune.
4 Take heed of flipping into the water as you fol-
4 low me under the rock.' That is the very fpot
where you now ftand.
Painter. He muft be an unhandy clown,
that fhould flip, for there is room enough, and
to fpare.
Angler. Well, this is the fpot where he ad-
vifed VIATOR to throw in ; to which the other
replied : 4 This is a fineftream indeed ! There
4 is one / have him.'
4 And a precious catch you have of him,' an-
fwered Mr. Cotton, 4 pull him out ! I fee you
4 have a tender hand. This is a diminutive gen-
4 tleman, even throw him in again and let him
4 grow till he be more worthy your anger.'
4 Pardon me, Sir,' (then faid VIATOR) 4 all's
4 fifl) that comes to the hook with me now.'
Painter. Bravely refolved ; and I declare I
mean to follow this example, if I have permif-
fion to do fo.
149
The River Dove.
Angler. You fhall do as you lift. Only l fijh
' me this Jtream by inches ,' after Mr. Cotton's
inftru&ions.
Painter. With all my heart, and I am fo
much in love with his river and his inftruc-
tions, that I fcarce know which to think the
beft.
Angler. Well then, to make you love them
both the more, you are to underftand VIATOR
caught another and another. After that Pis-
CATOR invited him * to go down the other fide,
' lower, where you will find finer Jlreams and
c better fport, I hope, than this ; ' fo let us do
the fame.
Painter. Wherever you pleafe.
Angler. Now we are over the bridge and
into the Peak of Derbyfhire ; and here it was
the ingenious fifhers pleafed themfelves and
each other with a difcourfe on angling : and
thought their recreation was innocent, as being
an encourager of cheerfulnefs, patience, and
brotherly kindnefs. So do you begin ; but keep
at your diftance, left the fifties fee you, before
you get a glimpfe of them ; for you are to re-
member the Dove is one of the cleareft rivers
in all England. Now let your quill go with
the ftream by the bank yonder, for hereabouts
it was PISCATOR aflured him, there were very
'The River Dove.
good fifh ; ' both trout and grayling lie here ;
4 and at that GREAT STONE on the other fide,
4 'tis ten to one a good trout gives you the
' meeting.'
Painter. Then I'll offer him all the temp-
tation I can. Ah ! faw you that, Mr. Angler,
my quill went under the water ; and there
again !
Angler. I pray you be quiet : now ftrike,
but as Mr. Cotton fays, ' with moderation.'
Painter. So, I have him tight.
Angler. Be gentle ; he is gone, as I feared.
Painter. 'Twas my haftinefs ! I incautioufly
ftrained at him : but you {hall find me manage
the next with greater {kill.
Angler. Truft me, you have your leflbn to
learn ; for angling is no lefs an art than a plea-
fure, and one that requires both patience and
fkill.
Painter. That I plainly fee : but I have
baited my hook again : and there is another
pulling at my worm. Now, if I do not vex
him, call me no fifherman : aye, aye, mafter,
you may plunge and fhift as you will j but I
hold you now.
Angler. Have a care, for he is a fine one.
Painter. Fear me not ; you {hall fee the
manner of my handling : but there ! he has
152
The River Dove.
thrown off into the middle of the ftream ; how
he dives and plucks about ! I hope he will not
demolifh my tackle.
Angler. Well, then, do not tear him about
too much.
Painter. What a rage he is in ! fo, fo
he begins to ficken. Where's the net ? thank
you we have him. Now, Sirrah : where are
you ? I declare he is as big as the other I
caught up yonder. And now, brother, that I
may not hinder you, leave me here alone, with
my angle rod ; and I befeech you let me have
that pleafant book, which Mr. Walton and Mr.
Cotton have printed together, with a love fo
communicable ; that while I recline on this
bank, I may remember how they have often
done the fame thing : and it may be I will leave
my angle rod for a time, 4 to fim for itfelf,' and
make a landfkip ; for look how pleafantly the
Profpet Tower hangs over our heads : and I
am fure that rock is a hundred feet high ; and
is crowned with oak and am trees, that grow
in all the crevices.
Angler. There are many paflages of rare
beauty in all this glade ; and fince you are fo
difpofed, I will invite you to that rifing ground,
and there you {hall defign the fiming-houfe,
and the Tower on the rock, fo as I may have a
The River Dove.
'53
combination of thofe two with the bridge, and
all the river and the craggy fides. It will be a
choice profpecl: !
Painter. You are right, and it (hall be done
to the beft of my abilities ; but I'll lay my angle
in the river, near to that c great JloneJ fb that
I may have my chance of a trout whilft I'm at
work.
Angler. And becaufe you leave your angle
for my fake, I will read fome pafTages out of
Mr. Walton's COMPLETE ANGLER for your
entertainment before I begin fifhing. Here
is not this a favourable fpot ?
Painter. Aye : come, let us fit on this grafs,
that fmells fo fweetly of wild flowers ; and do
you make a choice out of Mr. Walton's book.
Angler. Well, then, you may remember,
that on a time, in a cheerful morning in the
month of May, VENATOR, a huntfman, walked
out towards Hodfden, (that is a country village
not many miles from London,) where he had
appointed a friend or two to meet him, that they
might beftow a day on hunting the otter. Then,
by the way, he fell into the company of a Gen-
tleman Falconer, and as thefe were come toge-
ther to Tottenham Crofs, in Hertfordfhire, Mr.
Walton overtook them : fo, after his own civil
manner he accofted the ftrangers, and afked of
The River Dove.
their journey and occafions, faying, ' You are
' well overtaken, gentlemen, a good morning to
' you both. I have ftretched my legs up Tot-
1 tenham Hill to overtake you, hoping your
* bufmefs may occafion you towards Ware,
' whither I am going this fine frefh May morn-
c ing.' Now, Mr. Walton poflefles that be-
nignity of fpirit, and fuch a winning method of
difcourfe, that you may eafily believe ' he made
c the way feem fhorter' by his good company.
Painter. He fhould be a pattern of cheerful
gravity, or he has, I know not what, artifice
to make himfelf appear fo, fince his writings
betoken fo many endowments of native gen-
tlenefs.
Angler. But that it is no artifice I may take
upon me to declare, and to fay the truth, an
inbred fweetnefs and compliance are notable,
both in his look and words ; infomuch that
AUCEPS, the falconer, on his firft acquaintance,
took the liberty to fay : c Methinks, Sir, we may
' promife good difcourfe from you that both
' look and fpeak fo cheerfully.'
Painter. Then after thofe polite falutations
they were all inclinable to travel pleafantly to-
wards Ware ?
Angler. And as they walked and converfed,
they praifed their feveral recreations : and firft,
'The River Dove.
Mr. AUCEPS, the falconer, exercifed their at-
tention concerning the element he ufed to trade
in, which was the air ; and he would fain make
it clear, that this was ' an element that exceeds
' both the earth and water ; and, though I fome-
' times deal in both,' (this is what Mr. AUCEPS
faid) ' yet the air is moft properly mine ; I and
' my hawks ufe that moft, and it yields us moft
c recreation ; it flops not the foaring of my
' noble, generous falcon ; in it fhe afcends to
' fuch a height as the dull eyes of beafts and
' fifh are not able to reach to ; their bodies are
' too grofs for fuch high elevations : in the air
' my troops of hawks foar up on high, and
' when they are loft in the fight of men, then
' they attend upon and converfe with the gods ;
' therefore I think my eagle is fo juftly ftyled
' Jove's fervant in ordinary : and that very fal-
' con, that I am now going to fee, deferves no
4 meaner a title, for fhe ufually in her flight
1 endangers herfelf, like the fon of Daedalus,
' to have her wings (torched by the fun's heat,
' fhe flies fo near it : but her mettle makes her
' carelefs of danger ; for fhe then heeds nothing,
' but makes her nimble pinions cut the fluid
4 air, and fo makes her highway over the
1 fteepeft mountains and deepeft rivers, and in
1 her glorious career looks with contempt upon
56
The River Dove.
4 thofe high fteeples and magnificent palaces
' which we adore and wonder at ; from which
1 height I can make her to defcend by a word
1 from my mouth (which fhe both knows and
4 obeys) to accept of meat from my hand, to
4 own me for her mafter, to go home with me,
4 and be willing the next day to afford me the
' like recreation.' Now, is not that a cheerful
defcription ? and, that I may not be thought
immoderate, I will omit many pafTages ; but I
befeech you liften to the praifes that Mr. Fal-
coner makes of 4 thofe little nimble muficians
4 of the air, that warble forth their curious dit-
1 ties, with which nature hath furnimed them
4 to the fhame of art. As firft the lark, when
4 fhe means to rejoice ; to cheer herfelf and
4 thofe that hear her ; fhe then quits the earth,
4 and fings as fhe afcends higher into the air,
4 and having ended her heavenly employment,
4 grows then mute and fad, to think fhe mufl
4 defcend to the dull earth, which fhe would not
4 touch, but for neceflity.'
Painter, Aye ! 4 grows then mute and fad
4 to think fhe muft defcend to the dull earth !'
How natural that is ! Mr. Walton's words are
more mufical than the fong of the lark and
his flrains higher than her aerial flight, for they
bring you nearer to thoughts of heaven.
'The River Dove.
Angler. Then he proceeds : c How do the
c blackbird and throflel with their melodious
c voices bid welcome to the cheerful Spring,
' and in their fixed mouths warble forth fuch
' ditties as no art or inftrument can reach to !
c Nay, the fmaller birds alfo do the like, in
4 their particular feafons, as, namely, the leve-
' rock, the titlark, the little linnet, and the
' honeft robin, that loves mankind both alive
' and dead.'
Painter. Beautiful ! < the honeft robin that
4 loves mankind both alive and dead ;' that has
an allufion to the ballad of the Babes in the
Wood, a fad and fimple hiftory that fo mightily
touches the affections of children.
' Thefe pretty babes, with hand in hand,
Went wandering up and downe,
But never more could fee the man
Approaching from the towne.
' Their prettye lippes with blackberries
Were all befmear'd and dyed,
And when they faw the darkfome night
They fat them downe and cryed.
' Thus wandered thefe two little babes
Till death did end their grief,
In one another's arms they dyed
As babes wanting reliefe.
' No burial this pretty pair
Of any man receives,
'57
158
'The River Dove.
Till Robin red-breaft painfully
Did cover them with leaves.'*
Stop, dear brother ; for I would not have you
to mar thofe paflages you have now cited out of
Mr. Walton by fome that are worfe.
Angler. Liften to one more, and I have done.
4 But the nightingale, another of my airy crea-
4 tures, breathes fuch fweet loud mufic out of
4 her little instrumental throat, that it might
4 make mankind to think miracles are not
' ceafed. He that at midnight, when the very
' labourer fleeps fecurely, mould hear, as I have
4 very often, the clear airs, the fweet defcants,
4 the natural rifing and falling, the doubling and
4 redoubling of her voice, might well be lifted
4 above earth, and fay, Lord, what mufic haft
4 thou provided for the faints in heaven, when
4 thou afforded bad men fuch mufic on earth !'
Painter. I now remember that defcription :
it is beyond my praife ; it is all mufic together,
and I declare to you, I know not which I am
moft in love with the fong of the nightingale,
* The original of this ballad is to be found in ' A
' handfull of Pleafant Delites,'' contayning fundrie new
Sonets and dele6lable Hiftories in divers kinds of meters,
newly devifed to the neweft tunes. At London, 1584.
Printed by Richard Jhones, dwelling at the fign of the
Rofe and Crown, near Holbourne Bridge. ED.
The River Dove.
or the meek penman who hath fet that fong to
fuch mufic.
Angler. I told you the writings of Mr. Wal-
ton have a power to unlock the affedtions ;
and I am fo bold as to aflure you, that many
men I could name, who mocked at timers and
riming, before they had perufed the COMPLETE
ANGLER, have been moved to pradlife his art
by the perfuafive arguments they have found
in it.
Painter. That I can believe, and for my
part I am almoft brought to wifh myfelf a Fal-
coner by thefe teftimonies which AUCEPS hath
adduced to the praife of his c noble, generous
* hawks, and thofe little nimble muficians of
' the air.'
Angler. Stay a while, till I bring before you
what the merry huntfman had to fay for his
recreation ; and after that the commendations
Mr. Walton beftows on the greater excellency
of his own happy art of angling. But now I
perceive you have made an outline of this land-
fkip, fo let us go down to the lower ftreams of
the river, where I have fomething better to
mow you.
Painter. I am not willing to doubt any thing
you fay : but what can you find more full of
beauty than thefe landfkips hereabouts ?
'59
i6o
The River Dove.
Angler. Of that I fhall give you leave to
judge when I have brought you to a fpot will
enchant you ; and there you may be fure to
catch a good fifti.
Painter. Well then, let us be doing ; and
now I think it is time to repair to my angle,
that I left in the water to fifh for itfelf.
Angler. There it is, and fo take it up.
Painter. How now ! my worm and hook
both gone ! Look you ! and it may be I have
loft a good trout, whilft I was charmed with
thofe fong-birds, that fung fo fweetly out of Mr.
Walton's aviary.
Angler. Never mind, you fhall prefently
4 try a fair with another ; and pray take notice,
that trout was not loft, for quiet Mr. Walton
fays, 4 no man can lofe what he never had.'
Ah ! ha ! faw you that fifh ? he rofe juft
above yonder great ftone on the other fide. If
I have any luck, I fhall land him prefently.
Painter. You have caft your fly in the very
fpot ; and there ! look there he is again.
Angler. I have him faft.
Painter. See what a fummerfault he made !
Angler. He mould be a trout from his nim-
blenefs, and a plumper too.
Painter. I befeech you handle him like an
artift here is the net and all ready haul him in.
The River Dove.
Angler. Not fo faft not fo faft, brother
let him have his time.
Painter. There again ! faw you that leap he
gave ? By my word you have the right knack.
Angler. Now you obferve he has a running
line and now I may bring him up again fo,
fo he has done his worft now fetch the net ;
but if you love me, manage him with a prudent
hand ; fo, you performed it handfomely ; and a
fine fifti he is : come, let us go down to PIKE
POOL. I know not how it may fare with you ;
but methinks it fhould be near to dinner-
time.
Painter. In plain truth I am well difpofed to
play my part at that.
Angler. Away then by this bank, where the
ftream becomes broader. See how it hurries by
that bed of rock with a loud murmuring.
Painter. How now ! there is a rock in the
river like a church fteeple, and forty feet
high!
Angler. That is the PIKE POOL you have
heard of.
Painter. Say you fo ? what a fpot of folitude
is here !
Angler. Now tell me is not this a charming
nook for a reclufe angler ? But here we muft
make our paflage once more into Staffordfhire,
162
The River Dove.
by thefe cobble ftones, that we may come to
the margin of the POOL ; for you fee we are
Hopped on this fide by the rocks.
Painter. I am willing to follow you.
Angler. Look well to your footing, and give
me the wallet ; for I fear you will let that drop
into the water, and now your hand fo
Painter. We are well over ; and of all
places I have feen, this is furpafling in beauty.
Surely it is a rocky dell, that is worthy of a
poet's praife : now if Petrarch had fung of his
Laura by thefe rocks, they would be thought
as fine as Vauclufe ; and this ftream as bright
and nimble as the Sorga itfelf, which I was
once happy enough to vifit as I pafled by Avig-
non towards Italy : and was permitted the lei-
fure to fketch fome imperfect limnings of the
rtrangely fhaped and rugged rocks, from which
the myfterious fount of the river gufhes into
daylight. It is true I may not boaft to have
caught my brace of trouts in its limpid ftreams ;
but I tafted fome ildlfully dreft by the civil hof-
tefs of the village inn that is called after the
name of the Poet. Oh Sir, if you had there
been the companion of my prolonged wander-
ings, with what delight fhould we have perufed
together thofe unimitable poems of Petrarch !
And do you recoiled} how he fays,
The River Dove.
163
' I/acque parlan d'amore, e Taura e i rami
' E gli augeletti, e i pefci, e i fiori, e Terba,
' Tutti infieme pregando ch'io fempr'ami.'
Angler. I remember the lines. And be it
known to you, Petrarcha was himfelf a brother
of the angle.
Painter. Nay, Sir, your authority for this ?
I grant you, the impaflioned poet might grave
the name of his Laura on the hard rocks, or
picture to his imagination her beautiful image
reflected in the deep clear caverns of the river ;
4 Or in forma di Ninfa or d'altra Diva
' Che dal piu chiaro fondo di Sorga efca
' E pongafi a federe in fu la riva : '
but I cannot be perfuaded to believe that fo
hopelefs a lover could be a happy angler. He
that was the moft learned of his age, and Poet
Laureat crowned with the triple garland at
Rome, an angler !
Angler. Happy or unhappy learned or un-
learned I may tell you he was a fifher ; and
be thefe lines my witnefs, which you may find
in his latin works ;
' Retia mine funt arma mihi, et labyrinthius error
' Viminea contextus acu ; qui pervius undis
' Pifcibus eft career, nulla remeabilis arte :
' Pro gladiis curves hamos, fallacibus efcis
' Implicitos, tremulafque fudes, parvumque tridentem
164
The River Dove.
PISCATOR modo fa6his ego, quo terga natantum
Siftere jam didici, duroque affigere faxo.
Primitias en flumineae tranfmittimus artis
Et verfus quot Claufa domos habet arftaque Vallis,
Qjise tibi pifciculos et ruftica carmina pafcit.'*
Painter. Marry, Sir, after thofe harmonious
verfes that you have fo fixedly treafured up in
your memory it is undeniable you may have
the honour to claim Petrarcha for one of your
fraternity.
Angler. And what was more natural than
he fhould feek an inward confolation for his
difeafed thoughts in fo quiet and fweet a re-
creation ; and on the banks of his loved river
indulge his thoughts with thofe 'Vifions' of
the departed Laura, which Matter Edmund
Spenferf hath rendered from the Italian into
harmonious Englifh verfe :
Within this wood, out of a rocke did rife
A fpring of water, mildly rumbling downe,
Whereto approached not in anie wife
The homely mepheard, nor the ruder clowne ;
But many Mufes, and the Nymphes withall,
That fweetly in accord did tune their voyce
* Lib. III. Epift. 3.
f The Vifions of Petrarch, 'formerly tranjlated* by
Edmund Spenfer, at the age of 14: originally printed
in a book of fome rarity, ' The Theatre of JOHN VAN-
' DER NOODT.' 8 1569. ED.
The River Dove.
' To the foft founding of the waters fall ;
' That my glad hart thereat did much rejoyce.
* But while herein I tooke my chiefe delight,
' I faw (alas) the gaping earth devoure
' The fpring, the place, and all cleane out of fight ;
' Which yet aggrieves my hart even to this houre,
' And wounds my foule with rufull memorie,
' To fee fuch pleafures gon fo fuddenly.'
But now look around, and tell me, you that
have feen famed VAUCLUSE, if this dell be not
more woody and umbrageous than the banks
of the Sorga ; and look at the doublings and
wrenches of the ftream, which make it the moft
fingular place that can be imagined for natural
beauties ; and let me tell you, they have been
defigned by Mr. Ifaac Walton, junior, the fon
of our mafter of angling.
Painter. How ! has Mr. Walton a fon, and
a limner too ?
Angler. You may take Mr. Cotton's word
for that.
Painter. Then I mail be inclined to love
him for more reafons than one.
Angler. Well, then, you muft know, Pis-
CATOR and VIATOR having fifhed the c ftream
4 by inches,' came lower down, and then fud-
denly VIATOR exclaimed, c But what have we
' got here ? a rock fpringing up in the middle
4 of the river ! This is one of the oddeft fights
1 66
The River Dove.
' that ever I fan;.' To this PISCATOR replied,
c Why, Sir, from that Pike that you fee ftand-
c ing up there, dijiant from the rock, that is
' called Pike Pool, and young Mr. Ifaac Walton
4 was fo plea fed with it, as to draw it in land-
' Jkip, in black and white, in a blank book I have
' at home, as he has done feveral profpefts of my
' houfe alfo, which I keep for a memorial of his
'favour.'
Painter. A book full of landfkips did you
fay ! in black and white, and all done by the
hand of Mr. Izaak Walton, junior ? that were
indeed a treafure to poflefs ! But come ; let
us repofe ourfelves along thefe fhady banks that
Mr. Walton, and his fon, and Mr. Cotton all
loved, and that deferve to be loved by every
honeft angler. See thefe wild flowers, which
fpring around, and make a foft cufhion for us ;
here is the wild thyme, the Nottingham catch-
fly, and coltsfoot, and violets
Angler. And what is no lefs germaine to
the prefent argument, a handfome repaft !
So let us fall to't. Here is an excellent cake,
and fome hang'd martinmas beef; with a mea-
fure or two of mine Hoft's good ale. Are you
prepared ?
Painter. I may warrant you, and no wife
dainty after our long walk.
The River Dove.
167
Angler. O that we could now poflefs our
dear accomplifh'd Civilian, that hath more learn-
ing than both you and I together !
Painter. Aye; if he were here reclining with
us by the fide of PIKE POOL, our entertainment
would be complete : and let us not defpair to
inveigle him hither next month of May.
Angler. Well, I have known ftranger things
come to pafs ; and now, if you pleafe, we'll
drink his health in a loving cup of barley wine.
Painter. A worthy toaft ! fill to the brim !
Angler. To the brim.
Both. Here is a health to our polite Mr.
ST. 0.
Angler. A true lover of honeft Izaak ; and
to hear him defcant on the gentle craft, you
might declare him to be a pra&ifed difciple.
Painter. Then what fay you to his books
of emblems and engraved pictures of angling ?
and do not forget that ebony cabinet in his
chambers in Lincoln's Inn, furniftied with all
ancient treatifes of your art, and other merry
fports and paftimes of England.
Angler. Aye ; and I love him the more for
his love of my mafters : and though he hath
never wetted a line, nor foiled his hofen in
purfuit of the finny tribes, yet in imagination
i68
The 'River Dove.
he hath done both one and the other : and is no
lefs verfed in the philofophy of angling than
learned in Lord Coke's Inftitutes, and the Law
of Nations.
Angler. I wifh him all health ; and may he
ever poflefs Sir Chriftopher Hatton's moderate
defires, and be able to fing,
' I weigh not fortune's frowne nor fmile,
' I joye not much in worldly joyes ;
' I feek not ftate, I reake not ftyle,
' I am not fond of fancie's toyes !
' I reft fo pleafed with what I have,
' I wifh no more, no more I crave.'
Painter. So fay I. And now remember
your promife, and give me the huntfman's ar-
guments in praife of his paftime of hunting,
when he was in the company of Mr. Walton
and the Falconer, all the while they walked to
Hodfden.
Angler. Moft willingly ; and you are to know,
when Mr. Falconer broke off his difcourfe, and
entreated VENATOR to fay his beft in praife of
the chafe, that honeft candid huntfman began
with a commendation of the earth, being that
element upon which he drives his ' pleafant
' wholefome hungry trade ; ' and then declared,
that c hunting is a game for princes and noble
' perfons ; it hath been highly prized in all
The River Dove.
169
' ages ; it was one of the qualifications that
' Xenophon beftowed on his Cyrus, that he
1 was a hunter of wild beafts. Hunting trains
4 up the younger nobility to the ufe of manly
' exercifes in their riper age. What more manly
4 exercife than hunting the wild boar, the ftag,
4 the buck, the fox, or the hare ? How doth
4 it preferve health, and increafe ftrength and
1 activity ? '
Painter. Wellfaid, Mr. Huntfman; pr'ythee
proceed.
Angler. 4 And for the dogs that we ufe, who
4 can commend their excellency to that height
4 which they deferve ? How perfect is the
c hound at fmelling, who never leaves or for-
t fakes his firft fcent, but follows it through fo
1 many changes and varieties of other fcents,
4 even over and in the water, and into the
c earth ! What mufic doth a pack of dogs then
4 make to any man, whofe heart and ears are fo
c happy as to be fet to the tune of fuch inftru-
4 ments ! How will a right greyhound fix his
4 eye on the beft buck in the herd, fingle him
4 out, and follow him, and him only, through a
4 whole herd of rafcal game, and ftill know, and
4 then kill him ! For my hounds, I know the
4 language of them, and they know the language
4 and meaning of one another as perfectly as we
The River Dove.
1 know the voices of thofe with whom we dif-
4 courfe daily.'
Painter. Aye, I warrant you, PISCATOR had
need of all his eloquence to overcome thefe
winning arguments in favour of the noble fport
of hunting. And what more did VENATOR
fay?
jfngler. At length he gently excufed himfelf
from enlarging his difcourfe, and faid, 4 I will
4 not be fo uncivil to Mr. PISCATOR, as not to
4 allow him time for the commendation of an-
' gling, which he calls an art, but doubtlefs it is
' an eafy one ; and, Mr. AUCEPS, I doubt we
' (hall hear a watery difcourfe of it ; but I hope
4 it will not be a long one.'
Painter. And how did PISCATOR reply to
this pleafant jefting ?
Angler. He received it as a well-bred angler
would do, and thus replied : ' Gentlemen, let
4 not prejudice prepofTefs you.' Do you obferve
how enured Mr. Walton is to meeknefs and
patience ? And you (hall fee, by-and-by, that
he was able to bring forward a flore of argu-
ments and examples to prove the greater excel-
lence of his art of angling. But firft, I am
for another cup of ale. And here's a health to
Mr. Walton and his fon, and Mr. Cotton, his
adopted fon, that have often fat where we now
'The River Dove.
fit, and I have no doubt with hearts as thankful
as I hope ours to be.
Painter. I drink to all three.
Angler. And here's a good wifh for a fouth
wind, that Mr. Thomas Barker fays, 4 blows
4 the fly in the trout's mouth,'* and good fport
to all anglers.
Painter. To fuch of them as be honeft
men.
Angler. Let me tell you, all true brothers of
the angle are honeft men.
Painter. Agreed, agreed. So here's a fouth
wind to all anglers. And now, whilft you en-
tertain me with PISCATOR'S difcourfe, fo fuitable
to this occafion, I will defign that rock and the
* And fo thought Mr. Charles Cotton ; as witnefs
thefe lines :
' To my dear and moft worthy friend, Mr. Izaak
Walton.
' A day without too bright a beam,
' A warm, but not a fcorching fun,
' A.fouthern gale to curl the ftream,
' And, matter, half our 'work is done.
' There, whilft behind fome bufti we wait,
' The fcaly people to betray,
' We'll prove it juft with treacherous bait
' To make the preying trout our prey.'
POEMS on SEVERAL OCCASIONS, p. 115 ED.
172
'The River Dove.
pool, and thefe umbrageous trees, which give
us their flicker from the fun.
Angler. I thank you, and fhall efteem it as
highly as the landfkips of Mr. Walton junior,
that lately returned from his travels to Rome,
in company with his kinfman, pious Mr. Tho-
mas Ken, Fellow of St. Mary Winton College,
in Winchefter.
Painter. How ! did you fay with Mr. Ken ?
he that is chaplain to Dr. Morley, the felf-de-
nying Bifhop of Winton, who maintains the pri-
mitive doctrine and difcipline, and has reftored
the daily fervice in his Churches ?
Angler. Thefame ; and follows the Bifhop's
example of an afcetic life even in the midft of
this luxurious age : and has lately writ c A
c Manual of Prayers and Devotions for the ttfe
c of the Schollars of Winch eft er School^* where
he himfelf was trained to learning and good
manners.
Painter. Indeed ! a book that moft lovingly
perfuades young chriflians to dedicate their ten-
der age to the fervice of God.
Angler. And I can never forget a difcourfe I
once heard him preach to the poor in St. John's
Church, in the Soke near Winchefter, wherein
* The firft edition was printed, 1674, for J. Martyn.
'The River Dove.
he exhorted them to the duties and privileges of
holinefs, and with fuch a fweet and melting elo-
quence that when he told them of Chrift's
whole life of fuffering for their fakes, he drew
tears from many eyes.
Painter. But how did it come to pafs that he
fhould travel with Mr. Walton junior ?
dngler. Becaufe of his affection for old Ifaak,
who had been his early counfellor and guide,
when he was left an orphan : for Mr. Walton
had married his fifter, Miftrefs Ann Ken, 4 a
4 woman of remarkable prudence, and of the
' primitive piety :' but (he is now at reft, and
4 lyeth buried, fo much as could dye,' in the
bleffed Virgin Mary's Chapel in the Cathedral
in Worcefter.
Painter. Well : he could not make a more
grateful return for the father's love, than to
take upon him the part of Mentor to the fon in
his foreign travels : but come, I remember me
how the Hoft faid, Mr. Walton had good luck
in this pool, and I defire to follow his example,
and wheedle a big trout for our fupper.
Angler. And fo you {hall ; and becaufe you
have loft your hook, I'll fhow you how to fix
another.
Painter. Grazie^ Pefcatore mio.
Angler. Let me find a hook with two horfe
'74
'The River Dove.
hairs twifted together : here it is, and you may
fee a loop at the end. Now mark, put the loop
of the fifh-line through this loop of the hook,
and then bring the hook through the loop in the
fifh-line, and draw them tight together fb
and here is a frefh brandling, and now you are
fitted.
Painter. O' my word, 'tis neatly done ; fo,
I have laid my rod. Come, Sir, begin : How
pleafant this is !
Where in a brook
With a hook,
Or a lake
Fifti we take,
There we fit
For a bit
Till we fifh entangle.
None do here
Ufe to fwear ;
Oaths do fray,
Fifli away.
We fit ftill
And watch our quill,
Fifhers muft not wrangle.
But let us have the angler's grave, watery ar-
guments : I am inquifitive to hear what he will
make againft the Hunter.
Angler. Not fo grave, I promife you ; but
full of empaflioned eloquence and no lefs inge-
nuity. Thus then he began, c Gentlemen, let
The River Dove.
4 not prejudice prepoflefs you. I confefs my
1 difcourfe is like to prove fuitable to my recrea-
4 tion, calm and quiet ; we feldom take the
4 name of God into our mouths, but it is either
4 to praife him or pray to him ; if others ufe it
4 vainly in the midft of their recreations, fo
4 vainly as if they meant to conjure, I muft tell
4 you it is neither our fault nor our cuftom ;
4 we proteft againft it. But, pray remember,
4 I accufe nobody ; for as I would not make a
4 watery difcourfe, fo I would not put too much
4 vinegar into it ; nor would I raife the reputa-
4 tion of my own art, by the diminution or ruin
4 of another's. And fo much for the prologue
4 to what I mean to fay.' After that, with ar-
guments excellently contrived, he praifed his
own loved element and occupation, and ufed
every allowable artifice to fhow how they are
more excellent than all others. I could now
open to you many paffages of his difcourfe, that
have all the natural fragrancy of wild flowers
fcattered with a carelefs hand ; and whilft he
fets forth the beauty of the works of God, you
may be lifted to praife the Maker of them for
that moft wonderful attribute His loveto man.
Indeed, he applied himfelf with fo great a zeal
to the commendation of angling, and heightened
his difcourfe by fo many harmonious digreflions
176
'The River Dove.
and teftimonies to the pleafure and high efteem
thereof, that, when they arrived at Theobald's
Park, whither the Falconer was proceeding to a
friend's houfe, who mewed a hawk for him, he
declared to PISCATOR, c I now part with you
c full of good thoughts, not only of yourfelf, but
' of your recreation.' And yet, let me tell you,
he did but a fhort-time before profefs to pity
anglers, ' becaufe of their heavy contemptible
' dull recreation.'
Painter. And after the Falconer was gone,
did VENATOR exprefs any civil difpofition to-
wards anglers ?
Angler. Aye ; for you have feen how his
purpofe was to hunt the Otter at Hodfden, that
was three miles further ; and fo he continued
his walk with Mr. Walton, who all the while
purfued his difcourfe of rimes and fiihing.
Painter. Indeed! then his difcourfe was three
miles long ! All the while, fay you, till they
came to Hodfden ?
Angler. And not only fo ; but without any
averfenefs in Mr. VENATOR.
Painter. Then, I cannot but confider him
the meekeft and moft polite man in the world,
to liften with a cheerful willingnefs to fo long
a commendation of an art that he had c heard
' many merry huntfmen make fport and feoff at.'
'The River Dove.
Angler. Be not fo confident ; flay a little,
and I fhall make you confefs that Mr. Walton
adorned his arguments with fuch a matchlefs
commixture of learning and eloquence, as made
his praife of angling like fweet mufic even to
the huntfman's ear ; for when they were left
together, after the Falconer was gone to his
friend's houfe, Mr. Walton invited his com-
panion to enlarge his difcourfe on hunting, and
promifed he mould ' neither want time nor his
4 attention to hear it.' But this the other gently
declined, becaufe he was kindled with a defire to
hear how Mr. Walton could perfuade him that
angling was l of great antiquity, and a perfect:
4 art, and an art not eafily attained to ; ' the
which if he could do, he promifed to 4 attend
c him a day or two a-fifhing, and become his
c fcholar.' Whereupon Mr. Walton was charm-
ed with the hope of the Huntfman's converfion;
and he did, by obvious arguments, poffefs his
mind with the fame high and happy thoughts
as himfelf had the enjoyment of; for he con-
vinced him how it was an excellent and a plea-
fant art c to deceive a trout, that is more fharp-
' fighted than any hawk,' and how ' the man
' that hopes to be a good angler muft not only
' bring an inquiring, fearching, obferving wit,
c but he muft bring a large meafure of hope and
A A
178
T*he River Dove.
' patience, and a love and a propenfity to the
1 art itfelf.'
Painter. And thus Mr. Walton, by an allur-
ing fuavity, perfuaded the Huntfman that angling
was near a-kin to wifdom, c all her ways plea-
4 fantnefS) and her paths peace !' *
Angler. Doubtlefs, and I would have you
underftand that Mr. Walton, who is a known
lover of truth, here declares that he has difco-
vered, by a practical acquaintance with his art,
4 the very fitting by the river's fide is not only
4 the quieteft and fitteft place for contemplation,
' but will invite an angler to it ; and fettle his
4 mind in a quiet repofe, and there make him
4 fit for revelation.' Then, after many more
examples to the lawfulnefs and high efteem of
angling, he declares, that c whofoever fhall view
4 the ancient ecclefiaftical canons, fhall find
4 hunting to be forbidden to Churchmen, as
4 being a turbulent, toilfome, perplexing recrea-
4 tion ; and fhall find angling allowed, as being
4 a harmlefs recreation that invites them to con-
4 templation and quietnefs.'
Painter. This methinks is fuitable ; for fo
pious minifters may forth into the meadows,
and there fit and angle in a retirement, and
* Prov. iii. IT.
The River Dove.
unbend their minds from too clofe ftudy ; and,
moreover give glory to God, when they fee
the rocks and waters that He hath formed, and
the v/hole earth fpangled with flowers or other
ornaments, for the fervice and delight of man-
kind.
Angler. And I believe that every hour of
innocent freedom from the cold-hearted hu-
mours of the world, and every fecret inftindt of
reverence and affection towards God is a ftep
forward in our path to the unfeen glories of
His prefence. 4 And it is only while we are
4 ftill that we are like a tranquil water reflecting
4 Heaven.' Thus, VENATOR became more
and more charmed into an attention, until Mr.
Walton brought him to the perfuafion that
angling was 4 an employment full of various
' pleafures and events ; ' and after that declared,
how 4 learned William Perkins, Dr. Whitaker,
4 and Dr. Nowel, fometime Dean of the Ca-
' thedral Church of St. Paul, in London, fb
' noted for his meek fpirit, deep learning, pru-
c dence, and piety, were dear lovers and con-
4 ftant pradlifers of angling.'
Painter. I dare not deny the commendations
Mr. Walton beftows on timing, if peaceful Dr.
Nowel gave his authority to the enjoyment of
it; for he was a moft excellent example of
179
i8o
The River Dove.
ancient fimplicity and holinefs ; and who can
tell the deep fearchings of his fpirit into the
truths revealed in the facred fcripture ! as wit-
nefs his Church Catechifm, and the part he
took in drawing up the Articles of our Faith,
which mall be the guiding ftar of happy Eng-
land amidft the rocks, and (helves, and quick-
fands, and cloudy ftorms of ages yet to come.
Angler. Alas ! I have a fad forecafting of
times, when the Church (and through her fide
the Commonwealth of England) fhall be again
afTailed by wearifome cenfurers, the declared
enemies of her polity and miniftrations, and
yet more of her endowments.
Painter. Be not vexed with thefe unquiet
thoughts : God hath His flock in His own
keeping : unlefs through fome decay of piety
in our Bifhops and Minifters of religion, by
their neglecting of the facraments, the daily
church fervices, the Fafts and Feftivals, and
primitive rules of difcipline, He mould again
be angered againft the fhepherds, and let the
wolves into the fold.
Angler. Alas ! for that day, if ever they
mould difparage and flur thofe miniftrations,
which are their divine commiflion to the end of
time, and their bulwark ! for then would the
love and reverence of men be again changed
'The River Dove.
into an averfenefs, and ill-fpeakers of church-
government provoke difunion, fo as the very
vail of the temple fhould be rent in twain.
But to return to the example of pious
Dean Nowel, I may tell you, this moft wife
man was 4 a dear lover and conftant pra&ifer
1 of angling as any age can produce ; and his
4 cuftom was to fpend, befides his fixed hours
1 of prayer, a tenth part of his time in angling,
4 and alfo of his revenue, and ufually all his
* fim, amongft the poor, that inhabited near to
c thofe rivers in which it was caught, faying
4 often, "that charity gave life to religion;"
4 and at his return to his houfe he would praife
4 God, he had fpent that day free from worldly
4 trouble ; both harmlefsly and in a recreation
4 that became a churchman.' And more I have
to fay ; for you will not deny to Sir Henry
Wotton your partial opinion and praife.
Painter. That I will not, becaufe I know
he was a man of notable qualities ; and one
that was a lover of excellent artificers in limn-
ing and fculpture, and willingly afforded his ear
and his purfe to every poor man that was fo
happy as to gain accefs to him.
Angler. Then I have but this more to fay,
namely, how Mr. Walton declares, that 4 Sir
4 Henry Wotton, whofe experience, learning,
181
l82
'The River Dove.
1 wit, and cheerfulnefs, made him one of the
4 delights of mankind, was alfo a dear lover and
c frequent praclifer of the art of angling, of
4 which he would fay, " 'Twas an employment
" for his idle time, which was not then idly
" fpent : for angling was, after a tedious ftudy,
" a reft to his mind, a cheerer of his fpirits,
44 a diverter of fadnefs, a calmer of unquiet
44 thoughts, a moderator of paflions, a procurer
" of contentednefs.'"
Painter. Sir, you could not more certainly
move me to favourable thoughts of angling,
than by perfuading me to believe that Sir Henry
Wotton had a love for this paftime.
Angler. I am glad to hear you fay fo ; and
now, after this long digreflion, I intend only to
tell you, that thofe irrefiftible arguments where-
with Mr. Walton adorned his difcourfe, brought
the Huntfman and himfelf to Hodfden, that
was the end of their journey. And then Mr.
Walton faid, 4 I am glad your patience hath held
c out fo long, for my difcourfe hath brought
4 us within fight of the Thatched Houfe.'
To this the other replied : 4 Sir, you have
4 angled me on with much pleafure to the
4 Thatched Houfe, and I now find your words
4 true j that good company makes the way feem
4 fhort ; for, truft me, Sir, I thought we had
The River Dove.
I wanted three miles of this houfe, till you fhowed
' it to me. But now we are at it, we'll turn
4 into it, and refrem ourfelves with a cup of
* drink and a little reft.'
4 Moft gladly, Sir,' replied PISCATOR, 4 and
c we'll drink a civil cup to all the Otter-hunters
4 that we are to meet to-morrow.' Then VE-
NATOR anfwered him, 4 That we will, Sir, and
4 to all the lovers of angling too j of which
c number I am now willing to be one myfelf ;
4 for by the help of your difcourfe and company
I 1 have put on new thoughts, both of the art
c of angling and of all that profefs it : and if you
1 will but meet me to-morrow at the time and
4 place appointed, and beftow one day with me
4 and my friends on hunting the Otter, I will
1 dedicate the next two days to wait on you,
1 and we two will for that time do nothing but
4 angle, and talk of fifh and riming. ' Then
PISCATOR cheerfully took him at his word, and
faid : 4 'Tis a match, Sir ; I'll not fail you,
4 (God willing,) to be at Amwell Hill to-mor-
4 row morning before fun rifing.'
Painter. A more fweet and loving difcourfe
I have not heard. I declare to you I am moved
by a fenfible charm to liften to thefe ingenuous
ftrangers, as they enliven each other by an
accidental dialogue on angling.
83
184
The River Dove.
Angler. And who would not defire that he
might fpend a fine frem morning once a year at
leaft in Mr. Walton's company, and hear him
allege his plaufible arguments to teach men to
be peaceful anglers ? And if I might perfuade
you to read all he fays in praife of his art, you
would find fuch a harmony and fo many fuit-
able colours in the compofition of his book, that
you might declare it to be a picture defigned
with all the graces of Titian, and the fweetnefs
of Correggio.
Painter. Well, brother, this I will declare,
that I am like the gentleman Falconer, and be-
gin to love both Mr. Walton and his art ; nay,
I have liftened with a fecret pleafure to his
converfation, and hope to hear what entertain-
ment his friend the huntfman provided for him,
when they two met at Amwell to hunt the
Otter.
Angler. That you mail hear by and by, but
firft let me fee your fketch of Pike Pool.
Painter. There it is, and the beft I can
make it.
Angler. It is indeed a fkilful picture : all of
a juft and natural proportion : and now, becaufe
you have had fo much civility and patience, I
will make you fome requital, and go a-fiming
with you for an hour ; but look, you have a
The River Dove.
nibble ; for your quill is out of fight.
Painter. And fo it is ! now I hope to find
a good trout to my hook how fhall I play
with him ?
Angler. Take up your rod, and try if it be
a little one or a big one.
Painter. It is but ' a diminutive gentleman.'
Angler. Then throw him in again, and put
on another worm : there, you have a fecond !
Painter. Now ! I warrant this is a mettle-
fbme fim.
Angler. Then anfvver him conformably.
Painter. Ah ! I am but an ignoramus , with
all my pride ; neverthelefs I hope I (hall not
lofe him, for he will be worth his weight in
gold, only becaufe I took him in this very fpot;
and if I catch him, I'll draw his likenefs in co-
lours at my leifure. He goes away at a dafh
I fear my tackling will not hold out.
Angler. I am a hoftage for the line, if you
will practice him pliantly but do not jerk him.
Painter. I befeech you take the rod and mow
me.
Angler. Well then you muft cherifli him
a bit thus and now ftraighten him by degrees
drawing in your line.
Painter. See how he doubles back.
Angler. Ay : but I have him in hand fo
B B
i86
The River Dove.
now do you take the rod again, and puzzle
him, and give me the net it is well done
this way with him I have the Hetor, and I
declare to you it is the largeft fifh we have
taken to-day.
Painter. Oh, brother, I am quite in love
with this paftime of angling it is the plea-
fanteft thing in the world and I profefs my-
felf from henceforth a willing difciple of Mr.
Walton.
Angler. Indeed ! I am charmed to hear you
make this honeft declaration j and I may tell
you, for your encouragement, that you are like
to prove a handy craftfman, fo let us go lower
down to the frefh ftreams.
Painter. I have almoft had enough : and I
cannot hope to be pleafed with any place after
this woody dell. I have never feen the like for
a retirement.
Angler. Well, as you pleafe : but what is
yonder above our heads, which is overfhadowed
by the afh trees ? methinks it looks like a hole
in the rock.
Painter. I believe it is, and if you are fo in-
clined, let us fcramble up and look into it : per-
chance we (hall make a difcovery.
Angler. With all my heart ; lead on : but
have a care, for it is a fcraggy place, and you
The River Dove.
may hap to come down again heels over head.
Painter. Look to yourfelf ; a Carolus to a
groat that I'm there firft.
dngler. Say you fo ? then pr'ythee let your
footing keep pace with your words, for I am
after you.
Painter. Heigho ! flop there, I have
flipped up ; befeech you give me a hand.
Angler. Ha, ha ! Signer, whofe fomerfault
was that ? try again : but fee, I am up firft,
and what a concealed cavern is here, c covered
c over with rude grown briers,'* and big enough
for a man to ftand upright in, if he defired a
flielter.f
* Titus Andron. Aft. z. Sc. 4.
f Sir John Hawkins, in his life of Cotton, ftates that
' a natural excavation in the rocky Hill on which Be-
' resford Hall ftands, is fliewn as Mr. Cotton's occa-
< fional refuge from his creditors : ' and to this Cotton
himfelf probably alludes in the following lines of his
Ode to Retirement.
' O my beloved Caves ! from Dog-ftar heats,
' And hotter perfection's fafe retreats,
' What fafety, privacy, what true delight
' In the artificial night
* Your gloomy entrails make,
' Have I taken, do I take !
' How oft, when grief has made me fly
'. To hide me from fociety,
i8 7
i88
The River Dove.
Painter. Ay, and we have feen the times
that fuch a cave had been worth a king's crown,
when he that was near to lofing one, was com-
pelled to hide himfelf from his purfuers.
Angler. Let us pray God that the nation
may reft from her troubles ; that we may fit
4 every man under bis vine and under his fig-
1 tree ;' and angle when he will, in peace be-
neath the ftiade of fycamine trees, free from all
contentions and jars.
Painter. This, I hope, may be our happy
lot ; and now we have fix braces and a half of
trouts ; fo if you pleafe, let us back to Alfton-
fields ; for we have two miles to walk, and the
fun is going down.
Angler. I am quite willing to be at home,
for I begin to tire ; here is the way.
Painter. So we are come again to the fteep
hill by Narrow Dale : I wifh we were paft it.
Angler. There are fome houfes ; and a wo-
man ftanding at her cottage-door fhall we
follow the example of good Dean Nowel, and
' Even of my deareft friends have I
' In your recefles' friendly made
' All my forrows open laid,
' And my moft fecret woes entrufted to your privacy.'
Occafional Poems, p. 138. ED.
The River Dove.
make her happy with the contribution of fome
of our fifties ?
Painter. I had the fame thought.
Angler. Here, good woman ; will it pleafe
you accept this couple of trouts, and I dare be-
lieve you'll know how to cook them.
Cottager. I humbly thank you, gentlemen,
and it is not the firft time I have drefled trouts :
for noble Mr. Cotton beftows a great part of
his fifh upon us. He hath a charitable heart
towards his poor neighbours : and for gentle-
men anglers, he loves to fee them take their
fport in his river.
Angler. That I am fure of we wifh you a
good evening.
Cottager. Your fervant, kind gentlefolk ;
and I thank you too.
Angler. So we are arrived once more at the
King's Head, and there is mine hoft at his door
looking about for us. Well, Mr. Marfh !
Hoft. Sirs, you are welcome ; and I hope
you have found good fport in our river Dove.
Angler. Exceeding good ; fee, here are
fbme brace of trouts for fupper : and now we'll
reft ourfelves on this bench till they be ready.
Hoji. I'll bring them in a trice, for ' the ket-
4 tie is fet upon a quick fire of wood, and the
c liquor's boiling up.'
189
190
The River Dove.
Angler. That's well! and, Hoft, c whilft
c your fijh is boiling, beat up the butter for your
1 fauce.'
Hoft. It mall be done, Sir ! and ' Pll Jlrew
4 it plentifully^ mitk Jhaved horferadijh and a
' little pounded ginger?
Angler. He remembers every word how Mr.
Cotton taught VIATOR to drefs a trout or gray-
ling, which queftionlefs is of all other the beft
way.
Painter. That I believe.
And here comes mine Hoft again with the
trouts : they are ferved as quickly as we could
defire fo do you fay grace, brother. Amen.
Ho/}. Sir, They are good-fized fifli, and ex-
ceeding well conditioned.
Angler. The biggeft is my brother's, that he
took in the Pike Pool, after you were gone
home ; and he has declared it to be his purpofe,
from this day, to call himfelf a fcholar of Mr.
Walton, and endeavour to learn the fecrets of
our craft.
Hoft. Indeed, Sir ! I am heartily glad of this
for I have heard Mr. Walton and Mr. Cot-
ton fay, when men are quietly employed a-
fifhing, it teaches them to lay afide uneafy
thoughts and cares, being a paftime that is full
of hope j and this gentleman gives promife to
The River Dove.
be a fkilful artift with his angle.
Angler. True and I'll drink his health in a
glafs of Staffordmire ale fo make us a loving
cup, with toafted bread and fugar, the fame as
yefterday.
Hojt. Sir ! it mall be done as you defire.
And quickly.
dingier. That is well come brother, here's
to you and your honeft Mafter, Mr. Izaak
Walton, and I will not forget Mr. Charles Cot-
ton, for you muft now look upon him as an
adopted brother.
Painter. Truft me, I want no perfuafions to
love Mr. Cotton, who hath provided fuch de-
lights by the river Dove, and made them all
1 facred to anglers ; ' my mind is full of the train
of thofe pleafures. And now refolve me this
queftion : Why may we not divert ourfelves ano-
ther day or two on the margin of this fine river ?
Angler. Are you in earneft ?
Painter. Indeed am I ; and if you are fo in-
clined, I'll be wholly difpofed of by you.
Angler. Why, that's brave ! I accept your
challenge ; and feeing you have abandoned
yourfelf to my conduct, I will perfuade you to
walk back to the town of Afhbourne through
the whole valley of Dove Dale.
Painter. That is agreed. Oh ! I am full
192
River Dove.
of joyful thoughts of rare angling ; and per-
chance we may yet find fome beautiful land-
fkips ; neverthelefs, methinks, we have feen the
choiceft parts of the river : is it not fo ?
Angler. Of that I mall afk leave to fay no-
thing; do you but wait till to-morrow, and
when you are come to the lower ftreams to-
wards Afhbourne, I will remit the queftion to
your own free judgment.
Painter. Well, I have fuddenly a thought
come into my mind.
Angler. What is that? I hope it is to give
us a fong, for I know you have not been denied
a voice or an ear j fo tune up your mufic, and
after that I'll make fome attempts myfelf, and
fing an innocent fong.
Painter. Anon anon but now tell me,
why mould not we two happy anglers, that
have found our walking legs up and down the
dopes of thefe glades, ftretch them again to-
morrow morning, and go to the higher parts of
the Dove, and fee how this river ' fprings from
c a contemptible fount ainj that Mr. Cotton fays,
' he can cover with his hat.'
Angler. On the word of an angler, you are
the ftrangeft man that ever I faw ! Let me tell
you, the path there and back is near upon
twenty miles,
The River Dove.
' Up hill and down dell,
' By rock and by fell.'
Painter. What care I for twenty miles, fo
I may but drink a cup from that fountain of the
Dove to the health of my mafter, Mr. Izaak
Walton ?
Oh ! the gallant fimer's life,
It is the beft of any ;
'Tis full of pleafure, void of ftrife,
And 'tis beloved by many.
Both, Other joys
Are but toys,
Only this
Lawful is;
For our fkill
Breeds no ill,
But content and pleafure.
Angler. In a morning up we rife,
Ere Aurora's peeping ;
Drink a cup to wafh our eyes,
Leave the fluggard fleeping,
Both. Then we go,
To and fro,
With our knacks
At our backs,
To the Dove,
That *we love,
If we have the leifure.
Angler. Excellent, excellent * you have con-
c quered me ; ' and to fpeak the truth, I but tried
c c
194
772? River Dove.
if you were in earneft ; for once on a time I
walked by myfelf to the Dove Head, and I may
tell you all the way is as full of fair fweet prof-
pedts as any can defire that love angling and
the wild hadder of the moors ; fo let us be gone
to-morrow before the fun rifing.
Painter. I care not how early ; and now
every one to bed with a prayerful heart, that he
may fecretly fetch down his confolation from
Heaven, and make every thing contribute to
his gradual afcent thither.
Angler. Good night, all.
The River Dove.
CHAPTER IV.
The Angler and the Painter take a pleafant
walk to the fource of the Dove.
Angler.
OW now ! brave Gentleman, how
fares it with you this morning ?
Painter. Truft me, I am full of
joyful expe&ations.
Angler. Then you do not repent your fud-
den challenge to walk acrofs the moors to the
Dove Head ?
Painter. Oh, Sir, never fear me.
' Hark ! the lark at Heaven's gate fmgs
' And Phoebus 'gins to arife,
' His fteeds to water at thofe fprings
' On chalic'd flowers that lies.'
The air of thefe mountains hath a wholefom
fremnefs that gives wings to the fpirit.
'95
196
The River Dove.
jJngler. Very true ; and I have the autho-
rity of learned Sir William Temple to declare,
that health and long life are to be found on the
Peak of Derbyfhire, and the heaths of Staffbrd-
fhire. Are you for breakfaft ?
Painter. Ay ! and look, our hoft has pro-
vided for us in this arbour in his garden ; fee,
how it is grown over with jeflamines and honey-
fuckles.
Angler. And here is a hedge of fweet-briers
it all breathes fragrancy.
Painter. It is very pleafant ; and now let us
difcufs our breakfaft with all freedom, as honeft
anglers ought to do : here's new baked bread,
and milk and honey; and here's a bowl of
curds and whey, with nutmeg and ginger. Are
you for that ?
Angler. With all my heart.
Painter. What fay you, brother ; is not here
a moft frefh and unmatchable morning for tra-
vellers ? Do but look over thofe hills ; and
there are the blue moors, backed by the bur-
nifhed light of the fun rifmg behind them. What
can be more glorious ?
Painter. Nothing, nothing fee how he
4 cometh forth as a bridegroom from his cham-
1 ber, and rejoiceth as a JJrong man to run a
1 race.'
The River Dove.
Pack, clouds, away, and welcome day,
With night we banim forrow ;
Sweet air, blow foft, mount, larks, aloft,
To give my love good morrow.
Wings from the wind, to pleafe the mind,
Notes from the lark I'll borrow ;
Bird, plume thy wing, nightingales, fing,
To give my love good morrow,
To give my love good morrow.
Notes from them both I'll borrow.
Wake from thy neft, robin redbreaft,
Sing, birds, in every furrow 5
And from each hill let mufic mrill,
Give my fair love good morrow.
Blackbird and thrum in every bum,
Stare, linnet, and cock fparrow,
You pretty elves, among yourfelves,
Sing my fair love good morrow.
To give my love good morrow,
Sing, birds, in every furrow.
Angler. Excellent well ! it is a fong of Mr.
Thomas Heywood ?
Painter. The fame; and now it is your
turn.
jfngler. Let me confider a while ; I'll give
you a ballad of John Welbye. Or ftay now,
I have one :
In pride of May,
The fields are gay,
The birds do fing, fo fweetly fing
198
The River Dove.
So nature would
That all things could,
With joy, begin the fpring.
Then, lady dear,
Do you appear
In beauty, like the fpring ;
I dare to fay,
The birds that day
More cheerfully will fmg.*
And now we have done breakfaft, and I am
ready to attend you.
Painter. Well, then, let us be going. I am
with you, lead on. You remember how the
hoft told us there were two roads to Beresford :
let us take the coach road by the left for a
change ; and now we are at the top look before
you, for there again is Beresford Hall.
Angler. Oh ! that Mr. Charles Cotton were
now there ! and we might be invited to receive
fome inftru&ions in fly-fifhing !
Painter. And my mafter, honeft Izaak, with
his bottom-fifhing, fo pleafe you, brother.
Angler. That I heartily wifh too. But fee
we are once more arrived at the brink of the
the river.
* Ballads, and Madrigals byThos. Weekes, 1598.
ED.
'The River Dove.
Painter. Do we crofs over this fordable
place ?
Angler. Nay that would be roundabout to
Harrington ; and mine hoft advifed us rather to
turn underneath thofe rocks which are clofe to
Pike Pool ; for there we may pafs the river,
and have a pleafant profpedt of the fifhing-
houfe ; and then by a nearer path acrofs fome
fields to Harrington, and after that I can find
my way.
Painter. With all my heart ; fo here we are
again : fee the turfy bank where we had the
enjoyment of Mr. Walton's book; and the
cobbling ftones acrofs the Dove.
Angler. The fame ; and fo take care, or you
may have an unlucky tumble into the river.
Painter. Over with you, Sir ! I am an
angler now, and fear not c the element I trade
'in.'
Angler. Bravely, Mr. Piftor, you have a
dexterous management with your heels. Now
to the right by this high bank : and look how
the river winds through the meadows, above
the fifhing-houfe ; and there you fee before you
Hartington Church ; if you pleafe, we may
pafs to the left of the town ; and now, for a
little while, we muft bid farewell to the Dale.
Painter. I am forry to hear it ; our pleafures
199
200
'The River Dove.
are all too fhort-lived : methinks I could fpend
all the month of May near to Mr. Cotton's
fifhing-grounds.
Angler. That we might do with great con-
tentment ; but for to-day we muft rove among
the moorlands ; and if fome of them are barren
and bleak, yet they will be fet off to advantage
by frefh ftreams, and valleys, and flocks, and
herds. Then remember, though we are on
pilgrimage, we may fit down on turf cufhions
when we are weary, and flng merry fongs, in
defpite of care, ay, and of fortune too, that
' rackets with man as with her tennis ball.'
Painter. And I am refolved to take a plea-
fure in all I fee ; but what is yonder hill ?
Angler. That is Banktop ; and there is Car-
derlow Hill, in Staffordmire. But now prepare
yourfelf ; for you are come to a bufy water-
mill, and yonder you may fee Ludwell Spring,
that within a few yards of its rifing, falls into
the Dove.
Painter. How fay you ? is this the very
fource of a river gufhing with fo fudden a force,
and leaping out of a cavern in a confiderable
ftream from underneath the ground ?
Angler. This ought to be noted in your blank
book ; for it confirms an obfervation of Mr.
Cotton, that c the Dove from its bead for a mile
The River Dove. 201
c or two is a black water, becaufe it fprings from
4 the mofs ; but in a few miles travel is fo cla-
4 rified by the addition of feveral clear and very
4 great fprings bigger than itfelf, which gujh out
4 of the lime-jione rocks, that before it comes to
4 my houfe, which is but fix or f even miles from
4 its four ce, you will find it one ofthepureft cryf-
4 talline Jlreams you have feen.'
Painter. That is true ; for, look, before
thefe waters are joined, the Dove is a darkifh
colour. But here (he comes away, rejoicing
in the clearnefs of Ludwell Brook : and fo they
hurry themfelves in company to the mill with a
mutual alacrity.
jfngler. There let them go, and to-morrow
we fhall meet them by Hanfon Toot. But
who comes here ?
Painter. It is a little country damfel.
Angler. Good morning, pretty maiden. What
are you come for ?
Maiden of the Mill. To fetch fome water,
Sir.
Painter. I pray you be civil, and let me
tafte fome of this clear fpring of the Ludwell
from your pitcher.
Maiden. You are welcome, Sir. I'll dip it in.
Painter. Thank you, gentle maid ; 'tis as
cold as an icicle ; and what is your name ?
D D
202
'The River Dove.
Maiden. Margery, fo pleafe you, Sir.
Angler. Well, my pretty Margery ; we are
greatly beholden to you ; and here is a half
Sevil piece to buy ribands for Sundays and
holidays ; and fo farewell.
Maiden. Your fervant, kind Gentlemen, and
I thank you both.
Angler. God fpeed you, pretty Margery ;
and may you live as harmlefs and happy as you
now appear to be, and fome day or other walk
to church on flowers. Come, brother, let us be
forward ; for you and I muft up to Wheeldon
Hill, that towers to the fkies yonder.
Painter. With all my heart : farewell, Mar-
gery. What a fecret charm is in a youth-
ful innocency, that hath not put off the white
garments warned in the fountain of baptifm !
I have heard it faid, a child's mind gives a pat-
tern of a church temper ; it looks to have come
frefh from heaven, and to be the only thing fit
to re-afcend to the celeftial prefence.
Angler. And that, we may believe, was the
reafon of our Redeemer exhorting mankind to
have the mind of children. And did he not
openly declare that their angels do always be-
hold the face of their Heavenly Father ? mean-
ing their guardian angels.
Painter. Are you of that opinion ?
'The River Dove.
203
Angler. I would not take upon myfelf to pry
into the vaft fecrets of celeftial intelligences :
but, becaufe the church declares that God hath
4 ordained and constituted the fervlces of angels
c in a wonderful order J and prays that ' they
4 may fuccour and defend us on earth J I am not
denied the confolation to think how thofe ethe-
rial choirs have a fweet miniftration on our
behalf, as channels of grace j elfe why doth St.
Chryfoftom exhort us to pray for the angel of
peace, if they are not able to keep us out of
heart-aching fins ? And if I could fix in my
mind the allured image of one fuch angelic
prefence as my fecret companion, this vale of
tears would become a delightful Eden this
defert a near approach to heaven : for then it
would be my moft pleafant and glorious em-
ployment to lift up my feeble voice in the
cherubic hymn ; my foul would be faithful
and devout, all things would become pure,
all things holy, all things peaceful and lovely.
And thus following my unfeen guide, I mould
have a bleffed fore-intimation of the realms of
light, and my earthly fervices be a preparation
for the awful prefence of the Higheft. Me-
thinks I could never defile my body, which is
the temple of God, nor permit a bad thought,
or a fordid defire to taint the fan&uary of my
204
The River Dove.
immortal fpirit, If I knew that would put to
flight my angel, and compel its winged forrow-
ful retreat back to the courts of heaven, not
with triumphant Hofannas for a victory over
fin and death, but to make a record of my
fatal difcomfiture to its weeping companions of
the fkies. Therefore, do not deny me the
liberty to believe that God's bright angels
throng invifibly through the univerfe, and ' en-
c camp about them that fear Him.''
Painter. Nay, I wifli to be of your opinion,
and that we have an intereft in the prayers of
miniftering fpirits, and fo may attain unto ibme
likenefs to them : yet remember that they
themfelves are kept by the grace of ONE that
is above all principalities and powers in heaven
or in earth. And we have this furpaffing relifh
of hope, that as His divine unerring eye be-
holds us with the love of a Mediator, and His
Spirit is within and over us as a Comforter,
infufing an immortal power into the inmoft
foul, we have the confirmation of a continual
grace, that imprints a more fublime virtue than
the prefence of angels or archangels yea, or
of cherubim and feraphim, who veil their faces
before Him. Oh ! wherefore is it that we
cannot attune our thoughts to the high em-
ployment of the invifible Church, who with
'The River Dove.
loud voices found forth joyful hallelujahs to
GOD?
. Angler. Becaufe, brother, through our want
of faith our eyes are blinded, that we cannot
realize the prefence of the heavenly world,
which, neverthelefs, is around and about us,
as furely as thefe mountains and thefe fides.
Give me leave to tell you, the Church always
has, and, notwith {landing the decay of piety,
does now acknowledge the c communion of faint sj
to wit, that the faints now on earth have
fpiritual fellowfhip with ' the general aj/embly
4 and Church ofthefirjt-born, which are written
4 in Heaven.'*
Painter. How mean you ? with the faints
departed and admitted into the prefence of
Chrift ?
Angler. So it is. I fpeak not now of the
dignity that is wrought in holy perfons by the
permitted communion with God, according to
the laft prayer of our Saviour, that they might
be one with Himfelf, (as thou, Father, art in
me, and I in thee, that they alfo may be one in
W5,)f nor of the fulfilment of His rich pro-
mife, that His Father and Himfelf would love
them, and come unto them, and make their abode
* Heb. xii. 22.
f John xvii. 21.
206
The River Dove.
with them,* nor of the ineftimable gift of the
Comforter, which fhould abide with them for
ever, (for he dwelleth with you, and Jhall be in
you :) f neither will I now further infift on the
blefled aflurance in Scripture of the fpiritual
communion of faints on earth with God's angels,
who are mini/I er ing fpirits,fent forth to minifter
for them who Jhall be heirs of falvation, J yea,
and rejoice over them, yea, and wait for their
fouls, to carry them triumphantly into Abra-
ham's bofom. But, blefled be God ! befides
all this, we have aflurance of the love of that
innumerable company who wait in hope of the
bright morning of the refurre&ion, who whilft
on earth were renewed in the image of our
God, and endued with the fpirit of Chrift,
even thofe fucceflive generations that have de-
parted this life in faith, and now made perfect,
and inhabiters of the fupernal City. Blefled
be God ! they are fecret witnefles to our de-
fires, our penitential tears, our failings, our in-
ward ftruggles, our outward crofles, are pre-
fent with us in the Holy Church, joining in
thofe very facraments and prayers which were
their own comfort and fupport in their day of
* John xiv. 23.
I Heb. i. 14.
f Ibid. xiv. 17.
The River Dove. 207
probation. Nay, death itfelf hath no power to
accomplish the reparation of thofe we have
moft dearly loved : the grave hath clofed over
their mortality, they have efcaped from their
outward perifhable frame, and have winged
their way to unimaginable joys ; but it may be
they are with us in unfeen communion.-^What
if their fpirits mingle with ours in a wonderful
order ? and although we prefume not to fathom
the myftery beyond what is revealed in Scrip-
ture, may we not join with them and with the
ten thoufand times ten thoufand hofts of hea-
ven, in praife of the eternal unity of the God-
head, that hath given us this earneft of a glo-
rious immortality ?
Painter. Oh ! the unfearchable riches that
are even now within our grafp, if we knew to
put forth our hand and reach them !
Angler. But alas ! becaufe of the natural
averfenefs of our fouls from heavenly contem-
plations, and our too intenfe fixednefs on the
unreal pleafures of the world, we cannot be
warmed and affe&ed with the kindlings of holy
defires.
Painter. 'Tis true, yet ftrange, for a
religious fpirit is the higheft gift of God ; it
is an incenfe that rifes perfumed to His lofty
throne, from whence it flows, and gives peace
208
The River Dove.
of foul which fetteth at naught all the chances
of fortune.
Angler. True, for to be fpiritually minded
is peace, and by the bond of peace we are kept
in the unity of the Spirit.
Painter. And that peace is nowhere elfe to
be found but only in the Church, as witnefs
thofe choice verfes of Mr. George Herbert, who
dedicated his mufe to the Divine Majefty, and
his life to a chriftian holinefs.
Sweet Peace, where doft thou dwell ? I humbly crave,
Let me once know.
I fought thee in a fecret cave,
And afk'd if Peace were there.
A hollow wind did feem to anfwer, No :
Go feek elfewhere.
I did ; and going did a rainbow note ;
Surely, thought I,
This is the Lace of Peace's Coat :
I will fearch out the matter.
But while I lookt, the clouds immediately
Did break and fcatter.
Then went I to a garden, and did fpie
A gallant flower,
The crown Imperial : Sure, faid I,
Peace at the root muft dwell.
But when I digg'd, I faw a worm devour
What fhow'd fo well.
At length I met a rev'rend good old man ;
Whom when for Peace
The River Dove.
209
I did demand, he thus began :
There was a Prince of old
At Salem dwelt, who lived with good encreafe
Of Flock and Fold.
He fweetly liv'd ; yet fweetnefs did not fave
His life from foes.
But after death out of his grave
There fprang twelve ftalks of wheat ;
Which many wondering at, got fome of thofe
To plant and fet.
It profper'd ftrangely, and did foon difperfe
Through all the earth :
For they that tafte it do rehearfe
That vertue lies therein ;
A fecret vertue, bringing peace and mirth
By flight of fin.
Take of this grain, which in my garden grows,
And grows for you ;
Make bread of it, and that repofe
And peace, which every where
With fo much earneftnefs you do purfue,
Is only there.*
jfngler. You are in the right : the meaning
of Mr. George Herbert was, that peace may
only be found in the unity of the Holy Church,
which is built on the foundation of the apojiles
and prophet 5, Jefus Chrijl being the chief corner
Jtone , and St. Chryfoftom hath faid the name
* Herbert's Poems, THE CHURCH, p. 117.
The River Dove.
CHURCH is a name of harmony j and truly,
for he declares it to be a place of angels and of
archangels, a palace of God, heaven itfelf ;
and her anointed minifters are the bearers of
God's faithful meflage ; baptizing all people
into her oije communion, difpenfing to all the
euchariftic Body and Blood of Chrift their Re-
deemer, and catechizing all, young and old, in
the holy myfteries of the Scriptures, which
difplay the glory of God in the government and
redemption of the world.
Painter. 4 How beautiful upon the mountains
4 are the feet of him that bringetb good tidings,
4 that publijheth Peace.'
Angler. And when the prophet would raife
up the heart of the afflicted Church, 4 toffed
4 with tempeft and not comforted^ he faith, ' Be-
4 hold, I will lay thyjtones with fair colours, and
4 lay thy foundations with fapphires, and I will
c make thy windows of agates, and thy gates of
4 carbuncles, and all thy borders ofpleafantjtones.
4 And all thy children Jhall be taught of the
4 Lord; and great Jhall be the Peace of thy
4 people? But we grow too ferious let us
be forward, or we (hall fcarce reach the end of
our walk.
Painter. I am with you : and what big moun-
tains are they, fo dark in the diftance ? they
The River Dove.
muft be ten miles off. I hope we fhall have
nothing to fay to them.
Angler. Truft me, brother, and fomething
beyond them too, if you would fee Dove Head
to-day ; but they are not fo far as you think,
and when you come to them, you'll like them
none the worfe for their fteepnefs. But now
we are arrived at Pilfbury, you may fee Broad
Meadow that is a handfome manfion-houfe
on the other fide of the ftream ; and this is
Wheeldon Hill.
Painter. Well, to be fure, he is not fo diffi-
cult and tedious as he looked to be from Lud-
well.
Angler. I declare no man living can trudge
better than you do. And now you may find
Crowdey Cote Bridge in the bottom, and a
fpring that contributes all its clearnefs to the
Dove ; and thus I have brought you to Stern-
dale ; and fo let us pafs to the right.
Painter. Stay awhile, brother ; methinks we
are leaving our Dove, and that I have no mind
to do.
Angler. Let me perfuade you, for it is only
to bring you back to her again with greater
contentment ; fo you may leave her to her own
carelefs pleafures in thofe flowery meads, whilft
you and I pafs through Glutton Dale ; and here
211
212
The River Dove.
we have dipped into the valley, and are come
to the bafe of the hill, that looked fo towering
fome miles off.
Painter. Indeed ! we are arrived at it quickly.
Has this mountain a name hereabouts ?
Angler. Ay, and a well known one with
its elder brother, that is twice as high ; they
are the Great and Little Cromes ; and there
you may now fee them before you, with cattle
feeding on the very pinnacle.
Painter. That is a ftrange fight ; I wonder
how they clambered up fuch a fteepy crag.
Angler. And fee, I am as good as my word,
for here we are come again to the Dove ; fo
follow me over this wooden bridge into Staf-
ford fh ire.
Painter. Is this your River Dove ? She is
not grown bigger fmce laft we parted.
Angler. You are in the right ; (he is lefs and
lefs, and darker than we remember her : for
her path has been through fome boggy moun-
tainous ways ; but like the eyes of a Moorifh
beauty, fhe is clear and fparkling, and is now
hurrying on to the fweet profpecls about Mr.
Cotton's fiming-houfe that we fo lately pafTed :
and do you mark how me declines the invita-
tions of thefe little rocks and glades, and water-
docks, and fhaly banks that hope to detain
The River Dove.
her, breaking away from them with a difdainful
murmur.
Painter. And not without reafon, for the
profpefts hereabouts are middling.
Angler. Nay turn yourfelf, and look at
thofe high mountains : the two Cromes are
now behind us, where the flocks and cattle ftill
browfe on the fummits.
Painter. How, fay you ? Not thofe Cromes
you fpoke of an hour ago ?
Angler. The fame ; but now they prefent
themfelves in a bold profile, and are broken into
(harper edges.
Painter. Sharp indeed, for the crags on
the top are of fuch a narrownefs, that I would
not believe the cattle might ftand there, if I
did not fee them do it : and, for my own part,
I would not go over thofe rocks * for a thou-
4 J r and pounds .'
Angler. c Nor tumble off" them for two. 1
Painter. It is c an odd country indeed : '
but halt, brother, what is that I fee ?
Angler. Having paft by Winterfide, that
looked fo cold and rocky, we are come to
Wafhgate ; and tell me what you think of the
landfkip before you ?
Painter. You have taken me quite by a fur-
prife, for here is a prodigious paflage in the
213
The River Dove.
mountains that for rudenefs of nature cannot be
exceeded : methinks we are come to the world's
end.
Angler. See how the Dove is fuddenly forced
down thefe rocky ledges, and is then joined by
another and as rapid a ftream, Calfhaw Brook,
that is fcarce deferving of a name, yet guflies
down with a merry loud noife.
Painter. I am enchanted with this wilder-
nefs : but I will confefs your mountainous
ways have put my metal to the proof, and I
begin to be weary ; fo I befeech you let us fit
awhile, that I may do my beft to make a pic-
ture of thefe high rocks ; and I fhall afk you
to read me fome paflages from my mafter's
Book of Angling ; and I remember how, be-
caufe his happy companion, VENATOR, pro-
mifed to dedicate two days to angling in his
company, it was agreed they fhould firft be-
ftow the next day to hunt the Otter.
Angler. You mall hear what they did after
they met the next morning, juft as the fun was
rifing. For you are to know, as they came
to Amwell Hill, the dogs had juft put down
an Otter. Then, after a fhort greeting, Mr.
VENATOR told him to ' look down at the bot-
' torn of the hill there, in that meadow, che-
4 quered with water-lilies and lady-fmocks, there
The River Dove.
4 you may fee what work they make. Look !
' look ! all bufy ; men and dogs, dogs and men
4 all bufy.' Then PISCATOR declared ; 4 he
4 was glad to fee fo many dogs, and more men,
1 all in purfuit of the Otter : let us compliment
1 no longer, but join unto them. Come, ho-
1 neft VENATOR, let us be gone, let us make
c hafte ; I long to be doing no reafonable
4 hedge or ditch mail hold me.'
Painter. Was it Mr. Izaak faid that ?
dngler. Ay, ay ; quiet Mr. Walton, that
carries himfelf with fo fingular a fweetnefs and
temper but he hath a cheerful fpirit, and withal
a fweet inftindr. towards innocent recreations :
and fo he was fuddenly tranfported, and 4 longed
4 to be doing.' Think how the meek angler
promifed c no reafonable hedge or ditch fhould
4 hold him.' I can almoft think I fee him now
with his ftaff, halting to the bottom of the hill,
where 4 the men and dogs, dogs and men, were
4 all bufy.'
Painter. And tell me what they faw when
they got there ?
Angler. They met a Gentleman Huntfman,
that was cheering on his dogs to take the Otter;
fo they enquired where he found this Otter ;
and he replied, 4 Marry, Sir, we found her a
4 mile from this place a-fifhing : fhe has this
2I 5
2l6
The River Dove.
1 morning eaten the greateft part of this trout ;
' fhe has only left thus much of it, as you fee,
' and was riming for more ; when we came we
4 found her juft at it : but we were here very
c early, we were here an hour before fun-rife,
* and have given her no reft fmce we came ;
c furely fhe will hardly efcape all thefe dogs and
t men.' Then, after a fhort converfation, he
bade them follow him, for he faw the c Otter
' above water at vent, and the dogs clofe with
1 him j I now fee, he will not laft long follow,
c therefore, my mafters, follow ; for Sweetlips
' was like to have him at this laft vent.' Then
you may be fure they followed, and with a great
eagernefs : then VENATOR cried out : c Oh me !
c all the horfes are got over the river, what
c mail we do now ? fhall we follow them over
1 the water ?' c No, Sir, no ;' (faid the Otter-
huntfman) c be not fo eager ; ftay a little, and
c follow me, for both they and the dogs will be
c fuddenly on this fide again, I warrant you,
c and the otter too, it may be. Now have at
1 him with Killbuck, for he vents again.' Then
VENATOR, having a natural propenfity to all
kinds of fports with dogs, heartily exclaimed,
' Marry ! fo he does : for, look ! he vents in
c that corner. Now, now, Ringwood has him :
4 now he is gone again, and has bit the poor
'The River Dove.
1 dog. Now, Sweetlips has her ; hold her,
' Sweetlips ! now all the dogs have her ; fome
4 above, and fome under water : but now, now
* me is tired, and paft lofing. Come, bring her
' to me, Sweetlips. Look ! It is a Bitch-otter,
' and fhe has lately whelped. Let's go to the
' place where fhe was put down ; and not far
1 from it you will find all her young ones, I
4 dare warrant you, and kill them all to.'
Painter. Excellent ! What a joyful and na-
tural confufion of the huntfmen ! c men and
4 dogS) dogs and men^ all bufy.'
Angler. And after that they went to an ho-
neft ale-houfe, where they had a cup of good
barley wine, and fang Old Rofe^ and fo they
rejoiced together, and then bade farewell with
mutual good thoughts and wimes ; and fo ho-
neft Mr. Walton and his fcholar went to their
fport of angling.
Painter. Very pleafant ! what a natural
fprightlinefs of manner in handling his fubjecl: !
and fuch mafterly touches of art, that it is all
like an excellent piece of painting. But now
I have done my poor draught of the landfkip,
fo let us forward ; methinks Dove head is never
to come.
Angler. Patience, brother, for you have, ere
long, fomething more to fee : and now we are
F F
217
2l8
The River Dove.
parted over the bridge back again into the county
of Derby, what do you think of this fudden
change in the river ? There are high rocks and
crags on either fide : fome have been tumbled
down to the bottom in confufed heaps, and
threaten they will block up the paflage.
Painter. This makes the Dove more fretful
and noify, and rather than fhe will be detained
in this ftony wildernefs, me vaults over the
crags, and throws herfelf into a cafcade under-
neath the bridge. But look to your feet ; for
I like not this edge of the cliffs, that ftand fo
high. How now ! there is another glen joins
itfelf ; and, I declare, a rapid ftream, as big, or
may be bigger than the Dove, and to fay the
truth, I know not which is our own river.
Angler. Then make fome guefs before I de-
clare it to you.
Painter. I cannot refolve you. Methinks
that to the right is more like to come from Der-
byfhire.
Angler. Nay, the left hand is our courfe ;
the other water, that gufhes in her channel with
fo fingular a fteepnefs, is Cooper-Brook ; and
if you liften, you may hear with what a fweet
harmony me welcomes the approach of her
future playmate, and pays her willing tribute
into the ftreams of the Dove, and is happy to
The River Dove.
change her own name for another and a better,
that is in fo great efteem with all anglers.
Painter. Here is one of thofe fpots of nature
that I love to behold. This is the nobleft
architecture imaginable ; for here are moun-
tains, and rocks, and valleys difpofed in a wild
order, that is more excellent than the richeft
ornaments of all Greece : nay, I will not make
an exception of the Parthenon at Athens, or
the great ColofTeum in Rome ; nor the very
pillars of the gate, which was called Beautiful,
in the Temple at Jerufalem, nor all the once
glorious Palmyra are able to contend for noble-
nefs againft thefe works of nature.
Angler. Which is not to be wondered at,
fmce thofe were builded by man ; but the hills
have God for their founder : it is HE that
' weighs the mountains in fcales^ and the hills
4 in a balance.' HE it is that can make them
break forth into tinging, or caufe them to be
defolate ; that can remove them into the depths
of the fea, as eafily as He caufed their higheft
tops to be covered with the flood, when He
opened the gates of heaven.
Painter. And for that beautiful ftrudture of
the Temple of Zion which was ornamented
with fo many thoufand talents of gold, and
refined filver and brafs, and a number of all
219
220
T/ie River Dove.
manner of precious ftones, that Honourable
Mr. Robert Boyle fays, was capable of impo-
verifhing the Indies, and thofe cherubims over-
laid with gold within the oracle that ftretched
forth their wings, fo that the wing of the one
touched the one wall, and the wing of the other
cherub touched the other wall where are they
now ? they are difperfed as a dream : but thefe
mountains fhall remain till that hour, when
4 the heavens Jhall pafs away with a great noife^
c and the elements Jhall melt with fervent heat.''
Angler. And hath not HE declared, (whofe
4 coming' fhall then be) that Solomon himfelf,
the builder of the firft Temple, in all his glory,
was not arrayed like one even of thofe heathy
flowers you have in your hand ? I befeech you
give me that bunch you have plucked, and
when I go home, I'll dry them in a book, that I
may fometimes call back again to my mind this
happy day's journey, and thefe fweet thoughts
arrtidft the fprings of the Dove.
Painter. Do fo ; and I am glad to think that
in this manner I fhall live the better in your
memory.
Angler. Truft me for that, brother. But
we muft not tarry j we muft be away for Dove
Head.
Painter. I am with vou : but here are more
The River Dove.
ups and downs than I expected ; how long will
they laft ? for I begin to flag.
Angler. Cheer up, heart, and follow me ;
and that I may beguile the length of the way
along thefe mofly flopes that are fo foft under
foot, and becaufe you are won to the love of
angling, I will perform my promife, and read
you that epiftle of Mr. Cotton to Mr. Izaak
Walton.
Painter. I (hall be charmed to hear it.
Angler. Then liften,
4 Feb : y e . 13. 1676.
4 My deare and worthy Father,
4 Suppofing you (who are ever fo conftant
4 to your refolutions) to bee by this time re-
4 turn'd to London, I venture to give you the
' trouble of a letter to enquire how you doe,
c and whether I may hope to fee you here this
1 approaching fummer : in truth I long for no-
4 thing more than to fee you, and therefore if
4 your affaires either invite you this way j or
4 will permitt you to beftow fome time upon
' your friends that love you, itt will, without
4 complement, bee as great a fatis faction to
4 mee, as I could allmoft wifh. In the next
4 place, give mee leave to enquire how my
221
222
'The River Dove.
4 Lords Grace of Canterbury does, and my
4 Lord of Winton. The laft of which was
* every where in thefe parts fo confidently re-
4 ported for dead ; that in earned, I concluded
4 him fo, till I received your laft letter, which,
' though you did not mention him in itt, af-
1 fured mee neverthelefle hee was ftill living,
1 otherwife I fuppofe you had had no bufinefle
4 at Farnham : your owne famyly I need not
4 fo ftricl:ly to enquire after, becaufe I know
4 you will tell me without afking, fo that till I
4 fhall againe heare from you, I have little more
4 to fay, excepting to tell you y { I have here
4 enclofed fent you a ridiculous fong I made
4 one day by the River fide ; that my Lady of
4 Ardglafs is your fervant, and joins with mee
4 in the requeft of feeing you here, together
4 with that old and conftant truth, that I am,
4 and muft ever bee, whilft wee two live,
' Dear Father, Your moft affectionate friend,
' Sonne and Servant,
4 CHARLES COTTON.'
4 We are all here very well, that is now wee
4 begin to thaw again : for fo nipping a winter
4 has not been for thefe many years, and yett
4 when the water was frozen up almoft, and
The River Dove.
223
c only a fmall gullet open in the fharp of the
' ftreams, I then killed feveral Graylings, 16,
* 17, 1 8, and 20 inches long with an Afh grub,
c and no more than one {ingle hayre, as feve-
4 rail can witnefTe ; and that in their full vigour
' and beft feafon. My fervice I pray to Mr.
4 Daniell Sheldon ; to whom by the next re-
1 turne of the carrier I will fend fome flies and
4 direcl: them to Sir Jofeph Sheldon.'
Painter. A very pleafant cheerful letter, and
a fure witnefs to the love thefe two familiar
matters of angling bear to each other's perfon.
dng/er. I would we had that c ridiculous
1 poem made one day by the River Jide ;' which
was enclofed in it : but that was not in the pof-
feffion of my Aldlne Scholar ; and I am only
permitted to hope Mr. Walton hath treafured
it up with fome others to be hereafter put forth
to the world in print.
Painter. In a handfome ' litel boke ' and
becaufe you have fhewn me how my mafter
will fometimes court the favour of the mufes, it
may come to pafs fome May morning, when
they are angling together, the two poets fhall
refolve to afk Mr. Richard Marriott* to print
* Richard Marriott was the publilher of almoft all
Izaak Walton's works. ED.
224
The River Dove.
their verfes in a happy conjunction.
Angler. That would be as worthy of our
perufal as the SHEPHERD'S GARLAND fajhioned
in Eglogs^ by Mr. Walton's honeft old friend
Michael Drayton : and doubtlefs my Lord's
Grace of Canterbury, who loves Mr. Walton
and his art of fifhing, will have a pleafure to
affix his IMPRIMATUR ex jEdibus Lambethanis.
Painter. And methinks Mr. Cotton, when
he commanded his fervice to Mr. Daniel Shel-
don and promifed to fend fome flies to Sir Jo-
feph Sheldon, knew that Mr. Walton was on a
fhort vifit to the Archbifhop at Lambeth.
Angler. Or it might be at his palace in
Croydon ? but look you, there is the Dove,
down in the deep glen beneath ; and though
fhe grows more diminutive, yet there are bright
rills that filently glide out of the mountains to
fwell her little eddies and cafcades And
now, here is another turn in the path, and fo I
have brought you to Dove-head.
Painter. Indeed ! I'm rejoiced to hear it,
but how ! I fee no * contemptible fountain that
4 / can cover with my hatj but a tolerable
ftream.
Angler. Patience, good brother it is true
we are here come to the hamlet of Dove-head;
but for the fource of the ftream, you are to
The River Dove.
mount with me the fide of this broad mountain,
that is called AXE EDGE.
Painter. Alas the day ! up this great moun-
tain, which is as high as Mont Blanc in Swit-
zerland ? but much darker, I warrant you.
Well, Sir, if it muft be fo, but I'm almoft ex-
haufted.
Angler. Come, let me give you a helping
hand.
Painter. I thank you, but I'm too big-hearted
to yield me fo put on your manhood, and
ftalk along ; I'll ftem Broad Axe Edge with a
4 heart of controverfy.' Heigh ho ! now we
are up, and here is nothing I can fee in the like-
nefs of a river.
Angler. Pardon me, for I may now wifh you
joy ; look to this fide of you ; here is the c con-
4 temptible little fountain.'
Painter. Indeed ! and fo there is what a
marvellous little fountain ! but it is a moft clear
and pellucid ftream.
Angler. And yet Mr. Cotton declares this
river 'from Its head, for a mile or two, Is a black
' water, as all the rejl of the Derby/hire rivers
4 of note originally are ; for they all fpring from
1 the mojjes.
Painter. Well, I fee no mofTes hereabouts,
but a highland downy turf, and it is a pure and
G G
225
226
The River Dove.
transparent rill.
Angler. Well, well ; we may leave thefe nice
queftions ; only this is for certain, here is the
fource of the river Dove fo let us fit and reft
ourfelves.
Painter. With all my heart, for I was never
fo tired in my life, fcrambling up and down thefe
moorlands: I fcarce thought my legs would
carry me fo far.
' Here down my wearyed limbs I'll lay,
* My pilgrim's ftaffe, my weeds of grey.'
Angler. It is a good angler's walk, I grant
you ; and by the fun we are eight hours from
Alftonfields !
Painter. Come, then where is the knack
of provifions ?
Angler. Here it is, and I profefs to you I am
both hungry and thirfty. There is a flab of
ftone that covers the fountain will ferve for a
table and here is the well of water to cool our
Rhenifti.
Painter. So, fo ; it is all delightful : indeed
it all breathes of pleafure ; let's open the wallet,
and make ourfelves joyful at the head of the
Dove. By the word of an angler, I mean to
throw away all cares and be light-hearted.
Come, Sir, your appetite is fqueamim.
The River Dove.
Angler. Truft me, I'm quite hearty ; and
here's my fervice to you in a cup of wine.
Painter. The fame to you, and is not our
hoft a good caterer ? with hunger for fauce,
this provifion is fit for a king ! and I am now
able, on this wild moor, to be as happy as any
prince in Chriftendom.
Angler. And why not, if we have grateful
and contented hearts ?
' Sweet are the thoughts that favour of content,
* The quiet mind is richer than a crown ;
' Sweet are the nights in carelefs (lumber fpent ;
' The poor eftate fcorns Fortune's angry frown.
' Such fweet content, fuch minds, fuch fleep, fuch blifs,
' Beggars enjoy, when princes oft do mifs ! '
But come, Sir, it is your turn for a fong ; fo
pleafe you begin.
Painter. Well, then, I'll try my voice at a
fong of George Withers :
* Lordly gallants, tell me this,
' Though my fafe content ye weigh not,
* In your greatnefs, what one blifs
' Have you gained that I enjoy not ?
' You have honours, you have wealth
' I have peace, and I have health,
' All the day I merry make,
' And at night no care I take.
' Bound to none my fortunes be,
' This or that man's fall I care not ;
227
228
The River Dove.
* Him I love that loveth me ;
' For the reft a pin I care not.
' You are mad when others chafe,
* And grow merry when they laugh ;
' I that hate it, and am free,
' Laugh and weep as pleafeth me.'
And now we'll drink a health to our matters in
angling.
Angler. And let it be in a fip of clear water
from this fountain-head of the Dove, by way
of memorial.
Painter. Well, well, only a fip, and after
that we'll drink to them in better Rhenifli.
Angler. With all my heart.
Painter. Here's to Mr. Walton and Mr.
Cotton.
Angler. To Mr. Walton and Mr. Cotton !
And now, by your leave, I'll grave the two firft
letters of their names in cipher on this very
ftone that is over the fountain.
Painter. How mean you ?
Angler. Here are tools, I borrowed from our
hoft, for I had bethought me of this, and muft
confefs I purpofed it in my mind, the laft time
I travelled this way. So do you be bufy in a
pi&ure, and I'll make a rude copy of the cipher
which is over the door of the fifliing-houfe.
Painter. It is an excellent conceit; and I
The River Dove.
229
hope Mr. Cotton may one day chance to hear
of this, and wonder at the unknown travellers
that hold him in fo high efteem ; and would he
might now fee our mutual labours ! Come, Sir,
lend me your fteel, and I'll light a pipe fo !
and now do you tell me fomething of this Axe
Edge which is as dark as a thunder-cloud, but
no more like an axe than I'm like a tree. Are
we now in the county of Derby or Stafford ?
Angler. Which you pleafe : for here you
may now ftand with one foot on the county of
Stafford, and the other in Derbyfhire ; look
you, or I will rather fay, liften ; for you will
fcarce hear, and cannot fee the puny Dove that
now trickles out of the well under our feet, and
goes ruftling through the long grafs down the
fide of the mountain ; and neverthelefs I may
tell you, (he is big enough to divide the coun-
ties one from another for many a long mile.
There : 4 go thy way, little Dove,' and make
glad the thoufand meadows that you have a
mind to vifit in your rambles.
Painter. And, truft me, me fhall receive the
applaufes of many meek and happy anglers in
return for the pleafures me beftows on them.
But tell me fomething further, honeft Pifcator,
of this great mountain.
Angler. Well, then, you are to note, Axe
230
The River Dove.
Edge gives birth to many a trouty ftream : and
if we had time to come at them, I could fhow
you fome clear fountains, as the Goit and others ;
but next to the Dove is the river Wye, that
flows down this mountain, till it comes to the
hot wells at Buxton, and after that, to Bakewell
and the noble hall at Haddon ; and is there-
abouts made brighter than before by the Lath-
kill. But fee, here we have Mr. Walton and
Mr. Cotton's initial letters twifted together in
cipher, and graved on the ftone. I hope no
uncivil hand will untie the knot that joins them.
Painter. I hope fo too, for it is excellently
well graved, and a worthy tribute to our maf-
ters at the very fountain-head of their favoured
Dove.
Angler. And now for a fong. Nay we muft
be ftirring, or we fhall not find our way to
Alftonfields before dark.
Painter. Ah me ! I had almoft forgot : did
you fay all the way back to Alftonfields ? and
muft it be ? I know not if my legs will carry
me fo far.
The River Dove.
Angler. Then you may ufe your beft argu-
ments to perfuade them ; for I can tell you,
Axe Edge is a cold bed for travellers, and you'll
find no houfe of entertainment by the way.
But, come, another cup, and then let us pack
up, and away with a good will. Sir, I pledge
you.
Painter. Well, well ! that's a refreming
draught, and I am with you, fo do you lead on.
Angler. And I have fbmething to tell you
for your comfort. I fhall bring you by a near
path acrofs thefe mountains to the other fide of
the Great Crome ; it is not half the diftance
and for the greater part down hill.
Painter. That's pleafant news ; but now I'm
unconquerable ; I'm fit for any thing.
Angler. Come, then, bear away to the left ;
and what fay you to thefe ridges that are piled
up one after the other ?
Painter. It is all exceeding wild. Thefe
mountains have a noble folemn look.
Angler. But let me think awhile : I have
fome mifgivings. I cannot refolve me which
is our neareft way ; let us try this wild path to
the left.
Painter. Nay, Mafter, if you have loft your
reck'ning over thefe Alps, we fhall chance to
fleep under this 'moft excellent canopy, the
2 3 I
232
The River Dove.
4 air.' But ftay ; what is yonder ? a lonely
cottage on the next brow. So fortune has
helped us at a pinch.
Angler. 'Tis fome poor peaceful mepherd's
cottage ; let us go forward and knock ! Holloa !
within there !
Shepherd. Who's there ? how now, my lads !
Angler. Good even, mafter : can you tell us
the way to Hartington ?
Shepherd. To Hartington, good gentlemen ?
marry can I, 'twere ftrange elfe : old Racing
Harrifon might bring you acrofs thefe moun-
tains blindfolded, if need were.
Angler. Pr'ythee tell us, if we are to take to
the left hand ?
Shepherd. Ay, to the left, through yon flip-
ftyle; and mind to keep the Crome on your
right : but ftay awhile ; I'll fetch my ftaff, and
go along with you.
Painter. We thank you : but firft let us
offer you a cup of good wine ; and if it pleafe
you, I'll put this cold pie on the fettle at the
door, for fupper, when you come back. And
now who's for a pipe ?
Angler. I and all. Come, Mafter Shep-
herd, try my Virginia.
Shepherd. I thank you, gentlemen travellers ;
and now this way, for the evening comes on.
The River Dove.
Painter. You feem to have a hearty old age ;
you ftep like a yonker.
Shepherd. Ay, Sir ; the time has been, when
I was huntfman's groom to the noble Earl's
father, I could fcale thefe hills from morning
till funfet, and tire down the ftouteft buck.
Angler. Then you have ferved the great fa-
mily of Cavendifh ?
Shepherd. That, Sir, has been my pride thefe
many a-year, in peace and war. I followed the
Earl's noble brother, General Charles, to Gran-
tham, and was clofe to him at the battle of
Gainfborough, when the rebel Noll forced him
and his unbroken Lincoln troop into a quag-
mire. I myfelf heard him refufe quarter from
fo feditious a crew, and faw him caft his blood
that flowed from his wounds into their faces,
and fo he died as he lived, one of the moft
loyal cavaliers and fervants of the late king.
After that I was made ranger hereabouts : but
now I am three-fcore years, and fome of the
ailments of age have come upon me ; fo I tend
my little flock of fheep, and pay my honourable
Lord a peppercorn for rent.
Painter. Are thefe lands hereabouts the Earl
of Devonmire's ?
Shepherd. That are they for miles and miles.
He's a little king in all this country, and a right
2 33
H H
234
The River Dove.
royal matter to old Racing Harrifon. Now
look ye, Gentlemen, the path lies between thefe
two hills ; and when you come to another flip-
ftyle at the bottom, you are to hold right on,
till you fee ftars twinkle through the hole in
the top crag of the Crome.
Angler. Ay, now I remember. Thanks,
honeft Shepherd, and good even to you.
Shepherd. Good even, young Gentlemen ;
and will you pleafe give an old man his licenfe ?
Ah ! memory tells us youth is a flippery time ;
and every ftep you take fhall bring you nearer
or wider the way of heaven. We fhall not
meet again on thefe hills ; but when the laft
trump fhall found, may we all be found with
the mark on our foreheads.
Painter. Amen to that pious wifh. And
now a hearty farewell, and thanks for your fafe
conduct. Truft me, we fhall remember honeft
Racing Harrifon of the hills.
Shepherd. I thank you, good Gentlemen ;
and may peace be with you. Away ! for night
draws apace.
dngler. Brother, there was fomething touch-
ing in that old Shepherd's parting words. But
fee, we are now come behind the Great Crome.
Painter. Is it poflible ? and fo foon ! You
promifed to make the way fhorter, and well it
The River Dove.
2 35
is fo ; for thofe golden lights from the fetting
fun bid good even to the landfkip, and the val-
leys are thrown into an oppofition of deepening
fhadows.
Angler. l En avant ' is the word, feeing how
the evening clofes around us.
Painter. Why, what a conjuror are you !
Sure we are come again to Glutton Dale, or
I'm miftaken ?
Angler. The fame ; and here you will pafs
into Stern Dale, and then by Crowdey. Cote,
and Ludwell, where we are now arrived ; and
fo you are within a mile of Hartington.
Painter. Why, this is excellent ! and now
methinks I fee Hartington Church. Ho ! ho !
I'm off my legs.
Angler. Come, Sir, one more ftretch, and
then we're at home ; fo be a man ;
' Jog on, jog on the footpath way,
' And merrily hent the ftyle a,
* Your merry heart goes all the day,
' Your fad one tires in a mile a.'*
Painter. Truft me, never was pilgrim glad-
der to fee the goal of his journey, than I fhall
be to find myfelf at Alftonfields.
* Antidote againft Melancholy. A. D. 1661. ED.
236
The River Dove.
Angler. Well, my good companion, we have
had a lufty walk, that's true ; and now give me
thine hand, for here we are come to our inn.
Hoft. Gentlemen, my humble fervice to you
both. You muft be weary.
Painter. Let me tell you, I'm nigh exhauft-
ed, for I have never made fuch a march till
now ; but every thing I have feen hath exceed-
ed my hopes ; indeed, I am tranfported with
love towards your moorlands, and the River
Dove.
Hoft. I am happy to hear you fay fo.
Painter. And now let us take a light fupper,
and then to bed ; for I fee Mr. Marfh has pre-
pared a difh of trouts for us, fo let me ferve
you.
Angler. I'm quite willing : for, to fpeak the
truth, I'm no lefs weary than yourfelf ; and,
moreover, we have a long day before us to-
morrow ; for our purpofe is to fleep at Afli-
bourne.
Hoft. Gentlemen, I mall be forry to lofe your
company. I wifh I could detain you by the
Dove till Mr. Cotton's return ; and he'll be
grieved to hear how he has miffed the pleafant
acquaintance with fuch lovers of the angle.
Angler. And, I pray you, let him underftand
c .how w e fijhed his ftream by inches J and do not
The River Dove.
forget our thanks to him for this liberty in his
abfence.
Painter. And how we were enchanted with
the fylvan profpe&s about his houfe and grounds,
and all the ornaments in that temple of his, de-
dicated to anglers.
Ho/I. Sirs, you may depend I (hall.
Angler. And, moreover, do you tell him how
we walked to Dove-head, and there graved on
a flat ftone that covers the fountain, the firft let-
ters of his and Mr. Walton's names, in honour
of their mutual friendlhip.
Hoft. Indeed!
Painter. Ay, as like as poffible to the cipher
that is over the fifhing-houfe.
Angler. And this out of refpecl: to him and
Mr. Walton ; and fo he may find that infcrip-
tion any day he is willing to travel thither.
Hoft. Sirs, I am not able to exprefs my thanks
for all your kind thoughts of my dear and ho-
nourable mafter : and becaufe you hold him in
this efteem, give me leave to prefent you fome
ferious verfes he compofed in the laft days of a
cold winter ; they are writ with his own hand,
and have never been in print.
Angler. Nay, Mr. Marfh, is it poffible you
are in earneft ?
Hojt. Sir, wait but a moment, and I'll go
237
2 3 8
River Dove.
fetch them.
And here they are at your fervice.
Angler. Indeed I may not rob you of fuch a
treafure.
Hoft. Sir, my heart is overpowered. Here
I have preferved them for two years paft ; but
you are welcome, and none fo worthy to re-
ceive them as a gentleman that entertains fuch
thoughts of the writer. They will be fafe in
your good keeping, and I befeech you to take
them.
Angler. I know not what I fhould anfwer.
Hoft. Sir, they are freely yours.
Angler. A thoufand thanks, moft kind and
worthy Mr. Marfh, for fo precious a gift : it
{hall be preferved as a memento of thefe happy
hours we have fpent about Beresford Hall.
Look you, brother.
Painter. I wifh you joy.
Angler. I am in hafte to read them.
Painter. Pray do fo. I long to hear them.
Angler. I perceive they are verfes on
OLD AGE.
Why fhould fond man to his owne wrong,
A weary life feeke to prolong
By thofe detefted cheats of art,
That only add unto the fmart,
'The River Dove.
2 39
The growing malady and paine
Of life, of which wee fo complaine ?
As if there could bee a new way
To make things profper by decay ;
As if a tree fhowld wider fpread,
By loofing fap, its graceful head ;
Or higher towards heaven (hoot,
For being hollow att y e root.
Med'cine helps old men only fo,
As burnings are allay'd by fnow,
Which often makes us worfe endure,
Cheating the paine itt cannot cure ;
And to death only mends our pace,
As painting fooner fpoiles a face.
But fay wee could, when once grown old,
Our mines by fuch props uphold,
Who would, to his own peace untrue,
His leafe of mifery renew ?
The young, who in foft pleafures live,
May well folicite a reprieve,
When death does threaten, fince they doe
Nothing but life and pleafure know.
But they to whom living alone
Is hourely execution,
Should not evade methincks the cure
Of all the doloures they endure.
What, when cold cramps our limbs invade,
When nature's vifibly decay'd,
When all our youthful vigour's gone,
Sight, hearing, tafte, complexion
Are fled, and faded, when all fence,
Nay worfe, when all intelligence
(Which only human life does bleffe)
Is turn'd into forgettfulnefle,
240
The River Dove.
Or fees but in a magic glafle,
The ayery fine young thing it was,
What is there then, O then I fay,
Showld make us longer wifh to ftay ?
'Tis not the palfey, nor the gout,
The tiflick, nor the numerous rout
Of lingering paines old men beft name,
Which we can rationally blame.
Old age itfelf is the difeafe,
Whofe wretched traine confifts of thefe.
For as health, vigour, beauty, grace,
Gayetie, and difpofedneffe,
Make up its fpritely equipage
T' our morning and meridian age ;
So is old age attended by
All forts of paine and mifery,
More faithful followers by farre
Than th' other brifke attendants are,
Who falfely with our fortunes fly :
Thefe never leave us 'till we dye.
Age is th' effeft of time, and courfe,
In which, alafle, there's no reffource ;
Art, that is fo ador'd, and great,
Can here but little glory gett,
Who, where faint nature does refufe
T' aflift, muft needs her credit loofe.
Phyfic itfelf, that fowv'raigne friende,
To humane kind muft miffe her end,
And fhort in her endeavour falls
With all her herbs and mineralls,
And but afflicls y e patient more,
In weakening what fhee can't reftore.
Ceafe then, old man, thy fate t'efchew,
As youth has had, give age itt's due,
The River Dove.
Lye downe, and dye, and fo make roome
For him whofe turne 'tis next to come
CHARLES COTTON.
Painter. They are excellent verfes ; but of
a melancholy caft.
Angler. The beft of us will fometimes be
opprefled with fad forebodings. Mr. Marfh,
you have laid a lading obligation on me.
Hojt. Sir, not another word, I befeech you ;
but if I might make fo bold, I have one requeft
to make of this gentleman who is fo fkilful a
limner.
Painter. What is it ? for truft me it is already
granted, if it's within my poor ability.
Hojl. Sir, it is that I might have a defign of
my mafter's fifhing-houfe, in black and white,
from your pencil.
Painter. Moft willingly, and I'm happy to
make any return for your civility to my bro-
ther.
Hojl. Sir, I thank you ; and here is an an-
cient letter of my late miftrefs, Mr. Cotton's
mother, that me once writ to the fteward at the
Hall ; and perhaps this gentleman will read it
aloud : and it is quite at your fervice, if you
will be pleafed to accept it.
Painter. Indeed, I am greatly beholden to
you. Now, brother, do you read the letter,
i i
241
242
River Dove.
and I will draw a copy of the fifhing-houfe out
of my blank book.
Angler. With all my heart here it is :
4 HONEST WILL,
4 I wonder I heard not from you the laft
1 weeke. I fend you an accompt of my wants:
4 pray get fo much money as you can, and
4 brew the half-hogfhead of ftrong beare, and
4 put it into the little houfe' (that is the Flam-
1 beaux Tower you fa "iv) l and one hogfhead of
' fmall, which will require four ftrikes of mault,
c 2 for the ftrong, and 2 for the fmall : and
4 I defire your wife to doe me the favoure as
4 to brew them herfelfe ; remember to do it
4 fpeedylie before hott weather comes, for I
' mail be verie fpeedily in the countrie. Send
4 me Jack's height, that I may buy his coats
4 fitt, and the height of my owne chambre, that
4 I may fitt my bed. Defire your wyfe to looke
4 in the trunke where my work lies, and fend
4 mee one that is fully finifhed, and one that
c is not, of the quifhions in Irifh worke, and
4 the broad peece of quifhion canvis, 2 yards
c broad that is unwrought ; let mee know how
4 my garden grows, and tell John Gardiner
4 that if I do not finde my gardens in ample
4 maner when I come, that hee and I fhall not
The River Dove.
243
c bee friends : bid him fend word if he would
4 have any thing fent down for them. Mr.
' Upton remembers him to you and your wife,
' and defires to know whether his meare bee
4 brought in bed or noe, and I defire to knowe
4 how my black damfell doth ; pray get your
c own horfes in good cafe, in cafe I fend for
c you, or you are to meet mee : remember mee
4 to all my friends, but efpecially to John Hayes,
4 John Baflet, Die Ball, and tell him I will
4 bring his cognizance with mee. Let us get
4 the blew coate where wee can ; defire your
4 nephew to looke in my trunk of books, and
4 there you mail finde a large booke in writing
4 with a parchment cover, blotied on one fide
4 with inke towards the nooke of it, its of pre-
4 ferving & conferving, & fend it up by this
4 bearer, by whome I think I fhall fend you
4 further newes of my coming downe, if Mr.
4 Parker be not the caufe ; but however doe
* what I have defired. Send me word what's
4 become of that gratious elfe Pud ; fo I reft,
* Your loving M rU
' OLIVE COTTON.
4 my blefling to the two
4 comrades that keepe the
244
The River Dove.
' rabbits, Jack & Bilburd.
' Maye the 19 th
1650.'
1 For my truftie fervant
' William Grindon at
* Beresford, this with
1 care & fpeede
1 Staffordfhere.'
Painter. What a primitive kindnefs of na-
ture there is in every line. I declare to you,
brother, it is more deferving to be treafured
up in an angler's cabinet than thofe Latin epif-
tles I have feen of famed Miftrefs Anna Maria
Shurman.
Angler. It is the letter of a careful and be-
nevolent miftrefs.
Ho/?. Ay, Sirs ! and that (he was indeed.
Alas ! if (he had lived long enough, it had been
happier for Mr. Cotton. But fhe was fnatched
away, like a too delicate flower, as fhe was.*
* She died at the age of 38, as appears from a poem
of Sir Afton Cockaine : 'On the death of his dear
' coufm germaine, Mrs. Olive Cotton, who deceafed at
' Beresford, in the 38th year of her age, and lies buried
' at Bentley, by Ambourne.' ED.
The River Dove.
Will it pleafe you, Sir, to receive this letter ?
for I have fome others by me.
Painter. I thank you heartily, Mr. Marfh,
and I may not decline a kindnefs fo freely
offered ; and here is my copy of the fifhing-
houfe, which is not worthy to be called a re-
turn for fuch a gift.
Hoft. Sir, my humble duty and thanks to
you, and if ever you come this way again, and
it pleafe God I live, you mail then find this
natural view of the fifhing-houfe glazed and
hanging up over my parlour chimney.
jfngler. Well, I hope fome happy day we
may all meet here again : and fo let us to bed,
and pleafant dreams to every one.
2 45
The River Dove.
CHAPTER V.
The return of the Angler and Painter to Afti-
bourne, through Dove Dale.
Angler.
ELL, brother, now we are come
over the river into Derbyfhire, and
are arrived under Wolfscote Hill,
tell me what you thought of our
honeft hoft at Alftonfields, and his charges.
Painter. I know not which to admire moft,
the good cheer and beds that he gave us, or
the moderatenefs of the fcore. There we have
lived like brave gentlemen for three days, and
been moft civilly and handfomely treated, and
the charge was no more than I have paid for a
day's reckoning at an inn in Weftminfter.
Angler. If I may fpeak my real thoughts,
I have not met a more modeft and decently
behaved man than Herbert Marfhj fo I {hall
make honourable mention of him to all my
247
248
The River Dove.
friends that come to thefe parts, and recom-
mend them to take up their lodgings at the
King's Head.
Painter. And fo will I. But whither are
we going? what a defolation is here ! I wifh
we might return to that Vale of Tempe, by
Beresford Hall, and Mr. Cotton's fifhing-houfe :
for now, we are fcarce come a mile, and you
have only bald hills, with rubble ftones that
hang on the fides.
jfngler. It might all leem to be a dull kind
of place, but for the windings of the Dove,
that hurries fretfully away from this dreary re-
gion, c which jhe would not touch but for necef-
' fity ;' and for her fake, I befeech you, excufe
the want of other graces hereabout : for, truft
me, by and by you fhall find fome mafter-pieces
of nature's work. So let us follow whither
{he leads the way : and now we are come to
Bigging Dale, that has the variety of fome tufts
of wood, and pointed crags.
Painter. I fee no beauties to marvel at ; but
I will put on my mailer's patience : and fee,
here are cobbling ftones acrofs the river, that
will give us a change, and a paflage into Staf-
fordfhire.
Angler. If you will be advifed, we fhall do
better on this fide.
The River Dove.
249
Painter. As you pleafe. But look : yonder
is a pair of water-birds, dabbling down the
ftream before us. I hope they are Alciones,
that is, our native king-fifhers ; or, as fome will
call them, Hoop-birds.
Angler. It is an even lay they are water-
oufels ; for you may always find them up and
down about the Dove : neverthelefs, they are
hard to come at. But wherefore defire to have
them Halcyons ?
Painter. Becaufe I have a fingular regard for
thofe birds, knowing them to be an emblem and
prognoftic of calmnefs ; and I am fure, thefe
days I have enjoyed you on the brink of the
Dove have been 4 Halcyon days ' for me. How
does the Sicilian mariner rejoice during the
time of the Alcyons fitting on their nefts ! for
then, as Pliny writes, the fea is not fo boifterous,
but more quiet than at other times. And yet,
you are to note, this bird is prohibited to the
Ifraelites, as unclean, in the book of Leviticus,
wherein it is rendered as the Lapwing ; but this
learned Sir Thomas Browne declares to be a
miftake. And the reafon for this divine prohi-
bition is 4 the magical virtues afcribed unto it
4 by the Egyptian nation ; for they fo highly
4 magnified the Halcyon in their fymbols, they
4 placed it on the head of their gods ; and Orus,
K K
2 5
'The River Dove.
1 their hieroglyphic for the world, had the head
* of a Hoop-bird upon the top of his ftaff.' And
I may tell you certain other peculiars of this
famed water-fowl ; as that they make their
neft, and hatch their young, in the middle of
winter; and this neft they build fo as it may
float on the waves ; and becaufe Providence
inftrucls every moving creature with a fecret
inftinclive wifdom, they will faften it to fome
rock or border of the fea, by an artful flender
line, that the changing tides may not carry it
away from home.
Angler. Come, my brother, you are poetical ;
you do but magnify the nature of your Hal-
cyons, and amufe me with pleafant fables.
Painter. Nay, Sir, that is their own contri-
vance, and none of mine ; and you may believe
Ariftotle and Bafilius, when they declare that
the tempeftuous winds are hufhed into filence,
and the angry fea is becalmed, for fear they
fhould give any difturbance to this friend of
mariners, whilft they neftle their young ones.
And a learned Auguftine* monk aptly compares
this Halcyon to the Saviour of mankind, who
hath no fooner taken up His place in the foul,
than all the fwelling billows of this world's
* P. Auguftinus Chefheau, Orpheus Eucharifticus. ED.
'The River Dove.
ftorms are changed into a holy quietnefs. There
is no longer any threatening of calamity, but a
fublime confidence : then the lowering clouds
pafs away before the beams of the glorious Sun
of Righteoufnefs^ and the pleafant gales breathe
nothing but peace and joy. Then the believer,
holding faith and a good confcience, meets with
no fhipwreck ; for Jefus c maketh the Jlorm a
4 calm^fo that the waves thereof are ftill ;' then
the Chriftian mariners c are glad becaufe they
1 be quiet : fo He bringeth them to their defer ed
c haven.'*
Angler. Oh ! that the Heavenly Halcyon
might be ever with us, to impart unto our un-
quiet thoughts His own divine calm ! Then the
tempeftuous whirlwind of our paflions fhould
be filenced, and we made capable to enjoy that
promife ' Peace I leave with you^ my peace I
' give unto you : not as the world giveth^ give I
c unto you.'-\-
Painter. And thus be prepared for the im-
mortal joys laid up in ftore for the humble foul.
But there again you may mark them flitting
away before us ; and now they are alighted on
that great ftone in the middle of the ftream.
Angler. I fee them ; and I may tell you, for
* Pfalm cvii. 29, 30. f John xiv. 27.
2 5 I
2 5 2
The River Dove.
certain, they are water-oufels. Now would I
give two ducats for a gun ! for a dear friend of
mine, who is an angler, and has a fancy for all
kinds of birds, and is acquainted with their na-
ture, and feathers, and notes, defired me to
bring him home a water-oufel, if I chanced to
meet one, that he might fet it in his mufeum of
fluffed birds. And there is nothing in mode-
ration I would not do to pleafure him ; he is
fuch a civil, honeft brother of the angle.
Painter. As namely ?
Angler. He is one you have an acquaintance
with.
Painter. Pr'ythee his name, if he be a meek
angler.
Angler. Well, then, I may tell you, Francis
Mieris, whom I have heard you declare to be
one of the choice painters of Holland, bears the
fame initials.
Painter. Indeed ! then I can unravel your
enigma : it is your moft worthy kinfman, bound
to you not more by a near affinity than an an-
cient friendfhip,
that is, or ought to be, fomewhere in Oxford-
fhire : not many miles diftant from Fair Rofa-
mond's Bower in Woodftock Park.
The River Dove.
Angler. The fame : and if he had lived there
fome fifty years agone, he had been as deferving
to receive the dedication of THE SECRETS OF
ANGLING, teaching the choice/? tooles, baits, and
feafons, for the taking of any fijh, in Pond or
River, as Mr. Roger ^Jackfon's * worthy and
c refpe&ed friend, Mr. John Harborne of Tack-
4 ley, in the county of Oxford, Efquire :'* but
that he hath been referved to thefe times is one
of the joys of my life, for he is a {launch and
trufty friend, that will ftand by a man in the
day of his troubles.
Painter. But I knew not he was a lover of
angling ?
Angler. Marry is he : and fmce you are be-
come one of our fraternity, I could defire you
no greater pleafure than to fit by the fide of a
river in his company, and hear him make a
choice of paflages out of Mr. Walton's book j
and he efpecially loves that innocent converfa-
tion, and thofe fongs of the milkmaid and her
daughter ; which I hold to be a more rural and
engaging picture of primitive manners, than is
to be found in any writing : I will not make
an exception of brave Sir Philip Sydney's Ar-
cadia; or Will Shakfpeare's " Lover's Lament."
* See Note p. 28. ED.
2 53
2 54
The River Dove.
Painter. I wifh that friend were here what
pleafures he would find in Dove Dale !
Angler. Ay, and next to that I wifli I now
had a letter he wrote me fome days before I
left my houfe, that I might give you the perufal
thereof; it was about an Otter hunt he faw
near to Guy's Cliff in Warwickshire ; and I
declare to you he pictured that Otter hunt to
my mind with all the naturalnefs of Mr. Wal-
ton, when he met his friend VENATOR at Am-
well Hill. And this I may tell you, he hath a
delicate hand on a fly rod, and knows more
fecrets of angling than moft others : and both
loves and endeavours the art of hufbandry,
that is worthy of an Englifh Gentleman's prac-
tice infomuch he is acquainted with moft of
Thomas Tuffer's ' Hundreth Good Pointes of
1 Hujlandrie.' But we are entered into
Mill Dale fo now, if you pleafe, we may pafs
into Staffordfhire by this bridge, over the river,
and then look out ; for yonder you may fee
fomething you have met before.
Painter. What is that ?
Angler. Why, Sir, have you forgotten the
Wheelbarrow Bridge ? and there is Hanfon
Toot on your left hand, and that flippery zig-
zag path which leads to Afhbourne.
Painter. And fo it is indeed ! there is the
'The River Dove.
very fpot where we caught our firft brace of
trouts ; but do not tell me we muft part with
the Dove fo foon.
Angler. Not for the world ! but rather walk
to Afhbourne along the river, where we fhall
find frefh occafions for pleafure and furprife
on both margins fo crofs the bridge, and look
you do not tumble.
Painter. Truft me, c I can go by myfelf.'
Why what a fine difplay of rocks ! We have
met with nothing like them for boldnefs ; they
are thrown about in a delightful confufion.
What natural arches are thofe cut in the cliff,
that falls perpendicular into the dell, and yon-
der high pinnacle which frauds alone on the
other fide ?
Angler. Thefe are called the c Dove Holes,'
and that is dignified with the name of the
c Shepherd's Abbey.' Now you are come to
now you fee crags on crags of all (hapes ; and
the Dove grows more proud and fwelling,
feeing herfelf to be ornamented with fuch land-
fkips.
Painter. And that is not to be wondered at :
you are as good as your promife, for I declare
this is one of the moft beautiful dales in all
2 55
256
'The River Dove.
England. Let us tarry awhile, that I may
endeavour to fketch this delightful profpedt as
a memorial. 'Twill be a day to fpeak of here-
after. Every ftep I take I am more enamoured
of your river.
Angler. See yonder rock, on the other fide,
that has flipped from the mountain, and ftands
out with a look of defiance.
Painter. And which are thefe to the left
hand ?
Angler. One is the c Steeple Rock,' and the
other the 4 Watch-Tower.'
Painter. My pleafure is more than I can ex-
prefs. Think of the noblenefs of nature : what
tongue can articulate what pencil can defcribe
thefe combinations of a grand defign ? O Sir !
think how God hath planted a paradife on earth,
for c bad man ' to refrefli himfelf in ; and times
and feafons, and woods and rocks, and rivers,
and the glorious fun in his tabernacle of the
heavens, all appointed for the delight of his
creatures ; fo that, turn whitherfoever they will,
their eyes cannot look off from a miracle : and
oh ! why is it that our hearts are not attunable
to thofe high hallelujahs which are fung to the
found of golden harps, from throne to throne,
by angels in heaven, who being l arrayed in
4 white garments with palms in their hands^ and
The River Dove.
* crowns of gold on their heads ^Jing the fong of
' the Lamb for ever:' this we know to be their
prefent glorious occupation ; man only has no
defire for fuch a tranfporting joy : he will for-
get God in the very midft of his great and mar-
vellous works. But I beg you pardon, Sir !
I was carried beyond myfelf by thefe river
profpecls.
Angler. It is all very enchanting, and begets
in a fpiritual mind high thoughts of our Maker's
goodnefs and glory ; and now whilft you work
out your picture of the landfkip, I'll try to kill
a brace of trouts. And by and by, when we
are arrived lower down, we will recline our-
felves beneath a large flowering hawthorn tree
that I know of, and there you (hall put out
your angle-line to fifti for itfelf.
Painter. Agreed : and I have not feen a
river of fo much promife.
Angler. Look how the water crifps over the
flielving rocks, and is thrown back into the
eddies ; being, as Mr. Cotton fays, c fo Jlraight-
c ened in her courfe between the rocks ,' fhe has a
greater fwiftnefs than ever.
Painter. Well then, go you and fim down-
ward, and I will follow when I've made my
picture. How now, Sir ; how has it fared
with you ? tell me what luck.
2 57
L L
2 5 8
The River Dove.
Angler. I have caught two brace of trouts
and a fkipjack, that I put into the river again.
And now we are come to the great hawthorn
tree, that is worthy of note for its fpreading
branches.
Painter. So here let us reft our legs ; and
now I hold you to your promife, that my angle
fhould fifh for me at breakfaft time ; fo, by
your leave, I'll fit my tackling, that I may make
a trial underneath this broad cafcade. I
am prepared.
Angler. Now drop in your line flyly, and
beware you do not fplafti the water ; and then
come back to me, and I'll prepare breakfaft,
which we have honeftly earned by our two
hours' walk. Then we may drink a cup merrily,
and fing fongs in DOVE DALE.
Painter. I have done as you bid me, and put
my quill in a fecret place, where I promife my-
felf a trout.
Angler. Do not doubt it : and therein is the
great praife of angling, that hope is not only
reafonable, but is enjoined upon them that prac-
tife it ; and but for that, angling might be a dull
recreation. And now recline yourfelf under-
neath this hawthorn, and entertain your thoughts
with the profpecls I have brought you to.
Painter. Indeed, the delightful nefs of all I
'The River Dove.
fee, cannot be exprefled by words ; and I be-
feech you what great cavern is at the top of
that rock ?
Angler. That is c Reynard's Cave* it is an
admirable contrivance of nature, and if you
pleafe, we may clamber up, and pay mafter
Reynard a vifit in his Hall.
Painter. You will not eafily perfuade me to
that ; why, Sir, it is perpendicular !
Angler. Well, well ; as you pleafe never-
thelefs you would find no difficulty worth the
naming. And yonder is a rock called l Pick-
ering Tor,' and that is the l Iron Cheft : 'but
come, take your cup ; and here is delicate meat,
fo fall to't.
Painter. It is excellent and now my fer-
vice to you and to that honeft angler we both
know of that meek friend of yours who de-
fcribed the hunting of the Otter, near to War-
wick, with fo eloquent a pen.
Angler. That is well remembered ; and may
he never want opportunity to take his recre-
ation in a clear ftream ; and now once more ;
for I muft drink to another that I love as my
own foul that ordained Prieft of our Holy
Church, one of the ornaments and the delight
of Merton College in Oxford. I may not break
out into an eulogium that his difpofition would
259
260
The River Dove.
rebuke, if he were prefent with us : but he can-
not deny me the joy to drink his health ; fo
join with me !
Painter. Moft gladly fill up, Sir ! Where
was he laft heard of?
dngler. Near to the Rialto at Venice ; but
he now walks in his leifure about the Colof-
faeum in Rome, or the Baths of Titus, or it
may be in Dionyfius's Ear at Syracufe, in Sicily;
for thither he purpofed in his mind to go.
Painter. And I joy to think that, as in fome
other concurrences, fo in his travels he is like to
Sir Henry Wotton, who 4 laid afide his books'
(that he loved fo well) 4 and betook himfelf to
1 the ufeful library of travel^ and a more general
4 converfation with mankind^ to adorn his mind
4 and to purchafe the rich treafure of foreign
4 knowledge.' And this is declared of Sir Henry
Wotton, by Mr. Izaak Walton, in his life of
that excellent fcholar. And may your, no lefs
learned and efteemed, kinfman have all his
wifhes : for thefe I know to be full of mode-
ratenefs, peace and contentment, and to have
their beginning and ending in his blefled Maf-
ter's fervice.
Angler. That is true : and fo, here's a diftant
health to thee,
4 HENRICE, MI OCELLE,'
The River Dove.
from the banks of Dove to Tiber.
Painter. Salveto ! c Henrice^ ml ocelle.'
Angler. As Sir Henry Wotton was called
by that learned Italian ALBERICUS GENTILIS,
and by divers of Sir Henry's deareft friends,
and many other perfons of note during his ftay
in the Univerlity.* And now, brother, do you
look and fee if you have chanced to make a
catch.
Painter. How now? my float has difap-
peared ! Truft me I have a knabble there is
a large trout has taken me. I thought that was
a likely fall fee how he turns and wriggles,
and how he throws off tuggingly. Here is an
angler's delight ! and all this on the margin of
the Dove !
Angler. Beware of him ; thus
Painter. By your leave, Sir ! let me have
all the honour to myfelf : fo, fo now he dives
down, and up again with a leap ; look at his
twiftings and turnings !
Angler. Ay, he'll foon give over. There,
now we may net him, and a fine fifh he is ;
not lefs than two pounds weight. What would
your mafter Walton fay to this ?
Painter. I hope he would applaud me.
* Walton's Life of Sir Henry Wotton.
26l
The River Dove.
Angler. Come, try for another; this is a
likely hole. Look you, there's another bite ;
now check him ah ! he's broke away.
Painter. Indeed he has : I'm forry I loft him.
I'll try again look you ! another ! now, Sir
tumbler, you may do your worft.
Angler. Point the top of your rod to thofe
cliffs ; you are all right ; fee how he {hakes
the tackle, give him line, for he's a ftrong fifh.
Painter. Truft me, he's bigger than the laft;
the water is fo clear you may fee him ftruggle :
now he drives againft the ftream.
Angler. Turn him back, or you may lofe him
behind that ftone. 'Tis well done c why what
c a dangerous man are you!" 1 here's the net,
and now he is landed !
Painter. I thank you. This is a fport in-
deed ! O the contentment of happy anglers^!
how many years I have loft fince you firft in-
vited me to go a-fifhing : but I was then deaf
to your perfuaftons, and I would never believe
you. Well, I declare it hath a gaynefs that
is admirable. But come, I would not be fo
felfifh as to wim for more, until I fee you
handle a trout.
Angler. Well ; let us try lower down. But
firft of all let us have a fong ; and do you begin.
Painter. What fhall I fing ?
The River Dove.
Angler. Let it be that fonnet to the fpring in
Sir John Davies's Aftrea c Earth now is green,
4 and heaven is blue.'
Painter. Well and fo it (hall.
' E-arth now is green, and heaven is blue 5
L-ively fpring which makes all new,
J-olly fpring doth enter ;
S-weet young funbeams do fubdue
A-ngry aged winter.
B-lafts are wild, and feas are calm,
E-v'ry meadow flows with balm,
T-he earth wears all her riches ;
H-arrnonious birds fing fuch a pfalm
A-s ear and heart bewitches.
R-eferve, fweet fpring, this nymph of ours,
E-ternal garlands of thy flowers,
G-reen garlands never wafting ;
I-n her fhall laft our ftate's fair fpring,
N-ow and for ever flourifhing
A-s long as heav'n is lafting !'
Angler. I thank you, and now becaufe you
have fung thefe cheerful verfes, I'll give you a
fong, ' apt both for viols and voices,' by John
Wilbye.
Painter. Come then ! and fing it finely.
Angkr. I'll do my beft to pleafe you.
Happy ftreams, whofe trembling fall,
With ftill fummer foftly gliding,
Happy birds, whofe chirping call
With fweet melody delighting,
263
264
'The River Dove.
Hath moved her flinty and relentlefs heart
To liften to your harmony,
And fet fecurely in thefe downs apart,
Enchanted with your melody.
Sing on and carol forth your glee,
She grants you leave her ' rays to fee.'
Happy were I could love fo delight her ;
But aye, alas ! my love doth defpite her.
Painter. An exceeding fweet melody, and
I befeech you fing it over again ; and after that
I fhall be ready to go with you. So I like it
even better than at firft.
Angler. Come now, let us pack up the wallet,
and take our walk.
Painter. I am all ready. But what is here ?
we are come to a ftop.
dngler. Away with you : 'tis a found footing
at bottom, and fcarce knee deep.
Painter. Halt, good Sir ; you do not expect
me to walk into the river.
Angler. If you are refolved againft it, here
you may ftay ; for you fee how the river wafhes
the very bafement of this perpendicular rock,
and climb you cannot. Come, Sir, fol-
low me bravely : it is but ' a /pit and ajlrlde;'
or I'll carry you mounted a pick-back.
Painter. O ! let it not be faid. ' What
4 man dare, I dare ;' fo lead on, I'll trufs up my
hofe, and be after you. Ah me ! I was up to
The River Dove.
my knees ; but now I am well paft.
Angler. If you will be a fifher, never fear,
for it is your proper element : but, Sir, did you
hear that trout by the further bank ?
Painter. You may be fure I did, and faw
him too.
Angler. Well then, I muft needs in and
wade, if I would twift my fly thither.
Painter. Truft me, I am not coming after
you. I find nothing of that in my mafter's
book ; he declares, c how the very fitting by the
1 river's fide is not only the quieteft and fitteft
c place for contemplation, but will invite an
' angler to it ;' and think you, he would bring
his fcholar to fit under an honeyfuckle hedge,
and exprefs his cheerfulnefs when he reclined
himfelf on c the primrofe bank,' if he meant
him to wabble in the water ? and I befeech
you, call to mind thofe thoughts of his, which
he turned into verfe, 4 when he fat on the
c grafs, and there wifhed to meditate his time
c away.'
Angler. 'Tis all very true ; neverthelefs, Mr.
Walton himfelf muft at fometimes be contented
to wet his boots, if he would fill his pannier out
of the Dove ; wherefore, delicate Mr. PICTOR,
I now leave you to meditate on the filent plea-
fures of this flowery bank ;
M M
265
266
The River Dove.
So fit you ftill,
And watch your quill,
While I the trout entangle.
Painter. That will I do ; and you may be
as big-hearted and get as wet as you lift : but
harkye, Sir ; be not over-confident, or you may
hafte only to ftumble. Call to your remem-
brance Mr. Boyle's Treatife of ' ANGLING IM-
1 PROVED TO SPIRITUAL USES,' how Eugenius,
having c efpied a convenient nook for his angling,
c invited his friend Lindamor to Jhare the ad-
1 vantage with him, and began to walk thither-
4 ward along the river's brink ? but he had not
4 marcht very far when chancing to tread on a
1 place, where the courfe of the water had worn
1 off the bank, and made it hollow underneath, he
'found the earth fault er under him, and could not
4 hinder his feet from flipping down with the turf
4 that betrayed him.'*
Angler. I do remember : and if that fhould
chance to be my predicament, I hope you would
have the civility of Lindamor, that * catch t hold
4 of him, and drew him to the firm land'
Painter. O Signor Pefcatore, doubt not my
charity, though I might not deny myfelf the
* Occafional Reflexions by the Honourable Robert
Boyle. 1665. ED.
'The River Dove.
267
fame liberty that Honourable Mr. Boyle took
with his friend Eugenius, c to make himfelf merry
c a while with the difajler when he found it to
c be harmlefs.'
Angler. Well well, Sir, I give you leave ;
and let him laugh that wins, I am not afraid of
a fomerfault if a good fifh chop at my fly.
Painter. Farewell then : and I'll go lower
down and pleafe myfelf.
Angler. Ay, good brother, do fo ; and pr'y-
thee reach me the landing net before you go.
Painter. There it is, and I wifh you may
have fport.
Angler. Look you, Sir j I have a fifh ; 'tis a
fmall one, I grant you.
Painter. Do. you call that a fifh? he's a
piccolo a pifciculus ; and liften methinks I
heard him fpeak.
Angler. Speak ? mayhap thou takeft him to
be c Vox PISCIS, or the BOOK-FISH, contayning
c three treatifes which were found in the belly
c of aCod-fifh in Cambridge market on Midfum-
' mer Eve laft.' * And fince thou art fo imbued
* The incident here referred to, of a book found in
the belly of a cod-fifti, taken on the Norfolk coaft, and
brought to Cambridge market, on Midfummereve, 1626,
is no lefs true than ftrange. Fuller attefts the fa6l in
his Worthies of England, folio, p. 359, and fays he was
268
The River Dove.
with fifh-learning, I befeech you to tell me
whether this be a trout, or what other fifh I
have caught ?
Painter. I know not if it be the Dog-fijh,
the Sea-calfe^ the Porpus or Hog-fijh, or the
AJJe-fiJh called in Latin Afellus: or perchance
it may be the Monk-fijh the Mere-man or the
Mermaid: all which I remit to your better
judgment. But liften, I fay ; for though I am
not fo wife a philofopher as JEfop^ I have, me-
thinks, fuddenly imparted to me his noted intel-
ligence of fames' language, and certes I hear
this one fpeak.
Angler. Well then, will it pleafe your mar-
vellous wifdom to be our mutual interpreter,
and give me the fubftance of this learned fifti's
foliloquy ?
Painter. It is no foliloquy ; for his addrefs
is to yourfelf, and feeing (or it may be feeling)
how you are taking the hook out of his gills
in Cambridge at the time : and in Parr's Life and Let-
ters of Archbifhop Ufher, folio, p. 34.5, is a letter from
his Grace to Dr. Samuel Ward, dated 3oth June, 1626,
in anfwer to his communication of the fame faft. I
have myfelf feen a copy of one of thefe treatifes, in
' fexto dfdmOy printed in black letter, and entitled ' The
' Preparation to the Croffe and to Death, and of the
' Comfort under the Croffe and Death.' John Frith,
who fuffered martyrdom in 1533, was the author. ED.
The River Dove.
with a moft relentlefs love, and are going to put
him into your bafket, he opens his mouth, and
in a pathetical voice implores your pity, making
his humble fuit that you would be pleafed to
throw him into the river again, by reafon he
is young and infignificant, and not fo well worth
your while as he fliall be fome time hereafter,
if you catch him when he is grown more con-
fiderable.
Angler. Oh ho ! Go to Go to thou art
a wag ; and I befeech you give my duty to him
in the fame learned hidden language which he
hath fo eloquently pleaded in ; and tell him I
am not one of thofe fools who quit a certainty
for an uncertainty ; and that a c fifli in the
pannier's worth two in the pond.' But ftay
becaufe he is a grayling, and not a trout, I'll
e'en put him in again, and let him grow till
Chriftmas for Mr. Cotton's amufement. But
now look you, brother, faw you that great fim
leap from the water ?
Painter. I did ; he looked as big as a falmon ;
give him the temptation of your fly.
Angler. Truft me. There he is, I have him
faft. So, fo, Matter BullyhufF, you are not like
the laft ; you are for a hard bout, I fee. Ah,
ah ! this is a trial of ftrength, and I fear for my
tackling.
269
270
'The River Dove.
Painter. In with him, Sir.
Angler. Nay, let me be gentle. Look you,
that was his laft ftruggle ; there he lies his length
on the water. So, I have him, and he is full
eighteen inches long. Well, Mr. Painter ! what
fay you now to my Dove ?
Painter. I declare to you it is all a bewitch-
ment : my tongue is ready to praife every next
turning of the river more than the other ; and
I fcarce know which to like beft, this angling,
or the landfkips. Look you ! there again are
rocks fpringing up like fteeples on this fide, and
on that : it is all full of furprifes.
Angler. Thofe rocks are called the c Tiffing-
' ton Spires ;' for that retired village lies but the
diftance of a walk to the left, pafling through
Bentley that you know of; and here are two
rocks that have flided from the cliff, and have
thruft themfelves into the river ; they are known
to be c The Brothers,' and fo I have brought
you within a view of Thorpe Cloud.
Painter. Is that Thorpe Cloud ?
Angler. None other, believe me.
Painter. Well, I declare ! he is more change-
able than a Proteus ; for here he looks like a
beheaded cone.
Angler. And now, brother, you are come to-
wards the end of the Dale.
The River Dove.
Painter, Tell me not this fad news : I may
not believe it ! or if it be true indeed, let us re-
cline ourfelves on thefe banks by the ftream,
and meditate for an hour or two, and angle and
fmg, and angle again ; and after that beguile the
time with fome paflages out of Mr. Walton's
book. Or, if we muft needs depart, let us firft,
'fit down by the water s^ and hang our harps
upon the willows^ and weep.
Angler. I am charmed to think how thefe
fweet profpects have engaged and fixed your
affections ; and how you are now become a pro-
feffed angler, and how at fome future time you
may defire to take another walk on the banks of
my River Dove. But, I befeech you, climb
with me to the top of this acceflible rock, that
is called by the country-folk here about, c The
Lover's Leap:' there you may look back on
an upward profpect of the Dove, that is more
remarkable than any other you have feen. And
after that, you fhall explore fome quiet nooks
and corners by other ftreams, and hear fome-
thing marvellous I have to tell you of.
Painter. Well, I am content to follow your
footfteps wherever you are pleafed to lead me.
Angler. And now we have fcrambled up,
let us fit on the grafs, and tell me what you
think ?
271
272
The River Dove.
Painter. I know not what to think or fay.
Where fhall all thefe wonders end ! here is one
of the moft enchanting furveys that this or any
other county in England can exhibit.
Angler. Do you obferve how the Dale is
drawn out to the greateft length poffible ? for
paffing back again by thofe ' Tiffington Spires,'
and the two 4 Brothers,' and the rocks above
4 Reynard's Cave,' the eye may look almoft as
far as c the Shepherd's Abbey ; ' and all the way
along, an exceeding number of pellucid water-
falls, and other varieties of the river make this
vale an excellent fubject for contemplation.
Painter. And the cliffs on either fide of the
valley are adorned with fhady woods, and a fin-
gular combination of natural beauties.
Angler. Come then, good brother, let us go
down again, and take our walk along the ftream
to the right hand, as it flows between Thorpe
Cloud and that oppofite hill ; and here are
fome leaping ftones, where we may now crofs
into Staffbrdmire, and part company with our
Dove.
Painter. I am forry to hear it.
Angler. But only for awhile, till we light
on her again in fome meadows lower down, and
then find her fwelled by other rivers that may
pafs for wonders.
'The River Dove. 273
Painter. Indeed ! but what is here ? Marry,
Sir, I thought not to come again fb quickly to
the Dove ; methinks fhe has taken us unaware.
Angler. This is not the Dove, but the river
Manifold ; and now do you follow me to the
left hand, where I may bring you to a moft
fhady retired fpot imaginable.
Painter. How ! another rapid fpring, that
fuddenly ftarts into life, and in a few yards is a
handfome ftream ! Let us recline ourfelves
here awhile.
Angler. I am quite willing ; and methinks,
for a near fylvan profpecl, we have feen none
better fmce we left Pike Pool ; for here you
have a thick grove of trees, and fuch a calm-
nefs as makes it a moft enchanting retreat ; and
the murmuring waters of this infant brook, with
their harmonious cadency.
Painter. And fee how the river Manifold
hurries away, rejoicing as it were in her li-
berty.
Angler. And let me tell you, with greater
reafon than you know of.
Painter. How mean you ?
Angler. Of that hereafter ; but fee, there are
the lowing cattle come from the meadows to
drink ; therefore, I befeech you, compofe them
into a landfkip.
N N
2/4
The River Dove.
Painter. You fhall fee prefently. there
1 have given you the milkmaid's mother,
with her milch kine, and there is 4 honeft Maud-
4 lin' herfelf, who fung that fweet fong to Mr.
Walton and his friend VENATOR ;
' Come live with me, and be my love,
' And we will all the pleafures prove,
' That valleys, groves, or hills, or field,
' Or woods, and fteepy mountains yield ! '
Angler. Bravely done ! On my word, this
piture takes a breathing of life from your pen-
cil;
' Where we will fit, upon the rocks,
' And fee the {hepherds feed their flocks,
' By mallow rivers, to whole falls
' Melodious birds fing madrigals!'
not Claude Lorraine, nor Kuyp himfelf, could
furpafs that whole picture, for it has the very
ftamp of nature.
Painter. Enough, enough ; let us be going,
and what have we here ? A bridge, and a pretty
village with a little parifh church ! Where are
we come to ?
jfngler. I have now brought you to Ham
Church : and fee the door is haply open ; fo
let us accept this accidental invitation. And
now you are to note, this is the ancient tomb
of good Bertram, who there lies (fo much of
The River Dove.
275
him as could perifh) and waits for that joyful
day of the refurreclion, when all the holy angels
and the fpirits of faints (hall meet the coming of
our Lord in the clouds of heaven.
Painter. And here is the carved altar that
may put the villagers in mind of the Supper of
the Lord, and inftil into them an earneft defire
to partake of the Holy Communion, that they
may eat and drink, and feed on Him in their
hearts by faith, and be thankful.
Angler. And fee this old font in ftone, which
hath a facramental charm ; for therein the peo-
ple from age to age have brought their fons and
daughters to be baptized into Chrift's flock,
and be regenerated, and made children of God
and inheritors of the kingdom of heaven. And
I may take upon me to fay that all thefe things
make this church the centre-point of the fecret
reverence and holy affections of the peaceful
villagers, lifting them up to a revelation of the
next world. But, feeing how time wears
apace, I will conduct you forth again: and
now look at this high hill, fhaped like an am-
phitheatre, and beneath is the rocky bed of a
river.
Painter. A river ! why here is not a drop
of water to wet a fly's wing !
Angler. That is true. I faid not a river, but
276
'The River Dove.
the bed of a river, and of fuch an one as, had
(he a tongue, might declare many rarities (he
has beheld, and dark doings of that prifon-houfe,
where (he was lately detained againft her will :
nay, for any thing I know, {he might have fur-
nimed to that ftern regicide, Mr. John Milton,
or the great Dante, fome arguments for another
poem of the {hades below.
Painter. How ! you are grown enigmatical-
dngler. Come, then, ftep with me to this
rock in Mr. Port's garden : here is a well in the
rock ; fo tell me what you fee ?
Painter. I fee a great ftream pouring itfelf
out in circling eddies from the ground.
Angler. Now mark, that is the river Hamps ;
and here fhe joins herfelf to another within a
few yards diftance.
Painter. A fecond ftream ! and bigger than
the firft, burfts forth in a whirlpool !
Angler. True ; and you are to note this is
the river Manifold. See how joyfully {he re-
ceives that lefler Hamps, and then flows away
with her to the fhady grove of trees, where you
and I fo lately reclined ourfelves. Truft me
they are glad to breathe the air once more, and
to play their gambols in the meadows, after their
long imprifonment j for it is a known truth,
thefe rivers have made an underground journey
T'he River Dove.
within the natural caverns of the earth, for fome
miles diftance.
Painter. Impoflible ! I would not be fo
uncivil to difbelieve any thing you fay ; but as
touching your Staffbrdmire rivers, you take a
traveller's privilege to be marvellous.
Angler. Well, well ; I perceive you think
this to be all a fable ; yet it's no lefs true be-
caufe it is a wonder : for the laft time I came
this way I examined into the nature of it ; and,
as I am an honeft angler, I faw the very inlet,
underneath fome high rocks, about Whetton
Mill, where the waters of the Manifold are
gurged and' loft to every eye : and the fame of
Hamps, that is received into its fubterraneous
channels, near to a place called the Water-
houfes. And fo they take their circuit through
myfterious fecret caves and grottoes, which no
man has explored, till they make their happy
efcape out of imprifonment into thefe gardens,
and, as you are now a witnefs, embrace with
mutual gratulations, and hurry themfelves away
to tell their dark adventures to the matchlefs
Dove.
Painter. Well, I am glad that is the place
of their fhelter ; and I am enchanted with this
romance of the rivers : for, indeed, all the fur-
rounding profpeft is fit to be called a fairy land.
277
2 7 8
The River Dove.
There is Thorpe Cloud maintains himfelf
proudly, and this circle of oppofite hills, and
the church, with its ancient porch and tracery
of windows, all of painted glafs, befide Mr.
Port's manfion-houfe, and his ornamental gar-
dens.
Angler. It is indeed all very fine ; but it's
time to be gone, fo let us follow thefe rivers till
we are come to the bridge. See, here it is, and
now we may crofs over and walk by the right
bank of the Manifold ; and fo we are once more
come to the ftream that we both love better
than any.
Painter. Is this the Dove ?
Angler. The fame ; fhe is juft from the foot
of Thorpe Cloud, by yonder channel to the
right hand ; and now that we are arrived at
this high bank, look again upon the Jandfkip.
There the Manifold joins itfelf to the Dove,
and there are thofe meadows, which ' are too
c pleafant to be looked upon, but only on holi-
' days ; ' and fee the mountains that are now
darker than they were two hours agone, which
is our warning that we are not yet come to
Afhbourne ; fo thither away.
Painter. As you pleafe, brother; but re-
member, on this only condition, that we walk
on the brink of the Dove, as far as we may.
The River Dove.
Angler. That is a fhort pleafure ; for here is
another bridge will bring us into Derbyfhire ;
and now methinks I fee Mapleton Church be-
fore us ; fo we muft take our farewell of Dove.
Painter. Alas the day !
Angler. Well, well ; let us catch fome trouts,
and then be going.
Painter. Ay, fo we will. Look you, Sir,
my tools are fitted.
Angler. So foon ! then ply your work each
for a brace.
Painter. It is agreed. I will this way down
to the ftream.
Angler. So be it ; and I for yonder bent,
where the water runs crifping.
Painter. Away with you ! I'll lay the odds
on Mafter Walton's cork and bait, againil Mr.
Cotton's fly.
Angler. Done the wager ?
Painter. He that takes the firft brace fhall
mix a cup of good Canary at Mapleton, and the
other fhall pay the fcores without grudging.
Angler. I am content fo do your worft
Painter. Well, good brother, what fport ? I
have caught but one, and that's a troutlet.
Angler. Indeed ! look you, here is a couple
of big ones.
Painter. Ah ! well I'm but a prentice in
279
280
The River Dove.
the art : I confefs I've loft my wager, and am
ready to pay the forfeit.
Angler. Well : that's like an angler, honeftly
fpoken fo let us away.
Painter. But make me this promife, that
we may (God willing) come hither again, next
fummer, a-fiming ; and fo read that book of
Mr. Walton, whom I love better than ever I
did, becaufe you have taught me how many
pleafures are to be found in his recreation of
angling.
Angler. Truft me, I {hall want no perfua-
fion to walk in your company by the Dove,
in the merry month of May, and then do no-
thing but angle and rejoice, as you know we
have done thefe laft days, and c fat as quietly
4 and as free from cares, under hawthorn trees
4 and rocks, as Virgil's Tityrus and his Meliboeus
4 did beneath their broad beach tree:' fo fays
Mr. Walton ; and now let me read you thefe
natural thoughts out of his book. Here it is :
4 No life, my honeft fcholar, no life fo happy
4 and fo pleafant as the life of a well governed
4 angler ; for when the lawyer is fwallowed up
4 with bufinefs, and the ftatefman is preventing
4 or contriving plots, then we fit on cowflip
4 banks, hear the birds fing, and pofTefs our-
4 felves in as much quietnefs as thefe filent filver
The River Dove.
1 ftreams, which we now fee glide fo quietly
4 by us. Indeed, my good fcholar, we may
4 fay of angling, as Dr. Boteler faid of ftraw-
1 berries, " Doubtlefs God could have made a
1 " better berry, but doubtlefs God never did ;"
1 and fo (if I might be judge,) God never did
1 make a more calm, quiet, innocent recreation
' than angling.'
Painter. Every word is true. And what a
thankful heart my mafter has !
Angler. Ay, truly ; and hear how he per-
fuades every man to thankfulnefs ; he faid to
his companion, 4 Let us not forget to praife God
4 for the innocent mirth and pleafure we have
4 enjoyed fince we have met together. What
4 would a blind man give to fee the pleafant
4 rivers, and meadows, and flowers, and foun-
4 tains we have looked upon, fince we met to-
4 gether ! ' And now we are come to Mapleton,
and here's a clean alehoufe ; and the hoft is a
modeft man, and hath a fine fmooth bowling-
green ; fo before we go back to Afhbourne, let
us reft awhile, and refrefh ourfelves with the
cup you are to pay for. Come, hoft, bring us
a bottle of that Canary wine you gave me the
laft time I was this way in company with a
gentleman fifher; and remember the lemon
ftuck round about with fpices, and fome of that
o o
28l
282
The River Dove.
fweet cake, that we may be merry with difcre-
tion, as all true anglers are wont to be. There
is a large trout for our civil hoftefs, with my
fervice to her. And now, brother, let us walk
into the garden, that is fo neat and handfome ;
here you have a various herbal, fit for a country
houfe-wife, like our hoftefs : here is hyflbp,
marjory, and penny-royal, and thyme, and all
kinds of fruit-trees.
Painter. It is all very good, and here is the
bowling-ground ; it looks like a green velvet.
Look, how exceeding fmooth ; how the bowls
glide along ! Where is the jack ? Come, let us
play at bowls till the Nedlar is ready.
Angler. Agreed : there, I have fet the jack ;
now do you bowl firft.
Painter. Nay, after you ; fo, fo, mafter, you
are fhort of the jack : look, look, mine is the
neareft.
Angler. Nay, it is a meafuring caft ; but here
goes one will overlay him. Pifh ! I have fhot
him over wide he had an untrue bias.
Painter. Well, then ; here's another.
Angler. That was curioufly pitched : now for
a laft endeavour. Ah, me ! that has knocked
your firft bowl to the jack : I am fure he was
wrong biafled.
Painter. Well, I thank you ; and fo, let me
The River Dove.
try this ; and now another.
Angler. The game is yours.
Painter. And here comes the hoft. Let us
have our repaft under this yew tree, that is not
lefs than a hundred years old ; here is a table,
and fettles ready prepared.
Angler. With all my heart, for it feems a
pleafant arbour. Come, Sir, fill the glafles.
Painter. The liquor is exceedingly good :
and this even Mr. Walton and Mr. Cotton
would declare, if they were cup-and-can with us.
I doubt not but they are acquainted with this
' boneft ale-houfej and have refted themfelves
on thefe fettles, after a day's riming in the
Dove, and been refrefhed with a cup of good
barley wine, and fung Old Rofe together, and
played at bowls on this green turf. Do you
remember that bowling ground by the Tower ?
Think what a choice profpecl: was there ! On
one fide the fifhing-houfe, and on another the
manfion that we looked over fo pleafantly.
Angler. That was indeed a charming prof-
peel: ! Then have you forgot the flower garden
at the foot of the Tower, and Mr. Walton's and
Mr. Cotton's portraits, and all the landfkips in
the fifhing-houfe, which you painted in your
book; and after that Pike Pool, where you
landed that big trout ; and the great Hall, and
284
River Dove.
your mafter Walton's chamber ?
Painter. No more, no more, left I forget
all difcretion, and, retracing my footfteps, hie
me back to Beresford. O ! that place is a
delight for innocent anglers. There a man is
raifed to an excefs of pleafure ; he may go
forth in the morning and hear the birds ' warble
' forth their ditties : ' the rocks, and the woods,
and the merry ftreams are the books he reads
in ; the fun, and the clouds, and the wind are
his oracles to confult ; and the fpeckled trout
is his play-fellow, that makes her gambols and
her fomerfaults for his entertainment. Call you
this an idlenefs ? It were a pretty treafon to
deny that it is the moft refined, gentle, and gay-
fome recreation that a man may indulge in ;
that is to fay, for his leifurable hours, fince
only then it may be reafonable.
Angler. Hey day, Mafter ! not fo faft ; c a
4 man need to have the patience of Job, that
' he may fit filently by the river, and look down
c at nothing but his float.*
Painter. Nay, did I fay that ?
Angler. ' Neverthelefs, I cannot but pity
1 your dumpifh anglers, that wait fo meekly for
c their fortunes, as to feem fixed with all the
* See back p. 8. ED.
The River Dove.
285
c gravity of carved ftatues on the margin of
4 their ftreams* .'
Painter. Enough, enough ; I faid that in ig-
norance of the joys of anglers. I will never
be a fcoffer again ; and I befeech you to blot
thofe words from your memory, and note me
down your willing companion this way a-fifh-
ing, every year that God gives us health for
fuch a fweet walk in the month of May. For
remember, this life is fhort, and is not in our
own hands ; c it is as a flower of the field that
'fadetb:' and what fays Mr. Robert Herrick,
whofe verfes you both love and fing fo well ?
Fair daffodils, we weep to fee
You hafte away fo foon ;
As yet the early-rifmg fun
Has not attain'd his noon :
Stay, ftay
Until the haft'ning day
Has run
But to the even fong ;
And having pray'd together, we
Will go with you along.
We have fliort time to ftay, as you,
We have as ftiort a fpring,
As quick a growth to meet decay
As you, or any thing.
* See back p. 8. ED.
286
'The River Dove.
We die,
As your hours do ; and dry
Away,
Like to the Summer's rain,
Or as the pearls of morning dew,
Ne'er to be found again.
But come, brother, you muft make me a re-
turn for thefe lines ; and then let us be going,
for I have appointed a fervant with my horfes
to meet me in Aflibourne, that I may reach my
houfe at to-night.
Angler. Well, then, if I give you a plaintive
ditty, put it to the account of our parting : it is
that fweet fonnet from the Paffionate Pilgrim,
compofed by the greateft bard of the laft or any
other age.
As it fell upon a day,
In the merry month of May,
Sitting in a pleafant (hade,
Which a grove of myrtles made ;
Lambs did leap, and birds did fing ;
Trees did grow, and plants did fpring.
Every thing did banifh moan,
Save the nightingale alone.
She, poor bird, as all forlorn,
Lean'd her breaft up-till a thorn ;
And there fung the dolefuirft ditty,
That to hear it was great pity.
Fie fie fie now would me cry,
Teru, Teru, by and by.
The River Dove.
287
That to hear her fo complain,
Scarce I could from tears refrain :
For her griefs, fo lively mown,
Made me think, upon mine own.
Ah ! (thought I) thou mourn'it in vain,
None take pity on thy pain.
Senfelefe trees they cannot hear thee ;
Ruthlefs beafts they will not cheer thee ;
All thy fellow birds do fmg,
Carelefs of thy forrowing.
Even ft),, poor bird, like thee,
None alive will pity me.*
And now, good brother, it is almoft time to be
at home.
Painter. Well I'll pay the reckoning, and
then let's away : but what is here ?
Angler. We are come again to a lower part
of the fame Bentley Brook we faw before j fo
let us pafs over ; and now we are to the top of
the hill.
Painter. What noife was that ?
Hark, hark, I hear the dancing,
And a nimble morris-prancing.
Look over the hedge : there they are ! there is
a troop of lads and maidens down in yonder
green meadows a-dancing.
Angler. And fo they are ! tripping it mer-
rily round to the tabor and pipe.
* Shakefpeare's Sonnets.
288
The River Dove.
Painter. And, look you, there's a bevy of
innocent milkmaids, leading a fine fleek cow for
a whipt fyllabub : fee how fhe is deck'd with
ribands and fcarfs, and wreaths of flowers, and
her horns tipped with gold.
Angler. And there the young woodmen be-
gin to dance with the maidens in blue kirtles :
how they foot it to the meafure ! Out upon the
cares and tumults of a court life. I do love to
fee thefe honeft country junketings, and I pray
that merry England may always have a race of
happy peafants, and not let melancholy Preci-
fians* forbid them to rejoice their tired fpirits
with lawful fports in the flowery meadows and
greenwoods. Hark ! how they laugh their for-
rows away.
Painter. But flay awhile : they have fet
themfelves down upon the grafs ; let us fee
what they will do.
Angler. Hift hift they are challenging
each other to ling and now they have begun
their
SONG.
Now is the month of Maying,
When merry lads are playing ; Falalalalala.
* In ' The King's Majeftie's Declaration concerning
' lawful fports/ Puritans and Precifians are defignated
' as Adverfaries of our Church/ ED.
The River Dove.
289
Each with his bonny lafs
Upon the greeny grafs. Falalalala.
The fpring clad all in gladnefs
Doth laugh at winter's fadnefs : Falala.
And to the bagpipe's found
The nymphs tread out their ground. Falalalala.
Fye then, why fit we mufmg,
Youth's fweet delight refufmg : Falala.
Say, daintie nymphs, and fpeak>
Shall we play barley-break ?
Falalalalala.* Falalalala.
Painter. There's a ballet for you ! a moft
merry madrigal fet to mufic by a choice hand.
Angler. And now they are filent : and there
come the little maids with bafkets of bride
cakes, and knots of ribbands at their bofoms,
with nofegays and bunches of rofemary in their
hands.
Painter. Now truft me, it is fome ruftical
wedding day ; and there you may fee the bride
in the midft, in a ruflet gown, and a kirtle of
fine worfted.
Angler. And there goes the bride cup, all
ftreaming with bride laces of red and white,
and full of fpiced poflet, that the bridegroom
* Firft Book of Ballads to five voices. By Thomas
Morley, 1600. ED.
p p
290
'The River Dove.
ferves her with : and look you, the tankards
are pafling round.
Painter. See fee ! the lufty woodman has
put on his high crown'd hat, turned up with a
filver clafp, and leads out his bride to the dance :
mark with how fpecial a coynefs fhe gives him
her hand ; but you may depend fhe will foot it
with the beft as foon as fhe begins.
Angler. There's the bagpipe again : by my
word, Sir, they are going to Canary it. Now
look at my Gentleman in his yellow ftockings,
and his fellows all ready.
Painter. No, no : they are for a Corantoe.
Is it not excellent ? with what a gravity they
frolic it up and down.
Angler. Ay, 'tis a merry bridal,
Whilft youthful fports are lafting,
To feafting turn your fafting ;
With revels and with waflails
Make grief and care your vaflals :
but come, we may not tarry.
Painter. Well then I am with you. So
farewell ! ye peaceful fons and daughters of
nature : and may ye never want a fpiced bride
ale to make you cheerful and thankful hearts
withal.
Angler. Hither away then ; and now you
The River Dove. 291
may fee the town of Afhbourne in the valley,
which is to be my refting place to-night.
Painter. Alas ! I am very loth to part with
you ; but thou (halt be remembered in my
prayers. And one thing I am refolved, when
on occafion the cares of life come againft me,
or the fears of greater afflictions, I will then
fay to myfelf, c It is now but fo and fo before
1 the month of May, when I will throw off all
1 my moody thoughts on the banks of fome
* retired river, and it may be by the fide of Mr.
' Cotton's fifhing-houfe.'
jfngler. It is bravely refolved, and the more
fo, becaufe I know by experience, how a feclu-
fion from the noify world is a favourable aid
and opportunity for religious fervices, helps
to foften the affections, and inclines them to a
fublime love to God, and if that be wanting,
all others do but delude.
Painter. True ; and confider the motives
we have to that love ; think of that proper and
peculiar attraction lovelinefs ; and indeed Ho-
nourable Mr. Robert Boyle has declared, how
fuch was the freenefs of God's love towards
us, and fo entirely was that love its own mo-
tive, that even our exiftence in the world is the
effect of it ; nay, He even c loved us before the
c foundation of the world.' And confider again
292
The River Dove.
the rich difcoveries of His free love in fending
His Son to redeem us. Think of the Divine
glory fhrouded in the veil of manhood, and fo
tempered to the weak eyefight of a fallen race ;
of His wearinefs and watchings of the buffet,
mocking, and fcourge, the injurious condemna-
tion, and the uplifted Crofs. And let us not
forget how God loves to dwell, by His Spirit,
in them whom He has drawn and difpofed to
love His Son : ' He that loveth mej faid the
blefled Jefus, c fhall be loved of my Father, and
' we will come unto him^ and make our abode
4 with him.'
Angler. Vaft and exalted love ! Oh the ex-
treme abjeclednefs of our hearts, that cannot
{bar up to the fkies, and there be ravifhed with
a contemplation of fuch glorious love. It is
enough to ftir our penitential fhame, to think of
the dulnefs of our apprehenfions ! Let us often
fecretly, and alone by ourfelves, pray for divine
grace, that our fouls may be able to rife to the
throne of HIM that only can ftrengthen them.
I might enlarge, but now I muft flop here:
only this is moft certain, the angler's retirement
is fweetened by a contemplation of God's at-
tributes ; and the breath of praife perfumes
even the banks of flowers he reclines himfelf
upon, c for the prayers of faints are golden vials
The River Dove.
' full of odours.'' And if he defires the beft com-
pany, let him join the heavenly choir in fpiri-
tual adoration. Therefore, let all lovers of the
angle be lovers of prayer, becaufe they have
beft opportunity to it ; and I would have them
be lovers of God, for they have moft reafon to
be fo. And now, brother, the Talbot is before
us, and there is your waiting man.
Painter. This parting comes too foon : do
you remember how ' the foul of Jonathan was
c knit with the foul of David, and Jonathan
4 loved him as his own foul? "* and how, when
they parted, they kifled one another, and wept
one with another : and ' Jonathan Jlripped him-
' f e V f *he robe that was upon him, and gave
4 it to David!'\
Angler. And fo he did, and alfo 4 his fword
1 and his bow, and his girdle J for ' he delighted
' much in David. 1
Painter. Well, then, here is a parting gift,
that is offered with a love equal to Jonathan's,
notwithftanding this teftimony is fo unworthy :
here is my little book, that is no longer a blank
book, but full of rude pictures : they are all
your's, and welcome. They will bring to your
mind fome thoughts of the mutual pleafures we
* i Sam. xviii. i. f xviii. 4.
2 93
294
The River Dove.
have felt along the banks of the Dove : and
you may remember from them, that it was out
of love for you I came this walk ; and how you
rewarded me beyond my hope, becaufe you
taught me fome inward fecrets, and fent me
back to my houfe a happy compofed ANGLER.
Angler. Indeed, dear brother, I'm in a ftrait
how to anfwer you ; only let me embrace you,
as thofe loving friends kifled one another ; and
when I next go angling, c thou Jhalt be miffed,
' becaufe thy feat will be empty.' * But we have
made a covenant, like Jonathan and David,
and let it be for the ' glorious twenty-ninth of
May.' And for this book of drawings, I fhall
efteem it to be more precious than any thing
elfe I know of; and indeed I love you for this
and many other bounties you have beftowed on
me. And now you may oblige me in one thing
more, for my confolation at parting.
Painter. Any thing you defire is, in a man-
ner, performed.
Angler. It is this : here is my angle rod, and
my landing net and pouch I befeech you, let
them obtain your acceptance. I do not fay it
out of oftentation, but there are fome flies in
that pouch that are artfully twifted j and above
* i Sam. xx. 1 8.
The River Dove.
all others, I prefent you with the COMPLEAT
ANGLER, in two parts, writ by Mr. Walton
and Mr. Cotton ; therein we have found many
paffages of true piety, that may fometimes again
contribute to your peace and contentment.
Painter. A thoufand thanks to you ; and I
accept thefe gifts of your love as freely as they
are offered ; and when we meet again, you
{hall give me fome inftruclions in your better
art of fly-fifhing. And now ' I falute you with
' a holy kifs Go in peace.'
Angler. Farewell, brother ; and remember
always how the ornament of a meek and quiet
fpirit is, in the fight of God, of great price.
' Follow peace with all men, and holinefs, with-
' out which no man /hall fee the LordC* We
have had fome innocent days of leifure amidft
the beauties of the natural world : but let us
not forget to give all diligence in our journey to
tHe glories of the fpiritual world. For thefe
pleafures of the earth are but a faint fhadow of
the bleffednefs of the heavenly Sion. Let us
be prepared in the whole armour of Chriftian
foldiers, that when our temporal warfare is ac-
complifhed, we may receive an eternal crown ;
and reft and refrefh ourfelves befide the c pure
* Heb. xii. 14.
295
296
The River Dove.
1 river of water of life, clear as cryjlal, proceed-
' ing out of the throne of God and of the Lamb.'*
Once more, farewell !
* Rev. xxii. i.
FINIS.
C. WHITTINGHAM, CHISW1CK.
UUSB LIBRARY
x-
fliH^^ny
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4Q 5 81
T. 0.