FISH AND FISHING. 



141 



we went in to Grace Pond, 5 miles from 

 Parlin, where Mr. Murphy has some good 

 log cabins for the accommodation of his 

 guests. Wednesday afternoon Messrs. 

 VVadleigh and Wheaton took 120 trout, in 

 one hour. Thursday, in 3 hours, they took 

 130 trout. Friday morning they took 162 

 trout, and returned to Parlin Pond in the 

 afternoon. All the trout were taken with 

 the fly. Grace Pond is one of the best fish- 

 ing Ponds in Maine. I have seen 100 trout 

 taken there, on the fly, in one hour. These 

 trout are not large — running from 1 pound 

 down — but they are very gamy. 



On this trip we saw 26 deer, 5 of which 

 were seen from the hotel at Parlin Pond, 

 where they come to feed, in the fields, night 

 and morning. Deer are increasing rapidly, 

 owing to the light snow last winter, and to 

 the vigilance of the game wardens. 



Geo. C. Jones. 



Please note the statement that on 

 Wednesday afternoon Messrs. Wadleigh 

 and Wheaton took 120 trout, in one hour. 

 This is, we will say, 60 to each man, or one 

 trout each minute to each man. What kind 

 of fishing is that? It reads as if the men 

 " yanked " the fish out, yanked the fly from 

 their mouths and returned it to the water 

 as quickly as possible. That is not the way 

 sportsmen fish. 



Further: Mr. Jones says these men took 

 120 trout on Wednesday, 130 on Thursday 

 and 62 on Friday — a total of 412 trout for 2 

 men in 3 days. What kind of fishing do 

 you call that? In what department of the 

 animal kingdom do these men belong? 

 Will the class in Natural history please 

 answer? Editor. 



IS THE BULL-HEAD THE REAL OFFENDER? 



New York.- 



Editor Recreation: I noticed on page 

 372, of May Recreation that " E.C." says 

 " a man caught 200 bull-heads in one after- 

 noon." This statement elicited the remark 

 from you, that he should be branded as a 

 fish-hog. If those 200 fish were trout, or 

 even pickerel, there might have been some 

 excuse for your censure; but as it stands, 

 I don't think there was. 



I had the pleasure of spending all of last 

 summer in the Adirondacks, at Indian lake, 

 Franklin County, where fair trout fishing 

 is to be had, by going some distance for it 

 There was a time, not very long ago, when 

 the lake was simply filled to overflowing 

 with trout; but about 6 years ago, some 

 short-sighted person emptied 2 pailfulls of 

 bull-heads into that lake, and now where 

 are the trout? 



m The spawn of the trout has a peculiar fas- 

 cination for bull-heads, and this is the 

 cause of the decrease in the quantity of 

 trout; while the bull-heads live, multiply 

 and continue the work of destruction. 



To be sure, numbers of sportsmen visited 



the lake, during the summer months, and 

 helped to rid it of trout; but the bull- 

 heads are the principal offenders. 



Now, Mr. Editor, if these bull-heads are 

 not " fish-hogs," who are? If the lake, " E. 

 C." speaks of, is as full of bull-heads as 

 Indian lake is, there is no fear that human 

 hands will ever rid the place of them. They 

 are, also, a constant nuisance to those who 

 are fishing for trout, sometimes in their 

 greediness even taking the fly. 



Instead of an indirect censure, I think a 

 vote of thanks should be extended, by all 

 trout loving anglers, to this fisherman, who 

 has killed 200 fish-hogs in 1 afternoon. 

 Surely his was a most noble day's work. 



It has been plainly shown that trout and 

 bull-heads cannot peaceably occupy the 

 same waters, and of the 2 which is prefer- 

 able for eating and for sport? To show the 

 little value of the bull-heads, they are un- 

 protected, and, in my mind, it would not be 

 going too far to offer a bounty for them. 



I am a close reader of Recreation, and 

 like it very much. I especially like the stand 

 you have taken against market-hunters, 

 game and fish hogs; but in this instance, I 

 think the fish itself was the fish-hog. 



W. G. C. 



If the lake in which the man is said to 

 have taken the 200 bull-heads is trout water, 

 that would put an entirely different phase 

 on the subject; but it was not so stated in 

 the note referred to. Editor. 



Editor Recreation: Your magazine is 

 the best of its class published. In fact, it 

 is in a class all its own. But once in a 

 while your level head gets wrong. You 

 take exception to the appointment of the 

 Rev. Z. T. Sweeney as State Fish Commis- 

 sioner of Indiana, for some unknown * rea- 

 son. You are doing a clever gentleman and 

 an ardent sportsman a great injustice. He 

 has been in office but a few months, and has 

 accomplished great good. He has broken 

 up two gangs of dynamiters and seiners, in 

 the Northeastern part of Indiana, and has 

 captured and destroyed over 100 seines. 

 He has compelled a number of factories to 

 build fish ladders. This, in addition to ap- 

 pointing a good staff of deputies, is his 

 record, up to date. 



Give him a chance. He is so far ahead 

 of any of his predecessors that the improve- 

 ment is noticed already. He will prove the 

 best fish protector Indiana ever had. I am 

 not personally acquainted with Mr. Swee- 

 ney, and am not defending him for any 

 reason, other than that his record is such a 

 contrast with that of former officers that it 

 is deserving of praise. I welcome the 

 change. It means that our waters (and 



* I did not object to Mr. Sweeney's appointment, for an 

 "unknown reason." My reasons are fully and frankly 

 stated on pasres 468 and 469 of Tune Recreation. I am 

 deliphted to learn, however, that Mr. Sweeney is doing such 

 good work, and heartily commend him for it. — Editor. 



