most profuse and liberal style; and if a friend came into lunch, no charge was made. I had the curiosity to enumerate, for lack of better occupation, the components of one morning's breakfast" Tea, cream and milk, lobster, ham, chicken, cold partridge, muffins, butter and bread, cut bread and butter, and eggs," and every meal was on the same or a more liberal scale. To account for this liberality, I should mention that the number of tourists frequenting this hotel is very great daily; and in addition to private parties, coach travellers sit down to a table d'hôte at one p.m., sometimes to the extent of two coach-loads a-day, one coach leaving Conway at 11 a.m., and another leaving Bangor at 9 a.m. (fares 9s. through, or from Conway to Llanwrst 2s. 6d., or from Bangor to Llanwrst 6s. 6d.), and meeting at The Eagles at the same hour, one p.m.; but let me say, that whatever the number of people in the house, there was nothing beyond the ordinary quiet which a most fastidious traveller would not wish disturbed; all was so well managed. Well, we got to Llanwrst. I had not seen it for 19 long years. The town and outskirts have increased somewhat, with well and solidly built small houses and scattered villas, and a new church, not very architec tural (all in keeping, of dark slate blocks), and a new large hotel, the "Victoria," all white and glaring, which destroys the ancient character of the picture. I could not help observing, for the first time, how sallow and lean, for the most part, were the countenances of the Welshmen (the women are always blooming); yet it is a very healthy place, and one of great longevity. I can't understand this. My object in going to Llanwrst was salmon fishing. I shall detail my success and disappointment presently. I certainly left it two months too soon, as the best time on the Conway is now coming on. It is a very late-season river, extending from 1st of May till 20th November; and now there are plenty of large fish in it, I know; and if there is rain, all the largest will be coming up, and the water will keep up and be in constant good order; and I would advise any good salmon fisher, who can be satisfied with three or four good fish per week, to go there for the remainder of the season, if even for a fortnight. Fish have been taken every season, of late years, as large as between 20 and 30lb. One great change seems to have come over the river since I last fished it, in 1839. At that time, I there heard of sewin (bull trout, grey trout, whitling or round tail), the Salmo eriox of Linnæus, being taken in the south part of North Wales; but I never took, or heard of one being taken, in the Conway. Now, however, they are very numerous; and I fear that they play sad havoc among the salmon-par proper, as well as among all the young of the salmo genus. They are formidable, savage-looking fish, corresponding exactly with Yarrell's engravings in Brit. Fishes. The right of fishing in the Conway has been a subject of dispute between Lord Willoughby d'Eresby and the land-owners, and the people and poachers, for many years. In 1840, before I left England, I had the honour of waiting on his lordship, in order to induce the proof and assertion of his right, and the better preservation of the fish. Till recently nothing was done, except that I hear that at a period during my absence Lord Edward Thynne rented and very much improved the river. It is a curious coincidence that just before my recent going down there, Lord Willoughby's right was established, by production of some ancient royal charter. Now the river is staked, in most of the pools and shallows, as far down as Llanwrst, so that no nets can safely enter there, and wholesale destruction and poaching are to that extent put an end to. Of minor poaching, anon; and as I understand there is no netting whatever on the river, except a small stake-net below Conway, which cannot do much harm, and an occasional drawing at Beaver Pool, which is high up the river, and cannot affect the principal ground of the angler's hope. At the present moment the river is leased to a gentleman living in the neighbourhood, who grants tickets. The following are the rules of the "Gwydyr Fisheries" for the season 1858: I. No angling will be allowed in the salmon water from the 21st November to April 30th (both inclusive). II. No salmon fry or unsizeable salmon to be taken at any time, under the penalties imposed by Act of Parliament. III. No holder of a ticket will be permitted to be accompanied by any person who is known to have infringed the rights or rules of the fishery, or who is a reputed poacher. IV. Tickets to angle over the whole fishery are granted on the following terms to persons approved of by the lessee, viz.: For the season From 1st May to 1st August for the week .. £ s. d. 1 10 0 for the month for the day.. 050 V. No daily or weekly tickets can be granted to residents in the neighbourhood. VI. No ticket to be transferable, and no person will be allowed to angle (under the pretext of accompanying a ticket holder, or upon any ground whatsoever) unless he is himself provided with a ticket. VII. Each ticket will be granted upon the distinct understanding that the infringement of these rules, or any of them, will cause its immediate forfeiture. Application to be made to Ellis Roberts, keeper, Waterloo Bridge, Llanwrst, North Wales. Rule II. is absurdly vague. What is the meaning of "Salmon fry, or unsizeable salmon?" What are there called "morts" are, in my opinion, decidedly young of Salmo salar, or Salmo eriox, or Salmo trutta. Yet all these, even of half-a-pound weight, are invariably carried home when caught! The rule ought to express what is an unsizeable salmon, and that might be one, say, under 6lbs. weight, or of such and such a length. Salmo eriox, because I think it an intruder, I would protect by a less scale, and Salmo trutta perhaps by a scale similar to that of Salmo salar. As regards Rule III, I would suggest that the words, "or who is a reputed poacher," should hereafter be erased, as useless and absurd. A "reputed" poacher is a term no court of justice would deal with; no man is hanged on suspicion; and it is unjust to a visitant gentleman who may, in ignorance, be accompanied by an infringer" of the rights, &c.," or a so-called " reputed poacher," and thereby incur the forfeiture of his ticket. As to the terms " pecuniary," in Rule IV., they are ridiculously low and high. For the season £5 for a month £3! and for a day 7s. 6d. If for the whole season it were £7, and from the 1st of August to the end of the season it were £4 or even £5, and a month £2, a week 10s., and a day 2s. 6d., it would pay the lessee much better in all respects, and dozens who merely travel through Llanwrst would avail themselves of day-tickets, and so the neighbourhood would benefit. C C I would also draw a distinction between trout and salmon fishing, such as defining trout-fishing to be with a rod of say 12 feet length, and perhaps provide that some extra payment should be made if with a trout rod any fish heavier than say 4lbs. were taken. But it is Rule VI. which (as the Americans say)" riles" me most; which from the strict construction put upon it, and the mode in which it was watchfully enforced in my case, destroyed most of the pleasure, and certainly caused all the Poetry of my fishing to vanish and become a painful bodily labour:-Be you ever so fatigued or disabled, the fisherman who accompanies you may not make a single cast of your line! This never used to be the rule on the Conway; and I have never heard of its existence elsewhere. The one ticket ought to cover "the one rod!" It is foolish and exclusive. How is a young aspirant for the "excelsior" of fishing to become a salmon-fisher, unless he is shown how, and assisted by his attendant? In my case I had not salmonfished for, say, twenty years; and sixteen years of residence in the Tropics, added to my actual age, have reduced my bodily strength to that of a man sixty-five years old. To wield a salmon-rod requires no small degree of strength. Skill and knack I still retained; but a dozen casts told upon my strength, and at the first essay, after so many years, I was "done up," and obliged to rest. Thus, I would occupy a favourite "throw" perhaps an hour and a-half, while, if my attendant had been allowed to relieve me for a few casts, we might have left the "throw" for the next comer in less than half an hour! And I cannot help thinking that if this system were altered, some who are now poachers might be converted into honest attendants on the gentlemenanglers. I hope the watchfulness as regarded my attendant, who is not a poacher, was not caused by jealousy of his superiority as a fisherman! though it is strange that I saw one of the keepers throwing for one gentleman, and heard in all directions of its being a habit permitted to the keepers for the lessee and other gentlemen! The river is very much altered since I last fished it, and I engaged my attendant not in order that he might catch fish or even hook them for me, but that I might benefit by his more recent knowledge, and save myself all labour too great for my strength. I am an old sportsman, and like to be "at it" myself; and I think the electric shock of the pleasure consists of that glorious stroke which first digs the hook into the salmon's jaw. With me the playing and killing are rather painful anxiety. The present lease of the fishery is up this year, as I understand; and I earnestly hope that whoever rents it next, will take care to modify these rules materially; for upon the whole I cannot but partially agree in the "backing" of the opinions of "Viator Vacuus," which were expressed in "The Field," of 12th September, 1857. Let me also advise the staking of the river below Llanrwst as well as above, so as to give parties residing at that town as good a chance as those residing near to Bettws-y-Coed, which at present they have not: and of all things, I urge into all the principle of the fishery-more of the infusion of that noble, generous, sportsman-like spirit which is in the heart of all true lovers of Izaak Walton; else I fear one seasonticket less will be disposed of. A gentleman and true sportsman, to enjoy fishing, ought to be left free as air! [A letter dated Eagle's Hotel, Llanrwst, October 6, 1858, says : "I am extremely sorry you are not here; now they are catching salmon. I saw the first landed in my life at 1 p.m. to-day; 17lbs. ; 1 hours' fight! a beautiful fish. We have had two floods since you left, and the river is now in perfection. Last Friday was a splendid day. There have been many caught of good weight." Another, 8th October: "One gentleman here has caught eight fish in six days. Mr. yesterday caught three, viz., 18lbs., 91bs., and 7lbs. Mr. this morning took one of 15lbs. Many others have been taken of equal weights: the sport is better than I ever remember." 11th October: "John took 17lbs., 10lbs., and 8lbs. Everyone takes fish-even some who have never fished before take fine salmon." 12th October; "Mr. J- B- caught one 25lbs., and another 10lbs. Mr. took one 12lbs. at the Holly Bush.' I have not heard what they are doing at Bettws, except that two gentlemen there have also been very successful. There are now only twelve rods on the whole river, which is in fine order. These heavy floods have brought up hundreds of fish."] (To be Continued.) LITERATURE. "If the steamboat and the railway have abridged time and space, and made a large addition to the available length of human existence, why may not our intellectual journey be also accelerated—our knowledge more cheaply and quickly acquired-its records rendered more ACCESSIBLE AND PORTABLE-its cultivators increased in number, and its blessings more cheaply and widely diffused?" So asks a talented writer in the Quarterly Review; and Messrs. George Routledge and Co. have given a practical answer to the question by publishing new and cheap editions of the most popular works in our language, in history, biography, fiction, travels, voyages, natural history, poetry, the drama, religious, juvenile, and last-not least-sporting. In order fully to appreciate the benefit that has accrued to the million by the system carried on by the above firm, let us only look back to the state of the book market from the year 1788 to the present date. We have before us many specimens of volumes bearing the following inscription: "London: Printed for W. Lowndes, No. 77, Fleet Street, M.DCC.XC."; and on taking them up at random find a very indifferent type, a dingy coarse paper, the works illustrated with woodcuts only worthy of a place upon one of Catnach's halfpenny ballads: the folios vary from a guinea to forty-two shillings a volume; the quartoes average twenty-one shillings; the octavos run from five to ten shillings; while the duodecimos descend as low as three shillings. Among the latter we find a majority of novels of the "Minerva Press" school-at least we judge so from the following titles: "Casket, or Double Discovery"; "Delia Stanhope"; "Emma, or the Child of Sorrow"; "French Lady"; "Indiana Danby"; "Major Bromley"; "Lady Manchester"; "Lucilla, or the Progress of Virtue"; "Nunnery for Coquettes"; "Roxana, or the Fortunate Mistress"; "Thoughtless Ward"; and "Woman of Honour." Let us for a moment picture to ourselves a gentleman of the last century entering Mr. Lowndes' establishment previous to a visit to the sea-side, with a view of purchasing intellectual food, both instructive and amusing, for a few weeks, when the following imaginary conversation might have taken place: Literary Purchaser.-" Can you recommend me a few books? My family and myself are about to proceed to-morrow to Brighthelmstone. My wife is devoted to voyages; my eldest son to agriculture; my daughters to poetry and the drama. Nor must I forget Johnson's dictionary for the tutor, the cheapest edition." 6 Bibliopolist." Here is a quarto edition of the latter, two pounds twelve; Anson's Voyage,' one pound five; Complete Farmer,' one pound seven; Milton's Poetical Works, three pounds fifteen; Shakspeare, three pounds seventeen." L. P.-"I had almost forgot; I have a commission from my aunt to purchase a Peerage." B.-"We have only one by Collins; price, with plates, three pounds one and sixpence." We can see, "in our mind's eye," the English gentleman “all of the olden time" dipping his hand deeply into the pocket of his drab "unmentionables," and paying the amount, viz., £15 17s. 6d. for the six works. Let us change the scene from Fleet-street to Farringdon-street, and the date from 1790 to 1858, when for the above amount a purchaser may obtain eleven volumes of history, including Russell's "Modern History"; ten volumes of travels; "Boswell's Johnson," and Cranmer's Life; the late Sir Robert Peel's Speeches; Ainsworth's Romances; Knight's "Half Hours with the best Authors"; "The Poets of the Nineteenth Century," beautifully bound, gilt edges, with one-hundred illustrations by the best artists of the day; in addition to the standard edition of the novels and romances of Sir Edward Bulwer Lytton, twenty volumes, each embellished, crown octavo, printed on superior paper, with a most striking illustration. Sixty-three volumes of first-class works for fifteen guineas! As the Dominie exclaims-Prodigious! In the above list we have only included works of sterling merit, which, independent of their literary excellence, have been got up in the very best manner. Had we been content with lighter volumes, from a hundred and fifty to two hundred of most instructive and amusing matter might be purchased for the sum before referred to. A word or two more Messrs. Routledge and Co. have nobly done their duty towards the public; at an immense sacrifice of labour and capital they have catered for the million. In return, let the public respond to the feeling, and by their liberal support ensure a continuation of a system which has proved of such inestimable benefit to all classes-the rich and the poor-the learned and the unlearned-the abstruse metaphysician, and the reader of the ephemeral bubbles of the day. While on the subject, let us offer a word of advice. We have occasionally heard grumblers censure the slight binding of the cheap editions; let us suggest a remedy, which from personal experience we can strongly recommend, namely, to have the volumes neatly half-bound, which can be done at a reasonable rate; and if from the size they are not calculated to add much to the beauty of the shelves in the library, they will do admirably well for small book-cases in bed and dressing rooms, studies, and galleries. One word in conclusion: The benefit that cheap literature has con |