THE XEW DISPENSATION OF FISHES. 103 



visitor was permitted to fish an artificial pond of liver-fed trout, which were in 

 the habit of rushing en masse after anything thrown in, until they fairly made the 

 water boil. Of course they were not afraid of man at feeding time, though they 

 were a little shy on off hours, and of course our ambitious angler took a fine trout 

 at the very first cast, standing in full view upon the bank. If he had had a 

 "trot" line he could have taken two dozen on as many hooks. After playing him 

 well to creel, enjoying the suspense of a well-hooked captive for several minutes, 

 he cast again, expecting a repetition of the same old rush, but nary rush did he 

 perceive. A fingerling or two broke gingerly at his tail fly, but the most persistent 

 persuasion failed to fasten another trout. 



Haec fabula docet that dead failures are possible in the best stocked waters, 

 and that the shoemaker is worthy of his last or words to that effect. 



HON. ROBERT B. ROOSEVELT IN ANGLING LITERATURE. 



I am convinced that the Hon. Robert B. Roosevelt has not had full credit for 

 the very important part he has occupied in the American anglers' guild, especially 

 during the civil war period, when the young men of the land, and old ones, too, 

 were too much engaged on the battlefields to spare time for sport, except it were 

 to eke out an occasional deficient ration for the camps by whatever game and fish 

 could be caught during temporary cessation of hostilities. Mr. Roosevelt was 

 the living intermediate who bridged the interval between Frank Forester and the 

 writer, whose "Fishing Tourist" (1873) and "Sportsman's Gazette" (1877) 

 brought the angling literature of America to its climax and was so attested by 

 Gill and Jordan. How comprehensive and aptly this history has been presented 

 in bibliography may be ascertained by reference to the columns of the London 

 Field (3 papers), for June and July, 1887, under the title above given. The com- 

 piler, in his review of the period indicated, allows that "nothing like a compre- 

 hensive manual of angling was published until 1864, when Thad Norris' 'American 

 Angler's Book' and Robert B. Roosevelt's 'Game Fish of the North' both came 

 out." That was during the year of the first lease of a Canadian salmon river, the 

 Nepissiguit. Roosevelt's book made especial reference to that famous stream in 

 its chapter on salmon fishing, itself a new revelation to the fraternity of fishermen. 

 How to fish for salmon and the implements to be used, and a description of the 

 sport, had never been presented before. The volume was a godsend to anglers, 

 for it included the technology of angling, fly-fishing, tackle-making, entomology, 

 fish culture, camping out, etc. It described new devices, new methods, and new 

 fields of sport which had come into the purview during the sixteen years that had 

 intervened since the enterprising J. J. Brown had prepared his "American Anglers' 

 Guide" (1849). Moreover, it introduced new species of fishes not previously 

 regarded for sport and identified others which had been in doubt. The whole 

 subject was in chaos at that time, scientifically considered. Experts had not even 

 quite determined whether a brook trout and a samlet (parr) were the same, or 

 that brook trout were not in fact immature salmon. The scientific world has 

 moved since then mainly by the contributions of men here present. 



In 1865, the year following his first production, Mr. Roosevelt put out a 

 supplementary book entitled "Superior Fishing," relating chiefly to the fishes of 

 the Great Lakes, and touching the lately mooted subject of fish protection. These 

 two books, as well as my "Fishing Tourist" and Prime's "I Go a-Fishing" (1873), 

 were all published by the Harper Brothers. 



Not only must Mr. Roosevelt be recognized as a well informed author of 

 undoubted accuracy and reliability, but he was foremost with Agassiz, Baird, 

 Garlock, Ainsworth, Samuels, Prime and Mather. 



