1 u 
FOREST AND STREAM, 
For Forest and Stream. 
RECOLLECTIONS OF AN OLD TRAPPER. 
A CRANK boat the trapper navigates, you say? Ties, 
as tottlish a craft as you would want to trust your¬ 
self on board of. Flat-bottomed, three clap boards deep, 
two and a half feet beam, and sharp as a wedge at bow and 
stern-, it will capsize as easily as a bark canoe, but It is a 
good boat for running over scarcely submerged logs, and 
creeping among the button bushes and close-set trunks of 
the water maples, which its owner’s business constantly re¬ 
quires, and he will cross the “wide ma’ash” in it when the 
sout h wind is blowing great guns, and the swells are run¬ 
ning as big as a hogshead. A vastly better cruft than the 
old "dug-outs,” which the trappers used in that olden time 
that, we love to talk ot, "when we were boys," for it is 
lighter, and no more crank than they were. You can see 
the cracked and weather-beaten remains of a “dug out" 
lying in the dtiftwood there now. They were the com¬ 
monest craft on these waters forty years ago, and every 
trapper aud fisherman owned his "canuew.” How well I 
remember seeing the old chaps trolling up and down the 
creek, “paddling their own canoe,” with a short pole under 
one knee and over the other, a thirty foot line as thick as a 
pipe-stem, with a big hook at the end baited most tempt¬ 
ingly with pork rind and red flannel, or a strip of pickerel's 
belly. And so they would paddle silently along, just skirt¬ 
ing the “ma’ash,” and take prodigious fares of slab-sided 
pickerel'. Old Joe White and Uncle Stafford would catch 
more pickerel in a trip from the falls to the sand bar with 
these primitive lures than the most skillful hand, wielding 
tlie fanciest spoon, can get in all day now. 
In these craft the old time hunters went ducking. A 
green baud was likely enough to get more “ducking” than 
he eared for if he ventured afloat in one of them. Pad¬ 
dling silently around a bend of the channel, they would 
come upon a great flock of black ducks (dusky ducks) 
feeding upon wild oats. The paddle was laid carefully in 
tire boat, the ancient Queen’s arm, or musket of 1812, as 
carefully raised, cocked, and sighted for a full half minute, 
and then, if the clumsy flint lock did not miss fire, off went 
the venerable piece with a psb, bang! waking all the echoes 
for three miles around, knocking over a dozen or more 
ducks, kicking its ramrod half its length out, its bands 
loose, and shooter and canoe a yard astern. Once or twice 
a day was as often as any man of ordinary pluck would 
care, to slroot such a gun, and so most likely after such a 
shot he would pick up his game and paddle home. 
Thus it was the wont of bile Baily to hunt the wild fowl 
of Little Otter in his “cannew,” with his “ole ‘fewgee,’’’ 
and, according to the tales with which he feasted my boy¬ 
ish car, terrible was the havoc which followed the discharge 
of that fateful weapon when he “come ontew a flock of 
wood ducks a-setting asleep on a log, as demute as could 
be, 1 pinted my ole fewgee, and bime-by I onhitched an’ 
giu ten on ’em more’n they could cayry, by goll” 
Old Brian Bowen, who had served under Wellington in 
the Peninsular War, and whose discharge set forth that 
“lie was an indifferent soldier, but an honest man,” used 
to bait the ducks with oats scattered on a board laid in the 
marsh, which he could rake from an ambush hard by. 
Nort Look was a great duck hunter of those days, and 
John Gage- another, and a fox hunter, too. 
Under the guidance of Jim Baily, half-brother to Lile, I 
made some of my earliest attempts at duck shooting. 
Yonder where that oak overhangs the bank is what used to 
be known as the “John Clarke place," because J. C. used 
to fish there, and there we were, then, almost sure to find a 
flock of wood ducks basking on the fallen trees or paddling 
lazily about in the narrow channel any day from the mid¬ 
dle of August till the middle of October, and could crawl 
up and get a shot, Jim leading and 1 close at his heels, i 
remember one of Jim’s notions was, that a paper wad over 
shoL would impede their force. We knew nothing of felt 
wadding then, and so he always used rags when he could 
not. get low. 
Speaking of canoes.reminds me of old Tom Sweet’s hear 
fight. He was fishing in his log canoe out there in the 
creek oue rainy day in haying time, seventy years or more 
ago, when he saw a bear swimming the channel, so he 
pulled up stakes and made for her, and belabored her head 
with his paddle till he killed her. Then, towing her 
ashore, he made, a harness of bark for the old mare which 
had borne him through the woods from his home among 
the hills, and so drugged his prize haeit to it in triumph. 
The woods were then as full of game as the waters were 
with fish. My grandfather used often to see deer feeding 
with the cattle at the stacks and in the pastures, and one 
day a noble buck trotted through the frame of a new house 
be was building. Three moose, passed over the ledge near 
the house, and a lynx was shot still nearer by one of the 
boys. Such myriads of ducks as these waters teemed with, 
even when I was young, we shall never see the tenth, uo, 
nor the hundredth part of again. More dusky ducks and 
wood ducks were reared here then thau we see in a whole 
season uow, and in September the hordes began to come 
down from the northern breeding-grounds, and each day 
brought reinforcements of them, and immense flocks of 
blue-winged teal and many other kinds till the marshes 
were swarming with them; and they tarried here till cold 
weather caused them to seek more genial climes. Then 
the dusky duck and teal fed all day and night in the 
marshes, only going to the lake for sand, and then return¬ 
ing. Now, lor the most part, they remain in the lake all 
day, come in at night to feed, and are off again to the safer 
waters of broad Champlain at daylight. A noticeable 
change in the habits of the wood ducks is, that though it 
was then by no means uncommon to see them iu flocks of 
fifty- and upward, it is uow rare to find more than a dozen 
together, though many times that number may be got up 
by ones, twos, threes, or half dozens, iu boating the length 
of the river Slang. Then the teal almost invariably used 
to follow the winding channel in their flight. Now the 
few that are left have learned to avoid it and the gunners 
ambushed at its margin, flying high and over the marshes. 
The railroad has eaten away the woods that clothed these 
banks twenty years ago, so destroying all the hidden nooks 
and coigns of vantage so beloved of inland water ducks, 
and the dlnbolicul yell of the steam whistle continually 
disturbs them when they chance to have a short respite 
from the almost incessant persecutions of gunners, old and 
young, 
Alas for those gloTious days of well-stocked woods and 
waters! They are gone past all returning, and we can only 
try to keep good the numbers of the little game left ns by 
the “march of improvement” and Lite long years of non¬ 
protection. If we can enforce our game laws we may have 
fair sport yet in years to come, though never again such 
sport as used to be, and to this end every sportsman should 
labor with a will. 
But the sun has sunk behind the Adirondacks, and their 
ancient peaks are “a looming bastion, fringed with fire.” 
The shadows thicken on the quiet waters, unbroken by the 
wake of even one muskrat. The great horned owl is be¬ 
ginning to sound his solemn notes in Wheeler’s woods, so 
let us shoulder our useless guns and trudge home to supper 
and fireside. AwAtisoosE. 
FurmOurr/k, Vermont. 
For Forest and Stream. 
TWO HOURS’ FISHING IN THE GULF 
OF CALIFORNIA. 
O NE day when (he United States surveying ship Narra- 
gansett anchored off "San"Juan Bautista Flats,” in 
the Gulf of California, and about seventy-five miles above 
the city of Ouaymas, a long, lean, lank specimen of Ethi¬ 
opia stepped up to the officer of the deck and requested 
"permission to fish, salt." “Why, Lewis," responded the 
officer, "I don’t think that there are any fish hereabout;” 
and it did not look very inviting. A low, flat country, ex¬ 
tending some twenty miles back to the mountains, a sandy 
beach either way as far as the eyes could reach, did not 
hold forth much promise of the lively sport that soon fol¬ 
lowed the permission to fish to the questioner, Jim Lewis. 
Jim had a peculiar history, and claimed to lie a veritable 
African prince, stolen from his native wilds by a Dutch 
whaler. He deserted at. Honolulu, Sandwich Island, where 
the Narragansett picked him up. A more grotesque ob¬ 
ject than Jim Lewis, when lie first came aboard the ship, 
decked out in a plug hat and along "Dundreary” overcoat, 
although the thermometer was up among the nineties, 
reaching near to the ground, and from beneath peeped a 
pair of No. 20 scows. But we are digressing. Jim ob¬ 
tained his permission, and planted himself on the port 
cathead. In less time than it has taken me to write this 
he had his line overboard and a fine large fellow of the 
weak-fish species inboard. “Dar he, me got era,” rang 
out so frequently that it became contagious, and in a short 
time tlie whole ship’s crew that could muster hook and line 
were engaged iu the pastime, and soon extended to the Offi¬ 
cers off duty, the men monopolizing the forecastle, cats, 
channels, and whisker booms, while the officers confined 
themselves to the blidge amidships. The fish caught were 
mostly of a species greatly resembling tlie weak-fish, yet I 
do not think that, they were the weak-fish proper. They 
were of a beautiful shape, somewhat like the salmon, va¬ 
riegated color and large scale, and averaged from three to 
five pounds. The meat was rather soft, yet went very well 
after our long feasting on such luxuries as salt horse and 
beans. So fast were they caught lhat it became a nuisance 
to take them off the hook. Oue officer, in less Ilian ten 
minutes’ actual fishing, scored 203 pounds of fish, and had 
only two fish, one weighing 113 pounds and the other 
ninety pounds. They are not a game fish; even the large 
ones tire easily, and give up as soon as you get them to the 
surface, where they are landed without trouble by fasten¬ 
ing a “cable hook" in their gills and attaching a “pur¬ 
chase.” The deck was covered with fish, aud Ilie men 
began to lire of the monotonous pleasure, when a bright 
idea seems to have made iLs way through the thick skull of 
the darkey. “He had got tired of the small fry; he was 
going to fish for a whale, that he was." He baited a hook 
—big enough to catch one, anyway—with a live fish, 
weighing about five pounds, and look himself to the cat, 
again to await events. Every onoe in a while the fish 
would rebel at the enforced curtailment of its liberty, and 
wriggle, and Jim, with his usual exclamation, “Dar he, 
me got em," would haul in, only to find that his bait was 
alive and kicking. “Me don’t get fooled no more by dat 
squirmer, anyhow,” Jim remarked, as he wound the line 
around his wrist, and. was soon iu a doze under the influ¬ 
ence of the tropical sun. “Lor’mighty! what dal!" ex¬ 
claimed the excited darkey as he received a yank that nearly 
pulled his arm out of its socket, and set nis teeth a-rattliug 
and eye-balls rolling. “Dar he, me ——but before he 
could finish the sentence a black shadow shot through the 
air, and Prince Jim was floundering in the water. All 
hands rushed to the ship’s side to see the sport. No one 
bad any doubt about the result, or lhat any harm would 
come to thedurkey. He waswarranted not to drown when 
shipped, and could hang on to the rigging by his toes, so 
the boatswain said, but 1 never saw him do it, though. It 
looked for awhile as if Jim had really caught a whale, and 
when he came up each time, and the “Dar he, me got em” 
issued from his expansive jaws with the salt water, it was 
pretty certain that whatever was at one end of the line 
Jim Lewis was at the other, and intended to stick there. 
A light line was thrown to him, which he made fast to tlie 
fish line, and a brace of strong sailors on the forecastle 
played the fish until they tired him out, while Jim swam to 
the swinging boom and hoisted himself inboard, none tbe 
worse off, but a little more awake after the involuntary 
ducking. 
The fish, which proved to he an immense jew fish, was 
harpooned and soon landed on the deck, It weighed 210 
pounds. Prince Jim was the hero of the hour. Elated 
with his good luck, he became generous, and presented the 
capLured fish to the crew. Good luck does, somehow or 
other, open the well-spring of geneypsity, even in the low¬ 
liest of ub, and when Jim gave the fish to his messmates he 
reserved only the liver for himself, and as it weighed sev¬ 
eral pounds it was a princely dinner, even for an African 
prince. He prepared it himself, with onions and such 
other vegetables as the limited slock of the ship afforded, 
When Prince Jim arose from the repast, what was left 
would not have kept a mouse alive. He betook himself to 
his hammock for an after dinner nap, and when he awoke 
his head was swimming around like a top. The surgeon 
was called, but afforded bim but little relief, as be could 
not tell at the lime wbat the matter was. Prince Jim grew 
woise, and his head began to swell until, with the un¬ 
gainly brown blanket thaL ho had wrapped arouud it, 
ho looked more like a bushel basket full of black 
rags than a human being. His howling in the night 
was fearful, and nearly drove the mid-watch wild. 
The doctor did what he could for him to relieve 
his sufferings, which, on examination, proved to be 
caused by the liver being poisoned, as frequently happens 
from something that the fish has eaten. When the prince 
heard that he was poisoned he laid back in his hammock 
with a grunt, and told the doctor that he was “a gone dar¬ 
key this time, sure,” But he got bettor, aud the day after 
lie left the “sick hay” he began to peel, bis bide, which 
was as black as the ace of spades, came off from tlie crown 
of his head to his toe nails, as it taken off with a "spoke 
shave.” Prince Jim was nonetheless pleased that it left 
him a score of shades lighter than before. 
Fish of all sizes were lyiug all overl.be deck; enough 
had been caught and salted to last the ship’s crew of 150 
men for three weeks, while the officers legated themselves 
daily od the roe, that, the Chinese steward, after a fashion 
kDown only to himself, managed to preserve fresh for sev¬ 
eral days. Everyone seemed satisfied when the boatswain's 
shrill whistle was heard, and he piped “All hands knock 
off fishing,’’ and set the landsmen to washing down the 
deck. Eaiu, Elton. 
For Forest and Stream. 
OUTWITTING A FOX. 
U P in the Green Mountains many years ago I boarded 
in the family of an old time fox hunter, known iu 
the region for short as “Dan.” Mauy a day’s sport have I 
had with Dan, following the hounds and dodging the 
known beats of the sly red game. On a certain mountain 
side we frequently started an old female fox, so light 
colored as to be nearer yellow than red. We always know 
her at first sight, and for two years she was loo sharp for 
us, aud it would take a colSmil of Fotusst and Stkkam 
to tell of her numerous tricks. I will give one, and one 
which finally proved fatal to Mrs. Reynard. Duriug these 
two years we rarely hunted with more Ilian two hounds. 
Dan’s was a slut, and very fast, always leaving other dogs 
far in the rear, and making it lively for the fox, loo lively 
for ibis old female fox, who would very early in the ebase 
resort to various foxy stratagems, a favorite one of which 
was to let the hound get within a few feet of her and then run. 
directly down tbe mountain side, where low, out-cropping 
reeks were abundant. When the hound was but two or three 
jumps behind, the fox would drop over the lower side of 
oue of these rocks and instantly' skulk. The hound, cours¬ 
ing at full speed, would go far over the fox aud quite a 
long distance down the steep mountain side before it was * 
possible to stop, even if she chanced to see tlie fox, which 1 
was seldom the ease, and it would generally take from live 
to ten minutes before she could again find tbe track. Tbe 
instant the bound bad passed over tbe fox tlie latter would; 
spring directly'back upon the rock, and taking the buck I 
track would get a long start of tlie hound. Sometimes the 
fox would jump back upon the rock and drop flat, when 
she would watch tlie movements of tlie puzzled dog for. 
several minutes, and at a favorable moment slip away. 
Tbe second year Dan’s slut raised a very fine pup, which 
we exercised with bis mother after rabbits before tlie fox-* 
hunting season commenced. The pup had also slipped 
away with Us mother on an occasional fox-chase on their 
own account, and we found that he was so fleet as to keep 
close to his mother, even on a fresh track. He had also: 
had some fighting experience in company with his master; 
killing the woodchucks which were abundant in that re-: 
cion. Our first fox-hunt that season was on the mountain, 
side, where the old light-oolored fox had bothered us so 
often, aud we chanced to start her early. At the foot of 
the mountain ran a mountain stream, and upon the oppo¬ 
site side was an open field, through which foxes tre- 
equntly passed soon after being siarted upon tlie said) 
mountain. Upon this occasion tbe hounds wound around.* 
and up the mouutain side, keeping among the numerous* 
young spruces. While they were still high up, we (having 
remained in the open field opposite) spied the old fox com¬ 
ing down the mountain well ahead of the dogs, and directly 
towards us. We took our stalious, and lay in wan will 
cocked guns. Tlie fox came right on, and disappeared it 
an intervening thicket not more thau three hundred yaldi 
away. On came the dogs, hut no fox. in a little lime i 
was evident that they were bothered at the stream abou* 
two hundred yards below us. We went down and found 
the old hound jumping from stone to stoue in tbe stream, 
just whore tbe fox bad been, of course. Tbe pup, iu tin 
meantime, was working the opposite bank quite well, keep 
jug abreast of its mother. Alter full half an hour I he; 
worked the track up the bank, and in the direction wher) 
the fox had first started a lull hour before, and took near); 
I be same round. We reLurned to the Old runway and kep 
a close lookout, and alter awhile we began lo calc! 
glimpses of the dogs in the scattering young spruces, an. 
in a moment out sprang the fox, not fifty feet ahead, air 
ran directly down the open mouiiiain side, towards aud i 
full view of us. “She’s going to try that ’squat game,’ 
said Dan, nervously, and almost in a whisper. On cam 
the fox and the hounds, now running by sight, and malcm: 
merry music and fast gaining Upon the iox. At last, who 
the old hound seemed scarcely a length behind the fox, III 
latter dropped over one of those low out cropping rock 
and “squatted,” while the hound, seeing her and tiying I 
stop, actually went heels over head several feet down iL 
mountain before she could Btop. The old fox, as usua 
sprang back upon tbe rock, but just in time to meet tl. 
pup, who fastened upon her, and they were- having a live! 
squabble when the old hound appeared upon the scene an 
made short work and an abrupt termination of tbe care' 
of lhat very smart fox. AquADALE. 
REEL FOOT 
For Forest and Stret 
LAKE. 
I N the northwestern corner of Tennessee in Obion eounl 
at an average distance of three miles from, and rtij 
ning south from near tbe Kentucky state line, parallel 10 II 
Mississippi River lies Reel Foot Lake, the production a.'| 
result of the so-called New Madrid earthquakes iu 181 
In extent of water surface it may safely be estimated 
fifty miles for length, and ten miles for greatest width, 
contour irregular, having many points of limbered la* 
projecting into it. _ 
Throughout its area of many square mi'es the sporlsm 
will see and meet innumerable slumps, logs and cypri 
knees, enough at all events iu a day’s row'iog lo fully b 
his dexterity in managing his bout, and bring out td11 
attributes of a refined and moral education. Apart fr* 
these drawbacks, the .observant sportsman will disem 
scenic charms of a character entirely peculiar to this lakt 
from the quiet and shallow land-locked cypress horde, 
bays, to vast expanses of waler, with isle of tbe most i 
limited continuity of dead, bleached, branchless eypr 
trees, mortal eye ever rested upon, that sauk with the ea. 
when the bottom was knocked out of this section nf i 
