The way to make the best paste is, Take, a reasonable quantity of fresh Butter, as much fresh sheeps Suet, a reasonable quantity of the strongest Cheese you can get, with the soft of an old stale white loafe; beat all this in a Morter till it come to perfect paste; put as much on your hook as a green pease.
There are many wayes to take Eeles: I will shew you a good way to take a dish of Eeles. When you stay a night or two Angling, take four or five Lines, such as be laid for Pikes, of fourteen or fifteen yards long, and at every two yards make a noose, to hang a hook armed either to double thred, or silk twist; for it is better then wyre: Bait your Hooks with Millors-thumbs, Loaches, Menowes, or Gudgins: tye to every noose a Line baited: these Lines must be laid crosse the River in the deepest places, either with stones, or pegged, so the Line lie in the bottome of the river, there is no doubt of taking a dish of Eeles; you must have a small neeld with an eye, to bait your hooks.
Now to shew how to make Flies: learn to make two Flies, and make all: that is, the Palmer ribbed with silver or gold, and the May-flie: these are the ground of all Flies.
We will begin to make the Palmer Flie: You must arme your Line on the inside of the hook; take your Scisers, and cut so much of the brown of the Mallards feather, as in your owne reason shall make the wings, then lay the outmost part of the feather next the hook, and the point of the feather towards the shanke of the hook, then whip it three or four times about the hook with the same silk you armed the hook: then make your silk fast: then you must take the hackle of the neck of a Cock or Capon, or a Plovers top, which is the best, take off the one side of the feather, then you must take the hackle silk, or cruell, gold or silver thred; make all these fast at the bent of the hook, then you must begin with Cruell, and Silver, or Gold, and work it up to the wings, every bout shifting your fingers, and making a stop, then the gold will fall right, then make fast: then work up the hackle to the same place, then make the hackle fast: then you must take the hook betwixt your finger and thumb, in the left hand, with a neeld or pin, part the wings in two: then with the arming silk, as you have fastned all hitherto, whip about as it falleth crosse betwixt the wings, then with your thumb you must turne the point of the feather towards the bent of the hook, then work three or four times about the shank, so fasten, then view the proportion.
For the other Flies: If you make the grounds of Hogs-wooll, sandy, black or white; or the wooll of a Bear, or of a two year old red Bullock: you must work all these grounds upon a waxed silk, then you must arm and set on the wings, as I have shewed before: For the May-flie, you work the body with some of these grounds, which is very good, ribbed with a black hair; you may work the body with Cruels, imitating the Colour, or with Silver, with suiting the wings. For the Oak-flie, you must make him with Orange-tauny and black, for the body, and the brown of the Mallards feather for the wings. If you do after my directions, they will kill fish, observing the times fitting, and follow my former Directions.
If any worthy or honest Angler cannot hit of these my Directions, let him come to me, he shall read and I will work, he shall see all things done according to my foresaid Directions: So I conclude for the Flie, having shewed you my true Experiments, with the Rod, I will set all labouring sports aside:
And now I am waiting on my Lord with a great Dish of Trouts, who meeting with company, commanded me to turne Scullion and dresse a Dinner of the Trouts wee had taken: whereupon I gave my Lord this Bill of fare, which I did furnish his Table with, according as it was furnished with flesh. Trouts in broth, which is restorative: Trouts broyled, cut and filled with sweet Herbes chopt: Trouts calvored hot with Antchovaes sauce: Trouts boyled; out of which Kettle I make three Dishes; the one for a Soused Dish, another for a Stew'd Dish, the third for a hot Dish: the Sauce is Butter, Vinegar, beaten Cinamon, with the juyce of a Lemmon, beaten very well together, that the Sauce is white and thick, or else it is no Sauce for a great man's Table: Trouts fryed, which must be done, and not put into the Pan, untill the Suet boyle very high, and kept with stirring all the time they are frying, being flowr'd first. Trouts stew'd: Trouts close, boyled with the calvored Trouts, all in one Kettle and the same liquor: Trouts butter'd with Egs: Trouts roasted: Trouts baked: these are for the first course, before the Salt.
And these are for the latter course. Trouts calvored cold: Trouts flat cold: Baked Trouts: Trouts marilled, that will eat perfect and sweet three moneths in the heat of Summer: if I did say, for the whole year about, I would make it good.
For the dressing of four or five of the Dishes, I will shew you how I did perform them.
First, I will shew you for the boyling and calvoring, that serves for hot and cold, for first and latter course.
First, you must draw out the Intrails of the fish, cutting the fish two or three times in the back; lay them in a Tray or Platter, put some Vinegar upon them; you shall see the fish turn sanguine, if they be new, presently: you must put so much water in the Kettle as you thinke will cover them, with a pint of Vinegar, a handfull of Salt, some Rosemary and Thyme and sweet Marjoram tyed in a bunch: then you must make this liquor boyle with a fierce fire made of wood: when the liquor hath boyled very well, put in your fish by one and one, keeping your liquor alwayes boyling, untill you have put all in: having provided a cover for your Kettle, so put on the cover: you must have a paire of Bellowes to blow up the fire with speed, that the liquor may boyle up to the top of the Kettle; so the fierce boiling will make the Fish to calvor: provided, the fish be new killed: you may let them boile nigh a quarter of an hour; when they are cold, you may put them in a Tray or earthen Pan, untill you have occasion to use them: be sure they lie covered.