BULLETIN OF THE UNITED STATES FISH COMMISSION. 273 



a letter to me from Mr. Prentiss, one of our most wealthy and promi- 

 nent niercliants, which speaks for itself. I will be obliged to you if you 

 will return this, as I shall have occasion to use it in my report. On the 

 west branch of the Penobscot 1 hear reports of large numbers of salmon,, 

 but the breaking of the two great dams at Chesancook nnd the, Korth 

 Twin Dam, which holds back the great magazine of water of the great 

 tributary lakes which feed the Penobscot, which is used to drive the 

 logs cut in the winter, through the summer's drought, has let up all the 

 fish which hitherto were held back until the opening of the gates to let 

 the logs through. These fish would not, of course, be seen, as they would 

 silently make their way up. I regret that I have nothing of more value 

 to give you. Hoping that this small contribution may at least cheer 

 you as it has me, 



1 remain, trulv, vours, 



E. M. STILWELL, 



Commissioner of Fisheries for State of Maine. 



Prof Spencer F. Baird, 



United States Commissioner Fish and Fisheries. 



Bangor, October 3, 1879. 

 E. M. Stilwell, Esq., 



Dear Sir : Prof. C. E. Hamlin, of Harvard, and I made a trip to 



Mount Katahdinlast month for scientific examination and survey of the 



mountain. I had been salmon fishing in July on the Grand Bona- 



venture, on Bay of Chaleur, and I could not see why we could not 



catch salmon on the east branch of the Penobscot at the Hunt place 



where we crossed it on our way in to Katahdin. I thought the pool 



from month of Wassatiquoik to the Hunt i)lace, about a half-mile, 



must be an excellent salmon pool, and my guide and the people there 



confirmed this opinion. They said over a hundred salmon had been 



taken in that one pool this season. The nearest settlement, and only 



one on the whole east branch, is about six miles out from there, and the 



young men go on Sundays and fish with drift-nets. No regular fishing 



for market — only a backwoods local supply can be used. These fish were 



all about of one size — say 8 to 11 pounds. There were never enough fish 



there before to make it worth while for them to drift for them. A few 



years ago no salmon were caught there at all. Twenty-two years ago, 



before our fish laws were enacted, the farmer at tlie Hnnt place used to 



have a net that went entirely across the river clear to the bottom, which 



be kept all the lime stretched across, and he only used to get two or three 



salmon a week. I was there August, 1857, with Mr. Josei)h Carr, an 



old salmon fisher, and we fished for ten days and could not get a rise. 



The net had been taken up, because the farmer did not get fish enough 



to pay for looking after it. But the stocking the river makes it good 



fishing, and I intend to try the east branch next season with the fly. 



Very truly, 



HENEY M. PEENTISS. 



Bull. U. S. F. C, 81 18 may 3, 1 8 83. 



