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RECREATION. 



marsy lily pads, muck bottom and shores, 

 with a little clay at one end, and now con- 

 taining speckled large and small mouth 

 black bass. Can you give us any informa- 

 tion as to what fish would be best to put 

 in this pond ; also what varieties of salt 

 water fish can be best propagated m such 

 a pond? 



C. E. Trory, Hudson, Ohio. 



ANSWER. 



The fish already in the pond are the 

 best that could be put in it. Salt water fish 

 will not live in fresh water ponds. The 

 best thing to do is protect carefully the 2 

 species of black bass already in the pond, 

 if at any time fish are desired to restock 

 the pond apply to the U. S. Fish Commis- 

 sion, forwarding the application through 

 your member of Congress. — Editor. 



NIBBLES. 

 The past season found game in the Puget 

 Sound country none too plentiful, which 

 leads me to believe that the game laws 

 need revising. Ducks were especially 

 scarce, due, some claim, to the mild, open 

 winter. The open season on ducks and 

 other water fowl is from August 15th to 

 March. If it were made September 1st to 

 January 31st, hunters would get better 

 shooting, and the birds would not be so 

 wild. There was no ooen season on quail 

 the past 3 years up to October 15th last. 

 But they, too, need careful consideration 

 from the Legislature. Some good work 

 has already been done, no game being al- 

 lowed to be sold, except water fowl, dur- 

 ing October, to the number of 10. A license 

 fee of $1 is charged in each county. As to 

 trout fishing, Washington can boast of as 

 many and as fine trout streams and lakes as 

 any State. 



R. A. Leeman, Seattle, Wash. 



A minnow has lately appeared in our 

 lakes, and I am unable to learn its name. 

 When alive and fresh they are entirely 

 transparent. Can you inform me what 

 they are? 



John W. Zimmerman, Cosperville, Ind. 



ANSWER. 



This little fish is the skipjack, Labides- 

 thes sicculus, an abundant species in all the 

 small lakes of Northern Indiana. It 

 usually swims in large schools and always 

 near the surface. On sunny, quiet days in 

 fall and early winter they may be seen in 

 great numbers near the shore. It is a 

 delicate little fish, dying quickly, and is of 

 little value as bait. It is our only fresh 

 water member of the Atherinidae, or silver- 

 sides, a large family of small salt water 

 fishes. — Editor. 



One cloudy day in April Howard Wool- 

 verton, Lansing Callan and I rowed up 

 the creek which runs through the fields 

 and woods near Valatie. After we had 

 gone some distance our boat ran againsc 

 something in the middle of the creek. We 

 backed off with the oars and found the ob- 

 stacle to be a stake in the middle of the 

 stream. On looking farther we saw 2 simi- 

 lar stakes, and when we looked down into 

 the water we saw a net stretched across 

 from one side of the creek to the other. 

 We knew this was in violation of the fish 

 laws, so we pulled up the stakes and threw 

 the net on the bank. We all try to live up 

 to the game and fish laws. 



Kenneth E. Bender, Albany, N. Y. 



In . an issue of Recreation last fall I 

 spoke of the excellent black bass fishing in 

 the Delaware river. Since then I have 

 received a number of letters asking for 

 further information as to location of best 

 fishing spots, distance of river from New 

 York, etc. Generally no stamp for reply 

 has been enclosed. If anyone interested in 

 angling for this gamy fish in waters afford- 

 ing good sport, near New York and Phila- 

 delphia, will enclose stamp I will be pleased 

 to answer all inquiries promptly, give full 

 directions how to reach these black bass 

 grounds, and all information necessary to 

 make a successful fishing trip at scarcely 

 any expense. 



M. L. Michael, North Water Gap, Pa. 



Baldwin, Mich. — Andrew Johnson, of Luther, 

 was brought to the county jail to serve 30 days 

 for violating the fish law. Under-Sheriff Filio 

 saw the man draw lines which had been set 

 through the ice in the mill pond and take fish 

 therefrom. When Johnson returned to the village 

 Filio placed him under arrest. The man denied 

 the charge and made a resistance which would 

 have terminated .in his escape had not help ar- 

 rived. Johnson was handcuffed and taken to the 

 prosecuting attorney's office, where 2 trout were 

 found in his pocket, which he claimed were perch. 

 — Detroit Free Press. 



By the time Andrew Johnson gets out of 

 jail he will probably conclude that it does 

 not pay to violate the law even for the 

 sake of getting a few pounds of trout to 

 sell. — Editor. 



Why will the bass not bite in Higgins 

 lake, Roscommon county, Mich. ? We have 

 tried every way known, but have never been 

 able to catch a bass. There is no doubt 

 of their being there, as I have seen the na- 

 tives spear any number of them, but that 

 is not my way of fishing. The lake is 9 

 miles long, s l / 2 wide, and over 100 feet 

 deep. The water is so clear that the fish 

 can be seen at a depth of 25 feet. 



Wallace Schaum, Hartford City, Ind. 



Can anyone answer? — Editor, 



