AUGUST 19, 1880.J 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



49 



v^ Bass Rods ASD Bass Nomesclatl-re. — Leesburff, Va., 

 •July 30(/i.— The Potomac and Goose Creek have been de- 

 plorably "unclear" for more than ten days, and even 

 their tributaries nUai- this place have been unfit to fish. 

 I liave, as a substitute for sport actual, read the col- 

 uinna of your paper dilisently for sport ideal, especially 

 IJr, Hensliair.s excellent papers on black bnus and fly- 

 fishing fVir tliem. I liavc some notions on the aubject, 

 possibly hoteroilox. which I wsh to air. For instance, 

 on the position of one's reel. I find it most convenient 

 to cast with my reel underneath ; but to play my (i) fish 

 with the reel on top, where I may see the line as it goes 

 out, and regulate the " go " thereof. As soon as I hook 

 a heavy fish, I la.y my rod in my left hand, the reel up, 

 handle to my right, and right hand itself holding the 

 butt, oV working the handle of my reel as (he occasion 

 SQcmeth to demand. The onlytronl!- ' '■'"■' ' • from 

 the twisting or warping of the rod. : ' [lay 



the fish with rings underneath fas I ■ aie 



more <iaickly worn so as to fray the li:: _ ' i u lake 



a middle course, though cast and play your Jlsli with reel 

 and rings underneath, except when the flsh rims to- 

 ward yoii, and then transfer to the left hand, using the 

 right in reeling in the line. 



With regard to flies, I fancy those tied on about a No. 

 3 Sproat, or round bend of like size, with tlie winga re- 

 versed and separate. 1 know tliat trout flies when in the 

 water have usually theii- «-in--i stuck (ouelliei-, lieins 

 wi't. Yet the separate-wm^^ lli'S sei-in inia-e attractive. 

 and 1 belive are so to the fisli. Mow c.i.nes what I fear is a 

 here-sy in rods. I like a three-piece rod with the butt 

 piece longer thaji the mid-piece and the mid-piece longer 

 than the tip, say four, three and a half and three feet re- 

 spectively. I know some of the best anglers disagree 

 with Die here, for I once asked one of oiu- best rod 

 makers and most accompli-^hedanglers about this matter, 

 and lie held up tor the e(iual division of the whole length. 

 Two pieces of equal size and length, as equally strained 

 as possible, wath line through riiigs, would break whei-e 

 they were joined, i. e., in the middle. The point of great- 

 est strain would be at the joint. One being heavier than 

 the olht-r would throw the point of greatest strain away 

 from the joint on the heavier piece, i. e., tow.ards the 

 butt, and if the pieces were not only unequal in length, 

 liiit did'eient m sixe, tlie point of greatest strain would 

 be farther from tlie joint and nearer tlie heavier end of 

 Hie heavier piece, causing, T believe, tlui point of great- 

 est strain to be very near to the grasp of the hand, not 

 far from tlie rei^l, where, of course, the rod is strongegt. 

 It this theory be true, a rod would be practically un- 

 breakable by any flsh ever hooked by the fly. If one 

 uses such flies as mentioned above, they are most conve- 

 nienlly carried iu a tin mustard plaster case easily 

 slipped int.o the breast pocket of a fishing coat. 



As to the nomenclature, it seems to me that Micropte- 

 rns is singularly unfortunate, even with the explanation 

 of the broken dorsal which caused great Lacepeile to call 

 it little-flu. Sntall-mouth seems equally far from the 

 truth as a name for the species we have in tlie Potomar, 

 as, except by comparison, no one would ever think 

 " sraall-mouth" when looking a specimen in the face (if 

 a flaU has any face). It' you stand directly in front of a 

 black b^s (Mieropterits mlinonlpsj wlien his mouth gap- 

 eth for " ye little minnow." you can't see any fish at all ; 

 he is then, to your eye, all mouth. Oh, if a naturalist 

 could light upon some method of nomenclature such that 



an ordinary 



the proper cli; 



r^iit. t.. 



th comu 

 ■acteristic naim 

 L into Latin (a; 

 it toiiauesi Avoi. 



sense could call a fish by 

 after examination, wliich 

 a common language tor 

 t forever serve as a con- 

 cal. The dilferent names 



id b\- the observer unoli 



stream for fish, rock bottom, and abounds in springs. I 

 think the pond is tiuite deep. Don't you think the salmon 

 trout would do well in it? also the carji'? If you think 

 the salmon trout will do, I would like to try them also. Do 

 you think my pond is too large for salmon trout, and are 

 they much trouble to raise? They h.ave been catching 

 the red horse out of the Dan now for two or three 

 weeks. They are caught in "dip-nets." baited with 

 mush, made out of corn meal with cotton worked in to 

 make it tough. They are also ciught with "grab- 

 hooks" baited with mush. The "grab-hooks" are a 

 novelty to some of you that never saw them. They are 

 put on lines with one small hook for bait, and below it 

 three large hooks tied on the line in a circle ; those are 

 called grabs. AVheu tlie fish sucks (they seldom ever 

 swallow a bait) the mush on the small hooks, the line is 

 jerked upward and the fish cau-ht under the throat by 

 tlie grabs. The red horse, as I've just said, are rarely 

 ever caught by swullowing a. hair, hence the invention of 

 the grabs, which chins tiie flsh, when they suck the 

 dough on the bait hook, I give you these little items, 

 thinking they may interest youi I'm a proficient at 

 chinning, I have cliinned many a pike, when the water 

 was too clear for them to bite, "and when they are very 

 shyand wary and will not allowyou scarcely to approacli 

 the liank wliere they sun themselves without darting off 

 into rlei'p water out of sight. It will not be long before 

 thry arc citeiiing the perch in the Dan. I wifl study 

 thi'ii ^pejiHs. color, etc., and write you. R. S. B. 



We have supposed the names rock bass, "goggle-eye" 

 and "red-eye' to belong to one fish, the AmblopUtes 

 riipesMs, but the common names of fishes are fearfully 

 that your "black 

 The name bass is 

 Jislies which are 



opi 



of th 



mixed. "VN^e inclim 

 perch" is the bl.ack bas: 

 used at the North fivr mos 

 called perch at the South. If the water ia your pond 

 rises above 70" at any time, it is not suitable for trout ; 

 better try the carp. The salmon trout, or lake trout, do 

 not tlu-ive in small lakes or ponds. Unless your " pond '' 

 is over a square mile in extent, and from thirty to sixty 

 feet deep, with a bottom temperature in summer of 

 60°, or lower, you can do nothing with lake trout, 



TisxAS Tuot"!'.- '_'or;e,« Clirhh'. TeMts.—la your is- 

 sue of June ll)th. 1 pee ;in :u tide I'V iJr. J. A. Henshall. 

 of Oynthiana, Ky., another by G. L. .J. of Willis, Texas, 

 and a slioit note from Hastings, of Austin, Te.vas, con- 

 cerning: Texas "black bass,'' or "trout." 



Tliere may be genuine trout in Tex.as, but if so they 

 are very far from the limits of civilization, for I have 

 fishe.l Texas waters since 1848 and never saw a 

 specified trout other than what is called in the South 

 "salt water trout," and in the North "weakfish."- 



As to the black bass, I have caught what are caUed 

 blai-k bass in the Western .States, in nearly exevy stream 

 in Western Texas, for aside from the "croppie" Qr "gog- 

 gle eye," the "wide-mouthed perch," and the "red-bellied 

 perch" or "suufieh," they are the only game fiah of any 



tirst seoiut; the sijccimen, 



1 have dreamed that all this might be true some day. 

 Now, to close all this fishy talk with a different kind "o' 

 • palaver, wiry do the modern archers trim the feathers on 

 their arrow "in a line not parallel to the wood of the 

 slnrtV The best Indian arrows I ever saw had the edges 

 of their featliers parallel to the arrow, T. W. 



The name iiyi'eyojj^ec/ts (sinall-fin) is not so very inap- 

 liropriato if tlie pectorals are considered, besides it is 

 really not important that a name should be descriptive 

 in thesedays when new discoveries render the descriptions 

 useless. (See namea like JtuviatiUs, vuTgariSt etc.) 



Ooncerning the mouth question, the size is only rela- 

 tive, and the mode of measurement is with the mouth 

 shut, and to note how far back it is cleft. This is one 

 of the principal marks by which the two species are seii- 

 arated. In the " big-mouth" (il. pallidum) it extends to 

 or beyond a vertical line dropped from the posterior part 

 of the orbit, or cavity of the eye, while in the " smaU- 

 niouth " it only extends to about the middle of the pupil. 



» 



"^ Bi<ACiv Bass atv'd Rock Bxsn.—Milhvood, A". C— What 

 you call at the North the rock bass, we call here the 

 black percli. They grow to a pound weight, and are a 

 fine table-fish with us. I live within three miles of the 

 Virginia line, and was raised on Dan River, the dividing 

 line at this point between North Carolina and Virginia. 

 I have caught many fine perch out of the Dan River, and 

 also the red horse. The latter resembles a mullet or sucker, 

 but they are .a fine flsh, weighing sometimes six pounds. 

 Tho " goggle-eye " is the largest perch we catch. The 

 "red-aye" is smaller, not as large as the black perch, and 

 is of a different color. I may be mistaken as to the "red- 

 eye," as I have not caught one for many years, and have 

 no distinct recollection of them, as I was then a boy. I 

 think they are what you call black bass ; are lighter in 

 color than the ■■ goggle-eye,'' but never grow to a very 

 large size and have a very red eye. The black perch :n"e 

 lark in color, hence their name. I have oauglit filteeri 

 very fine " goggle-eyes " in a short time with hook and 

 line. I have seen silver perch caught with hook and 

 line in the pond here weighing something over a pound, 

 It was lie! preniest iish I ever saw. It shone as bright 

 as the biigluesi silver dollar when landed. Thoy are 

 baited with minnow, same as the " goggle-eye,"' but are 

 not; as good a table-fish as the latter, nor "the black perch. 

 The latter was formerly caught ill the pond in great 

 quantities, and ai'e native fishes, but are very scarce 

 now. I think my pond, which is a very large one, oov 

 v ring floveral acres, will do for carp. It is a splendid 



note in the fresh waters of this State, south or west of 

 Austin. 



All of these fifth are taken from the 

 at all seasonu of the year, as they do 

 far South. The croppie is at limes a 

 is weak and slides out of tlie waler as 

 tin. He is Kenerallv about as Ibit as 

 fords but little sport to tlie angler. A 

 though they may be seen plentifully, 

 halt." Iliave given to luni an alias, vi-: 

 the authority of persons better jiosted 



me streams and 

 ot hibernate this 

 irai ions biter, but 

 asilv as a piece of 

 shmgle. and af- 

 otiier times, al- 

 ey will not touch 

 ■•goggle eye," on 

 fisli nomencla- 



yself, although I cou- 

 •onsidereil the "croppie"' 

 itiiiet ti.-li. The Doctor 

 as the ■•goagie eve.""and 



RL>ring stream, and 

 side by side, would 

 riage, so little would 



l.-'d lo 



the powers that be to draw from these lakes to an un- 

 usual extent, in order to supply the needs of the fac- 

 tories at Lewiston. The water throughout the whole 

 chain of lakes is lower than for several years. There- 

 pairs in progress at the Middle Dam also necessitate the 

 drawing off' of the water, and the whereabouts Of the 

 trout is a problem at present unsolved. Very warm 

 weather and low water have nrobably combined'to cause 

 the fish to .seek the deepest part of their feeding grounds. 

 But as tho number of fishermen is greater than hereto- 

 fore, the haunts of the big trout will soon be discov- 

 ered, and due report will be made to your readei-s. Wild 

 rice from Rice Lake, in Canada, was sown in May, af- 

 ter being well soaked, but has not shoivn itself as yet. 

 It was sown according to directions, in from four to Six 

 feet of water. Some, claiming to be well informed, .say- 

 it does not sprout tlie first year. Can any r^der of 

 experience give inrorniation a.s to this? The new route 

 via narrow guage railrriad to Pliillips' is very popular, 

 and Page's Elm wood Hotel .at Phillips' is a resting place 

 indeed to all who are en route to the lakes The hotel 

 is exti-emely nice in all its appointments, and deserves 

 the large patronage it has received. The lake road from. 

 Andover has been considerably improved since last year. 

 More anon. Lawkence. 



TURKCD Rl\LR— "A'UKsi/?C TIOflM "A^.J", -lll^ iVIi. 

 — rishm^is capit il heiej et the i ati h ol weaktish raug- 

 intt Irom J"! to IjO pei bo it i>ei da> with thiee oi four 

 blui fish PS the\ iie ij-im Ik .^inning to bite. One ni.m 

 oan/;Ut h\e hi^ on^s \e'~tei Uy with a squid, by tliiow- 



th. 



th suit ii 1 

 ginning to wire iii 1 

 bst two an- ui I w 

 next^etk Ati I i« 

 of weaktishof the sei 

 otthem ^\euhcd thie 

 see the 1 c (1 ha-, n it hecn 1 iid I 

 hud it w oik On 



hole. Stuped ba.ss sue be- 

 h 1% e been brought in toi the 



auriLi|Kti liiss hslun',^ ineunest 

 nil bioi^hf 111 ihe fini st -tiing 

 m all nei tliie-J [lonn \ md one 

 and I hilt \\lien di -se 1 r,o -jon 

 lthiu_,htlu hue, h lodd- 

 !<i\ \i If the Mag- 



—O, 



gie Mr -.SI-, SllH^ 

 «eikhsh theldl 

 hsh thcBeUe tw 



\ LV DLii IvED S yLVION I\ R \M,FLE> 

 Kdiihiijn liLij 1(1 — I hi\e known i 

 sdnum henm- 1 iken m our 1 ikes thi 

 wa^ taken ibout two week- igo at tli»^ n 

 (iieai Upnei Dim) bj Mi W. E. Sheldon, ot Pnlnara, 



M iiiell anrl Faw cett, tu eiity-one 

 eHmis, Ml C E Gorbm, sixty weak- 

 mt> nine large ones. A. B, 



imp 

 ked 



-test 



Coun. Weight, four pouiidb. 



LVPOE PlsHF'! —Last week Mi Blackfoid 

 pound sheepshead i I 



1 1 fifteen 



•ni<i 1^-11 I I upon 



- u; 1 ,1 > I L of 



t 1 to I in I 1 lu^ht 



. IS a yen nnii- lU size This 

 u lei el (( i/hiiim nuiculatunh), 

 IS laught oti Oiant, Long Is- 



ius stand in Fult m M \\k 

 fifty -n hich weiflit d tioin 

 ntii Birnei-it, ^ J Thi 

 «(i,k hcliil 1 Spinish n 

 of se^ I n pounds, win li « 

 land. 



Red Snvpper int Rhode Islvnd Witers— A fine 

 "red snappei (Lutjanns blackfoi dn) was captui ed in a 

 p mud net on Rhode Island on Tuesday, Atig. KJth, and 

 ent to Fulton Market, This is the hrat lecorded oi > ur- 

 leiu e of this sub-tiopical fish so lai Noitli. 



Mackerll — M^fkeiel aie e^ ^..iii 1 jl iity all along 

 the coist ot "\fi.me asfniHi , Bay, fi-ihei- 



menhav the m jst ibimim u ' biittheyaro 



mostly sra ill Menln ieu ii -oiue. Off 



Haips(\ell the h.'k h i-> beui ev lin.,l\ il on 1 tnt \ ejy 

 close to tht shoii I lu IisIiluucu s ,^ the do^h h b.ive 

 driven in the but (small fislil, ml ilic hike have 

 followed 



ture of the North and West than 

 fess I do not like it, as I alw a\'s c 

 and the "goggle eye" as two dis 

 (Henshafl) gives the "rock ba-js' 

 says he is not found in Texas. 



Hallock's ".Sportsman's Ci-azetter"' gives "rock bass,"' 

 "croppie"' and "gog,t;le eye ' as identicak I do not know 

 whiclv is right, but I do feel satisfied that we have any 

 quantity ot black bass proper in Texas, and they grow- 

 large, too, as I have taken more than one oyer fivepouuds 

 in weight, and I saw and purchased one over nine pounds. 

 This flsh is identical with* the one known as black bass 

 the Western States, - and, as C.L.J, says, it dilTcis 

 according to the difference of the waters in which it 

 found, etc. One taken from a eleii 

 Lher from a muddv lalie placed 

 even be called relations by niai 

 they resemble each other. 



Now, what is the fish I have allnd.'d lo a,s the "wide- 

 mouthed iierch ?■' He is as dec|? a-, a simHsh of the same 

 length, about twice as thick and has a mouth like ablack 

 bass. His color is that of a bass, and he is as game a flsh 

 in every -way, and as flno eating. I have taken them in 

 the Perdinales, seventy-flv.^ miles west of Austin, weigh- 

 ing upward of three pounds, althougli they rarely ex- 

 ceed two |ionnds in weight. He will eat anything any 

 time, and readily takes a fl3'. 



Dr. Henshall describes him in describing rock bass, ex- 

 cept that he does not give him the requisite breadth, or, 

 more properly, thickness. 



This wide-mouthed perch is very dark, and our "crop- 

 pie"' is a lightcolorcd, slim, watery fish, with a small 

 mouth and a small amount of meat on his l.iones. 1 ttan- 

 not think that Dr. Henshall means that the "croppie" is 

 not caught in Texas, for I can show him specimens any 

 day at San Antonio. So of the wide-inoiiilie.l perch. I 

 have heard these sometimes called "war-mouthed perch." 

 Imagine a black bass just liwice as deep as those in the 

 North and you have a picture of the "wide-mouthed 

 perch" of this State. I will state here, by way of excuse 

 for C. S. W., that even,' thing is "cat," "perch,'" or 

 "trout" in Texas with the average fisherman of inland 

 Avaters. I have even seen "suckers" and "buffalo' 

 ciiUe l "tiouf.' .solely, I suppose, because they would not 

 bear classiftcation either as "cat"" or "perch.'' Besar. 



The "war-mouth" of the South is the "rock bass" of 

 the North. Dr. Henshall is an authority upon these 

 fishes. 



|a//fe ^iiQ mjd 



— Address all eommumoations to ' 

 Publishing Company, New York." 



Forest and Strcavi 



GAMJS IN SKASOJ* IN AUGUST.' 



lodcofk, Pliilohela mtimr. 

 ck-tichieil pku'er, ori-ej-e, 



ijii'ilnrolii liilvetica. 

 if-'-liiheri eurleiv, Numentits 



HoiJ-l. 



Grf 



llli, Lh. 





r niar- 



Wiliut, i'.'. 

 Tattler, r 

 Yeliow-sli 



nfliot with many of 



1 back, Stir.p- 



trrprei. 



iisiocl snipe, (low-itcher, 



jnnineratlOD Is general, and is 

 the Suits laws. 



■'Bay birds" generally, includjnif various species of plover, 

 sandpiper, snipe, curlew, oystcr-cutchor, surf bu-d, pliaiaropeg, 

 avocets, etc., coiniDg under the group Llmiieota:, or shore tiirds. 

 Maoy States permit prairie towl (piunated grouse) shooting after 

 Aug. lath. 



— Our Oftioe Boy has just returned from BUI Lane's 

 resort at 'Good Ground, L. I., with a fine bag of bay 

 birds. He says Mrs. Lane's wholesome table was well 

 supplied, as usual, and the kindness he received will not. 

 soon be forgotten. The flight of birds was unusually 

 good, and he wants to go again next week. 



X 



From tue Ranoeley Lakes— Birc/i Lodge, Jilolechunk- 



amunk, via Andover, Maine, Aug. 2d. — The extremely „..-„£,„„ .,..,„ i„ ,.„ 



dty weacher during June and a part of July has caused ] at this time of the year kept loaded for geese, he did no 



A ISpokting Cobbler.— ,Soi*</t Abington, Mmn.. Any. 

 5fh.— That Alvin Lucas was born somewhere in Plv- 

 mouth County, Mass., I have no doubt;, for as long ago 

 as I can remember, he lived in the town of Kington, 

 not far from old Plymouth Rock. He followed shoe-mak- 

 ing it was said for a living, but could generally be found 

 iu the wooils with dog and gun. His little .shop was tltg 

 loaiiii^ |ik:' e lor all wlio lived near by. aii.l many weco 

 the tou.ijh yarns that were hero told. When at work hi« 

 old gun always stood loaded near by, and woe to the uti- 

 hapj)y hawk or crow that dared to test its quality by ap- 

 pearing within range. 



Amoiis uncle Alvin"s visitors was a fellow by the name 

 of Ben Cray, who was forever playing some practical 

 joke on tlie old man. Indeed, he hati no scrnple.s as to 

 who becaiae the victim of his jokes, but Alvin generally 

 had to sulfer. 



It seenvs they had made-up a party to go to the shore 

 after geese, and Alvin, Gus and fom- others were in the 

 crowd. Of course AUdn took his old gun, and as it waa 



