FOREST AND STREAM. 



117 



we knew not. The clucking mother "clucked in vain, and we searched 

 and wondered also in vain. It was thought the rats had carried away the 

 wee helpless things, but when the second hen mother came off with her 

 flock of downy ones it was found that Gen . caused all the mischief. He 

 would catch a chicken, roll it over and over, and toss it about till it was 

 dead, and then discard it for another. And oh! what sport it was to tor- 

 ment the soft, small creatures as long as there was life in them. When 

 first Gen. was given lessons in retrieving the amount of trouble he made 

 is beyond describing. Repeatedly he caught a turkey that was almost 

 grown, dragged it to his master and dropped it at his feet, at the same 

 time wagging his tail as if pleased with what he had done. Of course 

 the turkeys, which we all know are tender, died from such treatment. 

 He served the hens in the same manner; would chase one until it dropped 

 from fatigue, and then it would be taken to his master. Whipping did 

 no good, the dog persisted in thinking it was better to carry live fowls 

 than dead birds or a sawdust ball. But now Gen. is grown, and is one 

 of the best dogs we have ever known. A general favorite is he— good at 

 home and excellent in the field. This is all due to faithfulness in train- 

 ing; judicious management will accomplish wonders with a bird dog. 



A. D. W. 



THE DOGS OF PORTSMOUTH. 



Portsmouth, N. H., Sept. 20, 1875. 

 Editor Forest and Stream:— 



In your last issue I saw a letter from this city giving a statement as re- 

 gards some of the dogs owned here, and which was written hastily or 

 from a want of knowledge of the dogs in our city. Capt. Eastman owns 

 two fine dogs, both setters and well broken . Capt. Pickering owns a fine 

 setter, and does a good deal of work in the field in the season. James 

 Carroll has a fine pointer, and does probably more work than any of our 

 sportsmen. John S Sides owns a couple of dogs, a setter and pointer, 

 and in the woodcock season gets more of those birds than any one else. 

 Joseph Bell owns one or two dogs, and being a lover of the gun, has only 

 fine stock. A. P. Thurston, Esq., has probably the finest six months old 

 setter pup in the State, both for beauty and good points; he is also the 

 owner of Pete, formerly the property of Dr. Day, of Warren, R. I. Pete 

 is the father of the pup from Don, the well-known blooded setter of 

 Prank Cozzens. Shot, another of his dogs, is a fine blooded two-year 

 old, and was bought by the editor of the American Sportsman for him. 

 Taken together, a bet' er set of dogs are not to be found, and could they 

 have been sent to the late Dog Show would have taken prizes, but Mr. T. 

 was averse to sending them on account of the trouble involved, and wish- 

 ing them to use during the shooting season in Nova Scotia. All these 

 dogs are of considerable value, and were purchased on account of their 

 excellent qualities in the field. Adolphus Nelson, a watchman in the 

 navy yard, also owns a black and white setter, but I never heard much 

 said about his qualities. Your correspondent spoke of this dog as being 

 the property of Capt. Nelson, of the United States Navy, but there is no 

 such officer attached to this station . John Young, another watchman, 

 owns a fine-lookine pointer, but is a curious dog, being of the most will- 

 ful nature; will hunt when he pleases, and when not in humor wont move 

 a peg for anybody. Yours, Axe. 



FISH IN SEASON IN OCTOBER. 



Black Bass, micropterus salmoides, micropterus nigricans. 

 Striped Bass Boccus lineatus. Bluefish, temnodon soltator. 

 ^ . 



[Under the head of "Game and Fish in Season" toe can only syecify in 

 general terms the several varieties, because the laws of States vary so much 

 that toere toe to attempt to particularize we could do no less than publish 

 those entire sections that relate to the kinds of game in question. This 

 would require a great amount of our space. In designating game we are 

 guided by the laws of nature., upon which all legislation is founded, and 

 our readers would do well to provide themselves with the laws of their re- 

 spsclive States for constant reference. Otherwise, our attempts to assis 

 them will only create confusion.} 



* 



Fish in Market. — The better weather of the past week 

 has had the effect of bringing in fish in more abundant 

 supply. Bluefish of large size have appeared in a;reat quan 

 tities on the south side of Long Island, and are also abund- 

 ant on the Massachusetts coast. Our quotations do not 

 vary much from those of last week. Striped bass from 

 Rhode Island are worth 20 to 25 cents ; green smelts, from 

 Maine, 30 cents per pound; bluefish 8 to 10 cents; salmon, 

 frozen, 50 cents per pound; fresh mackerel from Massachu- 

 setts, 25 cents each for large and 6 cents for small fish ; 

 weakfish, caught in this vicinity, 12 cents per pound; white 

 perch, from Long Island, 12 cents; Spanish mackerel from 

 New jersey and Baltimore, 50 cents each; green turtle, 20 

 cents per pound; terrapin $12 per dozen; halibut 20 cents 

 per pound; haddock, 8 cents; kingfish, 25 cents; codfish, 

 8 to 10 cents; blackfish 8 to 10 cents; flounders, 10 cents; 

 porgies, 10 cents; sea bass, 18 cents; eels, 18 cents; lob- 

 sters, 8 cents; sheepshead, 25 cents; scollops, $1 50 per 

 gallon; whitefish, 20 cents; pickerel, 20 cents; vellow perch, 

 10 cents; salmon trout, 20 cents; ciscoes, 10 cents; hard 

 crabs, 40 cents per dozen; soft crabs $1.50 per dozen; 

 frog's legs, 50 cents per pound. Bait. — Shedder crabs, 

 $1.50 per dozen; shrimp, $1 per quart; soft clams, 40 to 

 60 cents per 100. 



— Another leather turtle was taken on Friday last near 

 Orient, Long Island, and forwarded to Mr. Blackford, of 

 Fulton Market, from whose premises it goes to grace a 

 niche in the Smithsonian Institute. ■ This makes the fifth 

 of these monsters taken in our waters this Summer. There 

 is something remarkable in this invasion of the sphargis 

 coriacea/ Mr. Blackford has also forwarded to Professor 

 Baird, at Wood's Hole, a large "drum" and two smelt-like 

 fishes which Professor Baird says are great treasures, being 

 the saury of the Gulf of Mexico, (saurus fcetans) which he 

 has not seen taken from our waters for twenty years past. 



Great South Bay.— Fish are very scarce. Neither the 

 professional fishermen or the rod and reel division are 

 doing anything. Most of the pleasure boats have had 

 their Summer cabins taken off, "cuddys" put on, and are 

 now hard at work oystering. 



New Jersey — JBarnegat Inlet, Sept. 18th. — Large schools 

 of bluefish made their appearance to-day. Eight or ten 

 yachts are among them. Captain Ridgway just landed 

 with 77; others taking them in proportion. Striped bass 

 are biting freely; blackfish and sea bass also. 



Maryland, Frederick, Sept. 22d.—On Saturday, Septem- 

 ber 18th, over two hundred eels were caught in a single 

 fish basket in less than twelve hours, in Lingamore Creek, 

 which is not more than ten yards wide from'bank to bank, 

 the largest one weighing five pounds, and measured from 

 tip of head to tip of tail, three feet four inches long. Who 

 can beat this catch in such a run? F. S. 



Colorado.— Denver, Sept 20.— Fishing in the Cache-la- 

 Poudre must be something remarkable. Messrs. N. O. 

 Vosbuigh, C . Stimson, Kelley, Brazee, Menkee and Con- 

 nor caught 617 trout from one hole, and there are plenty 

 left. 



— E. Wiman, Wm. P. Raynor, and T. E. Leeds, city, 

 together with H. P. D wight, Tom Townsend, and others, 

 making a large party of the Kayweambejewagamog Club, 

 left Toronto the 20th on an extended fishing and hunting 

 expedition in the extreme northern lakes of Canada. "Ka- 

 weambejewagamog" is the Indian name for Hollow Lake. 



The Nepioon. — Fishing has been splendid during the 

 season and all parties came away well pleased. The fish, 

 however, have not averaged as large as usual, heaviest 

 weighing from 4| to 4f pounds. Any number of large 

 trout could be seen in the deep water, but the small ones 

 would only take the fly. The following is a list of visitors 

 to the Nepigon River during the season of 1875: — 



M. W. Reed, Cyrenius Hall, Milwaukee, Wis. ; G. Ger- 

 main, Dodge Co., Wis.; S. D- Burchard, Willie T. Burch- 

 ard, Beaver Dam, Wis.; Ben. Robinson, Cincinnati, Ohio; 

 Harry H. Brown, Cleveland, Ohio; Gen. W. D. Whipple, 

 U. S. Army; M. K. Moorehead, Pittsburgh, Pa.; W. W. 

 Herberton, Elkton, Ind. ; E. P. Lewis, Cincinnati, Ohio; 



C. W. Miner, Twenty-second Infantry, U. S. Army; Hon. 



D. L. Gillis, Iowa; A. H. Evans, Washington, D. C. ; 

 C. V. Gillis, Penn.; Com. J. H. Gillis, Lt.-Com. A. G. 

 Kellogg, H. D. McEwan, Wallace Graham, F. L.DuBois, 

 U. S. Navy, G. Gocdloe, Lexington, Ky.; C H. Graves, 

 Duluth, Minn.; F. H. Clark, Philadelphia, Pa.; Lt.-Col. 



E. W. Smith, U. S. Army; Ed. Rice, St. Paul, Minn. ; J. 

 Martin, — Gilpiling, — Pomeroy, C. R Bushnell, — 

 Langdon, Minneapolis; Dr. F. Carter and lady, C. L. Tay- 

 lor, R. W, Clark, Jr., Rob Roy McNutty, Columbus, Ohio; 

 A, V, Bogart, J. P., C, E. Lewis, F, S. Lewis, E, C. Mc- 

 Fetridge, T. L. Newton, Beaver Dam, Wis. ; E. E. Higbee, 

 Mercersberg, Pa. ; C. D. Murray, A. J. Avery, M, L. 

 Hinman, Dunkirk, N. Y.; John McDougall, Hornellsville, 

 N. Y.; J. V. Granger, H, M. Butler, A. Wright, St. Paul, 

 Minn. 



Salmon Fishing in Canada.— Reports, as a rule, have 

 not been favorable from the Canadian rivers, but the fol- 

 lowing list, furnished to the Field, and vouched for by the 

 Vice- Admiral Farquhar, shows that oneindividualhas been 

 successful. The stream from which the fish were taken is 

 the Cascapediac, a small river in the Province of Quebec: — 



Pish. Pounds. 



June 25— 31 pounds; only evening fishing one pool 1 34 



June 26-33, 32, 24, 29 pounds, and 2 kelts 4 118 



June 27— Sunday. 



June 28— 13, 21, 23 pounds 3 57 



June 29— 35, 40 pounds 2 75 



June 30—38, 13, 32, 31, 13, 21, 33, 36, 33 pounds 9 250 



July 1—12, 27, 36, 23, 39 pounds 5 137 



July 2—25, 25 pounds 2 49 



July 3 -21, 32, 34 pounds 3 87 



July 4— Sunday. 



July 5— Blank; calm and clear all day. 



July 6—30 pounds; moving up river; only fished one hour 1 30 



July 7—35, 22, 20, 27 pounds 4 194 



July 8— Blank; calm and clear all day. 



July 9—36, 17, 20, 25 pounds 4 108 



July 10—28 pounds; only fished in morning before starting 



down river , 1 28 



Total 39 1,077 



My score: Total, 39 salmon in 13 days 1 fishing; weight, 1,077 pounds; 

 average weight, 27.6. O. F. 



The Fisheries.— The number of fishing arrivals at this 

 port for the week ending Sept. 23, was 60—24 from Georges, 

 7 from the Banks and 29 from mackereling. Amount of 

 Georges cod brought in, 300,000 pounds; halibut, 20,000; 

 Bank cod, 880,000 pounds. The mackerel seiners are still 

 doing a slim business. About 2,200 barrels have been 

 landed the past week, mostly tinkers. Recent news from 

 the Bay is not of a very encouraging nature, and the pros- 

 pect now is that the mackereling season will wind up ex- 

 ceedingly poor. — Gape Ann Advertiser, Sept. 24. 

 -♦♦*>- 



FLY-FISHING FOR BLUEFISH. 



y — ♦ — 



1 Boston, Mass., Sept. 20, 1875. 



Editor Forest and Stream.:— 



In answer to your correspondent of last week, I would say to him that 

 reel fishing for bluefish is not a new idea. It has been in practice some 

 time where it can be done. Bluefish, we all know, must have a moving 

 bait. Now, wherever you have a swift tide if you anchor your boat and 

 let your lines out it answers the same purpose as if you were sailing, 

 the watei rushing by the line giving the same effect. Do thus and have 

 a stiff bass rod with 300 feet line, and it is all you need. Of course bait 

 and lines to suit yourself. To catch one ten pound fish this way is more 

 fun than a dozen by trolling, the meanest of all fishing where you have 

 to pull against the boats sailing. This same rule will apply to weak fish. 

 The best place on the coast for this kind of fun is at Barnegat Inlet, that 



being the strongest tide. S. K., Jr. 

 -*♦♦ . 



A DAY IN GOOSE CREEK. 



V * 



Leesburg Academy, Sept. 16th, 1875. 

 Editor Forest and Stream: — 



Having heard so much about the abundance of bass in Goose Creek I 

 thought I would go and see for myself. Well, duly equipped with a 

 Conroy rod, a fly-book, and a snack of cold mutton and buttered bread, 

 I left my domicile at five o'clock and reached Goose Creek Bridge at sun- 

 rise. I made one cast and took a small bass; another, and hooked my 

 fly in a willow behind me, breaking my second joint at the ferule before 

 I knew I was fastened. I was then in a pretty fix; sun getting higher 

 and higher, and fish showing every disposition to be caught; but by 

 splicing my tip on with part of my line, cut off with a sharp rock, I man- 

 aged to fish thoroughly about three or four miles of the creek at the 

 pools below every dam . The creek used to be a canal, and the old locks 

 and dams form suitable water below for fly-fishing. My plan was to 

 wade in when in sight of a dam, and fish up to it carefully, and I had 

 very goo i sport— caught 22 fish in all, 16 bass, 3 fall fish, and 3 perch. 

 Twice I caught two at a cast; once I fell in up to my neck, and alto- 

 gether had a splendid trip. Towards evening I fished back over nearly 

 the same ground, and just before coming Jaway, at Mabin's Dam, the 

 small bass were jumping out of the water at every cast. I lost several 

 large fish by want of skill, and hope Til find them some other dav. All 

 fish were taken with home-made flies tied by inexperienced hands. The 

 fish, however, took them eagerly. The flies had red, green, white, yel- 

 low, and orange bodies, wrapped with silver tinsel, wings of red, white, 

 black and lead color, and hackles brown, yellow, white, black and ginger 

 from a game cock. They took any and every sort, i passed e ight ang- 

 lers fishing with the minnow. They seemed to have had poor luck. I've 

 had twinges of neuralgia since, but don't regret my day on Goose Creek. 

 Since Saturday last the anglers on the river have done well, three gentle- 

 men getting 30 and other strings having from 5 to 20; one colored brother 

 catching a good string, averaging, so they say, 2$ pounds. An anglomaniac 

 friend will be our guest next week, and as he knows the use of the rod, 

 we hope to show a good score. One fall fish, over 12 inches, fought as 

 well as the bass. T. W. 



PERCH FISHING AT BETTERTON. 



Easton, Pa., Sept. 16, 1875. 

 Editor Forest and Stream:— 



A great deal has been written of the perch fishing at Betterton, but of 

 such a general character as not to furnish data of the ground that the 

 experienced fisher who is a stranger to it requires. Such was my expe- 

 rience, and I was even unable to get precise data on some points after 

 prior correspondence with residents of the locality. Correspondents are 

 too apt to desire to write too "interesting sketches," and facts and points 

 suffer in proportion. For those who may be situated as I was I will give -^ 

 the result of my observation. Betterton is in Kent county, Md., on the 

 extreme upper end of Chesapeake Bay, within sieht of the mouths of 

 the Susquehanna, Elk, Northeast and Sassafras Rivers. It is about eighty 

 miles by water from Philadelphia and forty from Baltimore. It is 

 reached by the Ericson steamers which leave both cities at 4 P. M., re- 

 quiring for the trip about eleven hours' from the former, wharf 

 above Chestnut street, and four hours from the latter city. The fare 

 from Philadelphia is $1.50, which includes berth. Meals are fifty cents 

 extra. The Delaware branch of the Philadelphia, Wilmington and Bal- 

 timore Railroad also runs to Still Pond, a station four miles from Better- 

 ton. The train leaves Philadel phis at 8 A. M.,and makes the trip in 

 four hours. Still Pond is also the Post Office, Betterton having only a 

 few scattering dwellings and no Post Office. Thomas Crew keeps the 

 house (not a hotel and without a bar,) and can probably accommodate 

 twenty guests, for whom he provides bountifully. His rate is $1-50 per 

 day, and boats with captain and bait $3 per day. The favorite fishirg 

 ground is about two miles from the house, and the water tnere is about 

 thirty to forty feet deep. The ebb current runs about two and a half 

 miles an hour, and the flood current about two miles an hour, or with 

 about one-half the force of the current in the Delaware, hence a 10 or 12- 

 ounce dipsey is heavy enough for a bow or hand line, and two ounces for 

 a rod line. I used a bow line and hand line because I got the impression 

 that the water was sixty feet deep. but. shall use a rod the next time. A 

 bass rod nine feet long, with multiplying reel, is the proper rod. The 

 perch bite better at the turn of the tide- -an hour before and after each 

 the low water and young flood being the best. The perch season is in 

 from the 1st of September until the middle of October, and the best time 

 to select is those days when it is high water from 6 to 9 o'clock. Then 

 you can set the benefit of both tides in one day. Earth worms and crabs 

 are the only native bait provided, crabs Vicing the main stay, as worms are 

 scarce, owing to the dry nature of the soil. Minnows are better bait 

 than either, but there is no appliance there for catching them. Shrimp 

 are a capital bait, and clams are also good bail;. It is not amiss to take 

 some bait along— worm, clam, or shrimp, or a good dip minnow net. But 

 fish are so abundant that they are not specially dainty as to bait, and I 

 have no doubt that the very large perch would strike with avidity for 

 minnows when they might pass other bait. That has been my experience 

 in the Delaware, If a hand line is used, glove fingers are necessary, else 

 any but the toughest hand will give out before a dav's fishing is over. I 

 saw several gentlemen binding their lingers with strips of handkerchief to 

 shield their hands. The reports of the abundance of perch and the cer- 

 tainty of finding them upon any day, except when the water is mud- 

 dy after a heavy rain have not been much exaggerated. They are so 

 plentiful as to destroy any motive for the traditional fish lying. We — 

 two fishing— caught in two tides three peach baskets full. Our largest 

 perch weighed sixteen ounces, and the run was very fair, from six to 

 twelve ounces, favoring the larger size. Our captain said the run or 

 catch was not nearly up to a fair average, which we could credit, as there 

 was a stiff wind blowing from the northeast, considered an nnpropitious 

 quarter. There were eight boats fishing the same day, containing forty- 

 two fishers, all pursuing their sport within an area of less than 100 yards 

 square. It is thought better to be grouped together, as it holds the fish. 

 The entire party fishing one tide (with one exception,) caught at a rea- 

 sonable estimate between 4,000 and 5,000 perch. The sport is satisfying 

 to any craving. When I say that the bottom is a little sticky, with here 

 and there a stone, and the locality being free from marshes is also free 

 from mosquitoes, I will have embraced the most essential points, except 

 that it would be difficult to find a spot where more sport of the kind can 

 be had at such a comparatively trifling expense. 



The tide tables of the Chesapeake are published in the Nautical Al- 

 manac. High water at Betterton would be about half an hour earlier 

 than at Turkey Point. B. 

 -*.<<>. 



TROUT IN THE MAGNETEWAN. 



*f Philadelphia, September, 1875. 



Editor Forest and Stream: — 



Hi your issue of September 16th appeared an account of the expe 

 rience of a fishing party on the Magnetewan this Summer, in which this 

 river as a trout stream was condemned up and down . Now, Sir, will 

 you listen to the other side of the question . What is said here can be 

 proved, if necessary, by four persons— Mr. Edward Carnahan, of Phila- 

 delphia; Ed. Jenkins, of Magnetewan Village (!), and Theo. Haines and 

 Mr. Champion, of Doe Lake, all of whom saw the trout. Mr. Carna- 

 han, Jenkins, and myself went up the Magnetewan from Lake Sheesheep 

 to the Forks, fished the rapid above there, or what is knowu as the Third 

 Portage on the North Branch, in company with Mr. Walter Beatly, the 

 Government Surveyor, who was camping above that spot, and in one af- 

 ternoon took 140 trout, none (except two) of which were under half a 

 pound, and from that up t© two and two and a half. From there we re- 

 turned and ascended the South Branch to Little Doe Lake, taking good 

 trout out of each of the three rapids between the lake and the Forks. 

 From there we went to the mouth of Ragged Creek, on the East Branch 

 of the Magnetewan, or what is known on the map as Trout River, and 

 on one Saturday evening at sunset the writer took thirteen trout, seven 

 of which weighed twenty-one pounds • and two ounces! The reason I 

 say seven is that the remaining six were not weighed, being used for food. 

 The seven largest were preserved by being sunk in cool running water 

 until Moiiday, when we returned to Doe Lake and weighed them! I do 

 not think I exaggerate when I say that there was not the difference of 

 one pound in the whole thirteen, and it was hardly a matter of choice 

 which to retain to show. I took off the heads of two, soaked them in 

 salt, and after smoking them over the camp fire, brought them back to 

 the city as curiosities. They can be seen at my room here. Theodore 

 Haines told me he caught one that weighed over six pounds some few 

 days before. 



Although we had good fishing during the first ten days of our trip we 

 only got the stragglers, for in July the water in the iarge river becomes 

 very warm, and the trout run up into the spring lakes far above. When 

 we returned to the first rapids two weeks later in company with Messrs. 

 Richardson and Lyons, of Oswego, N. Y., George Ross, their guide, told 

 me he had never in all his experience seen the water so low, and then we 

 had no fishing at all to speak of. The Magnetewan is a dark, still stream 

 in Summer, with few rapids, but in Spring:, they tell me, is vastly differ- 

 ent. When a river is low and the water warm, as it is in July in Can- 

 ada, a man cannot expect to get good fishing. Major Blodgett, of New- 

 York, was in at the best time, but the black flies drove him away as soon 

 as he touched at the first rapid, at Ross' Clearing. Messrs. Rust and 

 Taylor, from Fulton, N. Y., were also there in a good time, but Rust fell 

 out of the stage and had his leg run over, so that spoiled their fun as 

 they returned at once. Richardson and Lyons were in too late for the 

 tront, as was also Mr. Osborne, of Philadelphia, and Carnahan and I just 

 got the fag end of the fishing, but that was amply sufficient to satisfy me 

 that tho fish are there in any quantity to suit if tried for in season. Mr. 

 George Johnson, of the White Manufacturing Company of Bridgeport] 

 Conn., is at Horn Lake now, so you ought to hear from him in regard to 

 September fishing. Jenkins is to send me a box of trout next May if 

 all's well, and if they arrive safe I will convince you that there are trout 

 in that river, and big ones, too, as he says he will send none under three 

 pounds dressed, and some larger. Yours, etc., Music. 



