FISH AND FISHING. 



457 



weighing 350, 250 and 150 pounds, respec- 

 tively. Harry Guthrie also took one weigh- 

 ing 35°- They were all taken on hand lines. 



Mackerel and halibut have also been run- 

 ning freely and several good catches have 

 been made from the wharves at Redondo 

 and Long Beach. Striped bass are begin- 

 ning to find their way down the coast. 

 Several fine specimens were taken in nets 

 along the Orange county coast the past 

 winter. 



Surf fishes, such as blackfin crqker, cro- 

 bina, yellowfin and perch, are running much 

 earlier than usual this season, and the seine 

 fishermen have been making good hauls for 

 the past month. 



A new town is being laid out at the isth- 

 mus, Catalina island, and many improve- 

 ments are under way. The waters in the 

 vicinity of the isthmus are famous fishing 

 grounds. Many enthusiastic anglers who 

 formerly made their headquarters at Ava- 

 lon will this season stop at the new town, 

 or at least divide their time between the 

 2 places. 



The tuna fishermen will find themselves 

 up against a hard record this year, and the 

 man who beats Colonel Morehouse's record 

 tuna of 251 pounds will know he has been 

 fishing. 



B. C. Hinman, Bolsa Bay, Cal. 



and shall hope to be of service to you in 

 some way. 



Frank L. Poindexter, Eugene, Ore. 



GOOD CHEER FROM OREGON. 



I have been a reader of Recreation for 

 more than 2 years and have the copies all 

 filed away. Long live Recreation ! There 

 are many game hogs here who think it 

 proper to slaughter as much game as pos- 

 sible. I was as big a hog as any of 

 them till a little over 2 years ago I bought 

 a copy of Recreation. From that day I 

 have never exceeded the limits of decency. 



In Crook county is a noble trout stream. 

 An average angler can easily take 100 trout 

 in a day from its waters. An expert can dou- 

 ble that figure, and I have, known men to 

 more than quadruple it. On this stream I 

 learned to fly-fish. There are no settlements 

 on it for miles. It flows for long dis- 

 tances through primeval forests, abounding 

 in mule deer in summer ; a sportsman's 

 Eden. Here the rainbow trout reach per- 

 fection in size and flavor. I took one 

 measuring 23 inches in length, but had 

 no means of weighing it. I have seen large 

 strings of 20 inches each ; Dolly Varden 

 trout and another, which has never been 

 classified, reaching 12 inches, silver bluish ; 

 black rock trout, and grayling. Except the 

 last all the fishes in this stream will rise to a 

 fly. The lake from which this stream flows 

 is also abundantly stocked. 



In the Willamette valley the game hog 

 has done his work brown. Pheasants and 

 grouse are nearly extinct. 



I wish you success in your noble work, 



NETTER CONVICTED. 

 One John Swanson, of Worthingtort, 

 Minn., was arrested by Sheriff Fauskee and 

 a policeman at Ocehydan lake, in April last, 

 for netting fish in violation of law; The 

 officers had been informed by members of 

 the L. A. S. that nets were being used, and 

 drove to the lake one morning before day- 

 light. They hid in the brush and waited 

 until daylight, when Swanson and Peter 

 Hawkinson showed up. Hawkinson waited 

 on shore while Swanson rowed out, pulled 

 up the net and took from it about 20 fish. 

 The officers nailed both men, took them 

 into court, and Swanson was fined $25, or 

 30 days in jail. He declined to pay his 

 fine and was locked up. In his evidence, 

 he stated that he did not know who set the 

 net. In making that statement he con- 

 fessed, in effect, that he was a common 

 thief, and that he was stealing fish from 

 another man's net. However that may be, 

 he got what he deserved. The editor of the 

 Worthington Advance, in reporting the 

 case, says : 



A local chapter of the League of American 

 Sportsmen has been organized here, number- 

 ing 25 members. Having had notice of fish 

 being caught by net, they took the mat- 

 ter up, and the State game warden instructed 

 the sheriff to make the arrests. Mr. Fauskee 

 performed his duty well. He has the local or- 

 ganization to support him in this work. The 

 League is prepared to act on any information as 

 to unlawful killing of game. This League covers 

 the entire United States, and in this way the 

 game is bound to be protected, as every member 

 is determined to see that it is done. 



FISH TRAPPERS IN MASSACHUSETTS. 



For the past few years Foxboro has been 

 troubled by a species of vermin that may 

 be classified as fish hogs. I should like to 

 know if any other town in this State has 

 been afflicted in a like manner, and to let 

 true sportsmen know what an effective 

 plan is under way to get relief. 



There is a large pond here that offers 

 some of the best of pickerel fishing. It has 

 been a source of enjoyment for sportsmen 

 and a good provider for the poor man's 

 table, for years, as it was a good breeding 

 place for fish. For the past few winters 

 it has been visited, nearly every suitable 

 day, by men from neighboring towns, some 

 of whom hired other men to come with 

 them. Several hundred traps would be 

 put down, and hundreds of pounds of fish 

 carried away and sold for a few cents a 

 pound. One man has been here every fair 

 day for over 3 weeks, with men and boys 

 hired to help him. It is estimated that he 

 has taken away over 1,200 pickerel an4 

 thousands of shiners, 



