I do not think fresh net-caught fish can be superior to these.

HAL. And these snipes are excellent. Either my journey has given me an appetite, or I think they are the best I ever tasted. ORN.-They are good, but I have tasted

ORN. On the continent; where the common snipe, that rests during its migration from the north to the south in the marshes of Italy and Carniola, and the double or solitary snipe, become so fat as to resemble that bird which was formerly fattened in Lincolnshire, the ruff; and they have, I think, a better flavour from being fed on their natural food.

HAL. At what time have you eaten them?

ORN.-I have eaten them both in spring and autumn; but the autumnal birds are the best, and are like the ortolan of Italy.

HAL-Where does the double snipe

winter?

ORN. -I believe in Africa and Asia minor. They are rarely seen in England, except

driven by an east wind in the spring, or a strong north wind in the autumn. Their natural progress is to and from Finland and Siberia, through the continent of Europe to and from the east and south.* In autumn they pass more east, both because they are aided by west winds, and because the marshes in the east of Europe are wetter in that season; and in spring they return, but a larger proportion through Italy, where they are carried by the Sirocco, and which at that time is extremely wet. Come, let us have another bottle of claret: a pint per man is not too much after such a day's fatigue.

*

HAL.-You have made me president for these four days, and I forbid it. A half

1

* From the food, or rather I should say the remains of food, found in the stomach of the double snipe, I think it is probable that it requires a kind of worm, which is not found in winter even in the temperate climes of Europe; and that it feeds differently from the snipe. There are certainly none found after the middle of October, in either Illyria or Italy; and I believe the same may be said of the middle of May, as to their summer migration, or their breeding migration.

pint of wine for young men in perfect health is enough, and you will be able to take your exercise better, and feel better for this abstinence. How few people calculate upon the effects of constantly renewed fever in our luxurious system of living in England! The heart is made to act too powerfully, the blood is thrown upon the nobler parts, and with the system of wading adopted by some sportsmen, whether in shooting or fishing, is delivered either to the hemorhoidal veins, or what is worse, to the head. I have known several free livers who have terminated their lives by apoplexy, or have been rendered miserable by palsy, in consequence of the joint effects of cold feet and too stimulating a diet; that is to say as much animal food as they could eat, with a pint or perhaps a bottle of wine per day. Be guided by me, my friends, and neither drink nor wade. I know there are old men who have done both and have enjoyed perfect health; but these are devil's decoys to the unwary, and ten suffer for one that escapes. I could quote to you an instance from this very county, one of the

strongest men I have ever known. He was not intemperate, but he lived luxuriously, and waded as a salmon fisher for many years in this very river; but before he was fifty, palsy deprived him of the use of his limbs, and he is still a living example of the danger of the system which you are ambitious of adopting.

ORN.-Well, I give up the wine, but I intend to wade in Hancock's boots to morrow. HAL.--Wear them, but do not wade in

them. The feet must become cold in a stream of water constantly passing over the caoutchouc and leather, notwithstanding the thick stockings. They are good for keeping the feet warm, and I think where there is exercise, as in snipe shooting, may be used without any bad effects. But I advise no one to stand still (which an angler must do sometimes) in the water, even with these ingenious waterproof inventions. All anglers should remember old Boerhaave's maxims of health, and act upon them: " Keep the feet warm, the head cool, and the body open."

PHYS.—I am sorry we did not examine more minutely the weight and size of the fish we caught, and compare the anatomy of the salmon and the sea trout; but we were in too great a hurry to see them on the table, and our philosophy yielded to our hunger.

HAL. We shall have plenty of opportunities for this examination; and we can now walk down to the fishing house and see probably half a hundred fish of different sizes, that have been taken in the cruives, this evening, and examine them at our leisure.

PHYS. I never saw so many fish of this kind before; and I conclude that heap of smaller fish is composed of trout.

HAL. Certainly. Let us compare one of the largest trout with a salmon. I have selected two fresh run fish, which, from their curved lower jaws, are, I conclude, both males. The salmon you see is rather broader, has a tail rather more forked, and the teeth in proportion are rather smaller.