128 



RECREA TION. 



cessful with the few frogs they managed to 

 get hold of. 



So it would seem that the habits of dore 

 and pike are the same in our country, as 

 in the Queen's domains. Would like to 

 ask, who of the angling brotherhood has 

 tried the pork frog and the hook-arrange- 

 ment advocated by the late lamented Ness- 

 muk, in " Woodcraft," and with what suc- 

 cess? 



TIPS FOR FLY CASTERS. 



W'antoma, Wis. 



Editor Recreation: I have read with 

 interest the various articles on fly-casting. 

 One contributor says " distance " is not 

 the most important thing about casting, 

 and that a " gentle art " and not " mus- 

 cle " is essential. 



There never was anything truer. I can- 

 not cast gently without using the arm from 

 the elbow in conjunction with the wrist. 



Let me add a few points to the instruc- 

 tions others have given. First. Wet your 

 fly and snell, before casting, until the gut 

 is softened. Otherwise you may snap the 

 fly off, and blame the maker for what is 

 your own fault. Snells are dry and brittle 

 when taken from the book, especially at the 

 fly's head where shellac has been put on. 



Second. Never snap, crack or swish 

 your fly through the air. That is no way 

 to cast. I have heard, 10 rods away, the 

 swish of flies cast by anglers who consid- 

 ered themselves expert. 



I can cast just as far and accurately with- 

 out noise as with it. 



Use your wrist principally with forearm, 

 but do it gently, gracefully yet firmly. The 

 fly should strike the water before the line. 

 Use a fine, stiff, light colored line. Such an 

 one will not tangle, snarl and twist around 

 the tip of your rod and cause unparlia- 

 mentary remarks. Cast so the fly will drop 

 like a feather on the water. 



When the hook catches in a tree or bush 

 don't get mad and yank it. Keep your 

 temper, or you will break even a steel tip. 

 When you catch a fingerling throw it back 

 to grow. Don't let a false pride of " num- 

 ber caught " generate any bristles on your 

 back. - R. W. H. 



THE CARP NOT A GAME FISH. 



When does the season for carp fishing 

 begin — i.e. when do they begin to bite? 

 What is a good bait for sweet water fish- 

 ing, for carp? What size hook is the best 

 for this kind of fish? Is the morning a 

 good time, say between the hours of 5 

 and 9? 



E. A. Adams, 

 103 Smith St., Brooklyn, N. Y. 



Mr. Adams is doubtless aware that an- 

 glers do not take any stock in the German 



carp and do not regard it as in any sense 

 a game fish or a fish which should receive 

 any attention from them; unless, indeed, 

 it be on account of the widespread belief 

 among anglers that it is a veritable nui- 

 sance. 



The carp may occasionally bite a hook, 

 but records of that fact, if there be any, 

 are few. There is, of course, no particular 

 bait, which, when placed on a hook, is of 

 any value for catching carp. The most 

 effective way to take this foreign fish is by 

 means of seines or trap nets. He roots 

 about in the mud, in the bottom of the 

 stream or pond, and does not care for any- 

 thing that is alive. While all this is true, 

 the carp is by no means a useless fish. As 

 anyone who has given the question any 

 attention knows, it is a food-fish of con- 

 siderable value — not a high grade food- 

 fish; not a food-fish which would be bought 

 by one who is able to buy better ; but 

 nevertheless, a nutritious fish which sells 

 cheap and is therefore available as an ar- 

 ticle of food by people who are unable to 

 pay the high prices which better fish bring. 

 _ On the South shore of Lake Erie, in the 

 rivers of Illinois, in the streams of New 

 Jersey, and in many other places, the carp 

 has come to be a food-fish of considerable 

 importance. The fishermen find a ready 

 sale for all that they can catch, and at a 

 figure sufficiently remunerative to justify 

 the continuance of the carp fishery; but 

 there are not many who would claim that 

 it possesses any game qualities, whatever. 

 This, however, may be due chiefly to the 

 fact that it has not received sufficient at- 

 tention from the anglers. B. W. E. 



FISHING IN CENTRAL NEW YORK. 



B. J. H. 



Three hundred miles West of New York, 

 and 22 miles from Syracuse, on the New 

 York Central railroad, is the village of 

 Weedsport. One mile North of the village 

 runs the famous Seneca river. This stream 

 connects Cayuga and Seneca lakes on the 

 West with Cross lake, 4 miles East. 



For years this noble stream has been 

 noted for the number and size of fish taken 

 from its depths. The game fish include 

 pickerel, pike, black, Oswego and straw- 

 berry bass. Prior to 1895, the river was 

 a veritable paradise for illegal fisherman. 

 They used all manner of devices, such as 

 gill nets, fykes and spears, to gratify their 

 greedy desires. Thanks to the watchful 

 State Game Protector, James Lamphere, 

 this nefarious work has been stopped. 



Off the shores of Hickory island, one 

 mile upstream, is the place noted for its 

 good bass fishing. • The water runs swiftly 

 for nearly the entire length of the island, its 

 depth varying from 2 feet to 20. 



Dr. John D. Tripp, of Auburn, N. Y., 

 hooked and landed a magnificent black bass 



