38 FISHING WITH THE FLY. 



they were salmon, and when, on being dressed, the fe- 

 males were found to be full of ripe ova, said theory was 

 upset completely. My ten-inch specimen of last Sep- 

 tember supplied us with a clue, and it was soon decided 

 that these magnificent fish w r ere indeed trout ; for in 

 every respect except size, and size of spots, some of 

 which w r ere a quarter of an inch in diameter, the fish 

 w r ere identical. Whitford, the oldest inhabitant, con- 

 firmed the Indian's story, and gave me in addition the 

 Indian namelfor the fish — " Quot" and that of the Rus- 

 sians/which I forget, but it meant "Mountain Trout," 

 and said that they are found only in the lakes, high up 

 in the mountains, and that in winter the Indians spear 

 and catch them through holes in the ice. 



We found the flesh to be very delicious — far more so 

 than the best of the salmon. The processes of cooking, 

 both by broiling and boiling, had a curious effect, for 

 the flesh, which, when uncooked, w^as of a very bright 

 red, blanched to pure white. 



The trip to Mount Edgecomb, in the early spring, 

 involved hardship and clanger ; and although several of 

 us resolved that we would undertake it, for the sake of 

 such fish, somehow we never did, and I have thus de- 

 scribed all of the gar (Inert that I ever saw. 



Salmo purpuratus (Clarhii). The most beautiful 

 of the trout family, although in no way equal to our 

 Eastern trout in any other respect. 



The purpuratus is a lake trout, and found only in 

 low-lying lakes. Just back of Sitka, at the foot of the 



