70 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



[August .34. 1832. 



Lauck Tkout and Fiu^i' I-Ji.ack 1>\ss in Maim.. ■ 

 Portland, Mb., Aug. \$.—Editw Fbreat mid si, ..,,„: The 



Wl'ltCruf J lie v,-i\ oiuplinn n'ary notic .• of Mr. Geo. Shcp- 

 urcl Page, published in PoRBar ami Sthi-.am. A |.ril 13, 1*31 

 carries his adulations bc\..nd the bounus ol' tacts in several 

 ottbe&Utemenlsmade. Be writes thai "In 1867 he tools 

 the great ten-pound (.rout, -which for upward of ten years 

 was tin- largest tSa/iuo fontiwiliv on reebrd. and which was 

 stuffed mihI exhibited at die Centennial Exhibition at Phila- 

 delphia, and subsequently :it Blackfordefc annual troul ojjeh 

 in-..' This trout was nol taken hi VCr. Page, but was 

 hooked and saf elj captured by H. O. Stanley. Esq., of !>i\ 

 fit-Ui. VCaine, who is perhaps too mod. -i to claim the uredil 

 therefor bul :ill<>\\> ii to eo to his cousin, Mr. Pace, who 



was IHil in the \ icillilv U In Ii Mr. Nanl.w • In.. I:" llle li.-ll. 



i in same write) states thai -i-l.-cU bass were fiisl introduced 

 inio M.iiuc- bt Mr. P&ie who took thirty-one live oneft froto 

 Newburgb, N. V.. to Wimbi-op. Me., in L86ff." Black bass 

 were Oral introduced lo Maine in I860, ami Mr. Page was in 



no way connected willi llir expcrimeni . Some small lako- 



or "ponds" in the town of Acton, York county, Maine, were 

 stocked, and from ili.an maiiv others have sincB been stocked 

 witli the black bass. Bruce these ii.an- have been deemed of 

 snllicicnt interest La publication, ihi- communication is 

 written lu effect a COrTflCI Public I'Tur.l of the tact.-. \ l.Ki 

 TA-. 



Temfbtm i a uk usd Tkout. — Your editorial comment in 

 Foni sr and Stream August 8 on temperature Eortroul calls 



to my mind some facts lliat have conn under flaj observation 



during the past ten years. During that time f have had a 

 small ftquariatn in my house, supplied with a constant now 

 of water from the city pipes, and il ha- been ven interc-liua 

 to note 'be effect of temperature on nabes. Br.ery autumn I 

 have obtained trout of from a half pound tp two pounds 

 weight, and kept litem ■through the winter and spring, -ftnc! 



until they have one by one succumbed toiiic effects of Qj( 



approaching warmth of summer, seldom living to the uoiddli 

 of June. As a iiilc they have died when file temperature o 

 the water was about <6 degrees, while some of thestrongei 

 fish have lived in ii several days lill ii reached a temperatun 

 of V2 or 78 degrees. The fungus growth usually makes its 



appearance on the Ibh before they die. and evidently i 



(fungus) is aggravated not only by temperature of the water 

 but also by the strong light to which the aquarium i- exposed 

 In some instances I tunc had front nearly covered with fungus 

 which on being transferred to a tank situated in a dark corner 

 they have recovered and become bealtbj . The same results 

 are often produced with the perch and bass. The last named 

 species, however, have sustained their reputation for eccen- 

 tric, habits, and while some of them Ii \e actually died from 

 overeating, other- have fought against fate . nd remained 

 members of my family for two years. M. (Boston; Aug, 15.) 



Bra Haui, of Dm v. Moutauk Point., Long (slant! 

 iug. IK— To E.G.Blackford: The lartfe hftul -ol drum' 

 fish just made at Momauk was l.ikcu Loin on. pound net. 



lb.- bowl or pound pari measuring onlytWi My rwofeet deep 

 l{nd about thirty-five feet across the widestpnrt \\ .- toot 

 Eronl i is oi e pound oft i 400 fish, some of which were less 

 than 60 pounds weight, tu 1899a -mail trap nt i ai Momauk 



WV£ filled with drums, but very few WETC saved, i inr lilt tlii- 



week was probably the largest haul evei made of thus kind 

 of fish in any common round pound and saved, as On rule 

 i ai rally been among fishermen when a haul of this 

 kind of dahlias been made to cut the bow) and let Ihem go 



These Kind Of drum are probably the ci„ mi. - reported from 



the Virginia and other: oyster beds. I noticed ihut souk of 

 the very largest of these rlsh were blind the eye being co\ ered 

 hj a white film -some ou Dnly one eye, others on both. 

 Tlmt peculiar drumming noise they made aftei being landed 

 on the vessel's deck I < an only compare to two Or three tap- 

 on a bass drum, and was made only by the largest fish of the 

 yellowish oast, while there was no 'noise made by the smaller 

 "dark colored fish. Since the appearance of these drumfish 

 at Moutauk no good fish of any account have been taken.— 

 K. VAH Vt.cxk. 



Bass ix Trout Watchk.— New York— I- not this busi- 

 ness of introducing black bass into Waters now or formerly 

 inhabited by trout! being overdone? Once placed in a stream 

 or pond,, "big mouth or little mouth" can't be dislodged 

 He is there for all times, eating up every liviiur thine not 

 larger than himself. He ha« already been put 



po 



ich he 



nself "all 



over the face of the land." and destrovitm everyth.« a 

 that I can't help crying out •field" ' Waters adapted to 

 trout are not so numeiou.- that wo can, afford lo throve av?ay 



witli our favorite fish. 1 have done something: in this trout 

 stocking line, myself, and with fair . success; but every sum- 

 mer 1 visit my streams with fear that the everlasting black 

 bass has been put into tlic-in, or gotten into thctu from 

 some conned big pond or brook, for they pervade and invade 

 the. same haunts and pools as trout, when they are once intro- 

 duced into the neighborhood. Black bass are well enough 

 when compared with pickerel, etc., but I am hardly ready 

 to put them in the same rank as the beautiful trout. I am 

 an old angler for both fish, and know "whereof 1 do speak." 



Tins llEsricoiK "UK Salmon Club.— The accounts of poor 

 catches on the Ifesligouehe in the early part of the season, as 

 lepoited by your correspondents, were true, but later there 

 has been tn unusually large catch of fine salmon by the mem- 

 bers of the club, most of whom ere from New York cily. 

 WC attribute the poorflsbingof the early season to the Hood's' 

 Which kept the Ssh lack, and as they subsided and the river 

 -l d i 3USU 1 levt the fishing at once improved. The 



Presideul \rthur before he ever thought 'of tiiling the Presi- 

 dential chair, and which has give u him more fame arnoi.tt 

 best mon anglers, who know every man's fishing record, 



" ' ' "'" -i' eat o" the Unit! I Btetes. On the north side 



ofthcKa;. I halcui thefi leriuen re permitted to net I he 

 salmon, and iley have marketed over tOO tons of them within 

 thi past six years. The heaviest iteh taken by a member of 

 the club this year weighed 4JJ£ pounds —X 



ea.h. The li-b uciv suirouudcd with an immense purse-net; 

 and 8,300 pounds -were taken. They were brought lo inarkei 



Wcaktish give so little o 

 does not pay to pre- tl 

 aware of i.he risk of I In 

 them, ii wa-plamlv Hi, 

 to Id the fish alone w 



el, hauls 



Ish 



■ taken 'directly to the facto 



Another, taken 

 neters long, and 



. to: T.wein \ 

 aads back of 

 l.ounds. Its 



I'lHi.Mit.i.i'iiiA i'i ■:n\i No ■■!•>.- -The fishinfi in the 



liraiidy wine Creek, u. ar Wilmington, lor .-mall striped bass, 



New Jersey e 

 [antic Citv'h.i 



at these wale 



ti-h were moi 



at any of llic other points, 

 case. Why is if.- — Homo. 



r bluetish in the 

 Little Egg Ha 



pla. 



A SaVAGJ! Ma.-kivomu:. —Ottawa. Onl.. 

 (i N Boyer, a merchant of Carrilon. whi 

 Ottawa River, today, wan seized b> .. huge 



si veiclv lacerated. Tin- water about bin 

 With hlS blood, and U..I until some bv-tan 

 re-cue .lid the fish let go bis fool. On'lcavi 



Boyer required assistance to gel home, in 



mon-icr waseau-ht. and proved to be a tl 



rwbilwr) Of forty-^even pounds weight.— An 



FisHI.M. IN Saoinaw Bav. — B.I 



. Mich.. Aug. 18.— 

 tal in the bay this 



I fill handler of the rod 

 the day. ranging from 

 Trolling Is excellent 

 gh.- P. w 



D^.na.mitk in ti:k Hi dson.— The We.-l Shore Railway 

 work at Cornwall on the Hudson now afford- an opportu- 

 nity tor, la dynamite fishers toplythnii destructive Work 



It i- -aid that dynamite cartridges ftTO easih obtained bv 

 these fellows, and arc hcimi constantly exploded in the river 

 killing greal number- of ti-h. 



si'ammimi Tuoit Fi.iks— Isew York. Aug. 18..— if not 

 imposing onvtyirgood nature -would ybii be so good to ex- 

 plain, in answer tp many inquiries, thai the plate of "stand 

 aid trout BSes" advertised in your paper are colored entirely 

 by myself, from tir.-i lulasi.no part of the colors printed 

 whatever! \V. Hoi^sertuk. 



i told 

 but I 

 Cap- 



angtb 

 ■ they 

 2 been 



oui eetafll is 

 s light on the 

 ■reneu of tes- 

 hermen with 

 s do not tind 

 slid instances 



weigh more 



Idabout^' 



pounds vvlien 

 • never killed 



s me that a 

 (or probably 



■vonnd 

 annot, 

 or the 



<$is1fcalture. 



THE AMERICAN FISHCULTURAL ASSOCIATION. 



PROCEEDINGS El.KVKX 111 ANNUAL MKETIXU. 



MATERIALS FOR A HISTORY OP THE SWORD-PLSH. 



BY (i. BROWN GOODE. 

 tCONTTCTOEn.] 

 aOVEHBKia OF SPEAR-PISHES. 

 The spearhsk in our waters is said by the fishermen to re- 

 semble the BwordJBah in its movements and manner of feed- 

 ing. Professor Poey narrates that both the Cuban species 

 -•.vim :i • d'pth of !0U fathoms, and they journey in 'pairs, 

 shaping their course toward the Gulf of Mexico, the females 

 being full 0£ eggs. Only adults are taken. It is not known 

 whence thev come, or w here they breed, or how the young 

 return. It is not even known whether the adult fishes return 

 by the sagne route, When the fish has swallowed the hook 

 it rises to the surface, making prodigious leaps and plunges 

 At last it is dragged to the boat, secured with, a boat-heTnk, 

 and beaten To death before it is hauled on board. Such fish- 

 ing is not without danger, for the spearfish sometimes rushes 

 upon the boat, drowning the fisherman, or wounding him 

 with it- terrible weapon. The fish becomes furious at the 

 appearance of sharks, which are its natural enemies. They 

 engage in violent combats, and when the spearfish is atiaehed 

 to the fisherman's line it often receives frightful wounds from 



In Caruiaad Watefiai August 31, 1882. Col. Nicholas Tike 

 author of ••SuUropioal Rambles, ,( at that time United States 

 consul at Mauritius, describes the habits of a species of Tetrap- 

 tiums occurrme in that vicinity. He states that they hare 

 the habit of resting quietly on the surface in calm weather, 

 with their dorsals expanded and acting as sails. They a™ 

 taken in deep water with hook and line or speared wh~ " - 



lu the 

 aidtoTb 



young Individual Cafeeli in the At- 

 . I deg, IS min. W. This 

 iutbeast of Cape Hattei i- 



it PS lilt: A1K1UTKKKA.MEAN. 



' > m OS Ol) On rhis sulrjecl, U'liieh haa lately 



een poken of in oiu- coluinus, the Newark, Y. J,, .sv.,,ei/r/ 



; " ; , Early last week one of the si earners engaged in 



taking menhaden along the coast of New Jersey came upon 



a large school of weakfi.sh ruiming from two to sis pounds 



the 



having' 1 



er with hook and line or speared when near 

 word-fish. When hooked or speared they 

 ..-. taking tremendous leaps iu the air, au'd 

 l thev will jump into the boat-, to the. con- 

 ishermen, or else pierce the boats with their 

 lighly esreemed in tile Mauritius, The flesh 



:h £ "( ih spc - t l lum n'- 



■More abundant on the soiii'eerncuasjs of tipaiu than on the 



.\'e saw quite large examples in. tie fish-markets at CHbral- 

 al, Caiiiz. Lisbon, La Coruiia and Barcelona., and at Sauta 

 Jruz, renerifte. The largest of three specimens in ray 



BAMS of ohow i a. 

 Little is known about the rate of grow tti. The young fish 

 akeu in winter in the Mediterranean, ranging in weight from 



Lrectly upon 

 umed that a 

 IE schools of 

 ring about ft 

 ! the ease is 



% fatter and 



MOVEMENTS OF SAJX-FISHES. 



No observations have been made in this country, and re- 

 course must be had to the statements of observers tn the other 

 hemisphere. 



Iu the. life of Sir Stamford RafHes there is the folio vi ing ac- 

 count rom Singapore, under date of November SO, 1863; 



"The only amusing- discovery we have recentiv made is 

 that of a sailing fish, called bv the natives ILnn tai/ri; of 

 about 10 or la feet long, which hoists a mainsail, and often 

 sails in the manner of a native boat, and with considerable 

 swiftness. I have sent a set of the sails home, as they are 

 beautifully cue and form a model for a fast sailing boar. 

 When 6 school of these are under sail together they are fre- 

 quently mistaken for a fleet of native, boats." 



The ii-h referred to is in all likelihood HhtiopiiornsglriiU .■<«. 

 a species very closely related to, if not, identical, with our 

 own. 



IbiAi.vtCM AND AVERAGE SIZE OF AMERICAS SWORD-FISH, 

 The only individual of which we hav-- the exact measure 

 rnents w-as taken off Seaconnet. R, I., July 88, 1S74. This 

 was -even feet and seven inches long, weighing 113 pounds. 

 Another, taken off Koman's Land, July :?0, 1S75, and cast in. 

 plaster for the collection of the National Museum, weighed 



nenhaden and t 

 •oiLsidcrable ini 



that in tlu 



heavier as 



Dr. Liitk 



The Te 

 meters ..._, 

 teeth, the suprac 



idt some exeeed- 



tg of the sword- 



anslation ox Dr. 



r ■ in in tJhe 



small specimens 

 fct rujjhu-iin, His- 

 •■The. Study of 

 - him as t'ollows: 

 hori'ti belong to 



Jfiin 



ne ;/.- 



pa.it- of short buds. 

 statu the same armatu 

 much higher, and th. 

 length. At the next 

 of 00 millimetei-h, th 

 yXmd the lower.losiug 

 and the fins assume n 

 individuals. 



"Young sword-ii-1 

 similar changes, and 



this pa7ier, the >e.i 

 and have had the 

 scale. 



. ■: •. -,-.- -.j_i j .-t] nils iXiphlasi undergo 

 is, their skin ii euverei] with small. 

 idinstily arnived, which continue 

 g ii-ii i ' . attained the form of the 



edra 



of the vo 



i -',i £Uni 



30 rsitiit.. Ak. Wiss. Wien, 1868, r 39fi. 



ird-fishes is ae 



n of t lie often- 



