Napoleon and the Fishing Fly

    This week’s “Find of the Week on the Used Book Floor” is interesting and bizarre all at the same time!  We know, you are probably thinking that such a description fits many of our finds, but this week, our discovery and book combo really takes the cake.   

     First, we have to tell you about the book.  The keeper of our find is a 1911 printing of "Napoleon in Caricature: 1795-1821, vol. 1" and it provides countless satiric prints and caricatures of Napoleon Bonaparte, created during the years of 1795-1821.  These caricatures were made in the countries of France, Germany, Russia, Italy, Spain, Holland, Switzerland and Scandinavia and are combined with printed information regarding each from a series of different resources.  The popularity and power of the caricature rose sharply during the French Revolution (1789-1799) and Napoleon was known as the most “extensively caricatured man” that ever lived.  This 108 year-old book is a rare collection of history, told via caricature, from across many countries – all compiled into one resource!

  

   Ok, store that interesting info in your head and make room for more.  Our find tucked in the pages is a not a caricature, nor is it French – it is a jungle cock fishing fly.  Don’t know much about it?  Neither did we, but let us be the first to tell you that there is a lot to say!  The jungle cock is a male, Asiatic jungle fowl that boasts golden eyed, black-necked feathers deemed to be ideal for hooking salmon.  Now on the endangered species list, the jungle cock bird fishing flies are much more difficult to find, which makes our discovery even more interesting!

     Now, we do not know exactly what year this fishing fly is from, but our research suggests that they became popular in the 1930s.  If you recall from above, our book was written in 1911, so could the fishing fly (containing the feathers of the now endangered bird) be over 80 years old?  We cannot say.  What we can say, however, is that the jungle cock fishing interest turned into a phenomenon in the late 1930s and helped to create the Brotherhood of the Jungle Cock, a recognized organization of anglers that spans six states and multiple chapters today.  Never heard of it?  We hadn’t either, but a quick web search will educate you on their annual campfire held in Maryland every May, as well as their love for angling and deep desire to pass on the fly fishing tradition to future generations.  

     Not sure how the Napoleon caricatures and the endangered Asiatic fowl fishing fly is connected?  We have no idea, either, but at some point in the past 108 years, their paths crossed and became one.  While “Napoleon in Caricature” and the unique fishing fly are hard to find, both can be yours for the total price of $35.  You can catch up with our previous finds of the week from the used book floor at bayswaterbooks.com and on facebook.  Better yet, stop by the store in Center Harbor and check out the used book floor for yourself!