French original. It opens:--

'Soloman in hys paraboles seith that a glad spirit maket a flowryng
age. That ys to sey, a feyre age and a longe' (like Walton's own),
'and sith hyt ys so I aske this question, wyche bynne the menys and
cause to reduce a man to a mery spryte.' The angler 'schall have hys
holsom walke and mery at hys owne ease, and also many a sweyt eayr of
divers erbis and flowres that schall make hym ryght hongre and well
disposed in hys body. He schall heyr the melodies melodious of the
ermony of byrde: he schall se also the yong swannes and signetes
folowing ther eyrours, duckes, cootes, herons, and many other fowlys
with ther brodys, wyche me semyt better then all the noyse of houndes,
and blastes of hornes and other gamys that fawkners or hunters can
make, and yf the angler take the fyssche, hardly then ys ther no man
meryer then he in his sprites.'

This is the very 'sprite' of Walton; this has that vernal and matutinal
air of opening European literature, full of birds' music, and redolent of
dawn. This is the note to which the age following Walton would not
listen.

In matter of fact, again, Izaak follows the ancient _Treatise_. We know
his jury of twelve flies: the _Treatise_ says:--

'These ben the xij flyes wyth whyche ye shall angle to the trought and
graylling, and dubbe like as ye shall now here me tell.

'_Marche_. The donne fly, the body of the donne woll, and the wyngis
of the pertryche. Another donne flye, the body of blacke woll, the
wyngis of the blackyst drake; and the lay under the wynge and under