FOREST AND STREAM. 



of "Toasty," "Dave/' fhowu and the writer, 



went nn a c trip >■■>< lb< Daek lakes or Canada. 



Early so September, '05, we packed up our traps, in as 

 small a compass as possible, to be handy for portaging, and 

 Btarted frpm Lindsay, om., Hie terminus of tiie Midland 

 Railway. Some on., is always behind l.ajn Twiili liis prepara- 

 tions for u trip of this killtJ, and the town clonk was just 

 giving' warning that it was time to rest from the labors Of tnfi 

 day when we slipped into our canoes, one double and two 

 single, bark. A pleasant puddle of eight miles down the 

 Scugog River brought us to Sturgeon Lake, a renowned place 

 f .r r-jfiKslongi anil black bass fishing ( A rammer hotel has 



just, been created on Sturgeon Point— 1870— and if any of 



your readers want lo tind a pleasant spot to spend two or 

 three tyceks with their families iti midsummer, where they 

 etm have a lair amount of sport and at u very reasonable 

 price, they might "go farther and fair worse." i ' Our route 

 lay across the bead of the lake, between Hall and Sturgeon 

 points, to the mouth of Fenelon IiiVef, ivlWre vre pitched 

 our tent, about 11 P. m. of a lovely moonlight Sight, having 

 made sixteen miles. 



We were up at daylight, paddled up to Fenelon falls and 

 found WO eonJd portage up the limber slide, which saved us 

 a " carry " of nearly half a mile. Cameron's Lake, a beauti- 

 ful sheet of water nearly round, and about three miles across, 

 calm and bright as a mirror in the early sunlight, 



a and a h 

 a.byi 



ill' tip Bala 

 ed Be 



River, the 



nt lock) call- 

 edale just as 

 ) let 'in the 

 in we made 

 ml lauded at 

 MUld. Here 

 il and Limi- 

 ted to spend 



got i he dog! 



crossed, then foil. 



rapids (which are now 



log forth all our skill and muscle, we j 



the sleepy inhabitants were rubbing tl 



daylight, and finding Balsam Lake perfectly 



for Big Island, which contains about 400 acre: 



the bead or north end, at a famous picnicking 



we found a party of acquaintances from Mou 



say, who had come for a deer hunt. So we d 



the day with them. We were roused out the i 



4 o'clock to take our positions at the watc 



deer. The hunter or guide having already 



started back of the camp, fortunately for fl 



did not lift until he was swimming, and he was seen by one 



of the Montreal gentleman to pass Ship Island and laud on 



t lie east shear. The "recall" was tired, and we got dfrmer 



mid packed up. The two parties united, and now consisted 



of seven canoes — three bark, one baaswood board, ami three 



very light butternut log canoes. The latter very long and 



sharp, being the racers of the fleet. 



We got away about 2 >>, u.,wilh qfiijte a strong westerly 

 wind, corning out of West liny, which made it rather lively 

 for us with our loads when in exposed places between the 

 islands. However, we reached the inlet, Gull Kiver, with 

 nothing more serious than getting: our blankets wet from the 

 white caps occasionally breaking over us. 



Two miles of pleasant river paddling ami the classic village 

 of GobOCftrik is reached. Made a short portage past the saw- 

 mill, and alter two miles more of river, which teemed Lo 

 have been cutout of the solid lime-stone rock, we entered 

 "Little Mud Turtle " Lake. Some deep fades at the foot, .if 

 the sh'-'rt but rapid thaat fran tig Mud TurtU l..e.;e 

 "c bass fishing with rod and line, 

 i, is very much better than trol- 

 lake the spoon eagerly. AVe 

 st shore of "Big Mud Turtle" 

 : water, about three miles lone', 

 inklcd about here and there. 

 Got to bed early and enjoyed 



cannot be surpassed fo 

 which, in my humble or. 

 ling for them, though 

 pitched our tents on tin 

 Lake, another lovely she 

 with small, rocky islau 

 Made about ten miles to-day. 



such sleep as can enly be had under similar circumstances, 



Some of the party were out early in the morning and 

 brought in some very fine lnaskalonge for breakfast. One 

 of our Monacal friends gave us an exhibition of his skill in 

 lauding a ten-pounder into a single bark canoe, immediately 

 in front of the camp, which nearly resulted in him and the 

 " lunge " changing places .' lie succeeded in taking the fish 

 in, but not until be had uearlv taken a plunge-bath and half 

 filled bis canoe ! We got under way about o'clock, portaged 

 ovcraticck of land at "Perkins" into the river, half a mile up 

 stream and another short portage at McLaughlin's mill a 

 quarter of a mile, and we have a lijtmvr at. the Natural Dam, 

 which, as its name indicates, is a dam in the river, forme. 1 by 

 an ancient upheaval af the rocky bed, forming a fall of about 

 five feet. Hidf a mile and we come to Elliott's Palls. There 

 is a good water-power here, with a fall of about twenty feet. 

 A portage of about three hundred yards, partly up a sleep 

 bank, and we are ouce more on the gently flowing stream. 

 These portages make lively work with a large partylike ours, 

 there being a. general rush to see wdio won't be last! A steady 

 pull of foar nulcs gives us a rest after the four portages, and 

 we enter " Moore's" Lake, which is the beginning of the 

 Salmon Trout waters, and the last lakeou the route- in which 

 Maskalonge have been caught. A. short portage at Moore's 

 Falls aud we are into Gull Lake, one of the largest lakes on 

 this chain, being about eight miles long and four or live wide, 

 with seveu or eight islands in it. Guil Rock is a conspicuous 

 spot near the middle of the lake, aud " Miners - Bay," on the 

 east side, l he scene of a good deal of misplaced energy. The 

 Salmon Trout fishing is first-class here in September, and up 

 to the commencement of the close season, the loth of October. 



fn September it is necessary to troll between tin 

 in deep water, with about half a pound of lead 

 but later the fish will be found just off the spa 

 t wo or three rods from the shore, aud little or no 

 ((iiiretl. The very best bait 1 have used is the No. ~ 



islands and 

 the line, 



>ig beds, 



by Delany of Orillia, who being somewhat 

 what is wanted. His tackle has one decided 

 g and neat. I fancy 1 sec some of the read- \ 

 sr and Stkeam turning up their classic 

 ii nasal organs at the idea of catching Sail 

 " ids. Let me ex- 

 pawning season actually 



t few days bcl'o 



The 



when 

 v that 

 vning 



red inside, n 



of a sport kni 



virtue, it is f 



ers of' the 1 



Roman or G 



when they a 



plain. Fori 



begins if is a rare thing to catch a female fish the] 



nudes apparently coming on the beds first, and it is 



they have rubbed the upper surtaees of the stones 



the female fish deposits her spawn. When tin 



season is at its height I have known one good sj 



kill 225 fish in one night, from dark till 2 a. m„ and ranging 



from two to twenty-six pounds weight. Fortunately, this 



wholesale slaughter is now being rigidly put, down by the 



numerous government inspectors. But to resume— we 



camped on the east side of the lake at a nicely sheltered inlet: 



had a heavy rain in the night, which prosed our tent to be 



water-tight and comfortable. Our Lindsay- friends put out 



their dogs and we helped to watch. Two deer came into 



the lake, but got away again. "Toasty " had a shot at one 



of them as it was going out, but apparently did not hurt it 



much. 



Another beautiful, fine, warm day. The next day we were 

 again out ou the watch, Have and Brown both missed a deer. 



rules of 

 falls at. 



i enter 



iabout 



They were rather green at shooting out of a bark canoe in a 

 rough sea. Our friend Madden shot rate which sunk like a 

 stone before be could irct lo ii. He killed it too dead, aud 

 Should have driven it, till if got blown with wind. This was 

 the only one killed by our party out of five deer which the 

 dogs ran in to-day. We afterwards learned that a settler had 

 got, ou. of them. A young trapper named Cowan came along 

 in the evening and camped with us. We found that he was 

 going thirty or forty miles farther north. So "Toasty" and 

 1 decided to accompany him, " Dave " and Brown elected 

 to remain with the larger party, not caring to undertake the 

 liardet work on the larger portages farther up stream. 



We made an early start with Cowan, and after a pleasant 

 puddle through the" early fog op the lake and four miles up 

 the river, came to Guil Kiver Bridge, or Minden, a small 

 backwoods settlement, and the last on the ronte. Procuring 

 a further supply of groceries hen-, nut of the very best, we 

 continued up the river about two .miles to the long " portage." 

 This is a " carry " of two miles over a bush road. Consider- 

 able time was lost, in gcfliug a settler to take us over ou a 

 " jumper '' willi an ox ftcam, aud as it. was just about dark 

 nnd raining and a tolerably rough, rocky road, even for the 

 back country, the less said about it the better perhaps. 



-\ller a good night's rest, a lovely morning and a hearty 

 breakfast made us forget, the previous evening's experience. 

 This is eaie of the benefits of "roughing it." "Mountain" 

 Lialce, about two miles long, surrounded by mountainous, 

 rocky bluffs, is well studied with salmon trout, and empties 

 into Horse Shoe Lake, from which Gull Kiver takes circuitous 

 bourse of some five or six miles to the point where we had 

 left, it, to make the long portage"; By this "carry" we save 

 about, eight miles, included in which is about three 

 impassable rapids and falls. A short carry past tl 

 the head 0l Mountain hake, which is four miles lorn 

 leave ii a mile from the north end, ou the west side, i 

 hit tie Bush h'onk Lake through a narrow and roi 

 channel, which looks like anything but the proper course. 

 'Ibis lake, which is only about, half a mile long, is soon 

 crossed over, and we pass under a dilapidated government 

 bridge on the Peterson line, if this road had ever been used 

 it sltowed no traces of it then. " Big Bush Konk " Lake, a 

 line open sheet ot water about five miles long and four wide, 

 is tin- receiving basin of three separate chains of lakes. The 

 east branch coming in about a mile up the east shore, the west 

 branch almost directly opposite, and the north branch at the 

 extreme north end of the lake. Our course look us up the 

 east branch, or Grass Kiver, which, is very shallow, in some 

 places almost impassable for a loaded canoe at. this season of 

 I he year. About a mile up stream we made a short portage 

 past the ruins of a saw-mill which probably never had been 

 completed. Another mile and we enter Beech Lake, which is 

 about a mile long. A short portage takes us into Maple Lake. 

 There is one settler living on I tie north shore, with, a squaw 

 for housekeeper, and an acre potato-patch. He evidently 

 gels a living, as do most of the settlers in this region, by 

 trapping and hunting. At the point between the two lakes 

 wo found Oowau, Sr., and his wife camped. We put up our 

 tent near by aud had a hearty meal of venison, off a buck 

 lulled by Cowan the day before. And now for a little ex- 

 perience. Our boots having got pretty well soaked with 

 wading up the shallow rapids on Grass River— to save the 

 bottoms of the canoes — we put them, 11s we thought, at a safe 

 distance from the fire to dry out sonic, but in the morning, 

 the fire having run in the leaves and moss, had "gobbled" up 

 the leg of One of my boots. So 1 was left with one boot and 

 a very poor substitute for a slipper — rather a bad lookout in 

 the woods and thirty or forty miles from the nearest shoe- 

 maker. We paddled leisurely up Grass River, "Grass" 

 hake aud "Pine" Lake to "Cranberry" Lake, found the 

 water very shallow aud the portages long, so turned 

 down stream again to Cowan's camp. They having decided 

 to trap up the north branch, we started with them the next 

 day down to Big Bush Konk Lake, then up to its head. Here 

 we found a river a quarter of a mile long, nearly all rapids and 

 a fall of about sixty feet. We found the portage over the hill 

 rather tough work", but were amply repaid when we launched 

 our canoes on " Hall's" Lake, which is one of the most beau- 

 tiful lakes in the whole chain. We found an excellent camp- 

 ing, ground ou the land beach at the north end, which, by the 

 way- are rattier scarce and difficult to tind in this rocky eouu- 

 try. Early the next morning Mi*. Cowan put out one of the 

 dogs on the east shore and "Toasty" the other on the west 

 shore. About 7:30 the latter brought in a fallow doe, and 

 while " Toasty " and 1 were after it in cauie a rousing big buck 

 from the east shore. Not seeing the Cowans in chase, 

 "Toasty," leaving inc. to look after the doe, started off at about 

 sixty to the minute after the buck. IE anything in the shape 

 of sport, that can be had within reasonable reach, can equal 

 the pleasurable excitement of a chase like this I have yet 

 to experience it. The buck struggled hard and was near 

 getting away, but finally gave up Hie battle after the third 

 round. We got both deer to the camp at 8:30, in comfortable 

 time for breakfast. In the afternoon we cleaned up our 

 guns, reorganized our loads, and got ready for a start for 

 home, the Cowan family going further north for the fall and 

 winter trapping. 



Tlie downward trip occupied about five days, as we stopped 

 to lish occasionally, .and shot a few ducks on Cameron's aud 

 Sturgeon Lakes and Scugog Kiver. We arrived home in good 

 lime, IVelingall 1 be better for the trip, ami as an evidence of 

 the way that kind of a holiday agrees with the wrtter who 

 is cooped up in an office most of the year, the scale beam 

 showed an increase of thirteen pounds avoirdupois in the 

 fifteen davs. G. 



Illinois.— The bill for the establishment of a Board of 

 Fish Commissioners to increase the product of fisheries by 

 artificial propagation aud cultivation has been defeated in the 

 Illinois Senate. The Chicago Times thus pointedly speaks : 

 " The proposed Board, which the Senate so valiantly refused 

 to inflict upon the people, would have consisted of three gen- 

 tlemen of wealth and culture, who proposed to stock the liv- 

 ers and lakes of Illinois with valuable Ebod fish, pro bono pub- 

 ticp, entirely at the owner's expense. The reason for the va- 

 liant refusal of the Senate to inllict that Board upon the peo- 

 ple presumptively was that there was ' not a d — cent in that 

 bill.' Had it been a measure to transfer some more earnings 

 of the people to the pocket of a new lot of oflice-bolders, all 

 Hades could not have prevented its passage." The above 

 comments certainly have more truth than poetry. 



Rovek, 



S$M f «%f 



— Summer tourists Will board at the best Niagara Falls hotels 

 this season for $3 50 per day. 



ABSTRACT OF THE NINTH ANNUAL 

 REPORT OF THE COMMISSIONERS 

 OF FISHERIES OF THE STATE OF 

 NEW YORK. 



BETWEEN May 21st and June 27th 1,027,000 shad eggs 

 were taken and artificially impregnated, and 1,850,000 

 young shad turned loose into the Hudson a few miles below 

 Albany. In proportion to the number of ripe fish secured, 

 these results compare favorably with those reported last year, - 

 and, so long as the mature shad are denied an occasional free 

 passage to their spawning grounds, a larger showing cannot 

 reasonably be expected. The cause of the diminution of the 

 quantity of spawn manipulated is due to the great increase of 

 the Dumber of fishermen, who are engaged cither in fishing 

 for the market, or in taking supplies for their own families and 

 neighborhoods, to be salted down for future use. 



A few r years ago and the shad fisheries of the Hudson were 

 being abandoned ; as the yield was increased by the operations 

 of the Commission, the fisheries were resumed and new ones 

 were established, so that to-day there are nearly ten times aa 

 many nets in the river as there were six years ago. The re- 

 sult is that, although the general catch was much larger than 

 heretofore, the actual number of ripe fish which ran the 

 gauntlet of these obstructions and reached the upper waters 

 was diminished. This will be a self-regulating operation, 

 alternately increasing as to fish or fishermen, until a weekly 

 close time is established to permit a proper proportion of 

 breeders to reach their accustomed spawning grounds. 



It was not deemed desirable to continue the operations with 

 salmon in this State where the streams are so utterly obstructed 

 wiih dams, nets and weirs, till the results of previous attempts 

 had been obtained. 



California salmon, like those of the. eastern eoa3t, remain in 

 fresh water about a year, aud are, while in the condition of 

 fry or stnolls, often taken in the nets and weirs. After that 

 they disappear, undoubtedly going to the sea, and in a few 

 instances, perhaps, passing all obstructions ami getting there ; 

 but as yet it cannot positively be said that any have returned. 



In confinement they seem healthy-, but, unlike the Eastern 

 salmon, when in that condition, the males are smaller than the 

 females, never exceeding about half a pound, but they pro- 

 duce the milt or mule fecundating fluid. This has been used 

 to impregnate the eggs of the brook trout, The experiment 

 was made in the fall of 1875, and about one-quarter of the 

 eggs manipulated were fertilized, thus showing that either the 

 conditions were unnatural or the spermatic fluid was not, vig 

 orous and healthy. The fish thus produced are probably 

 mules and incapable of continuing their species. They arc 

 growdng well, and in their appearance show the evidences of 

 their double origin. 



The parent males were two years of age, at which period 

 they r develop their milt regularly, never afterwards increasing 

 in size, whereas the female salmon produce no eggs when 

 kept in fresh water. This is equally- the case with the female 

 eastern salmon, while the male eastern salmon, which attains 

 the same size as the female, does not even produce milt. 



The young of this cross have been retained at the State 

 halching works and are growung finely, being by February' 1, 

 1877, about four inches long. 



There can no longer lie any question of the success and im- 

 portance of fish culture as a public undertaking, All conn- 



where proper steps li 

 used to increase the supply of 

 sponse. With many varieties 

 the consequences are not so iui 

 and confined localities the rirol 

 her of fish taken out of such w 

 put in, either by artificial or natural 



the right means 

 1, give one and the same re- 

 cti as migrate for example, 

 liately visible, but in smaller 

 1 is a simple one. The uuni- 

 depeiids upon the number 

 Any waters can 



be stocked, and the commissioners feel assured of most grati- 

 fying and satisfactory returns from their operations with 

 brook trout. The public take a lively interest in these beauti- 

 ful and valuable fish, aud will keep careful watch over them. 

 Nearly three millions will have been distributed by next 

 spring, aud of these a large percentage will grow, mature, aud 

 afford both a healthful recreation for individuals aud food for 

 the public. 



Many rivers and ponds which have been exhausted will be 

 replenished, aud the labor and expense will be repaid a hun- 

 dred fold. 



Through the instrumentality of the New York Fishery 

 Commission, since its creation in lStlU, manj r millions of fish 

 of various varieties have been placed in the waters of our own 

 country and several shipments have been made to Kurope. 



For the purpose of ascertaining if any appreciable improve- 

 ment in the fishing had already resulted from the various dis- 

 tributions, a communication was sent to parties who had re- 

 ceived installments of fish, asking for information on the fol- 

 lowing points : — 



1. What number and kind of fish have been distributed in 

 waters with which you are acquainted ? 



2. What has been the effect of the fishing ? 



3. What is the character of the waters as to bottom, tem- 

 perature and so forth ? 



4. What general suggestions can you offer for the improve- 

 ment of such fisheries? 



5. W hat is the ordinary yield of fish ? 



tl. What has been the largest yield lately? 



The replies to these questions uniformly testified to an in- 

 terest in the subject exceedingly gratifying to the Commis- 

 sion ; and, although sufficient time had noi elapsed to record 

 any- practical returns from the dispositions made in many 

 localities, from others, wdierc the waters had been less recently 

 stocked, very satisfactory reports.were received. These, how- 

 ever, without exception, strongly condemned, and the Com 

 missions join in the condemnation, the use of nets and seines 

 during the spawning s 



—The forthcoming report of the Canadian Fisheries Com- 

 mission will show an increase of exports of Canadian fish to 

 Europe. Mackerel are entering more into the supply for do- 

 mestic consumption in the fresh state, and are sent to Europe 

 in the same condition. Herring are extensively shipped to 

 Sweden and Germany, the latter business having grown up 

 within a year. 



