THE ATLANTIC COAST SALMON 



405 



ing his display of strength and agility in sur- 

 mounting a crashing torrent that threatens with 

 instant death anything that dares to approach 

 its mad tumult of waters. A Salmon can make 

 his way upward through a sheer fall of water so 

 long as the water is in a solid mass, but the mo- 

 ment that it becomes admixed with air the white 

 water no longer gives a sufficiently firm hold for 

 the broad caudal fin, and the Salmon must leap 

 entirely over the fall. There are pretty well 

 authenticated instances of Salmon clearing a fall 

 of twenty feet. I have measured leaps to nearly 

 this length on falls where almost every Salmon 

 that flew through the air over the fall fairly took 

 one's breath away, and they were going up at 

 the rate of three or four to the minute at that. 

 I know of nothing short of watching a house on 

 fire that is of more engaging interest than watch- 

 ing the Salmon throwing themselves over wicked 

 waters. The Salmon must have some advan- 

 tages, to be sure, for accomplishing their best 

 feats. If the water beneath a fall is much broken 

 with rocks and rapids a fish cannot gain sufficient 

 momentum and velocity for hurling himself far 

 into the air; but given a deep and fairly quiet 

 pool to start from, and the Salmon look more 

 like great birds than like fish as they sail upward_ 

 One can sometimes find a place to stand at the 

 edge of a fall, and if he remain quiet for a few 

 moments the Salmon will begin to go through 

 the air over his head in quick succession." 



Dr. Morris states that from the Penobscot 

 River, in Maine, to Hudson Bay, Salmon enter 

 almost every river on the coast, but south of the 

 Straits of Belle Isle the sawdust and dams in the 

 streams of the lumber region constitute most 

 serious obstacles to their progress and existence. 

 But "the time is coming when twenty rivers on 

 the Maine coast will have their mills so managed 

 in the interest of the Salmon that they will rival 

 the historical streams of Europe. In Washing- 

 ton County alone there are six rivers that Sal- 

 mon now ascend every year." 



The Ouananiche, 1 whose name is of Indian 

 origin, and is pronounced win-nan-ish' , is a fresh- 

 water Salmon, dear to the heart of every angler 

 who has ever brought one to gaff. 



It is fondly spoken of as the "Leaping Oua- 

 naniche," and frequently as the Landlocked 

 Salmon. It is neither more nor less than a 

 1 Sal' 'mo ouan-an-iche' . / 



fierce-fighting, fresh-water understudy of the 

 Atlantic salmon, which if not self-restricted to 

 fresh water would hardly be described as an in- 

 dependent species. When first taken from the 

 water, it has "a beautiful peacock-blue" color, 

 which disappears at death, changing to the light- 

 gray back and sides and silvery belly of the 

 Salmon. Although called "landlocked," this 

 fish can, and sometimes does, live in salt water, 

 — in the mouth of the Saguenay River, for ex- 

 ample. 



The Ouananiche is a fish which loves rapids 

 and rushing water as a mountain sheep loves 

 crags and precipices. Because of the strenuous 

 life it leads, it is beyond doubt the most vigorous 

 and athletic fish that inhabits our waters. 



Says Mr. Eugene McCarthy: "None of the 

 fresh-water fish can equal its fighting powers, 

 and, pound for pound, it will outfight even the 

 salmon. Ouananiche are great smashers of 

 rods and tackle, unless one understands how to 

 play them, especially when they make their 

 numerous high jumps from the water. It is not 

 an exaggeration to state that these jumps will 

 average at least five to six, and frequently will 

 number ten to twelve feet. And such leaps! 

 Two or three feet out of the water, often toward 

 the fisherman, then a rush deep down, 'a pause, 

 a succession of jerks that would seem to tear the 

 hook loose, a wild rush of varying distance, and 

 a run back, almost to the angler's feet. A fish 

 weighing 3J or 4 pounds will make a fight lasting 

 ten or fifteen minutes, often longer; and that 

 means hard work for every moment for the fish- 

 erman." ("Familiar Fish," p. 126.) 



This fish is best taken with a fly, on a rod of 

 from six to eight ounces, with No. 4 or 5 hooks. 

 Its home is in Lake St. John, Province of Quebec, 

 and its tributaries; its outlet, the Saguenay, 

 and no one knows how many of the rivers of 

 southern Quebec that flow into the Gulf of St. 

 Lawrence ; and also the rivers of Labrador. 



The Sebago Salmon, 2 of Maine, is a strictly 

 fresh-water, or "landlocked," species, which 

 takes its name from Sebago Lake, its type local- 

 ity. It is essentially a 15-pound fish, with an 

 average in Sebago Lake of from S to 10 pounds. 

 Owing to the quiet waters it inhabits, and the 

 powerful tackle used in fishing for it, this fish 

 does not manifest the vigor and fighting quali- 

 2 Sal' mo se-ba'go. 



