2IO 



RECREATION. 



well worth while to make a plant of trout 

 there. The conditions seem fairly favorable 

 and the experiment is worth trying." 



Barton W. Evermann. 



A DECEITFUL FISH. 



Colorado Springs, Col. 

 Editor Recreation: In the town of 

 Westport, Mass., are a number of trout 

 streams where, 40 years ago, I often filled 

 my creel with fish weighing from y 2 to 2^2 

 pounds. It was just before sunset, one fine 

 afternoon in June, that I set out with my 

 rod rigged with 100 feet of braided silk 

 line and a hook with a 3 strand snell. The 

 stream was about 30 feet wide and from 10 

 to 15 feet deep, with a hard gravelly bot- 

 tom. It was shaded on the West by tall 

 oak trees and was just the place for large 

 trout. I knew little about fly fishing in 

 those days, so I put on a large worm and 

 made a cast for the deepest place. After 

 whipping the stream for awhile I let the 

 bait sink to the bottom. Presently I had 

 such a bite I thought I had hooked a 

 whale. Down the river went the fish, but 

 before he ran out all of my line, I got him 

 headed up stream. I managed to reel in a 

 part of the slack, then he used up most of 

 the line again. But after a hard fight I 

 brought him back and nearly to the top of 

 the water. I caught a glimpse of him and 

 was sure it was a 4 pound trout. He went 

 down stream, this time, and I could not 

 stop him. He seemed to slide through the 

 water as if he were greased. After fighting 

 him for nearly half an hour I came to the 

 conclusion that he never intended to give 

 up. Finally I threw my rod behind me, 

 took the line in my hand and pulled him in 

 hand over hand. I landed him, and my 

 lower jaw let go and slid down my neck. 

 For there lay, squirming and wiggling, the 

 largest eel I ever saw. He had snarled up 

 my line so badly that I took my knife and 

 cut off what I could of it, and let him have 

 the rest. I met a French Canadian, just 

 then, who took the eel home. Next day 

 he told me it weighed 6% pounds. I 

 thought it had a 25 pound pull at least. 

 Will Howard. 



AN EASY ONE. 



Up in the hills, 6 miles back of Altamont, 

 N. Y., rests a pretty body of clear, cool, 

 spring water. There you can catch pick- 

 erel, pike, perch, bass and trout, descend- 

 ants of stock planted 20 years ago. 



The shores are rocky, rising in places 

 into bluffs, and are covered with grass and 

 studded with pine, oak and elm trees. 



Seated one day in a boat on this lake, 

 were J. Kiefer and his companion, E. Clute. 

 On the shore were a party of friends lunch- 

 ing and watching the boat. The boat 

 drifted idly along, a baited-line hanging 

 over the side. Suddenly, out ran the line, 



rods at a flash. Then a fish broke water 

 about 100 feet from the boat. It jumped 

 6 feet in the air and plunged back into its 

 native element, raising a cloud of silver 

 spray and glistening chops. 



For the next 20 minutes we saw as pretty 

 an exhibition of nerve and skill as I care to 

 witness. The fish led off with a double 

 quick. Then for 3 minutes he sulked on 

 the bottom. 



Then, in answer to a gentle pull on the 

 line, he cut loose once more. 



The anxious friends on the rocks forgot 

 their lunch in the excitement of watching 

 the contest. 



Through it all, Joe held on to the pole. 

 The fish made a complete circle, Clute 

 keeping the side of the boat toward it. At 

 last Joe brought the fish to the boat, tired 

 out, and lifted him in. What kind of a fish 

 was it? Its square tail, 9 inches broad and 

 slightly red on upper edge, shaded down 

 to a blood red at lower edge. It had el- 

 bow fins, crimson red gills and white belly. 

 Was 31 inches long, 16 inches girth, and 

 weighed io^4 pounds. Guess. 



Frank W. Parsons, Altamont, N. Y. 



A FISHING SNAKE. 



In the summer of 1893, while fishing a 

 mountain stream in company with O. W. 

 Hall, M.D., my attention was attracted by 

 the floundering of a fish on the opposite 

 side of the creek. At first glance I could 

 see nothing to cause such action, as the 

 water was deep and there was no chance for 

 the fish to become entangled in the grass. 

 On looking closer I was astonished to dis- 

 cover that the fish was held by a small snake 

 whose tail was coiled around a shrub near 

 the edge of the water. The snake was of the 

 " garter " variety, about 18 inches long. He 

 had seized the trout — a small one about 4 

 inches long — just forward of the dorsal fin. 

 He made no attempt to draw the fish from 

 the water until it ceased struggling. Then 

 he slowly drew it out and began to climb 

 the sloping bank, tail first. Although out 

 on the same kind of a mission myself, I ob- 

 jected to a rival of that kind, and, jumping 

 across the narrow stream, I compelled the 

 snake to let go his prey, and restored it to 

 the water, where, in a few moments, it re- 

 vived and swam away. Perhaps, in the in- 

 terest of science, I should have waited to 

 see what the snake would do next; but the 

 spectacle of this curse of creation carrying 

 off a trout was a little more than I could 

 stand. M. A. Bates, Parma, Idaho. 



IN SUNNY FLORIDA. 



With my family I left New Haven March 

 4 and after spending a few days at Palm 

 Beach and Miami, we came here to enter 

 into the full freedom of neglige and true 

 life without frills. This is the paradise of 



