FOREST AND STREAM. 



163 



lowing letter apparently written hurriedly on a bit of paper 

 torn trom a memorandum book: 



''Dear Wife: — I have only one moment to write this. 

 We foundered outside of Charlotte, at 2 o'clock on the 6th 

 of July. We join in death." Oapt. H. Finley." 



Canit be possible? Are we really on dangerous waters? 

 The sun shines gayly; the waters curl back upon us from 

 the dividing keel, in friendly fashion; the lovely islands 

 hover a^out us like guardian augels; the smoke of the 

 pale-face tires rises like little clouds above the wooded 

 shores, cannon, and starry flag, to oo us honor as we pass. 

 Kow boats, sail boats, yachts and steamers, big and little, 

 royal and •ura- royal, flock the green waters. How could 

 500 souls go down amidst all this material aid? It seems 

 quite impossible. Perhaps the bottle story is all a fiction. 

 It may have been set afloat by a squad of rollicking 

 Harvard or Yale fishermen, in the intervals of pickerei 

 fishing, under solemn compact, just as an experiment to 

 prove ihe reliability of bottles as message bearers. Or it 

 may have happened a century ago before excursions were in- 

 vented, patented or made proof against "unmerciful disas- 

 ter." Then of course if it happened it was in the night time, 

 when the skies were black with clouds, the sailors sleepy 

 and the Captain's eyes inflamed. Now it is broad day- 

 light, the skies are as blue as sapphire, the boat is well of- 

 ficered and as safe as a rocking chair. Surely nothing will 

 happen — out the memorable accident to the "small bo^" 

 wbo always loses his hat overboard, and has to taKe refuge 

 from sun-stroke under his sister's parasol. But the islands! 

 How they dodge about! INow they "circie all around" 

 you— now thev lead oft single file like Inuians on the war 

 path. Yonder comes a little one, which you call baby or 

 papoose island for want of a lit tie name. It looks no bigger 

 than a man s hand in the distance, but now you discover it has 

 iis aspiring trees audits growing vegetation. Prom Weld's 

 "Journal, " written almost a century ago, you learn that 

 the lake of the Thousand isles, winch is ihat portion of 

 tne St. Lawrence lying between Cape Vincent and Brock- 

 vide, is 25 mites in length and six in width, Since then 

 800 islands have been added to the list, so it might, with 

 more truth, be called "The 1800 Isles;" and yet sentiment 

 will probably cling to the old name. There has, however, 

 been a great rage for naming and re-naming these islands 

 niuces iuo cAoitcmeut ot ititz, at which time many of them 

 were bought up either for speculation or as summer resi- 

 dences bj private individuals. Whether this "pale-face" 

 baptism is an improvement, is douotlul. Here are some 

 specimen names: Harmony, Sunbeam, Sunny Side, Wild 

 Kose, Little Charm, Little Augle, Free and Easy, Friendly, 

 .Pleasant, Knobby, Elephant Hock, Devil's Oven, JNigger. 

 Only one has been named after their original owners, tne 

 lnuians, and that is "Iroquois Lodge," formerly owned by 

 beth Green, the noted pisiculturists, and at present by tne 

 American Club of .New York city. So it seems that even 

 in matters of minor importance we compel the dusky 

 native of the soil to share the honors witlrnis darker im- 

 ported brother. Strange as it may seem the educated 

 foreigner can never quite understand the rapidity with 

 wnicn we accomplish our enterprises. The Antwerp 

 Gazette states that 'Even now there is a live baronet stop- 

 ping at the Hotel at Alexandria Bay, who dare not go out 

 to tne islands for fear of beiug scalped by the Indians, 

 Since Custer's misfortune he ha» also given up his intended 

 trip to California, which he thinks is situated in Canada." 

 As a native American and a weli-tutored excursionist, you 

 have no fears ol the ■u/ttutored red men. You are positive 

 that the "Indian hunting encampments" have disappeared 

 entirely, and you will mid in their places nothing more 

 wild and dangerous than the camps of the shouting Metho- 

 dists. As a people, they, the Methodists, have tne reputa- 

 tion of beiug quiet and peaceable in everything except their 

 religious ways. They only desire to relieve you of your 

 sins, instead of your scalp, or rather perhaps to relieve you 

 of your sins here in order to save your scaip in the "here- 

 after." Perhaps the high-born foreigner, who has speut 

 his whole life in baronial halis or with the High church 

 piety, might get the thing confounded and evade the red- 

 hot Methodist exhorter, who now roams over the Islands, 

 as he would the yelling scalpiug savage and know no dif- 

 ference; but you have got used to the two different styles 

 aud know that the "exnorter," even at high tide, is. harm- 

 less. You are not afraid of the camp meeting natives or 

 any other inhabitants of these lovely Isles. You prowl 

 about the islands; you land upon them; you swing your 

 Bhining bait over their grassy or rocky sides; you haul in 

 the resisting fish ; you cook it over the smoky -est kind of a 

 "Yangee&e lire;" you eat it off from a piate of birch-bark 

 freshly peeled, and under the shadow ol the dense foiiaged 

 mapie; you scream and halloa wildly enough to scare even 

 the wild Indian himself; you sing of coUise, but you get 

 your campaign songs and Hallaiujah choruses, strangely 

 mixed up; you feel happy, feai less and just as gloriously 

 free as though you owned every foot or the island over 

 which you are capering so joyfully ; you are free indeed 

 in all but one thiug— you are tied to an excursion; you for- 

 get it until ihe shall whistle calls for you. Then how you 

 hasten back, through untrimmed woods whose skeleton 

 branches reach down, and catch off your hat; and over slip 1 

 pery stones that play the treacherous Injun with your flying 

 heels. .Nothing could be more unfortunate than to be ielt 

 terUiess and Jiaytess behind an excursion even though she is 

 a, little arbitrary, as to hours and minutes. Upon the 

 whole, her ways are ways of "pleasantness," and as she 

 steam* slowly away from the reel light of the setting sun, 

 3 ou realize that a great change has come over you. It is 

 just as it shouid be, however, sentiment follows naturally 

 uu the footsteps ol joy. The merry voices of your leiiow 

 passengers are toned down. The keavy parasols are no 

 longer to be seen, the green islands have turned black, 

 only the white foam on the green water is now visible. As 

 the last red line of light sinks below the watery horizon 

 yuur imagination is wide awake. You almost fancy that 

 wnli ihe last flash of sunset you saw in the dim distance 

 the dusky iorin of "Lo tin/poor Indian," shooting over 

 the "clear tianslucent water" in his skin canoe; but unfor- 

 tunately for the romance of it — y.QU know the Canadian 

 boat song: — 



''Row brother's, row, the etream rune fast, 

 The latiiUo are near ami da^iigtit's past,'" 



is not an Indian song. It was composed years ago by 

 Thomas Moore while visiting an island in this vicinity and 

 is often sung at twilight by the college boys from Kings- 

 ton, whose favorite pastime is a vigorous row over the 

 water at eventide. Twilight illusions, however, have 

 sometimes a lingering way with them. Perhaps this sun- 

 set one is so richly dyed it will last until you are ashore 

 and in bed. Perhaps you will even go so far as to dream 



that you have bought three of the "loveliest islands" and 

 have named them, (not Tom, Dick, and Harry) but "Tus- 

 carora," "Arrowhead," and "Hew of June." Ye*, indeed! 

 You have done your duty by the poor dispised Indian. 

 Life has no other duties except those of the Sancho Pan- 

 zian order, so you trail your oars and float aimlessly down 

 the silent shrouded river ot* dream-land. Down, down 

 you go, until nothing but thin ghosts of excursioners go 

 flitting past. Finally old ocean opens its monstrous mouth 

 and swallowsup "sweet water," Indian, excursions and all. 

 There, is your sleep restful aud dreamless. The best kind 

 of preparation for the morrow's fishing, island visiting and 

 gossiping. 



Will Trout Live in Warm Water?— The popular no- 

 tion among fish culturists has been, and is, that brook trout 

 will not live in water warmer than 68 degrees. Mr. H. P. 

 De Graaf, President of the Bowery National Bank, who has 

 some fine trout ponds near the headwaters of the Croton 

 river, informs us that during the past dry summer, when 

 the streams everywhere had become low, and many of them 

 nearly dry, the trout naturally collected in the deep holes 

 in considerable numbers. Marvelling that they did exist 

 in apparent good health under such unfavorable conditions, 

 he took occasion to repeatedly test the temperature of the 

 water with a thermometer, and found it as high as 82 degrees. 

 The fish did not die, but are now alive and flourishing. 

 Doubtless bottom springs supplied colder water, but the 

 tests failed to discover a lower temperature than that men- 

 tioned. These facts are certainly of value. 



Good News!— Salmon in New. York Waters.— The 

 Pulaski Democrat states that the constant rains i* that sec- 

 lion have so raised the waters of Salmon river, that salmon 

 are now coming up to spawn. On Sunday these handsome fbii 

 commenced jumping at the high dam near Wood & Inger- 

 sou'8 machine shop, and a number of persons gathered on 

 the river bank to watch them. Several monstrous fellows 

 thought to weigh twenty-live pouuds, weie seen to spring 

 from the water to a height of several feet. Others of a 

 smaller size were observed. A few were seen to go up the 

 "shoot" and into still water above. This is the first lime 

 a genuine salmon has been above what is known as the 

 Bennett Dam for years. Now that so much money has 

 been expended in the construction of these chutes, and 

 expressly for the use of salmon, it is hoped these privileged 

 fish will avail themselves of this o ( poriunitv afforded them 

 to navigate Salmon river as far up as the Falls, and again 

 stock our stream with their species, once so plentiiul here. 

 In this connection it is well to state ihat in accordance with 

 the last fish law, salmon must not be caught for a period of 

 three Years. This is enforced with a penalty suthcient to 

 deter auy fisherman from attempting their capture- Give 

 the saunon a fair chance. 



4 



Pike and Pickerel. — At the recent meeting of the Fish 

 Culturists' Association in Philadelphia, Mr. J. M. Miluer, 

 of the Smithsonian Institution, defined the nomenclature 

 of the pike family as follows:— 



"The Msox reticulatus is the "pickerel," of small size, and 

 both its cheeks and gill-covers are scaled; Esox Lucius (=-estor) 

 is the "lake pike," of about 10 pounus weight, with the 

 cheek scaled and gill-cover smooth; the Ewx nobiHor is the 

 "muscalonge," distinguished by great size, and having both 

 cheek and gill-cover smooth." 



The distinction given agrees with our own, a few weeks 

 ago in a reply to a correspondent. We are pleased to be 

 endorsed by such good authority. 



— The Oregon Legislature now in session is wisely mov- 

 ing in the matter of protecting the fishing interests of that 

 State. 



■**»■ 



For Forest and Stream. 



"PISECO" ON THE AQUARIUM. 



Lounging in the corridors of the Gilsey Hou?e, with an 

 hour's waiting for the train time before me, and nothing to 

 do, 1 bethought me of the new Aquarium at 35th street and 

 Broadway, and although it was not yet open to the public, 

 resolved on an attempt at a visit. My nom de plume secured 

 me ready entrance, and inside I met my genial friend Fred. 

 Mather, an unexpected pleasure, and under his auspices 

 had a pieasanter twenty minutes than the Centennial with 

 its rush and crowd had afforded me. Fred was making 

 preparations, in his own line of business, and his well- 

 arranged troughs and boxes of salmon eggs gave fair prom- 

 ise that to those who attended the opening, the mysteries 

 of the birth of the Salmo salar would be made clear. I was 

 impressed with the cheertul, pleasant aspect of the place- 

 clear, light and airy. In the various tanks, a great variety 

 of fish from salt and fresh water were disporting, among 

 others a great muscalonge, which lay sullen upon the gravel 

 bottom of one of the tanks. 1 would have given a large 

 turn to have been as near to him two months ago, on Lake 

 Ontario. Skates, sharks, cat fish, crabs, shrimps, and many 

 other varieties carried me back to my "Blue-light" days of 

 last summer, when at Wood's Hole, we, too, had an aqua- 

 rium. The tank or pit for the sea lions is prettily arranged — 

 two terraces, a pit on each, with a stairway through a stone 

 grctto lor the convenience of the inmates. One big fellow, 

 alone in his glory, however, gave constant evidence of dis- 

 content by his uninterrupted unrnelodious bark. It is an 

 interesting display, and the enterprise one well worthy the 

 support and attendance of all fond of seeing fish in their 

 natural state. 1 feel that I have one more place of interest 

 in New York, and wish the project success. Piseco, 



. <•**+» 



Fisn Culture in Small Ponds.— From a gentleman 

 owning a small pond of fresh water, two or three feet deep 

 and 15 by 60 in extent, we have received an inquiry as to 

 whether he can profitably raise fish in such contracted 

 quarters, and if black bass would thrive in such a pond. 

 We should have no hesitation in deciding that the profits 

 from such an enterprise, carried on upon so limited a 

 scale, would be very small, if, indeed, any profit at all 

 could be realized. 



Not being particularly familiar with practical fish cul- 

 ture, we referred the inquiry to a gentleman who is well- 

 posted on the subject, being one of a company organized 

 under the laws of Massachusetts, with a large capital, 

 and having a superior pond for experimenting, in 

 the business of fish culture. The letter of our correspon- 

 dent got mislaid during its tiavels, and does not return, 

 but the reply of our friend is received, and may be taken 

 as excellent authority by all who are contemplating fish 

 culture, either on a small or large scale. The letter reads 

 as follows: — 



"In such a small pond, it will be difficult to raise fish 

 profitably. If the water is very cold, trout may be tried, 

 and fed liberally. You can no more expect a swarm of 

 fish in a small pond to prosper than will a flock of sheep 

 in a limited pasture. If the trout starves, he grows slow- 

 ly, or not at all, aud the progeny becomes, year by year, 

 more puny. If the sheep starves, the same results follow, 

 but more quickly. Fish will live in a stream or a pond 

 without food for a very long time, as witnesseth those 

 cases of trout in wells existing for very many years— their 

 heads being of the size of a laige fish, but the body dwin- 

 dling to long and narrow proportions. Although disliking 

 the pickerel, and although it goes against the grain to rec- 

 ommend him, yet I really think that it is more probable 

 that your inquirer would gain more satisfactory results by 

 stocking his pond with pickerel, and occasionally putting 

 in buckets of minnows, which may be readily caught in 

 large numbers in a hand net throughout nearly the whole 

 summer. If he does the same with black bass they wiil 

 grow and propagate, but he will not be abie to catch them 

 very readily when his try-pan cries 'fish.' It is about time 

 that the romance should be dropped from the directions of 

 the fish culturist. Under proper conditions, and in the 

 right hands, the culture of pond fishes has been demon- 

 strated a success, but, equally with other business, it will 

 not thrive under improper conditions and personal neglect." 

 — New England Farmer. 

 ^ *►.♦ 



The Days when Shad were Plenty.— Apropos of the 

 stigma attached to shad-eaters, at the opening of the pres- 

 ent century, it may be proper to state that I have heard my 

 father say (who settled in the town of Gill, in 1806) that 

 penois then in middle life told him, as a matter of their 

 personal knowledge, thatit was almost at the cost of respect- 

 ability to eat shau, that delicious fish being considered as 

 worthy of the tables of the very poorest classes only. Turn- 

 ers Falls was the great seat of the fishery on the upper sec- 

 tion of the river, and on the last Wednesday of May— the 

 old '"lection day" — the whole back country came with 

 their kits, firkins, and barrels to that rendezvous, and caught 

 or bought and salted their fish supply for the year. They 

 were sold at two "Bungtown coppers" apiece. During shad 

 time, if a stranger was entertained at any farmer's house, 

 he was studiously kept a stranger to the prescribed fish, 

 although probably nothing could have been more accept- 

 able to his taste; and a piece of salt pork, even, was cooked 

 for him rather than that the reputation of the host's family 

 should be compromised. Query: Were the present abun- 

 dance of shad equal to Ihat of eighty years ago, would his- 

 tory repeat itself thereon.— E. W. B. Canning, in Spring- 

 field Republican. 



♦.♦. — 



" Habits op Blennies. — While the Manchester aquarium 

 was in my charge during the years 1874 and 187-1, 1 devoted 

 one tank of considerable size to the bienuy tribe, the little 

 shanny or smooth bienuy being of all others the species 

 most abundantly represented. Just about yVhitsuntide last 

 year, an unusual commotion was observed in the neighbor- 

 nood of a little ledge or rock in one corner of the tank. 

 The chief dramatis personal in this commotion were a pair 

 of blennies, male and lemale, which held possession of this 

 ledue, and upon the floor and sides of which it was found 

 that the female had already commenced and was continu- 

 ing to deposit her eggs. The male, meanwhile, coustituied 

 himself guardian ot the citadel, a post which soon proved 

 to be no sinecure. The existence of these eggs having 

 been discovered by his companions in captivity, a raid 

 upon them was immediately commenced, and throughout 

 the greater portion of the day the little fellow was busily 

 occupied in "repelling their attacks. When one or two only 

 took part in this onslaught, our little champion easily held 

 his own; but occasionally it happened that five or six, or 

 more, appeared simultaneously on the scene, and thus, 

 while he was opposing an attack in front, others quietly 

 slipped in at the rear, and swiftly deiaching a few eggs, 

 made off with their booty to devour at leisure. This con- 

 dition of matters was in existence for several weeks, dur- 

 ing which interval a second femaie fish placed herself un- 

 der the protection of the same champion, and deposited her 

 ova on the ledge to be fertilized and guarded by him. By 

 this time, however, the poor little fellow was so exhausted 

 with his onerous duties that he was no match for his assail- 

 ants. The fame of blennies' eggs as a delicacy, and a 

 knowledge of the spot where they might be obtained, had 

 evidently spread throughout the community; there was a 

 general onslaught upon the rocky fortress, and one morning, 

 exactly one mouth from the date of the first observance of 

 these phenomena, our little friend was found lying dead at 

 the bottom of the tank, and literally torn to pieces by his 

 assailants. Every egg had meanwhile been stripped from 

 oil the rockr, the female fish had been driven away, and. 

 not a trace remained of the little aerie so long guarded with 

 jealous care, and which had proved such a source of interest 

 to lookers-on. One remaining circumstance has to be related 

 in connection with the foregoing incident. At the usual feed- 

 ing hour at the Manchester Aquarium the blennies, in com- 

 mon wiilr the other inhabitants of the tanks, had a substan- 

 tial meal, in the shape of chopped fish and mussels, placed 

 at their disposal. On such occasions our little hero enjoyed 

 a brief interval of rest from his customary watch aud ward, 

 and descending from his rocky fortress, hurriedly availed 

 himself of the opportunity of recruiting his strength and en- 

 ergies for future encounters. ISot content, however, with 

 satisfying the cravings of his own appetite, he, like a gal- 

 lant knight errant, remembered his lauy-love at home, and 

 seizing a morsel in his mouth, bore it aloft and placed it at 

 her disposal.— Fteld. 



—On Martin's place, five miles north of Millican, Texas, 

 a gray wolf snatched a negro baby sitting in the door of 

 a cabin, and was in the act of running off with it when 

 the mother picked up a rifle and shot the brute dead. 



— A Profile House, White Mountains, stage was upset 

 Monday, and roiled over several times, but o| eight pas* 

 sengers two only were slightly injure^ 



