802 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



[July 20, 



American might take a just pride, and one which for beauty 

 ami interest is unparalleled. The wonderful lakes and 

 mountains to the south of the Park. Jackson's Sole, the 

 Tstons and a hundred ether beautiful spots should be saved. 



Bhoulfl the Leads ol the Stinking Water and a 



dozen other streams, eaoh bf -which could put forward its 

 especial claim for protection From the touch of civilization's 

 hand. 



The gentlemen who are aboui to visit Hie Park are incur- 

 ring responsibilities in the matter which we are glad to see 

 them assume, for we are confident thai this pleasure-trip will, 

 next winter, in Washington, bear abundant fruit. 



A 7<:ir TOBK (i ami-: PBOTE0T0J18, 



AS our readers are aware, from our reports of the pro- 

 gress Of the Game Protector tail in the Legislature of 

 New York last winter, the Governor of the Stale was em- 

 powered to appoint sixteen new protectors in place of the 

 : i,i 51 hull held office last year. A clause in the new bill 

 placed these men entirely under orders of the Fish Commis- 

 sioners of the State, from whom they are to receive instruc- 

 tions and to whom they are to report in writing every month. 

 Without the proper certificate from the Fish Commission the 

 game protectors can receive 00 pay. 



The men appointed are all new ones, except John Liberty, 

 of Essex county, and Geo. Al. Schwartz, of Monroe county, 

 and we hope that they will do their duties well. We have 

 been importuned to make recommendations for this office, or 

 to indorse them, but have steadily declined to do so. not, 

 earing to became responsible tar iheperformaneeof the duty 

 in the ease of any individual. We are therefore tree 1o ap- 

 plaud or condemn, as the work done may seem good or 

 bad. 



the protectors are appointed for certain districts this 

 year, and uot for the State at large, as last year. How this 

 will work, unless they have full powers all over the State, 

 ■we do not know. For instance. Oneida Lake, which lies 

 Wholly in Oswego county, where the Onondaga Club fishes 

 a great deal, lies in the ninth district, and the protector of 

 that district lives nearly forty miles east Of it, while the pro- 

 tector of the tenth district, a man whom the club indorsed, 

 lives within six miles of the lake, which is infested with 

 poachers whom he has fought for years. If a protector has 

 powers outside his district this will work well, but, if he has 

 not. then in this instance a mistake has been made. The 

 appointments are- 

 First District— Kings, Queens, Suffolk, and Richmond 

 Counties— George A. Whittaker, Southampton. 



Second District— New York County— Joseph H. God- 

 win, Jr., King's Bridge, New York city. 



Third District— Westchester, Putnam, Du! chess, Columbia, 

 Ulster, Greene. Rockland, and Orange— Matthew Kennedy, 

 Hudson, to take effect August 1. 



Fourth District— Sullivan, Delaware, Schoharie, and 

 Otsego— 3?ranc»BC0 Wood, Schoharie. 



Fifth District— Ubnny, Schenectady, Saratoga, Rensse- 

 laer, Washington, and Warren — Seymour C. Armstrong, 

 Weavertowu, Warren county. 



Sixth District— Essex. Clinton, and Franklin— John Lib- 

 ia ty. Elizabetbtown. Essex county. 



Seventh District— St, Lawrence and Jefferson— Albert M. 

 Griffin, fine. St Lawrence county. 



Eighth District— Fullon, Hamilton, Montgomery, and 

 Herkimer— Thomas Bradley; Eoekwood, Fulton couuty. 



Ninth District— Oneida. Lewis, and Oswego— Nathan C. 

 Phelps, Remsen, Oneida county. 



Tenth District — Broome, Chenango, Cortland, Madison. 

 Tioga, and Onondaga— William H. Lindsley, Canastota, 

 Madison county. 



Eleventh District— Cayuga. Wayne, Ontario, Yates, 

 Schuyler, Tompkins, Chemung, and Seneca— Aaron M. 

 Parish, Reading, Schuyler couuty. 



Twelfth District— Monroe, Orleans, Livingston, Gencssee, 

 Steuben. Wyoming, and Alleghany— George M. Schwartz, 

 Rochester, 



Thirteenth District— Chautauqua, Cattaraugus, Erie, and 

 Niagara— Stephen A. Roberts, Buffalo. 



Mr. Lindsley, of the tenth district, has for pome years 

 been a town game constable, and has acted with Mr. Dodge, 

 i in nier State game protector, and has been repeatedly shot 

 at by the persistent poacher* of Oneida Lake, lie has built 

 a steamboat for the express purpose of clearing this lake of 

 nets, on the promise of being appointed a State officer for 

 the protection offish and game in a region which was sup- 

 posed would be in his district. Knowing these facts we 

 hope that tile FtSh Commission will extend his authority 

 over Oneida Lake. 



Tin-. CKNTiniY Magazine is rendering good service to 

 field sportsmanship in America by its admirable sketches of 

 sle m. tiny and fishing. The engravings in the July number 

 accompanying Dr. Ilenshall s paper on the black bass were 

 not only artistic but excellent in their faithfulness to nature; 

 and the same may be said of the beautiful illustrations, in 

 the August number, of Prof. Alfred M. Mayer's excellent de- 

 scription of "Bob White, the Game Bird of America." The 

 engravings and the letter-press combine to make a very 

 charming study of this favorite bird. It is an open secret 

 that the Century Co. will soon publish, in book form, a col- 

 lection of their magazine articles on field spertfi, 



DRIFTING FOR SHAD. 



**' \\7 HAT ™* vou e oiu - '" do benight'; Will you come 

 y T out with "me for shad?" 



Such wits the compound question which my friend James, 

 the impetuous, hurled at rue as I came up the whari after 

 ii oo ling dip in the noble St. John. 



"Well, nothing particularly; and, yes, I should like to 

 go, very much!" 



It is a curious fact, that while game birds and animals 

 retreat before the advancing White tide of civilization, fish 

 are more constant to hereditary haunts, and inhabit their 

 ancient, waters until driven therefrom by the defilement of 

 the stream, or actually decimated bv the improvident angler. 

 Bui, while the defilement iM streams" drives away some fishes, 

 others, such as the eel. thrive on the garbage and ; ise ol 



fittest." Ofcpurse, thedifEeren elements in which beasts 

 and fish live account somewhat for the coyness of the first, 

 and the friendly constancy of the latter. As the land be- 

 come.-, sett V-< 1 1 he animals have to retire lo more secluded 

 haunts, but the fishes, living in an element whose domain 

 cannot be so thoroughly invaded by man, are exempt from 

 the 'necessity of beaticg an unqualified retreat. But while 

 this is true,' f hold that the fish, of its nature, is far tamer 

 than is the beast of its. While OUT forests and plains for 

 miles round any considerable center of civilization are en- 

 tirely deserted by their old lime frequenters, our rivers and 

 ams are still well stocked with the descendants of their 

 : | i upanls, undismayed by the thunder of paddle 

 •e|. , i he gliVling, dark hull's of commerce, or the panting 

 sawmills, which, like wrathful giants, hurl the spoils of 

 depleted forests upon the uncomplaiuing tide. Thus it is 

 that in the St. John River, at Frederieton, the capital of a 

 populous Province, we still find the perch, chub, smelt, 

 pickerel, shad, cask, gizzard, bass, salmon, sturgeon, and 

 many other fishes, and H itbin a short distance of the city, 

 the bouquet of the vimageable waters — the speckled beauty, 

 the raiubow-hued trout. But let us drift back to our drift- 

 ing. 



"Yes, Jirn,"l replied to the hydra-headed interrogatory, 

 "I should like very much to go." And so we went down 

 behind the wharf "where the boat lay ready to receive us, 

 and where the entangling net hung over its saddle where it 

 had been drying in the sun. After Jim had placed the net 

 and a mysterious little basket on hoard, we seized the oars 

 and pulled for our destination about a mile above the city, 

 and almost abreast of that aristocratic mansion, Government 

 House, Think of it! drifting for shad within a stone-throw 

 of the gubernatorial residence! Is it possible that the 

 humble shad is growing aristocratic? No, I scarcely think 

 so. Ue is a Conservative, Buch a good Conservative that he 

 will ever be a Liberal, for he will retain to bis dying day the 

 unaffected manners, the goodly customs, and the glorious 

 liberties of his centennial forefathers. He frequents these 

 waters merely because be has ever done so, and he cares not 

 whether castle or cottage, court or crib, stands on the banks 

 of Hie placid river. 



The St. John at Frederieton is not far from a mile 

 wide, and this evening its broad unruffled surface, which 

 reaches far westward under a glorious sunset, bears many 

 boats bent on errands similar to ours. Each boat confines 

 itself to a certain locality— its own domain, as it were— 

 same spot where perhaps for years and years the fisherman 

 has cast his net. and the desertion of which he firmly be- 

 lieves would be attended with disastrous results. He knows 

 the old ground, just where the snags lie, and these he can 

 locate as correctly as if they were visible above water. Per- 

 haps he has spent many hours in removing sunken bushes 

 from the bed of his favorite drifting ground; and when 

 many boats are out. all good fishermen will respect his claim. 

 At times, when but few boats are out diifting, a fisherman 

 will desert his usual ground, if the fish are coy, and casting 

 his net iii waters new, make a long sweep of the river, his 

 distances being curtailed only by the locality of his home, 

 and the necessity of having to breast the current in rowing 

 back, But when he thus dips into strange waters, he is in 

 danger of having his net caught in sunken obstacles of the 

 locality of which he may be ignorant. There are spots iu 

 the river here where no boat is everseen to drift, not because 

 there are snags lying darkly concealed to tear the net, but 

 because, as the fishermen aver, the shad never run there. 

 From some peculiarity in the locality, some formation of the 

 bed of the river, or "other occult cause, the fish are never 

 known to pass through those places in numbers sufficient to 

 repay the trouble of casting the net. 



Here, off Government House. James, and his father' be- 

 fore him, have fished for years: here the shad, from some 

 cause tiest known to themselves, run within well-defined 

 limits, which said limits are well known to the honest 

 James; and here the net may drift slowly, noiselessly as a 

 shadow, without let or hindrance of any snags or hidden 

 dangers of the deep. There is one large sunken log at 

 the dower cud of James's territory, but this monster is 

 spotted. By the producing of many carefully studied lines 

 springing from well known corners, chimneys and trees in 

 the distance, and from closer but less accurate points on the 

 shore, bv an instinct which would guide my friend's course 

 when these landmniks were invisible. 1 h is monster is spotted. 

 His lair is as well known, and he is as carefully avoided as 

 if he were a floating torpedo, ready, on impnet, to blow us 

 and all other little fishes, sky high, and transform us into 

 veritable, flying fishes. 



Here, oil' Government House. James easts his net carefully 

 into the water, while 1 row the boat athwart the tide, "go- 

 ing on" or "holding on," "up stream" or "down stream," as 

 .lames commands, and as the proper extending of the net 

 requires. Our net now extends from the stern of the boat, 

 in a straight line of bobbing floats, thirty or forty yards 

 across the current. James sits in the stern with his hand on 

 the rope. He says he can tell by the motion of the net, 

 which he feels in the rope, when a fish is entangled, even in 

 the, uttermost meshes. 



We float quietly down, talking in but subdued tones, and 

 when bear the end of our run, James hauls in the net. Only 

 eight, but they are beauties! We will cast atrain, and so 

 while James overhauls the net. 1 row lip to our usual start- 

 ing point. Again the net is cast; again we drift over the 

 accustomed ground, and again eagerly and in gieat expecta- 

 tion is the net, hauled in. Fifteen this time! That's better! 

 And still we feel that other nets on the river this evening 

 must be accomplishing more work than is ours. We will 

 try one more cast. 



'it is getting to lie quite cold, and when 1 make an obser- 



vation to that effect, James produces his mysterious basket 

 and takes therefrom a small flask, which tie hands to me. 

 "What is it?" I inquire. 



"It- is one gill of Jamaica, one gill of water, and some 

 lemon-juice." 



"Good: a little of that will keep out the cold. Good 

 health, James!" 



James has also some sandwiches, and pulling to shore, we 

 make Easl to a raft and enjoy our collation. 



1 i a great talker, and many and wonderful are the 



tales which he has related, both when out fishing, and also 

 at divers other times and places. He is a firm believer in 

 the powers of the mineral rod, and be hints darkly at having 

 tested its capabilities on the Nashwaak, near the city, in 

 searcliofhiddeB treasure supposed to have been buried in 

 the dark ages by darker dyed pirates. The old French 

 frigate which lies deeply imbedded in the sand, keel up, in 

 its eternal dock-yard at "the bottom of the river, opposite the 

 city, has ever been a source of curiosity and regret to James. 

 If lie could only raise that hulk, what vast" treasures he 

 would discover! Why did no one ever make the at- 

 tempt? 



Another sunken vessel lying in the Nashwaaksis in, as he 

 says, a hole so deep that no one can find bottom, is also 

 matter of wonderment and anxiety on James's part. He is 

 ever promising himself that some day be will, &c, but treas- 

 ures and vessels remain undisturbed, and I cannot compel 

 myself to hope that the deserving James willeverbe enriched 

 by" such phantom wealth. Having finished our lunch, we 

 pulled again to our starting point, and casting the net drifted 

 slowly down, and patiently awaited the result of this, our 

 last venture for the night. 



"How many 1" 



" Eleven." 



"Not bad at all!" 



And now ws start back to our place at the wharf whence 

 we came. As we proceed down river wc meet or overtake 

 other boats still plying their trade, and make inquiries as to 

 their luck. When one lone fisherman acknowledges having 

 secured a smaller number than fell to our share, we imme- 

 diately become possessed of the idea that we are great fisher- 

 men; "but our exultation is short-lived, lor the next man we 

 greet informs us that he has caught forty five ! We pass 

 away silently, and forbear making inquiries of any other 

 boats. Arriving at our landing we hung the net on its rack, 

 and James placed his shad in a wheelbarrow for transporta- 

 tion homeward, I accepting six, which left twenty-eight at 

 James's disposal. Probably he sold about twenty" of"" them 

 next day, at ten cents each". As we said good-night, I could 

 not help thinking that casting - the net for the treasures of 

 the deep is somewhat more profitable than carrying mineral 

 rods over the country i n search of the shadowy treasures 

 buried in unknown ages by phantom pirates. I did uot say 

 so, however, for I would not offend James for the world. It 

 was two o'clock when 1 got home, and placing my shad in a 

 tub of fresh water I left them to await the tender offices of 

 the cook. Ehato. 



;, New Branswiek. 



COBB'S ISLAND. 



DOUBTLESS many of your readers are now T easting 

 about them for a pleasant summer trip, and are anx- 

 ious to find a place where good fishing and shooting can be 

 had, and where a millionaire's pocketbook is not required to 

 pay expenses, f have just returned from such a place — 

 Cobb's Island— and have had most excellent sport. 



On Friday last, with a friend, we shot over stools eighty 

 gray back snipe, and would have killed more bad we 

 been in practice. This bird is now returning from the 

 north, and within a week or ten days myriads of them will 

 be found at the island meutioned. The fishing for weakfish 

 or sea trout is superb, the writer and his friend having taken 

 over 100 lbs. in one tide, and- only desisted from very weari- 

 ness. A s an apology for catching so many, I would add 

 that we fished for a boat's crew of thirteen persons, Any 

 person going to Cobb's for fishing should take with him an 

 ordinary rod and reel, with a fairly large braided silk line, 

 as baud" line fishing is an abomination, and does not afford 

 half the sport a rod does. 



As to the comforts of the hotel I cannot speak, as I did not 

 live there, but the guests appeared fairly satisfied. The surf 

 bathing is good, and any one fond of the labor of hauling in 

 sharks can have as much of that kind of sport as they 

 want. 



To reach Cobb's Island take the boats from Baltimore or 

 Washington to Old Point; then the steamer Northampton 

 to Chorrvston, then by sailboat to destination. 



Cosmopolitan. 



Washington, D, C, July 91. 



§wv Sn SK&*m*- 



IN your paper of July 5, "Ouachita" tells of the attache 

 of the dramatic company catching the twenty trout 

 through the medium of the large grasshopper. "That re- 

 minds me": A number of the Panionkees were fishing iu 

 Spring River, Mo., some time ago. We had met with very 

 good luck, capturing a number of channel catfish, while 

 bass and perch, when one of the "natives " came along. He 

 was quite talkative, and related his experience'in fishing. 



Among the many stories he told was one wherein be had 

 caught what he termed the "belltish." 



He said he had been fishinar in the headwaters of Spring 

 River about two years ago; had fished nearly all day with 

 indifferent success, when at last (he had about concluded 

 to give it up) he had a "powerful bite." He worked for 

 nearly an hour and landed the "belltish," and as he ex- 

 pressed it — "Stranger, you may not believe me, but as soon 

 as that ar fish was out of water, tin? fish— au' I never see 

 the like— commenced to flop and jump out of the water to 

 follow him, an' with the help of my oldest boy, wc just 

 took a pole an' an old net we had with us, an' caught near 

 two bar'l of fish." We concluded that that was a large 

 "fish story." He explained by saying that fish always 

 selected one of their number as a leader, and followed it, 

 just as cattle, horses and sheep will follow one of their num- 

 ber to which a bell is attached. Sn.vwoNDASEE, 



I\JNHAS. 



In next to last line of "Me-hit-able's" story in issue July 5, 

 or "boat" read "bed," as he wrote it, 



