Old book! with lavender between thy leaves,
And twenty ballads round thee on the wall."

Whether there was quite such a rush as this on its publishing day we
have no certain knowledge, though Westwood, in his "Chronicle of the
Compleat Angler" speaks of "the almost immediate sale of the entire
edition." According to Sir Harris Nicolas, it was thus advertised in_
The Perfect Diurnall: from Monday, May 9th, to Monday, May 16th, 1653:

_"The Compleat Angler, or the Contemplative Man's Recreation, being a
discourse of Fish and Fishing, not unworthy the perusal of most
Anglers, of 18 pence price. Written by Iz. Wa. Also the Gipsee, never
till now published: Both printed for Richard Marriot, to be sold at his
shop in Saint Dunstan's Churchyard, Fleet street."

And it was thus calmly, unexcitedly noticed in the_ Mercurius
Politicus: from Thursday, May 12, to Thursday, May 19, 1653: _"There is
newly extant, a Book of 18d. price, called the Compleat Angler, or the
Contemplative Man's Recreation, being a discourse of Fish and Fishing,
not unworthy the perusal of most Anglers. Printed for Richard Marriot,
to be sold at his shop in St. Dunstan's Churchyard, Fleet street."

Thus for it, as for most great births, the bare announcement sufficed.
One of the most beautiful of the world's books had been born into
the world, and was still to be bought in its birthday form--for
eighteen-pence.

In 1816, Mr. Marston calculates, the market value was about L4 4s. In
1847 Dr. Bethune estimated it at L12 12s. In 1883 Westwood reckoned it
"from L70 to L80 or even more" and since then copies have fetched L235