Ere ye shall wyte in what weder ye shall angle. as I sa | yd before in a derke lowrynge daye whanne the wynde blowyth softly. And in somer season whan it is brennyn | ge hote thenne it is nought. ¶ From Septembre vnto Apryll in a fayr sonny daye is ryght good to angle. And yf the wynde in that season haue ony parte of the Oryent : the wedyr thenne is nought. And whan it is a grete wynde. And whan it snowith reynyth or hayllyth. or is a grete tempeste / as thondyr or ligh | tenynge : or a swoly hote weder : thenne it is noughte for to angle.
Ow shall ye wyte that there ben twelue manere of ympedymentes whyche cause a man to take noo fysshe. wt | out other comyn that maye casuelly happe. ¶ The fyrst is yf your harnays be not mete nor fetly made. The seconde is yf your baytes be not good nor fyne. The thyrde is yf that ye angle not in bytynge tyme. The fourth is yf that the fysshe be frayed wt the syghte of a man. The fyfth yf the water be very thycke : whyte or redde of ony floode late fallen. The syxte yf the fysshe styre not for colde. The seuenth yf that the wedyr {14} be hote. The eyght yf it rayne. The nynthe yf it hayll or snow falle. The tenth is yf it be a tempeste. The enleuenth is yf it be a grete wynde. The twelfyfth yf the wynde be in the Eest / and that is worste For comynly neyther wynter nor somer ye fysshe woll not byte thenne. The weste and northe wyndes ben good but the south is beste.
Nd now I haue tolde you how to make your harnays : and how ye shall fysshe therwyth in al poyntes Reason woll that ye knowe wyth what baytes ye shall angle to euery manere of fysshe in euery moneth of the yere / whyche is all the effecte of the crafte. And wythout whyche baytes know | en well by you all your other crafte here toforn auayllyth you not to purpose. For ye can not brynge an hoke in to a fyssh mo | uth wythout a bayte. Whiche baytes for euery manere of fyssh and for euery moneth here folowyth in this wyse.
Or by cause that the Samon is the moost stately fyssh that ony man maye angle to in fresshe water. Therfore I purpose to begy
at hym. ¶ The samon is a gentyll fysshe : but he is comborous for to take. For comynly he is but in depe places of grete ryuers. And for the more parte he holdyth the myddys of it : that a man maye not come at hym. And he is in season from Marche vnto Myghelmas. ¶ In whyche season ye shall angle to hym wyth thyse baytes whan ye maye gete theym. Fyrste wyth a redde worme in the begynnynge & endynge of the season. And also wyth a bobbe that bredyth in a dunghyll. And specyally wyth a souerayn bayte that bredyth on a water docke. ¶ And he bytith not at the grounde : but at ye flote. Also ye may take hym : but it is seldom seen with a dubbe at suche tyme as whan he lepith in lyke fourme & manere as ye doo take a troughte or a gryalynge. And thyse baytes ben well prouyd baytes for the samon.