FISH AND FISHING. 



207 



lot of dressed trout in our saddle bags, the 

 largest, 16 inches long, having been caught 

 by me in a deep hole, by baiting with grass- 

 hopper and using a sinker. The honor of 

 the largest catch fell as usual to the cham- 

 pion, George. Each of us has had many 

 pleasant experiences with the wary trout in 

 Colorado waters, but this trip was voted 

 the best of all. 



LYING FOR THE BELT. 



Pendleton, Ore. 

 Editor Recreation: A party of 5 gen- 

 tlemen met at a summer resort, Binghams 

 Springs, Oregon, a pretty place, where'the 

 hot springs are a sure cure for all com- 

 plaints of the human race. These gentle- 

 men (I being one of the number), were 

 lounging on the porch, enjoying the lovely 

 evening and the roar of the stream close by. 

 Naturally, discussion waxed high on the 

 topic of trout fishing. Our friend, an Eng- 

 lishman, became quite enthusiastic. He re- 

 lated a number of his experiences in Scot- 

 land. One particular experience of his 

 greatly interested us. He was informed 

 there was a king trout which no one could 

 land, and he determined to tackle it. He 

 studied the surroundings, and silently 

 crawled 100 yards or more, without mak- 

 ing the least noise, to the pool. Silently 

 he cast his fly. There was a splash and 

 his line and reel sang. Then the battle 

 commenced and raged for an hour. When 

 he thought he had tired the fish out 

 he stooped to pull him ashore. Whirrrrrrh! 

 went the reel again. The work had to be 

 done over. The honor of England was at 

 stake. To be conquered was to lose all. 

 By careful manipulation, and with the as- 

 sistance of a small boy, he landed the fish 

 safely. 



" Sirs," said he to us, " it was the proud- 

 est moment of my life." 



"What did it weigh?" inquired one 

 present. 



" About 2 an a arf pounds," said he. 

 " Oh! Oh! " said we all. Seeing one of 

 our particular friends wink, we all settled 

 back again to listen to his story. But he 

 merely said, that at Walker Lake, Nevada, 

 it was a common practice to catch trout 

 with a 5 pound fish as bait. 



"Sir!" Our Englishman was on his 

 feet in a moment. " Impossible! " 



" Why, my dear fellow, can you be 

 sane? " Before he could get his answer I 

 chipped in, saying, 



" Why, Charley, that is nothing. Two of 

 my friends left San Francisco one day, for 

 Truckee, to enjoy the beautiful scenery, 

 fishing on the coast. Arriving at Truckee, 

 they secured pack horses and traveled to 

 Lake Tahoe. There they pitched tent, and 

 were soon in the land of slumbers. At an 

 early hour one of them awoke, dressed and 



fixed his trout outfit, thinking to catch a 

 few fish for breakfast. As you all know, the 

 California side of Lake Tahoe is a forest 

 and the other side is a desert for 25 miles 

 in a direct line to Carson. My friend cast 

 his line into the waters of the lake and felt 

 a pretty stout pull. Next he became aware 

 that he was going at a terrific rate through 

 the water. Naturally, self-preservation was 

 the uppermost idea in his mind, so he clung 

 to his pole. Next thing he knew he was 

 sitting at table in the Arlington Hotel, at 

 Carson, eating some of that same trout." 

 Our English friend, with considerable ex- 

 ertion and without a word, raised his hat 

 to us, bowed profoundly, and with all the 

 dignity possible, walked away. 



J. E. K. 



KEY TO THE SPECIES OF LUCIUS. 



a. Cheeks entirely scaly; branchiostegals 

 11 to 16. KENOZA (an Indian name of 

 the pike, variously spelled by authors) : 



b. Opercles entirely scaly; dorsal rays 11 

 to 14; color greenish, barred or reticulated 

 with darker. 



c. Branchiostegals normally 12 (11 to 

 13); scales in lateral line 105 to 108; dorsal 

 rays 11 or 12; anal rays 11 or 12; snout 

 short, the middle of eye nearer tip of lower 

 jaw than posterior margin of opercle. 

 Species of small size, the fins unspotted. 



d. Head short, 3 4-7 in length of body; 

 snout 2,y 2 in length of head; eye 2 2-3 in 

 length of snout. Color dark green; sides 

 with about 20 distinct curved blackish bars; 

 fins plain. americanus. 



dd. Head longer, 3^4 in length of body; 

 snout 2 1-5 in length of head; eye 2 l / 2 in 

 length of snout. Color light greenish, the 

 sides with many narrow curved streaks of 

 darker; these usually distinct, irregular, 

 and much reticulated; fins plain. 



vermiculatus. 



cc. Branchiostegals 14 to 16; dorsal rays 

 14; anal 13; scales in lateral line about 125; 

 middle of eye midway between tip of lower 

 jaw and posterior margin of opercle; head 

 about 3 1-3 in length of body; snout 2 1-3 

 in head; eye s l / 2 in snout. Color green- 

 ish, with many narrow dark curved lines 

 and streaks, mostly horizontal and more 

 or less reticulated; fins plain. 



reticulatus. 



bb. Opercles with the lower half bare of 

 scales; branchiostegals 14 to 16; dorsal rays 

 16 or 17; anal rays 13 or 14; scales in lateral 

 line about 123; head 2> J A in length of body; 

 snout 2 2-5 in length of head; eye 3 in 

 snout; middle of eye midway between 

 tip of lower jaw and gill opening. Color 

 grayish, with many whitish spots, the 

 young with whitish or yellowish cross- 

 bars; dorsal, anal, and caudal spotted with 

 black; a white horizontal band bounding 

 naked portion of opercle. Size large. 



lucius. 



