142 GUN, EOD, AND SADDLE. 



FISHING IN MAINE-CHAR 

 OR TROUT. 



MAINE, one of the oldest States of the many that 

 compose the Union, is, strange to say, less densely 

 settled, less cultivated, and probably less known, 

 than many of those that can date their existence no 

 further back than ten or twelve years. The causes 

 to which this is attributable are three, viz., the severity 

 of the winters, the indifference of the soil, and the 

 rugged mountainous rocky surface of the landscape. 

 But where man is scarce, there look for the wild den- 

 izens of the forest. Here the moose, caribou, and 

 bear are still to be found, the homes of the beaver, 

 otter, fisher, and mink remain undisturbed, and even 

 the dreaded panther, painter, or more correctly, 

 puma, is not rare. Neither are fish wanting ; the 

 country is a perfect labyrinth of lakes and rivers, 

 which swarm with various species of the salmon 

 genus : but sad to say, the grand, the great, Salmon 



