June 38, 1888.] 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



455 



Lake Edward leave from the arriving station. The fare 

 to Montreal is $10, thence to Quehec, $3.50. and $3 to 

 the lake. 



Less than one hundred miles from Lake Edward, clue 

 north, lies f amed Lake St. John, the "native soil" of the 

 grandest, the most illustrious game fish, without any 

 exception whatever, that plows fresh waters. Brother 

 angler, did you ever catch a wininnishV No? Ah! 



.June 19. Kit Clarke. 



THE BANGOR POOL. 



IT had been one of my lifelong desires to kill one of 

 the "lordly salmon," but not until this spring had 

 the way seemed clear for me to undertake to carry into 

 successful execution my long cherished plan : so it was 

 with the utmost satisfaction that I read the telegra ni 

 from Bangor saying, "The freshet is over, the river 

 rapidly falling, the water clear and the salmon rising 

 freely; the prospects bright." My fishing traps were all 

 packed, hastily gathering a, few articles of clothing into 

 my grip, in one hour's time I boarded the train bound 

 for Bangor Pool, which was to me, and with a proper 

 and generous managment will be to future generations, 

 the Mecca of true anglers, especially to those of New- 

 England States. I left my home at 2 o'clock P. M., May 

 24, and the next morning at 51 o'clock arrived at Bangor. 

 After breakfast and seeming rooms at the Penobscot 

 Exchange, we went up to the pool, which is about 

 twenty minutes' walk from the Exchange. 



The tide was flowing; although there were twenty odd 

 rods upon the pool no fish w^re rising. The fish this 

 year have taken the fly best at about one hour before 

 and one hour immediately after low tide. Two years 

 ago Messrs. Fred Ayer and Tom Allen leased a portion of 

 land lying alongside the river on the Brewer side of Ban- 

 gor Pool." They erected a substantial club home. Those 

 who come well recommended they elect members of the 

 club, upon payment of a fee of ten dollars. The privi- 

 leges and benefits arising from membership give to 

 each member free access to the club house, a place to 

 dry his traps and shelter from the inclemencies of the 

 weather. The club claim that as they have leased the 

 shore down to high water mark they ought to have the 

 exclusive privilege of fishing from the same. The tide 

 rises about nine feet at tins season of the year, and as 

 the shore is very easy of access the local fisherman avail 

 themselves of this opportunity and at low water fish 

 wheresoever they will. It seems to me that if the club 

 would charge a nominal sum daily for use of club house 

 room, many anglers from abroad would avail them- 

 selves of the opportunity, especially those who can 

 stop but a day or two; one would also feel as though he 

 was among sportsmen who angle not for the one purpose 

 of being "high line" of local reputation, but for the de- 

 lightful sport and health-giving properties it affords. We 

 received a courteous invitation to join the club, but as 

 our stay would be limited to two days we were forced to 

 decline! As the shores on the Bangor side were per- 

 fectly free, not wishing to deprive any one of their 

 rights we hired a boatman to take us across. The waters 

 of Bangor Pool are free to all, the "club" claiming noth- 

 ing but the shore line of the land they leased. 



As it was nearly 10 o'clock A. M. when we landed on 

 the Bangor side Ave put our rods up in the buildings of 

 the Bangor Watei» Power Co. and strolled around, view- 

 ing with great interest the many sights which were new 

 to us, watching with delight the lumber rafts which 

 shoot the falls every day at high water. The day was 

 delightful, and all business cares were entirely lost in the 

 grandeur of the rush of water and the beautiful coatjpf 

 green that nature was so bountifully clothing herself 

 with. We returned early to our camp after securing 

 two good river men for the next day. 



Bright and early we were upon the grounds, but took 

 no fish, although two were taken by other parties: but in 

 the afternoon at low tide it was my good fortune to kill 

 my first salmon. It weighed 23^lhs. and was in prime 

 condition. The next morning my brother killed one that 

 weighed 19£lbs. We were satisfied, and with grateful 

 hearts we bade adieu to Bangor Pool. Taking the 8 P. M. 

 train for Boston we arrived home the next evening, 

 greatly benefited by our 1,000-mile journey. 



In conversation with Mr. Allen I was informed that the 

 season opened some three weeks earlier than last year, 

 and up to May 2-5 forty-three salmon had been landed 

 against twenty-three same date last year. On the 26th 

 six were taken, on the 27th four, making a total of fifty- 

 three up to date (May 27). The fish were all taken at 

 low water, early in the morning or just at night. 



If some arrangement could be made Avith the weir fish- 

 ermen down river, salmon fishing at Bangor Pool would 

 be greatly benefited. The local fishermen at Bangor 

 agree that one fish taken to ten rods is a fair average for 

 the season. On May 27 there were on the pool 102 rods 

 by actual count, yet only three fish were" taken. Let us 

 hope and trust that a broad and conservative spirit may 

 animate the anglers of Maine — those who angle for health- 

 giving sport and those to whom it is "bread and butter;" 

 then can her lakes and rivers be made to teem with mul- 

 titudes of fishes, furnishing food for the hungry and 

 health and recreation to the weary. H. W. A. 



, Pitts field, N. H., May 30. 



Nets in the St. Lawrence.— The Watertown, N, Y., 

 Times prints a communication dated Cape Vincent, N.Y., 

 June 23, which says: "Fourteen warrants have been 

 issued by Justice Boreland, of Cape Vincent, against 

 persons who have been fishing with nets in the St. Law- 

 rence River. Yesterday afternoon Frank Barber and 

 brother, of Three-Mile Bay, and Wm. Knowlton of the 

 same village, were arrested and brought before him. 

 Major Durham appeared for the sportsmen and hotel 

 keepers and ex-District Attorney Emerson came down 

 upon the afternoon train to represent the net fishermen. 

 The trial was adjourned until Monday, July 2. As there 

 are some ten warrants more to be served, it is expected 

 that there will be plenty of business at Justice Boreland's 

 court the next week. Ever since Judge Williams's de- 

 cision in reference to seizing nets, the net fishermen have 

 been fishing with all kinds of nets in the St. Lawrence, 

 and the above arrests are the result. Those persons who 

 Avere congratulating themselves that the fish question in 

 the Second Assembly District was settled, and that it 

 Avould not appear again in politics, have reckoned Avith- 

 out their host. Both sides appear to be as determined as 

 ever, and never were so bitter against each other as at 

 present." 



THE TROUT HOG. 



Editor Forest and, Stream: 



The effect of playing the trout hog is fully illustrated 

 in the result upon the fishing at Newfound Lake, at Bris- 

 tol, N. H., where for many years large lake trout had 

 been known to exist, but (so it was supposed) would not 

 take bait, and but few were taken Avith the spear. Three 

 years ago, however, a man from Franklin discovered that 

 the trout could be taken by trolling, and some fifty were 

 taken that year. Last season one man (Major ), a dia- 

 mond merchant from Boston, spent a month or more 

 there, and took fifty trout and salmon, averaging from 7 

 to 15lbs., by trolling, and several Avith the spear. I Avas 

 informed to this effect by a person on the spot and one 

 who ought to know. 



Now for the result. This same party had to content 

 himself with one fish this season, while scores left with 

 sunburnt faces and without a fish. Together with several 

 friends I trolled early and late for three days and had 

 only one rise, which resulted in taking a 131b. trout the 

 first day, but no amount of coaxing with every form of 

 bait, both real and artificial, would secure another. 



Last year eight were taken in one day by one person, 

 while this season on no one day did eight persons secure 

 a like number. Last season trout could be seen breaking 

 water almost constantly; this season, during our constant 

 observation about the lake for four days, only two were 

 seen to rise. The lake is only about seven miles long and 

 from one to two miles wide, with fish concentrated about 

 certain points, thus it will be seen how easily from twelve 

 to twenty trout would reduce to the minimum the trout 

 that would take bait. Had each person been willing to 

 stop fishing when he had secured one or two trout, the 

 sport might have been extended indifinitely, but when a 

 man goes into the fish business, boxing and sending fish 

 to Boston for a month, and then comes again in the fall 

 to glean what are left, thereby robbing the people living 

 near the lake of one of its greatest attractions, and one 

 which was of inestimable value to them, he ceases to be a 

 sportsman and becomes a selfish, deluded pot-fisher. 



A youth about sixteen years of age informed me that 



lie inadvertently told Major of the discovery of a 



trout and salmon in a pool Avhere they could be easily 



speared, and he further stated that Major caught 



them. This insatiate fisherman has left the poor farmers 

 whose land adjoins the lake with naught but salt pork 

 for provision, while he contents himself with having 

 cleaned out the lake. The picturesque and lovely scenery 

 which greeted the eye on every hand, together with the 

 soul-iuspiring songs of the buds by day and the calls of 

 the •'nightingale" which lulled us to sleep at night during 

 our sojourn on a lovely island in the lake, AA^ere far more 

 satisfying than fifty trout would have been. Bruin. 



NEW ENGLAND TROUT WATERS. 



ACCOUNTS from the fly -fishermen are rather en- 

 couraging, but the stories of fishermen hunted by 

 the mosquitoes and flies are not quite as encouraging to 

 the sportsmen about to start on their annual fly-fishing 

 trips. At Moosehead Lake accounts indicate that the fly- 

 fishing is good. Some of the members of the Kineo 

 Club have returned, "well browned up," and highly 

 pleased with the surroundings and the fishing. Some 

 really fine trout have been taken on the fly, and one mem- 

 ber of the club took four pounds Avith bait. The story 

 is that the black flies are not as bad this year as usual, 

 and the theory is that this terrible pest to the frequenters 

 of the woods and streams is growing hopefully fewer 

 every year. WhateA'er may be the cause of this decrease 

 is not explained ; the only hope is that it my be real. 

 Mosquitoes are reported to 'be very troublesome on the 

 streams, especially along the south shore of this State. 

 One or two parties Avho have attempted to whip the 

 streams have been ignominiously routed by the terrible 

 force of mosquitoes they encountered. I say ignomini- 

 ously routed, because the retreat had to be beaten before 

 any trout were taken. 



But better success has b$en the result of fishing some 

 of the noted trout streams of Maine, and they do say that 

 the musquitoes are not as bad as usual in that part of 

 the country. Black Brook, well known to frequenters 

 of the Androscoggin Lakes via Andover, has yielded 

 some remarkable good strings. The great trouble with 

 this brook is that it is over-fished by the natives of the 

 towns below, who fish for numbers and frequently fish, 

 although they are well aware that the fish must spoil 

 before they can be made use of. One little shaver, only 

 about 11 years of age, took the other day ninety trout 

 from a brook in Sumner, Maine, but all to be made good 

 use of. 



The supply of large trout in the Maine lakes, as I re- 

 marked last week in]the Forest and Stream, is holding- 

 out wonderfully well. But concerning Mr. Edger W. 

 Curtis' trout there is a slight discrepancy in the state- 

 ment. The number of trout taken, which weighed over 

 501bs., was ten instead of five. Other remarkable catches 

 are also recorded, but the season of these big catches is 

 about over. Special. 



CATFISHING IN ILLINOIS. 



CHARLESTON, Coles County, 111.— -This has not been 

 as good spring for angling as usual, but some large 

 fish haA-e been caught. Byrd Monroe caught one channel 

 catfish that weighed 3^1bs., and a few small ones, f to 

 lib., in the Embarros River; minnows Avereused for bait. 

 Douglas Nichols caught one channel catfish that Aveighed 

 3i to 4lbs. in the same river, three miles N.E. of the city; 

 minnows and angle worms being used for bait. Edward 

 Easton and Logan Harris Avent to the raging Ambraw 

 River for a day's angling, and caught one blue bullhead 

 catfish that weighed 441bs., and one that weighed l^lbs., 

 and some smaller ones', using minnows for bait. Rufus 

 Crim went to the Wilson Rocks, three miles east of here, 

 and caught three blue bullheads and one channel catfish; 

 the tAvo largest weighed olbs. each, and next largest 41bs. , 

 channel cat 21bs. Total catch 161bs. He used minnows 

 for bait. This catch was on the 23d inst. , in the Embarras 

 River, water clear. John Hughes caught three channel 

 catfish that Aveighed 31bs. each, and a few small ones in 

 the Embarras River; the bait used being minnows. Two 

 boys about 16 years old, Bob Hart and Jesse Rice, went 

 to the Embarras River, three miles east, and took the belt 

 for the largest fish. It was a yelloAv catfish that threw 

 the beam up to 6ilb3. They lit out for home, and it Avas 

 all- they "wanted for one day. 



Dr. Wm. Mort Chambers purchased of Meecham & Co. , 

 St. Louis, lately, the finest fishing rod, reel and line 

 owned by any person in the city. The rod is split-bamboo, 

 the reel is a silver click, the line is the finest braided silk 

 with a wire in the center; total cost about $25. 



J. B. Daz,<;Y. 



Bassing on Lake Mahopac— New York. June 25.— 

 Editor Forest and Stream: I dodged the hot spell up at 

 Lake Mahopac. Paid $1.90 for return ticket (good for 

 ten days) at 155th street, took the 4:30 P. M. train on 

 Northern Railroad and got to Mahopac (not Thompson's) 

 by 6 P. M. The lake is about 100yds. away, and the 

 Cole's House, where I put up, as far up the road to the 

 right. Finlay keeps a shanty on the lake and has boats, 

 whiteh alls and flatters, for fishing, at $1 a day; special 

 rates for longer periods. You can get a man or boy to 

 row you round for $2 a day and under; but the natives 

 are not expert in angling, their ideal being a porcupine 

 of a boat, with a dozen rods in every direction, with frogs , 

 live bait and worms thereto annexed. Any cub that can 

 row is good enough to take along, and as the lake is 

 round — not long, like Greenwood — you dodge along in a 

 circle, and a day's voyaging in calm Water avlII teach 

 you where you should go. I whipped the shores 

 and the islands with small grizzly-king, brown- 

 hackle and scarlet-ibis, in early morning and in 

 the evening from 5 P. M, , raised quite a lot of genuine 

 small-mouth bass in the shallow water, and got any 

 amount of sunfish and yelloAv perch, which came in two 

 and three at a time. I had barblcss hooks and so threw 

 the fish back unharmed, but one evening my comrade 

 wanted the fish kept, and after throwing off all small 

 ones I had over four dozen hand-size sunfish and yellow 

 perch. The bass are genuine small-mouths and very 

 gamy, there must be big ones, which I shall go for after 

 the first of July, when the law is up. There were some 

 yellow perch and small pickerel taken still-fishing on live 

 bait, and I heard, you understand, of two big bass, one 

 on bait and the other taken trolling a rubber frog. There 

 are lots of hotels and boarding houses. I stayed a t the. 

 Cole's House, $2 a day, §9 a week. Clever people with a 

 nice set of visitors; no big style, but quite some comfort, 

 plenty of milk, light bread, clean linen and good coffee. 

 I am satisfied to go back there for I was comfortable, and 

 on those two bad days it was cool, and there Avere no flies 

 or mosquitoes. — Gray John. 



Trotjting up the Beaverkill.— New York, June 19. 

 —Editor Forest and Stream: Have just returned from 

 a week's outing up in Delaware county, this State. 

 During the seven days spent there I enjoyed three good 

 days trout fishing on the streams Avhich empty into the 

 East Branch and Beavei'kill. The brooks are too low, 

 however 3 * for really good fishing, and the midges, black 

 flies and other torments are simply legion, the combina- 

 tion tending to make the life of a fisherman on those 

 streams anything but a happy one. The day I left for 

 home (Monday) the thermometer up there registered 90° 

 in the shade. My best day's fishing was 150 fair-sized 

 trout caught from a small stream which I can jump over 

 in the widest part. The trout lay in the holes and would 

 only rise to the "enchanting worm." I took four dozen 

 flies as a part of my equipment and only wet two of 

 them, result, "nary a rise." — Beue Rock. 



Blueetsii.— This season the bluefishing has been fairly 

 good from Barnegat to Montauk Point. Large numbers 

 have been taken about Fire Island, and last week they 

 struck in near Newport, R. I., and afforded lively fishing 

 in the West Bay. Sheepshead were also plenty at the 

 latter place. Our accounts from the eastern end of Long 

 Island say that the bluefishing is good in Plum Gut and 

 the eastern entrance to the Sound. So far Ave have no 

 account of their presence further west in Long Island 

 Sound. 



A Trodt in Cedar River.— Waterloo, Iowa, June 17. 

 — The following may interest some Forest and Stream 

 readers. A genuine speckled trout was caught here in 

 the Cedar River the other day. Trie first one known to 

 be taken or seen here— lOin. in length. Rather strange, 

 as the river is filled with pickerel.— R. W. Kingsbury. 



WORK OF THE GRAMPUS. 



'T^HE schooner Grampus, of the IT. S. Fish Commission, 

 _L sailed from. Gloucester, Mass., April 3, for the southern 

 mackerel fishing grounds, calling at Wood's Holl on her 

 way to take on board some necessary outfit for the cruise. 

 As soon as these preparations were completed she started on 

 her voyage of investigation and has been continuously cruis- 

 ing since that time. Her investigations have consisted in 

 taking temperature observations of water and air; setting 

 gillnets for mackerel, herring, bluefish, etc.; trying toll-bait 

 for mackerel and making frequent trials with tow nets, both 

 large and small, for Crustacea, floating eggs of pelagic species, 

 young fish, etc. An ingenious deAnce for developing and 

 keeping alive such eggs as might be taken has been made by 

 Colonel McDonald and has been used with excellent success. 

 Several hundreds of thousands of floating eggs were collected 

 in the towing nets and carried to Wood's Holl where they 

 have been hatched and the young fish liberated. Specimens 

 of the eggs, embryos, and young fish in various stages of de- 

 velopement have been preserved and will be studied and de- 

 scribed by Professor John A. Ryder. The results of this 

 novel and valuable investigation will give us much addi- 

 tional knowledge of our marine species which will be of great 

 importance. 



The Grampus was joined on May 12 by Dr. Tarleton BT. 

 Bean, the ichthyologist of the Fish Commission, who has 

 been attached to" her since that time, and has made many in- 

 teresting observations concerning the life habits of the more 

 important food species. In regard to the observations made 

 by the Grampus bearing on the question of the occurrence 

 of mackerel, Dr. Bean makes the following statements: 

 "Few catches of large mackerel have been made this spring 

 by the fishing vessels, in the waters south of Noman's Land, 

 and in every instance only a small number of fish have been 

 taken. One vessel took 800 fish in Vineyard Sound on J une 14. 

 Small tinker mackerel, of the size usually called "nails" and 

 ''spikes" by the fishermen— from 7 to 10 inches in length — 

 were very abundant from Fire Island to Montauk Point. It 

 requires * 1000 of these to make a sea packed barrel, and, of 

 course, they have comparatively little market value. These 

 fish are moving slowly eastward and on the 15th of June were 

 south oi Noman's Land. The Grampus took two schools of 



