FOREST AND STREAM. 



323 



dead, upon the jaws of which we. forthwith performed a 

 dental operation that we might have some kind of trophy 

 to show succeeding generations how their ancestors es- 

 caped from the jaws of — an alligator. 



This one which I shot measured seven feet in length, but 

 if I had not been able to get him ashore he would have 

 been a twelve-footer to this day. A. A. Mowry. 



•+•+» 



OLD TIMES IN MAINE. 



Calais, Maine, Dec. 12th, 1876. 

 Editor Forest and Stream : — 



I was reading to day in your issue of August 10th, 187G, 

 "Moosehead Lake and Vicinity Twenty-live Years Ago,V 

 and I wished to bear my testimony to the truth of the 

 picture the writer presents of the plentifulness of moose 

 and other game in that section at the time of which he 

 writes. Having spent seven winters, from 1845 to 1853, in 

 the woods not far from Moosehead Lake, and having seen 

 hundreds of them, some alive and some dead, I can 

 testify that his account is true. 



I know that about that time moose meat was sold in the 

 spring of the year at one and a half to two and a half 

 cents a pound, and moose hides sold for one dollar and a 

 half each. Very well do I remember the landlord of the Mt. 

 Kineo House at that time, H. G. O. Barrows, and his son 

 Joe, who acted as your correspondent's guide when he 

 shot the bear; but 1 wondered why he did not mention 

 mine host's daughters, who should have attracted your cor- 

 respondent's attention from their grace, beauty and weight, 

 being perfect "chips of the old block." 



Neither must I forget to mention "Uncle Ellis," who 

 was known far and wide as a hunter, and of what he did 

 not know aboul a mcose it would be hard to find his tutor; 

 unless old Uncle Lyford excelled him, which was doubt- 

 ful, Uncle Lyford taking more to bears and bear hunting. 

 Full well do I remember both Ellis and Lyford. I had a 

 brother whose delight it was to imitate Uncle Ellis in hunt- 

 ing and dress, and who was always known by the soubri- 

 quet of Uncle Ellis. J. E. G. 



4$i*h j&vltal** 



Cakp and Salmon for .Maryland. — By the steamer 

 Leipzig, now over due at Baltimore, the U. S. Fish Com- 

 missioners will receive a lot of carp of superior excellence, 

 imported at the instance of the United States Government 

 from ponds bordering on the Danube, in Hungary, which 

 will be transferred to the ponds at Druid Hill Park to "in. 

 crease and multiply," when they will be distributed in the 

 ponds of Maryland and other States. The carp are in 

 charge of Mr. Rudolph Hessel, an eminent pisiculturist. 

 Regarding this importation, and also as to the distribution 

 of salmon and other fishes in Maryland, we find the follow- 

 ing in the Baltimore Sun. 



The carp is regarded as the most valuable of all kinds of 

 fish for stocking ponds, because of their quick growth and 

 great inctease. They are peculiarly adapted to mill ponds 

 and to the still waters of the flat regions of the eastern 

 shore. It is highly prized as a food fish, and has pre emi- 

 nence over black bass, trout, grayling, &c, on account of 

 being a vegetable feeder, and although not disdaining ani- 

 mal matter can thrive very well upon aquatic vegetation 

 alone. They have the advantage over the salmon and her- 

 ring families in being able to live in warmer and more stag- 

 nant waters, and in fact can live for a time without any 

 water. The flesh is firm and flaky, and almost equal to the 

 European trout. The importation was ordered by the 

 United States Fish Commissioner, Spencer F. Baird, at the 

 request of Major Thomas B. Ferguson, Maryland Fish 

 Commissioner. Mayor Latrobe, who is greatly interested 

 in fish hatching, yesterday visited the carp ponds prepared 

 near Crow's Nest, Druid Hill Park, and states that they 

 are now ready to receive the fish. The United States 

 fish commisioner has recognized the fishery at 

 Druid Hill Park as peculiarly adapted for hatching 

 this variety of fish. It is thought they will breed 

 in the coming spring. Two importations of carp were 

 made in 1875, but of an inferior kind. Unfortunately, 

 on account of hot weather and overcrowded tanks all but 

 22 died on the voyage. Subsequently all died but eight, 

 and from this small number several thousand have already 

 been hatched, and will be distributed in the ponds of the 

 State during next year. They rapidly attain a weight of 

 twelve or fifteen pounds, and are also ornamental, being 

 of a rich golden color. 



Some two or three hundred yards from the carp ponds, 

 and between that and Garrett's bridge, is the hatching 

 house and four ponds used for propagating and keeping 

 fish of the salmon family, wfcich spawn during the winter. 

 Operations this fall have been on an unusually large scale, 

 and have been most successful. Over a million of young 

 California salmon have been hatched, and all but about 

 300,000 have been distributed by Major Ferguson and his 

 assistants, with considerable labor, in the waters of Mary- 

 land and Virginia. Up to November 22d last the distribu- 

 tion was mentioned of 394,300 small fish at various points 

 fa the Gunpowder, Patapsco, Monocacy, Susquehanna, 

 Patuxent, North Patapsco, Potomac, and Conococheague 

 livers. From November 22d to the present date, the dis- 

 tributions have been as follows: 16,000 in Bohemia, above 

 Bohemia bridge, Cecil county; 28,300 in Sassafras, above 

 Fredericktown, Kent and Cecil counties; 83,200 in North 

 Uranch Potomac, near Fort Pendleton, Garrett county; 30,- 

 000 in Western run, near CocReysville, Baltimore county; 

 30,000 in Patuxent, near Laurel, Howard county; 12,000 in 

 Wanticoke, near Federalsburg, Dorchester county; 13,000 

 in Nauticoke, near Seaford, Del. ; 10,000 inPocomoke, near 

 Crisfield, Somerset county; 30,000 inPocomoke, near New- 

 jo wn, Somerset, and Worcester counties; 12,000 in Tucka- 

 hoe, creek, near Hillsboro', Talbot and Caroline counties; 

 13,000 in Choptank at Greensboro', Caroline county; 71,000 

 in the Potomac river, near Point of Rocks; 25,000 in Ches- 

 ter river, near Millington, Kent and Queen Anne's counties, 

 an d 25,000 in Elk river, near Elkton, Cecil county. Besides 

 these Commissioner Ferguson has hatched and shipped and 

 •ieposited in Virginia waters, on account of the United 

 mates fish commissioner, 12,000 in Cedar creek, a tributary 

 ott'te Shenandoah; 37,000 in the Shenandoah atStrasburg; 

 40,000 in the Shenandoah at Mt. Jickson; 50,000 in Goose 

 creek, Loudoun county; 5,000 in Bull's run, and 10,000 in 

 ■Broad run, both tributaries of theOccoquan, making in all 

 a total distribution from Druid Hill Park hatching house 



of 950,800, and leaving about 300,000 to be distributed dur- 

 ing this month. The young salmon will become adult in 

 four years, and will then be allowed to be caught. 



Mr. Ferguson has also 80, 000 eggs of Lake Erie herring, 

 and will shortly have a quantity of brook trout and salmon 

 trout eggs from New Jersey and Michigan waters. There 

 are now in the ponds fish of one and two years growth, of 

 California, Landlocked and Maine salmon and salmon trout. 

 It is very interesting to see them feed, and the hatching- 

 house is always open to the public. The most of the visit- 

 ors to the park go to see the fishery, and very many stran- 

 gers. One of Capt. Cassell's assistants says 341 persons 

 visited the hatching-house one day; he kept a record and 

 it was not a good day neither. 



-♦♦*. 



QUEER FISH AT THE AQUARIUM. 



No doubt there are queerer fish in the sea than ever 

 came out of it; but some of those that have already been 

 collected for the Aquarium excite a great deal of wonder. 

 Last week we illustrated two of these, from cuts kindly 

 loaned to us by Prof. Wm. C. Coup, the Manager; and we 

 are now again indebted to him for these queer fish below. 

 We will not vouch for the "hell-bender" being a fish, but 

 what the naturalists know of him is herewith stated:— 



ym. 



The Menopoma Alleghaniensis, or Hell-bender, as its name 

 indicates, is found in the Alleghany river and other tribu- 

 taries of the Ohio. It is also known as the salamander of 

 the Alleghanies. The specimens shown in tank were pre- 

 sented to the Aquarium by the Buffalo Society of Natural 

 Sciences, through its Secretary, Mr. A. R. Grote. This 

 gentleman records, in the American Journal of Science, the 

 interesting fact that this animal sheds a transparent mem- 

 brane, which he believes to be the exterior layer of the 

 skin. While observing one in the Aquarium of the Buffalo 

 Society of Natural Sciences, an almost complete skin, all 

 the feet and toes being readily perceived, was seen floating 

 in the water, and later the creature was discovered in the 

 act of swallowing his former covering, a practice which 

 has also been observed in the toad. In a recent communi- 

 cation Mr. Grote describes this operation of shedding the 

 skin, from which we learn that this thin and transparent 

 membrane is first seen to loosen and separate from the 

 entire surface of the body, appearing' at this stage like an 

 envelope or glove in which the animal is contained. By a 

 number of wide gapings, during which the mouth is opened 

 to the fullest extent, the skin is parted about the lips, and 





COMMON STICKLEBACK. 



then commences to fold backward from the head. Con- 

 vulsive and undulating movements with the body and fore 

 legs are employed to extract these from the loose skin. 

 The skin then readily falls backward, as the animal crawls 

 forward and out of it, until the hind legs are reached, when 

 the menopoma turns round upon itself, and, taking the 

 skin in its mouth, pulls it over the legs and tail. The 

 operation reminds one of taking off clothes. The cast off 

 skin is retained in the mouth and finally swallowed. The 

 operation is quickly performed. The visitor who watches 

 the menopoma, will observe a swaying motion of the body; 

 this action is not yet fully accounted for, though it is 

 possible that it is connected with the animal's desire to rid 

 himself of his ugly skin. 



A female hell- bender opened on the 21st of August con- 

 tained well developed eggs attached by a membrane to the 

 oviary. These eggs are laid in a connected string, and are 

 deposited along the muddy banks of the river. 



The two specimens of hell-benders now on view are 

 worthy of special study, and, as in many other cases, we 

 would advise those interested to view them as soon as 

 possible, as already the confinement of the Aquarium has 

 resulted ift the death of one rare creature of this class, 



The peculiarity of the Gasterosteus Pungiluis, or common 

 Stickleback, is its nest and mode of livelihood. It is found 

 in ponds, streams, and rivers, and appears equally suited 

 to salt water. It is extremely voracious. An observer, 

 once standing by the side of an ornamental lake, saw a 

 young frog hopping past. He threw it in a short distance 

 to exhibit its powers of swimming to a young bather, 

 anxious to learn the art. The moment it reached the sur- 

 face of the water, a flash of light seemed to be emitted 

 from the bottom. It was caused by a shoal of Stickle- 

 backs, which pounced upon the unfortunate frog with 

 great fierceness. In a few moments the four legs of the 

 poor creature were eaten away, and new shoals came 

 hurrying from more distant parts of the lake to the prey. 

 The battle that took place round the victim was as desper- 

 ate as could be imagined. Though pelted at with bits of 

 gravel, they would not leave it, but continued to nibble 

 and battle among themselves as long as a particle re- 

 mained. This instance of voracity is, however, not sur- 

 prising, for they do not hesitate to devour one another. 

 An illustrated description of the Stickleback appeared in 

 the first number of the Aquairum Journal. 

 -*♦*- 



AN AUTOMATIC FISH-FEEDING AP- 

 PARATUS. 



Mr. Otto Hammerle, of Dornbirn in South Austria, has 

 invented a fish-feeding machine with automatic action, 

 and a two years' trial of the same has been attended with 

 such satisfactory results, that he feels justified in recom- 

 mending it to the notice of brother pisciculturists. The 

 apparatus is actuated by an overshot water wheel supplied 

 from a small cistern above, and the axle of the wheel in 

 question is furnished with a pair of mitre-wheels working 

 on an upright spindle in the food chamber. A metal 

 stirrer attached to this spindle keeps the food (finely- 

 chopped meat, liver, &c.) in the tank constantly moving. 

 At the extreme end of the axle will be noticed a worm 

 working on a worm-wheel, which has a tappet or projec- 

 tion on one of its arms. The tappet, in revolving, strikes 

 the upper end of a lever, and by so doing opens a valve at 

 its lower end, and thus allows a certain quantity of food 

 and water to escape at short regular intervals from the 

 food chamber into the pond or basin below. The fre- 

 quency with which the valve opens in a given time 

 depends on the number of teeth in the worm-wheel and on 

 the velocity the water-wheel is driven at, and the latter 

 can be regulated by letting on more or less water at the 

 cock. At Dornbirn a lin. supply pipe furnishes a suffi- 

 cient quantity to propel the apparatus at the proper speed, 

 and the valve opens at about every sixtieth revolution of 

 the water-wheel. 



As to ihe two pipes issuing out of the cistern, while the 

 one feeds the receptacle below, the other supplies a stream 

 of water to keep its outside— more particularly that por- 

 tion of the tank near the valve, and the valve itself — free 

 from particles of meat and other food. 



The water in the food chamber should be kept always at 

 about the same level, the quantity delivered by the supply 

 pipe being equal to that discharged on the opening of the 

 valve. 



Respecting the position of the apparatus, when circum- 

 stances allow, it is best placed a foot above the surface ©f 

 the water of the feeding pond or basin ; and, needless to 

 add, the apparatus will require lubricating from time to 

 time, and must be kept perfectly clean. 



To allude, in conclusion, to what Mr. Hammerle regards 

 as the chief advantages connected with the above simple 

 mechanism, they are briefly enumerated as follows : 



The apparatus, by allowing but a small quantity of food 

 to reach ttie fish at a time, and delivering it at short inter- 

 vals, causes the same to be entirely, or almost entirely, 

 consumed ; prevents the fish (as they are apt to do when 

 hand-fed), from alternately gorging themselves and fasting 

 for an over-long period ; gives the weaker specimens a 

 better chance of obtaining their share of the nourishment ; 

 and, thanks to these two last-named results, produces in 

 the finny stock a quicker growth and greater uniformity of 

 size. The employment of the machine effects an economy 

 not only of food, but also of time and labor in its distribu- 

 tion ; and, as particles of meat, &c, but rarely fall to the 

 bottom (and by decomposing polute the water) of the 

 pond, the latter does not require to be cleaned out so 

 frequently as would otherwise be necessary. 



A further incidental advantage in using Mr. Hammerle's 

 apparatus is, that the water which propels the overshot 

 wheel becomes, in falling, thoroughly Impregnated with 

 air before entering the pond below. For pisciculturists 

 dependent partly on well water, or on spring water rising 

 in the immediate neighborhood, and therefore deficient in 

 oxygen, this aerating process is a matter of no little conse- 

 quence. At Dornbirn the machine has been chiefly turned 

 to account in feeding young fry destined for stocking 

 different streams and rivers ; -it will be found equally or 

 even more serviceable, however, where the main object in 

 view is to grow fish to a marketable size in ponds or water- 

 courses on the spot. — T. 8., in London Field. 

 -♦♦♦" 



A Cunning Fox Caught at Last. — A farmer of York, 

 Pa., recently set a trap to catch a cunning fox which had 

 been annoying him considerably by its midnight visits 

 among the poultry. At fourteen successive visits to it he 

 found the trap sprung, a stick of wood between its jaws 

 and the bait eaten up. The circumstance, so often repeat- 

 ed, surprised him. There was no other tracks to be setn 

 but his own and those of the fox, and who sprung the trap 

 was a question that puzzled him sorely. By continuing to 

 rebait his trap he hoped to catch the author of the mischief. 

 On the fifteenth night he found a fine old fox hung to it by 

 the nose, and in his mouth was a stick of wood! 



What a very foolish fox this was, not to have taken a 

 longer stick in his mouth and so saved his nozzle. He must 

 have been a "young-un", a "green horn" I vow! Try again. 

 York, Pa. 



But this story, like most fox stories has a moral — it is, 



that men like foxes often get caught in their own folly. 



. .-— ^t»» — - 



— A proclamation appears in the Canada Gazette that the 

 Government have caused to be struck for circulation in the 

 Dominion a new bronze cent. The effigy of the Queen, 

 with the words "Victoria Dei Gratia Kegina, Canada," is 

 on the obverse, and on the reverse the words "One Cent," 

 with the date, 1876, within a beaded circle surrounded by 

 a wreath of maple leaves. This coin is to be a legal tender 

 to the amount of Jwenty-fiye cents in one payment* 



