The True Levellers Standard Advanced (1649)
“The English are particularised for their partiality to strange sights; uncommon beasts, birds, or fishes, are sure to attract their notice, and especially such of them as are of the monstrous kind; and this propensity of our countrymen is neatly satirised by Shakspeare in the Tempest; where Stephano, seeing Calaban lying upon the stage, and being uncertain whether he was a fish, a beast, or one of the inhabitants of the island, speaks in the following manner: "Were I in England now, as once I was, and had this fish painted, not a holiday fool there but would give me a piece of silver. There would this monster make a man: any strange beast there makes a man. When they will not give a doit to relieve a lame beggar, they will lay out ten to see a dead Indian." Indeed, we may observe that a cow with two heads, a pig with six legs, or any other unnatural production, with proper management, are pretty certain fortunes to the possessors.”
pg. xlix
The Sports and Pastimes of the People of England (1801), Public entertainment
Help us to complete the source, original and additional information
Joseph Strutt 65
British engraver, artist, antiquary and writer 1749–1802Related quotes

"The Daring Young Man on the Flying Trapeze"
The Daring Young Man on the Flying Trapeze (1934)
Context: Then swiftly, neatly, with the grace of the young man on the trapeze, he was gone from his body.
For an eternal moment he was still all things at once: the bird, the fish, the rodent, the reptile, and man. An ocean of print undulated endlessly and darkly before him. The city burned. The herded crowd rioted. The earth circled away, and knowing that he did so, he turned his lost face to the empty sky and became dreamless, unalive, perfect.

“A fish may love a bird, but where would they live?
- Then I shall build you wings.”

The Last Navigator (1987)

For My Legionaries: The Iron Guard (1936), Nation and Culture

“I want to get out in the water. I wanted to see fish, real fish, not fish in a laboratory.”
Interview: Sylvia Earle Undersea Explorer http://www.achievement.org/autodoc/printmember/ear0int-1, Academy of Achievement, January 27, 1991

“A fish and a bird may indeed fall in love, but where shall they live?”
Source: Committed: A Skeptic Makes Peace with Marriage
“A bird may love a fish but where would they build a home together?”
Source: Fiddler on the Roof