April 1, 1880.] 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



171 



analyses of the ingredients of the flesh of different, fishes, 

 and an exhibit of the relative values of each species as an 

 article of diet. A revised copy of the paper will be pre- 

 pared by Prof. At water for publication in the next num- 

 ber of the FORII6T and Stream. 



Among the other papers read yesterday was one by 

 Prof. Brook, of the John Hopkins University, on the 

 propagation of the lobster. 



All the papers read before the Association will be pub- 

 lished in the FOREST AMD Stream. The convention has 

 been an interesting one, from which the members have 

 gained new knowledge by the interchange of their ex- 

 periences, and the stimulating effects of those discus- 

 sions are seen in the increased interest manifested by the 

 publio in fish culture and in all that pertains to the in- 

 dustry. 



The members met at the Metropolitan Hotel last even- 

 ing to partake of the annual dinner. These banquets are 

 always delightful, and that of last night was no excep- 

 tion to the rule. 



THE TROUT OPENING. 



NEXT to the pleasure of a trip to the trout streams to- 

 day (and far ahead of it. too, the can't-get-aways 

 claim), is that of a visit to the exhibition of trout by Mr. 

 Eugene G. Blackford, at his stand in Fulton Market. 

 These annual displays have become one of the pleasant- 

 est features of the season in New York and vicinity. 

 Started in a small way some six or seven years ago, to 

 show some of the practical results of artificial trout cul- 

 ture, these exhibitions have long since outgrown this orig- 

 inal design. Now, insteadof a limited number of specimens 

 of trout, Mr-. Blackford collects on his marble slabs the 

 kings of the brook from all over the world j and in place of 

 the few interested fish culturists, dealers and anglers, great 

 throngs of ladies and gentlemen in an unnumbered mul- 

 titude, fill the market and press around the stands, 

 where lie in cold and silent state the 1 oyal monarchs of 

 the trout streams. 



To-day and to-morrow, as the very tasteful and elab- 

 orate invitation cards promise their recipients, the dis- 

 play is superior to that of any former year. Mr. Black- 

 ford has been for months securing, through his 

 agents at home and abroad, choice specimens from vari- 

 ous parts of the world. On one stand are trout from the 

 streams of England, Scotland and Ireland, and by a 

 happy coincidence the reader of the Forest and Stream 

 is enabled to-day to see some of the fish of which " King- 

 wood " writes so entertainingly on our first page. These 

 were secured by Mr. Blackford's agents in the London 

 market. Elsewhere are specimens of trout from Fiance, 

 secured through the courtesy of Capt. Truedelle, of the 

 French line of steamers. Canada is represented by^ fine 

 specimens of sea trout from the Kestigouche, and by 

 some beautiful fish — the finest wild trout in the Domin- 

 ion — from Three Rivers and the Quebec district. New 

 York State supplies choice specimens of Salvelinus fon- 

 tinalis from the preserves of the South Side Club, Long 

 Island, who have the finest facilities for raising trou t of any 

 establishment in the State. Mr. Hugh McGrOvern, from 

 liia ponds back of Brooklyn, sends live trout in aquaria ; 

 and live specimens are also exhibited from the establish- 

 ment of Mr. A. Rackow, Foster's Meadow, L. I. ; dead 

 fish from Mr. W, E. Robinson, Patchogue, L. I., and 

 from Mr. Ira Hoyt, Halsey Valley, Tioga County. The 

 New York State Hatching-house at Caledonia sends a 

 complete series of the different varieties of brook trout, 

 California salmon and salmon trout, California brook 

 trout and the McCloud River, California, trout ; also 

 a display of young fry from one month to one year 

 old. Mr James Aunin, Jr., who has gained much credit 

 among fish culturists for the invention of a method of 

 shipping eggs to Europe in a way which requires no at- 

 tendant, and who is becoming known as a close observer 

 and a successful fish culturist, will contribute a hand- 

 some display of brook ; trout eggs in the hatching-jars, 

 Bliowing tlie process, and also a fine collection of wild 

 Caledonia Creek and cultivated brook trout. 



From New Jersey, Mrs. Slack sends specimens from 

 her ponds at Bioomsburg. Pennsylvania's quota is fur- 

 nished by Mr. Jeremiah Comfort, one of the veteran 

 trout culturists of the State, a friend of Thad. Norris, 

 and to whose pond Mr. Norris used often to repair. These 

 fish were brought up and nurtured under the shade of a 

 Quaker brim, aDd those who know say that while they 

 have lost none of the game qualities possessed by other 

 artificially grown, trout, they also have a peculiarly fine 

 flavor, rightly attributed, we surmise, to their placid dis- 

 position. From Wisconsin come the specimens contrib- 

 uted by Mr, H, F. Dousman, of Waterville, one of the 

 largest and most successful trout culturists in the United 

 States. Mr. Frank Clark, of Noithville, Mich., sends 

 brook trout and California brook trout ; while Commis- 

 sioner B. B. Redding, of California, supplies specimens 

 from the McCloud River and from Truekee River ; also 

 from Denver, Colorado. In close proximity to theiie 

 strangers from the Pacific, the New England visitor to 

 the Fulton Market will find some of the mountain brook 

 trout from the dashing streams of New Hampshire ; these 

 are sent by Mr, Geo. H. Dierckerman, of New Hampton, 



N. H. From the Cold Spring Trout Ponds, Charlestown, 

 N. H., come trout raised by Mr. Livingston Stone ; and 

 the same gentleman also sends some white-fish fry 

 hatched from eggs which were imported from Switzer- 

 land. There are also to be seen some young land-locked 

 salmon, which were started in jars on Mr. Blackford's 

 stands. 



From this brief catalogue of the specimens now on ex- 

 hibition, it will be seen that Fulton Market is well worth 

 a visit to-day and to-morrow. 



American Cricketers and a Foreign Trip.— Al- 

 though a great deal has been said in Philadelphia during 

 the last three years about sending a team of American 

 cricketers abroad, and a number of plans have been out- 

 lined by great admirers of the game, it is a fact that 

 nothing at all has been done by the men who would be 

 likely to go as players. At the annual meeting of the 

 Young America Club, Mr. Vaux offered a resolution that 

 Mr. George M. Newhall he authorized to take such steps 

 as he should see fit toward taking a team of Philadel- 

 phians to England this summer, and authorizing the 

 Secretary to correspond with the other Philadelphia clubs 

 on the subject ; but the whole thing was intended to be 

 discretionary with Mr. Newhall, and he has done noth- 

 ing at all. 



From conversations we have had together during the 

 past few years on the subject, and from what we have 

 heard of his saying to others, we feel sure that he has 

 not seriously considered the subject, for the following 

 excellent reasons : — 



First, all the matches for the season are arranged in 

 England early in the winter, and though, no doubt, our 

 team could have had plenty of matches on short notice 

 the#e is no certainty that our team could have played on 

 the best grounds, like " Lord's" and "The Oval," with- 

 out which a trip to the Old Country would be a failure. 



Second, on many other accounts the time was too 

 short to map out a satisfactory programme, and have it 

 all arranged with some good and responsible party on the 

 other side. 



Third, so far as we know, the men who would be 

 needed have never been asked whether they could get 

 away or not. 



Mr. Newhall's modesty has prevented him from being 

 very enthusiastic at any time over the idea of playing in 

 England, but we hardly agree with his reasonings on the 

 subject, and doubt if many of our cricketers would. All 

 he says is true enough, but does not, in our opinion, con- 

 stitute an argument against playing over there. The 

 idea of winning is not of vital importance in our mind, 

 and we would very much bike to see a representative 

 team of Americans go over and try their luck, feeling 

 sure that it would make a fine shoving, and do the game 

 good. But any team that decides to sally forth to the 

 enemy's country must be no scratch team, but the very 

 best, and unless it is led by Captain Newhall it will re- 

 semble the play of " Hamlet" with the part of Hamlet left 

 out. Let us remind Mr. Newhall, however, that over five 

 and twenty years have sped since we used to watch together 

 the " rise and progress" of the game from the sharp edge 

 of a rail fence over Camden way, and that he owes it as a 

 duty to all American cricketers to lead the first invading 

 van to a foreign shore, before his hand loses its cunning, 

 and there is a creaking noise in his knee-joints. Though 

 nothing can he done this year, we shall look forward 

 to the. next with a very Micawberish eye for something 

 to turn up. 



Notes. — The New Jersey amended law provides that 

 no woodcock shall be shot before the 1st of September ; 

 and many of the sportsmen of that State are in doubt 

 whether or not the law has jurisdiction over the deeds of 

 a proprietor on liis own estate. The game on a man's 

 farm, they argue, is his individual property ; the State 

 has no right to say what he shall do with his woodcock 

 any more than it has a right to say what he shall do with 

 his cow. If this reasoning be correct, it would seem 

 that the New Jersey legislators might be engaged in 

 more profitable business than fra min g game laws, for the 

 public lands alone of the State are hardly extensive 

 enough or rich enough in game to warrant much legisla- 

 tion. 



It happens in Jersey that when a gunner shoots a 

 woodcock he generally shoots it on some one's land. If 

 the bird be the property of the man upon whose land it 

 is killed, the person who shoots ii and carries it off is as 

 much a trespasser and a thief as the person who steals a 

 man's horse in the night time. Are the advocates of the 

 principle of property in game willing to go so far as this 

 in then arguments ? 



We should like to see the legality of some of the game 

 enactments tested by a man who would stand the cost of 

 the experiment. For instance, it would he an interest- 

 ing, and not altogether a profitless undertaking, to get 

 the decision of the highest tribunals as to the right of 

 one State of this Union to debar non-re6idents from 

 shooting the game, except upon payment of a consider- 

 able fee , or the legality of a statute making it a misde- 

 meanor to shoot a pigeon. Without at all questioning 



the good results likely to accrue from a non-resident pro- 

 hibitory law, or the motives leading to its enactment, 

 we are inclined to the belief that in their commendable 

 zeal in game prohibitions some of our legislatures may 

 have lost sight of some of the fundamental principles of 

 our government and society. 



We publish in our Natural History columns to-day the 

 description of one of the new buds collected by Mr. Fred. 

 A. Obex, in the Antilles. This bird, as Mr. Lawrence 

 tells us, was before erroneously referred to a known spe- 

 cies, but was afterward found to be quito distinct ; and 

 we are much gratified to record this addition to tlie rich 

 results of Mr. Ober's expedition. The Margurops do- 

 minicensis is the twenty -first new species discovered by 

 our enthusisastic correspondent. Mr. Ober is one oC 

 those naturalists who are happily born with a taste for 

 adventure and exploration in new fields. While yet a 

 boy, he had a complete collection of all the birds of his 

 New England home ; and later he spent some months in 

 Florida— not the Florida of the conventional tourist— 

 but the Florida of Seminole fastnesses and rare birds 

 and animals, whence he wrote the letters which first 

 made him so pleasantly known to our readers as "Fred, 

 Beverly." 



In 1876 he applied to Professor Baird for an "undis- 

 covered country," where he might pursue his favorite 

 study upon ground not before investigated by natural 

 jsts, Among such fields presented to his notice was the 

 one chosen, and which has yielded him such satisfactory 

 results. The work which he accomplished has already 

 been published in these columns, and was of such a char- 

 acter as to excite attention among naturalists every- 

 where ; moro interest has been manifested abroad than 

 here ; and there Mr. Ober has won much credit for his 

 work. The experiences of the two years among the islands 

 were embodied in the volume "Sub-Tropical Wander- 

 ings," which was published last fall by Lee & Shepard, 

 Boston, calling forth from the poet Whittier a very com- 

 plimentary letter to the author. 



Mr. Ober is again in the field, collecting farther ma- 

 terial for a proposed history of the birds of the Lesser 

 Antilles. While it is unlikely that the present trip will 

 be as notable for the number of new discoveries as was 

 the last, there is still much to find out in the matter of 

 the natural history of the species already secured. As 

 before, we shall publish papers from Mr. Ober's pen, the 

 first of which has already been received, and will ap- 

 pear next week. 



Dr. Gordon Stables, of Twyford, Berks, England, 

 who is to act as one of the judges at the Westminster 

 Bench Show, will be in this city from the 23d inst. to the 

 end of the month, and letters may be addressed him in 

 care of this office. Dr. Stables has added to his several 

 works already published a hook shortly to be published 

 on "The British Bloodhound "—a subject which is prac- 

 tically new, and to the treatment of which the author 

 has brought the aid of the best breeders of the day, as 

 well as of many old manuscripts and sketches and un- 

 published documents. 



Owing to an unusual pressure upou our space this 

 week, much late news and many other matters have 

 been necessarily and reluctantly deferred. We ask the 

 indulgence of our friends, promising them all attention 

 in due time. 



Clarksburg, Montgomery County, Md,, has a fox- 

 hunting club, of which Col, T, H. S. Boyd, author of the 

 "History of Montgomery County," is one of the chief 

 promoters and the President. 



The annual parade and tilt of the Charleston Light 

 Dragoons is held to-day, April 1st. This is one of the pa- 

 rades of Charleston which is always anticipated with 

 much pleasure. 



m 1 1 1 ■ 



GAME PROTECTION. 



—Commissioner Redding has been instrumental in the 

 introduction into the California Legislature of a hill pro- 

 viding an appropriation of $2,500 for the importation of 

 song and game birds into that State. 



Utah.— The Utah Game and Fish Protective Society of 

 Salt Lake City has been organized with the following list 

 of officers and directors: President, John Sharp, Jr.; 

 Vice-President. Bolivar Roberts ; Secretary and Treas- 

 urer, L. S. Hills ; Board of Directors, M. H. Walker, Ceo. 

 A. Meears, LeGrand Young, H. J. Richards, Salt Lake 

 City ; W. W. Cluff, Coalville, Summit Co. ; Albert Miles, 

 Peoa, Summit Co.; Aaron Farr, Logan, Cache Co., 

 W, B. Richards, Menden, Cache Co.; V. I', Nebeker, 

 Lake Town, Rich Co.; Abram Hatch, lleber Wasatch 

 Co.; J. M. Browning, Ogden, Weber Co.; John Adams, 

 Corinne, Box Elder Co.; Win, Seegmiller, Kfch- 

 lield, Sevier Co.; Joel U rover, Nephi, Juab Co. : J. W. 

 Turner, Provo, Utah Co.; Jos. R. Porter, Porter ville, 

 Morgan Co, The society has been established for the 



