Our venerable author has been more than usually fortunate in the persons to whom the task of editing his favourite book has fallen. Sir John Hawkins, who stands by far the most eminent among them, seems to have been urged to his labours by a feeling of affectionate respect for the author, which was inspired by the work, and which gathered strength as he pursued it. It is impossible to praise, too highly, the intelligence and pains which he has bestowed, and by dint of which he has succeeded in making his notes nearly as amusing as the text. To render the work worthy of public patronage, the whole of the old plates have been discarded, from an idea that they tended very little to illustrate the text; and, in their execution, could hardly be considered any embellishment, while their insertion was a very material enhancement of the price of the work. The Publisher of the present edition has, therefore, substituted other plates, which he trusts will, to the lovers of the Art of Angling, prove no small recommendation to the work; while, to collectors and admirers of the arts, their execution will yield equal pleasure. The situations delineated are such as "Angler's love;" and, it is hoped, the present embellishments will be generally considered as more germain to the matter," than the antiquated representations of the previous editions, which seem to have been retained, in the case of Walton's excellent Book, without any attempt at improvement, whilst almost every other work has been undergoing the changes attendant upon the advancement of the arts, and the refinement of taste. In consequence of the death of the former Editor, since the publication of the fourth edition of this work in 1784, the revision of the present has devolved upon me, his son. For the execution of this office he had left behind him some corrections and additions, inserted in the margin of his copy of the fourth edition; which, though not many, have been all made use of on this occasion, from a wish that the book might receive the advantage of his last corrections. Such of them as he had completed have been silently adopted; but such as were nothing more than mere hints, I have reduced into form, and distinguished them by the initials J. S. H.; and where these latter are continuations of former notes, have precisely marked where they stopped in the fourth edition, by placing the initials J. H. I have, however, in no instance varied from the last of the editions, published in his life, excepting where it was warranted by some memorandum of my father's, or by communications from intelligent friends since his decease, being myself wholly unacquainted with the subject. As the plates have, in consequence of the number of impressions furnished from them for the preceding editions, become so worn as to be no longer any ornament to the work, it has been found necessary to omit them. Such of them, however, as represent the materials for fishing (and which fortunately had sustained less injury) have been retained; and for the omission of the rest all possible amends have been made, by printing the book with a better type, and on better paper than could otherwise have been afforded. J. S. H. ADVERTISEMENT TO THE EDITION PUBLISHED BY SIR JOHN HAWKINS, 1760. THE COMPLETE ANGLER having been written so long ago as 1653, although the last publication thereof in the life-time of the Author was in 1676, contains many particulars of persons now but little known, and frequent allusions to facts, and even modes of living, the memory whereof is in a great measure obliterated: a new edition, therefore, seemed to require a retrospect to the time when the authors lived, an explanation of such passages as an interval of more than an hundred years had necessarily rendered obscure, together with such improvements in the art itself as the accumulated experience of succeeding times has enabled us to furnish. An Edition, undertaken with this view, is now attempted, and in a way, it is to be hoped, that may once again introduce the Authors to the acquaintance of persons of learning and judgment. All that the Editor requests, in return for the pains he has taken, is, that the reader will do him the justice to believe that his only motives for the republication of this work were a desire to perpetuate the memory of a meek, benevolent, pious man, and to contribute something to the improvement of an art of which he professes himself a lover. Twickenham, LIFE OF MR. ISAAC WALTON. THE excellent Lord Verulam has noted it, as one of the great deficiencies of biographical history, that it is, "for the most part, con, fined to the actions of kings, princes, and great personages, who are necessarily few; while the memory of less conspicuous, though good men, has been no better preserved, than by vague reports, and barren elogies. 1 It is not therefore to be wondered at, if little care has been taken to perpetuate the remembrance of the person who is the subject of the present enquiry; and, indeed, there are many circumstances that seem to account for such an omission; for neither was he distinguished by his rank, or eminent for his learning, or remarkable for the performance of any public service; but as he ever affected a retired life, so was he noted, only, for an ingenious, humble, good man. However, to so eminent a degree did he possess the qualities above ascribed to him, as to afford a very justifiable reason for endeavouring to impress upon the minds of mankind, by a collection of many scattered passages concerning him, a due sense of their value and importance. ISAAC, or, as he used to write it, IZAAK WALTON, was born at Stafford, in the month of August, 1593. The Oxford Antiquary, whọ has thus fixed the place and year of his nativity, has left us no memorials of his family, nor even hinted where or how he was educated; but has only told us, that before the year 1643, Walton was settled, and followed the trade of a sempster, in London. 3 From his own writings, then, it must be, that the circumstances (1)" De vitis cogitantem subit quædam admiratio, tempora ista nostra haud nôsse bona sua; cùm tam rara fit commemoratio et conscriptio vitarum, eorum, qui nostro seculo claruerunt. Etsi enim reges, et qui absolutum principatum obtineant, pauci esse possint; principes etiam in republicà liberâ (tot rebuspublicis in monarchiam conversis) haud multi; utcunque tamen non defuerunt viri egregii (licet sub regibus) qui meliora merentur, quam incertam et vagam memoriæ suæ famam aut elogia arida et jejuna." De Augmentis Scientiarum, lib. II. cap. 7. (2) By the register of St. Mary, Stafford, it appears he was born August 9th, 1593. (3) Athen. Oxon. Vol, I. 305. B |