Dec. 10. 1885.1 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



391 



Address all commttnicationB <o the Forest and Stream Publish- 

 ing Co. 



SUICIDE OF TROUT. 



Editor Forest and Stream: 



I have, both in your columns and before the American 

 Fisherieis Society, told how on several occasions an epidemic 

 of snicide seemed to possess my favorite, brown trout, the eggs 

 of which came from Gei'many. In the morning great numbers 

 of them would be found dead on the banks where they had 

 jumped during the night. This statement was translated for 

 the reports of tho German Fishery Association and ridiculed 

 by my friend Schuster, Oberbnrgomaster of Freiburg in 

 Baden, from whose ijonds the eggs came and who is an exten- 

 sive fishculturist. Nothing like it had ever happened in his 

 experience, and he thought there must be some mistake aboiit 

 it. AJthougli nothing like it had ever happened in mine, I 

 knew too well that there was no mistake in the fact that 

 hundi-eds of my beautiful brown trout were dead, and that 

 they jumped from the pond, not singly, but in droves. This 

 is recalled now by a letter from Col. M, McDonald, of the 

 U. -S. Fish Commission, and also Commissioner of Fisheries for 

 Virginia, in which he recites a similar incident. As he does 

 not say whore the pond is located, 1 pi'esume it is one at the 

 station at Wytheville, Va. He writes under date of Nov. 37, 

 as follows; 



"I would like to know the experience of others in regard to 

 the curious impulse to jump out of the water at certain times 

 which characterizes the different species of trout. We have 

 recently lost 038 one-and-a-half -year-old California [rainbow] 

 trout from this cause, and aU made the leap, which was un- 

 fortunately fatal to most of them, inside of thirty minutes. 

 Thej^ jumped over a twelve-inch board at the head of the 

 pond and near where the water enters. Occasionally, which 

 we may characterize as accidental, jumping out of the pond 

 occure all through the season, but an epidemic of this land is a 

 pheuomenou which I am at a loss to explain." 



To this I can only i,aj: It now seems that this, which I have 

 called suicidal mania is not confined to the brook trout of 

 Em-ope (brown trout) when brought to a strange land. My 

 flsh were confined in a square rearing pond made of boards, 

 twenty-five feet long and six fe-et wide with vertical sides. 

 The watei' was thi-ee feet deep and the sides extended four- 

 teen inche? above the water. We noticed that if we put a net 

 in tlie pond in the davtime to show our favorites more plainly 

 to some visitoi', the jumping ocem*red the night after. It took 

 two or three occuiTeuces of this before we connected the 

 jumping with tiae disturbance the day before, the last time 

 't>eing on the occasion of a visit of G-en. R. JJ. Sherman, of the 

 Fish Commission, to whom we wished to show the growth of 

 the fish. Once they jumped when no distm-bance that we 

 knew of hadoccuried and we thought perhaps a mink or 

 musk rat had gone through the pond at night, but had no proof 

 of it We removed the fish that remained to a bottle-shaped 

 pond sixty feec long, fifteen feet wide and five feet deep, and al- 

 though the banks are no higher than chose of the rearing pond 

 this jumping has not oecuri-ed in a single instance since. 



In the '"bottle-shaped" pond the flsh in going up stream 

 swim into a spawning race which forms the neck of the ''bot- 

 tle" and which has an upright screen across the entire end and 

 is covered with boards, so that it is impo.ssible for a trout to 

 jump out. In the square rearing pond the water entered m 

 the middle of one end through a hole one foot square, which 

 was protected only by a screen 33^^'ft. square a few inches in 

 front of it. Not knowing any other cause except fear Avhich 

 produced the jumping, I stiU think the fish were disturbed by 

 some arrival at night at the time when we had not troubled 

 them. If our netting in the daytime was the cause on the 

 other occasions, it is curious that tbey waited until night to 

 jump. If otlier fishculturists have had any similsr experience 

 I wish they would record it in Fobest and Stream. 



Feed Matheb. 



Cold Sprino Harbor, N. Y., Dec. 7. 



LA"WT.ESSNESS IN THE ADIRONDACKS.— We recently 

 published an account of the cutting of the nets belonging to 

 the State Pish Commission at the Adirondack hatchery, and 

 the fact that threats agaio-st the building had been uttered 

 by those who having always fished the waters now preserved, 

 in season and out of season. It has been the custom of these 

 men to flsh Little Clear Lake and its outlet at all times of the 

 year when the labor of cutting through the ice was not too 

 great. We are pleased to see that the Commissioners have 

 had a poster printed vvhich recites the law, setting apart this 

 lake for purposes of i^ropagation, and defining the penalties 

 for trespass and threats. Appended to this is a notice from 

 the superintendent of the hatchery, Mr. Frederick A. Walters 

 stating that these laws will be enforced. The deluded 

 ci-eatures who live in that part of the woods and are opposing 

 the shutting up of one small pond as a preserve, whereby the 

 t-i-out in other lakes may be increased, have no idea that this 

 is f6r their benefit as well as that of others, and having for 

 years tried to kill the trout that lays the golden eggs they re- 

 sent the action of the State as an encroachment on their 



Erivileges. The same state of afl:'airs existed about Meacham 

 ake when Mr. Fuller first took possession there and tried to 

 increase the flsh. The natives now look on Mr. Fuller in a 

 diflferent light, and Mr. Walters will no doubt teach the people 

 about him that he is really their friend instead of an enemy. 

 Some of the more public-spirited men of that region rejoiced 

 when the hatchery was located there, and the Commissioners 

 have notified the hotel keepers and others that if public 

 sentiment will not protect the property of the State it will 

 be useless to do more for them. We have no doubt but that 

 a Arm hand can in time restrain this lawless feeling and all 

 wiU go smoothly. 



MEETING OF COMMISSIONERS AT PHILADEPHIA — 

 h hiladelphia, Deo. 4.— The Pennsylvania State Commission 

 of Fisheries met this A. M. at the rooms of the Anglers' 

 Assosiation, in conference with the Conunissioners from the 

 States of New Jersey, Delaware and Marj^land, to consider 

 the subject of similar jurisdiction over the fisheries of the 

 Delaware, to take action relative to the injurious methods 

 employed in the catching of menhaden, and finally to consider 

 the question of cheaper fish for the public. Every member of 

 the State Commission was present. Mr. A. M. Spangler, of 

 Philadelphia, said that he had discovered a law passed by the 

 Legislatm-e of 1803 in regard to fishways. The law, which had 

 never been repealed, prohibited the erection of dams in any 

 stream unless provision was made for the passage of fish up 

 and down. The attention of the Attorney -General will be 

 called to this law. A report of the new whitefish hatchery at 

 Cori-y was read. This establishment is pronounced to be the 

 finest, in the world of its kind. After a discussion as to the 

 distoribution of the carp, the conference adjourned. 



CARP IN INDIANA.— Oakland, Ind.— Editor Forest and 

 Stream: Last spring I wrote you regarding the death of a 

 large number of carp in a pond near here, and hoped to hear 

 some comments on it and perhaps a.n explanation of the cau,se. 

 Since writing I have learned that notwithstanding the tact 

 that there was a "whole windi-ow of dead flsh washed up Jast 

 spring," as a neighbor expresses it, there appear to be many 

 left. I am stiU interested to know the cause of this mortality. 

 Was it caused by the ice on the pond and the closing of tlie 

 air-holes?— R. N - Purdt. [If the pond was sm,%U and stiall^w 

 it is possible that the freezing did it; bat .a,t t'hig distauee uxiQ 

 with no knowledge ot the SHrrGundinga aod Gooditions, it is 

 sapaspit>)e to h^mnl jguei^s fi.s to the cause of deabh.l 



PROGRESS AND PUI^IISHMENT.— The new Adirondack 

 hatehen^'^ has on its trays 735,000 salmon trout, U.5,000 brook 

 trout, and 9jO(K),000 of fi-ost flsii eggs, all doing well. A pretty 

 good start tor a new concern. The Bisby hatchery has 120,000 

 brook trout on its trays, all taken i>. the club's own waters. 

 The party from Caledonia which went to the upper lakes for 

 salmon trout spawn has returned with 4,000,000 eggs — the 

 largest take they have over made. The Caledonia hatchery 

 expects to turn out this season 10,000,000 of fry of the trout kind. 

 Work on the Pulton Chain hatchery is progressing.vigorously. 

 imder the direction of H. Dwight Grant, one of the most ex- 

 perienced of the Brown's Tract guides. It is expected that in 

 a month's time the hatchery will be ready for use. The build- 

 ing is H.5 by 20 feet, and is to have fourteen troughs, capable 

 of containing two million of trout eggs. It will be too lat e to 

 gather spawn from local sources this year, but spawn is ex- 

 pected from some of the State hatcheries. Protector Liudley. 

 of the i;Jth district, reports the destruction, during the month 

 of October, on Oneida Lake, of ttventy-seven nets, of the 

 aggregate value of ,$1.£)50. Protector vSteele, of the IL'th district, 

 reports seven nets destroyed, of the value of Daniel 

 Staling, of Alexandria Bay. special assistant to Protector 

 Steele, of Clayt.on, under the employ of the Anglers' As- 

 sociation the" St. Laivrence River, has been of great 

 assistance to Steele in removing nets from Cape Vincent, 

 Chippewa and MiUen's Bay anil other points on the river. 

 He is undoubtedly the right man in the right place, Pro- 

 tector Sheridan, of the 14th district, reports the dest ruction, 

 on Keuka Lake, of four nets, valued at forty-seven dollars. 

 Protector Schwartz, of the 1.5th district, destroye<l fom- fyke 

 nets of the value of thiri.y -nine dollars. Protector Leonard, 

 of the Seventh District, captured and destroyed on Black 

 Lake, St. Lawrence county, twenty -one nets valued at .$335. 

 Twenty of them were gill nets. Protector Schwai-tz, in the 

 vicinity of Sodus Bay, accompanied by Albert White, of 

 Rochester, and Alonzo Davis, of Clyde, started out in a row 

 boat on the pretense of going after ducks. He had not been 

 on the water more than half an hour before he came upon 

 four men in the act of hauling a seine. After some resistance 

 these men were placed under arrest. Their names are Charles 

 Howard, Fred Ridgeway, William Carson and Henry Andrews. 

 The captui-ed seine is one of the very finest ever taken by 

 Game Protector Schwartz and was 100 yards in length. It is 

 said that the Sheriff of Wayne county owned half an interest 

 in this net. For capturing Howard, "who is a very desperate 

 man, the game protector will receive a reward of $50. At 

 Sodus Point, Schwartz also arrested Daniel Tompkins, Daniel 

 Clumpp and Robert Scott for fishmg with gill nets. It is the 

 intention to present the names of all the above parties to the 

 Grand Jury for indictment. Mr. Schwartz desti'oyed all of the 

 captured nets and lias received the greatest praise for his 

 efforts to clear Sodus Bay of illegal fisherman by the citizens 

 who reside in that vicinity. 



Address^ nil cdmmnnicationB to the Forest and Stream PiMisli- 

 ing Co. 



FIXTURES. 



BF.NCH SHOWS, 



Dec. 15, 16. 17 au(] 18 —First Annual Dop Show of the Western Con- 

 iieeticut Piiultry. Pigeon and Pet Stock Association. Frank D. Hal 

 letf. Superintendent, Winsted, Oonn. Entries close Dee. 5. 



,Ian. 19, 20 and 21, 1886.— Ann\ial Exhibition and Beneh Show of the 

 French Creek Valley Poultry and Pet Stock Association. A. L, 

 Braden. Secretary. 



March 16. 17, 18 and 19, 1886.— Western Pennsylvania Poultry Soci- 

 ety'.s Dog Show, at Pittsburgh. Pa. 0. B. Elben, Secretary. 



March 23, 24 and 2.5, 1886. -First Annual Dog Show of the New Jer- 

 sey Kennel and Field Trials Club, Newark, N. J. A. P. Vredenburgh, 

 Secretary. Bergeu Point. N. J. 



March 30 to April 2, 1886.— Third Annual Dog Show of the New 

 Haven Kennel Ciub. E S. Porter, Secretary, New Haven, Conn. 



April 6, 7, 8 and 9, 1886.— Second Annual Dog Show of the New Eng- 

 land Kennel Club. Jean Grosvenor, Secretary, Boston, Mass. 



A. K. R.-SPECIAL NOTICE. 

 rpHE AMERICAN KENNEL REGISTER, for the registration of 

 pedigrees, etc. (with prize lists of all shows and ti-ials), is pub 

 lished every month. Entries close on the 1st. Should be in early. 

 Entry blanks sent on receipt of stamped and addressed envelope. 

 Registration fee (50 cents) must accompany each entry. No entries 

 inserted unless paid in advance. Yearlv subscription 51.50. Addres.= 

 "American Kennel Register," P. O. Bo^ 2833, New York. Number 

 of entries already printed S<908> 



THE ROUGH-COATED RUSSIAN GREYHOUND. 



Editor Forest and Stream : 



Mr. M. Ka.regefr, in a long letter to the London Field, gives 

 an interesting description of this type of greyhound, a breed 

 of dogs seldom, if ever, seen out of Russia. They ai-e scarce 

 in that country, and in the bands of a few who value them so 

 highly as never to part with them. The narrator's family 

 have kept this breed for over one hundred years. I give you 

 part of his letter in a condensed form. 



The Russian gi-eyhound is larger than his English cogener, 

 the average height for botn sexes being 29% inches, weight 

 about 170 pounds. The length should be about the same, per- 

 haps a Mttle longer; it is measured from the chest to the root 

 ot the tail. The head should be narrow in the forehead, and 

 a straight line should be fi'om the top of the head to the end 

 of the muzzle. The narrower the head is, and the less flesh 

 there is on it, so that it is quite fu-m, with veins standing out, 

 the better the breed is considered to be. The muzzle should 

 be thin and long. The eyes should be dark, and when the 

 head is slender the eyes are seldom large. The eare are like 

 those of an EngUsh gi-eyhound, pendant or hanging down, so 

 that the hearing organ is open, and the less distance there is 

 between the ears the better, so that the dog can almost fold 

 them together. The smaller the ear the better the breed is 

 considered to be. The neck is short, and when the head is 

 stretched out straight from the neck the nape does not rise 

 from it at all. 



The back, which is reckoned as one of the points in a dog, 

 ought to show a rising of the backbone above the shouldere, 

 forming, as it were, a semi-circle, extending to the hindquar- 

 ters, but this semi-circle should commence exactly between 

 the shouldei-s. Should it extend an inch or two f m-ther this 

 would indicate a defect in the breed. In the bitch the back 

 should be perfectly straight. These points do not affect the 

 temper of the animal, the arching of the back gives height 

 and beauty. The hindquarters should be low, the tail long 

 and straight, large and round. It is measured by drawmg 

 it between the hindlegs and round the hindquartei-s, so that 

 the end should reach to the top of the spine between the 

 hindlegs. When at rest the end is not curled, though some- 

 times when the tail is raised to the right or left it takes a 

 curve. This is not a fault, but is on account of the length and 

 weight of hair on the taU. An actual curve of the tail and a 

 curling at the tip is a defect caused by inter-breeding with 

 Crimean or mountain dogs. 



The chest should be well developed. The .shoulders should 

 be flat against the ribs, the ribs also should be flat and faU 

 low. Their .definite height should be on a level with the 

 shoulders, and at right ^-ngles witu the spine. The fpreieg 

 should be £fc?:e.igbt, the fepne in front r#ti;e;- sharp and wibg 

 but few muscleig ; the v eias proraipeDt, The paw is not always 

 bald, pvrhig to the quaot^ty of hair between the toes, the 



whole sole of the foot being covered ^vith hair, and it would 

 not be natural to stand on the tips of the toes. The hiiulleg 

 should be slightly bent at the hock, and not straight, as is ihe 

 case with Crimean dogs, which would be considered a. defect. 

 The greater the length from the hock to the foot the better. 

 The muscles in the hindquarters are not large, but are firm: 

 the soles, like those cf the forepaws, are covered with hair 

 growing between the nails. 



The head of the R,ussian greyhound is covered with short 

 hair, lilce the English greyhound, but falling in long curls 

 from under the ears; the whole of the neck being covered 

 with long h.iir, falling ou either side like a mane, This hair 

 should be soft and silky. When the dog is well gi-own the 

 head seems, as it were, to look out of a muff. The back is also 

 covered with thick, silky hair, lying straight and falling on 

 both sides. The legs are covered with long hair on the inside 

 in the same way as a .setter. Ou the under side of the ribs the 

 hair is sometimes seven inches in length; the hindlegs are 

 thickly covered with long hair, falling below the hock. The 

 hair on the hindfjuarterB is often fourteen inches long, and 

 should only curl at the extremity. If the hair is tight and 

 curly, or bristly, it is regarded as indicating want of bleeding. 

 The tail shoidd be covered with long, thick hair, not less than 

 seven inches in length. 



Stonehenge gives a brief description of this dog, which, 

 according to Mr . Karegeff , must be inaccurate. Stouehen^e 

 also states the animal is deficient in courage, as it will only 

 hold wolves at bay tUi the hunter comes up with his gun and 

 dispatches them. Mr. Karegeff tells us they attack the wolves 

 fiercely, seizuigthem by the throat or ear, and will not then let 

 go their hold, Hunters have been known to ride up and by 

 accide ,t break the legs of the dog, who even then would still 

 hang on. 



While they rarely indulge m play, they are gentle ai'ound the 

 house, obedient, and never bite. 



They are said to be a handsome animal, and with proper 

 feeding and care could no doubt be made as imposing looking 

 and as companionable as the mastiff. V. M. H. 



CLINT'S LAST COON. 



ALONG lanky weather-beaten man with weedy, scraggly 

 hair, a wild iron-gray beard, and features as sharp as 

 an Indian tomahawk, strode through the village to-day. He 

 lifted his feet very high as he walked— a habit contracted 

 from climbing steep mountain sides. He was followed by a 

 .starved-looking bound, which appeared as if it had not pluck 

 enough to face a chipmunk, yet the dog has the reputation of 

 being the best foxhound in Warren county. The man was 

 old Clinton Fatherfelt. of Dark Moon. 



Bounce McLaughl 

 When he were a sucklen purp he were give to me by Domnee 

 McLaughhu, an' in this way I come tu give th' dorg his law- 

 ful name." 



"Been cooning much tliis fall?" .asked some one else. The 

 mountaineer stopped short, and shambled across the road, 

 looking wistfully at the door of the repository for flue old 

 apple spirits, and replied : 



'■Up ter las' Frida}' gone two weeks, then I quit. Then 1 

 quit, I say fur good, no more tromping in th' swamps fur me, 

 I've knocked an' closed th' game," 



"Stuff, Clint, stopped coon hunting, who no one would have 

 thought you'd stop until there were no more coons to hunt. 

 You're kidding us." 



"Be 1, boys? Not much. What I say is trew, trew as gospill. 

 Old Clint has quit, an' Bounce McLaughlin 'as treed his las' 

 coon fur ole Clint. Gowy ! If yer'd been with me th' time 

 I speak yer'd quit too, as sartin as yer stan'en out here in th' 

 cold. I wonder if ole Hazen will sot 'em up if we step in. I'm 

 kuida high-headed meself, an' can kinda sniff his rum." 



There was no dodging this decided hint, so the party went 

 in and took "a little apple all round," and then looked at 

 CUnt to tell why he had retired from the coon hunting busi- 

 ness. 



me to quit cooniu', so I'll tell yer. I was up on th' moimten 

 above th' Shades of De.ath a hunten a cussed she red fox as 

 has her den thar. Bounce McLaughlin were on ahead, a snif- 

 tin' round earless like. Somehow, I weren't watclien much, 

 an' Bounce McLaughlin giv' me th' slip. So I .sot down on a 

 rock an' hstened, an' after a spell I heerd Bounce McLaughlin 

 down in th' Big Swamp a holleriu' like mad. Gowy, boys, I 

 skinned down th' ledge an' till I almos' broke me neck. ' But 

 Bounce McLaughlin were a hollerin' so cussed hoiTible th' ole 

 man didn't hav' time tu study ontu insurance risks. Well, 

 when I fetched th' swamp, tber' were th' ole dog a diggin' an' 

 a yelpin' an' a t queakin' at th' bottom of an ole tree. It 

 weren't a tree, neether, but a kinda snag like. I struck the 

 trunk a thump, an' it were as holler as a drum. Then I cut a 

 spicewood gad an' run it in th' hole ole Bounce McLaugn hn wei e 

 a jabberen at, an' sure 'nuf I tetclied some varmint a leetle 



-''-^ "'^ ■ ^^'j^j <jLx iii^aa.ci, J. u jjcv ycl uuii au ua,iuei 



quick it make yer hed swim. But I didn't hev no axe, so 

 reckoned I'd hav to smoke th' critter out. So I gethered up 

 some dry leaves an' chunks an' sttiff, an' poked 'em in th' hole 

 an' tetched 'em off. Then I stipped aback an' sure I see 

 th' smoke curl outer a leetle hole away up in th' snag, about 

 thirty foot from th' ground. I sez, Now, Mister Coon, taker 

 yer time; rae an' Bounce McLaughlin can wait for yer, can't 

 us. Bounce? The ole dog knowed every darned word I sed, 

 an' he sot down on his end an' blinked a' eye. Gowy, I felt a 

 kinda tired, so I sot down tu, with me back agin th' tree. 1 

 hadn't oot thar one minet 'fore I heered th' dernedest scrapin' 

 an' a scratchin' in th' ole butt. Gowy, I had tu laugh tu mes- 

 sel tu thinit as how th' coon's eyes was waterin'. 



"Now, boys, comes th' dreadfullest part yez iver heered on, 

 kep' on a sitten, when all on a suddint somethin' come down 

 curtlump on me hed an' near stunned me. It warent no 

 coon I knoy?-ed when it streck, but 'peex-ed like a dead limb o' 

 a tree. 1 jest riz up like lightnen, when agin a nether kuida 

 limb streck me, be gowy ! I skipped back, an' then fur th' fust 

 time I seed it was a rainin' blacksnakes. Th' way thev was 

 a comin' out o' th' hole away up th' snag were fearful. 'Great 

 thunder an' Hackettstown ! one streck ole Bouncy Bov 'Jong- 

 side th' chops an' he squalked an' took a bee line out threw 

 th' swaamp. I were so all-fired skeered I couldent even crawl 

 away. I were entirely foot-boun', an' stood a teeteren like an 

 ole shad poke knee-deep in ole swaamp racei-s. 



"Gowy! It's all trew, boys, every derned a word on it an' 

 more. Then I seed th' everlastenest longest snake a comen 

 outer bh' hole eny man ever seed outer Barueyum's show. Be 

 gowy! on he come, head first, down th' side o' th' tree till he 

 streck th' ground, an' then he began to quirl up. He were all 

 kinda colors. All o' suddent 1 seed it weren't all one snake, 

 but a cussed lot o"em, all kinds, holden on to each eiher's 



th' smoke made th' kpowin' sarpents knowed it were no good 

 jump— thirty foot. So they piit up up a job to lower theirsels 

 down. Gowy! it were a, boss idee. An' they .did it for all 

 they was worth, boys, or 1 hope I may neever stir no more 

 from here. Seveniy-three yards o' assorted snakes is my cal- 

 culation, boys, as come playen out o' th' hole. An' las' o' all, 

 out come th' coon with a hoopsnake haugen like a necklace 

 roiind his neok. Gowy! No more ooon bimteii fur rae, with 

 siGh things gmn on. Ole man CJint an' Boiwofl MeL/^ugWin 

 has qv?itth.' business fur good," - 



