Fishing from the earliest times - Blog

;FISHING BY MUSIC—THOR'S OX-HEAD BAIT 243forth by iElian (XIV. 25)in words which describe with suchcharming naivete the perfection of the Silurian palate, eye, andpossibly nose, enabling it to discriminate instantly between" the lungs of a wild " and other " bull," 1 that we may ventureupon quoting the whole passage :" An Istrian fisherman drives a pair of oxen near the riverbank,not, however, for the purpose of ploughing. ... If apair of horses are at hand, the fisherman makes use of horsesand with the yoke on his shoulders, down he goes and takes hisstation at a spot which he thinks will make a convenient seatfor himself, and be a good place for sport. He fastens one endof the fishing-rope, which is stout and capable of standing agood tug, to the middle of the yoke, and supplies the oxen,or the horses, as the case may be, with sufficient food, and theanimals take their fill." To the other end of the rope he fastens a strong and terriblysharp hook, baited with the lungs of a wild buU ;this he throwsinto the water as a lure—a very sweet lure—to the Istriansilurus, having previously fastened a piece of lead of sufficientsize to the rope above the place where the hook is bound on,to serve as a support for the pull. 2" When the fish perceives the bait of bull's-flesh, heimmediately rushes at the prey,and, meeting with that he sodearly loves, opens wide his great jaws and greedily swallowsthe dreadful bait ; then the glutton, at first turning himselfround with pleasure, soon finds that he has been pierced unawareswith the aforesaid hook, and being eager to escapefrom the calamity shakes the rope with the greatest violence."The fisherman observes this, and is filled with delight ; hejumps from his seat, and, now in the character of a fisherman,now in that of a ploughman, like an actor who changes hismask in a play, he urges on his oxen or horses, and a mighty* The head of the ox was Thor's bait when ishing for the monstrousMidhgardh serpent. See D. P. Chantepie de la Saussaye, The Religion of theTeutons (Boston, 1902), p. 242. C. A. Parker, J^he Ancient Crosses of Gosforth,Cumberland (London, 1896), p. 74 ff., describes and figures a rehef representingThor's fishing. In this we see the line (below the boat) with an ox's head,surrounding which are several enormous fishes.^ For fpixa, "support," perhaps we should read tpviia., "protection," i.e.against erosion.