FISH AND FISHING. 



309 



he says red salmon run up the Columbia 

 river from the sea. Salmon are not red 

 until they enter fresh water; and they cer- 

 tainly do return to their ocean feeding- 

 grounds and are taken in seines at the 

 mouth of such rivers as the Puyallup, 

 Nesqually and Snohomish. After spawn- 

 ing season they are red — or partly so. 



As for salmon dying after spawning — 

 great heavens! There would be millions 

 of dead fish coming down the Columbia, 

 instead of the millions that are now caught 

 and canned. 



I have seen Columbia river salmon 4 feet 

 10 inches long. North of this river they 

 seldom grow longer than 26 to 40 inches 

 and few of 40 inches are taken. 



A. L. Lindsley. 



FISH SHARPS IN OREGON. 



New Pine Creek, Oregon. 



Editor Recreation: We are in camp on 

 the East shore of Goose lake, a few rods 

 above the Cal.-Ore. State line, or 16 miles 

 South of Lakeview, Ore., the only town pi 

 any size within 175 miles. With 2 assistants 

 and a cook we left Ashland, Ore., July 15, 

 with one big wagon and a light spring 

 wagon. 



Coming via Klamath Falls we reached 

 Goose lake on the 20th inst, having driven 

 close on to 200 miles over several moun- 

 tain ridges and across an equal number 

 of small valleys. En route we passed sev- 

 eral streams that would be famous for 

 their trout if they were nearer New York. 

 Klamath, Lost and Sprague rivers, and 

 Spring creek, are all full of magnificent 

 black-speckled trout that rise readily to the 

 fly. They reach a weight of 2 to 14 pounds 

 and are regarded as being very hard fight- 

 ers by expert anglers. The fame of the 

 Sprague river and Pelican bay trout has al- 

 ready reached the East and several pioneer 

 anglers, from that region, have visited those 

 waters. 



Goose lake is about 40 miles long, 10 

 miles wide, and 8 to 23 feet deep. It is well 

 supplied with a handsome variety of the 

 black-spotted trout. It is quite silvery in 

 color, with few spots, and no red on the 

 throat. It attains a weight of 2 to 10 

 pounds, is as game as any one would desire 

 and is very delicious. 



From here we go East, 50 miles, to the 

 Warner lakes: then North to Abert, Sum- 

 mer and Silver lakes, when we return to 

 Ashland. 



The object of our trip is to determine the 

 physical and biologic features of these lakes, 

 in order' that the U. S. Fish Commission 

 may know how best to improve their fish 

 supply, should any such step ever become 

 necessary. B. W. Evermann. 



BROWN TROUT IN MICHIGAN. 



Grand Rapids, Mich. 



Editor Recreation: Your favor of July 

 26th, together with the letter from A. N. 

 Cheeney, of the State Fishery, received, and 



I want to show this letter to our Michigan 

 fishermen, and see what they have to say 

 about it. 



Since I saw you, I have been on Baldwin 

 creek and have tried to catch some of these 

 brown trout, but have been unable to raise 

 them, either with a fly or a minnow. This 

 stream was planted a good many years ago 

 and the fish are very large. I believe some 

 of them would weigh as much as 10 pounds. 

 In fact, one was speared there that weighed 



II pounds. 



The. people connected with our fisheries 

 all regret having planted this brown trout 

 in the Baldwin, for it had been a good rain- 

 bow trout stream, until the brown trout 

 were planted and drove them out. 



No more brown trout will be planted in 

 any of our other streams. 



The fish is a beautiful one, and as it grows 

 to a great size, I am interested in learning 

 all I can about its habits. Mr. J. Van 

 Valkenburg is one of our most successful 

 trout anglers, and he tells me he has caught 

 the brown trout on a minnow, at night. He 

 says he has also had them rise to a fly, after 

 dark. 



I should be glad to see in Recreation an 

 article from some one who is posted on the 

 German brown trout and its habits, and am 

 sure it would be read, with interest, by a 

 large number of Michigan anglers. 



J. Elmer Pratt. 



In reply to your comments on my items, 

 published in August Recreation, I wish to 

 say, I have never guided a party who ever 

 destroyed one pound of trout. I ought to 

 have said, in my previous letter, that all of 

 these trout we did not eat, were put back 

 into the water. If you catch trout on the fly, 

 9 out of every 10 caught, if returned to the 

 water at once, will live. I have never been 

 with a party that wanted to catch trout for 

 the sake of destroying them. 



Nor have I ever yet seen a sportsman 

 who did not want to have all the sport he 

 could get out of his vacation. If a man 

 catches 100 trout, and returns 90 of them 

 to the water, why call him a game hog? 



These gentlemen carried home with them 

 only 20 pounds of trout, while the law al- 

 lows them 25 pounds each. Do you call 

 that destroying trout? 



I do not call 60 trout, in one hour, very 

 great fishing, as in that time, at Grace pond, 

 you will get 3 at a cast, perhaps 4 times, 

 ari d 2 at a cast, 6 times. 



I am not finding fault with you for roast- 

 ing people who destroy fish or game. I 

 hope you will give it to them, at every op- 



