March ?, 1889.] 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



186 



FLORIDA FISHING. 



IK pur columns of Feb. 14 we quoted from a letter of 

 Hon. A. M. Spangler an interesting description of 

 ■winter sports in Florida. We are now able to give extracts ! 

 from the entire series written by Mr. Spangler for bis I 

 paper,, the Evening Star of Philadephia. They will be ! 

 round to contain much valuable information conveyed in 

 a charming style. It is gratifying to leam that the same 

 author will shorly take up the theme of fresh and salt- 

 water fishing near Philadelphia. We trust that he will 

 trace the progress of the introduced species of food and 

 game fishes • 



. "The surroundings of Enterprise are Of a highly attrac- 

 tive order. Iudmediately in , fro'nt is Lake Monroe; s« 

 called, though really an enlargement of the St: John's 

 River, as Lake George further down is. It is about four 

 miles wide and twice as long, * * * abounding in fish. 

 Mr. Stone, proprietor of the Brock House, keeps on his 

 counter a record of the fish taken from the lake and its 

 tributaries by different anglers, and some of them are 

 so surprising that I will copy two of the larger daily and 

 BeaBon catches: In 1887 the record of T. Kiernan. of New 

 York, beginning on the 23d of December, 1886, and end- 

 ing April 3, 1887, ?,2781bs. of black bass; daily average, 

 RfKVlbSi This was exclusive of many other fish that were 

 ttOt Considered as legitimately belonging to the record. 

 Incredible as this may seem it Will Cease to Cause surprise 

 when, from the record referred t ; o; iii which hundreds of 

 hanies and weights are entered, it is rare to find a Meg 

 marked for less than 4lbs. ; runiiing from tba't up to 13|lbs. i 

 the largest: It was taken by ail old gentleman named 

 Benson,, who has been a daily angler here during the 

 Mnter for thirty winters past;' Mr: Benson has an insa- 

 tiable passion for fishing, cpniiijg he'fe.ejtny the season 

 and remaining until April. . Jle has been doing til St [Mo 

 thirty years, and although 75 years of age, fishes every 

 day but Sunday , or when the weather renders his favorite 

 pastime next to impossible. He is almost uniformly suc- 

 cessful, his catches when the season is good being fully 

 equal to the table demands of the house. Last year he 

 took between 5,000 and 6,0001bs. of black bass, the largest 

 one weighing lS^lba. 



This morning at Rock Ledge a beautiful gray squirrel 

 hopped about in front of Us as we walked along the river 

 side, not appealing to be the least alarmed by our prox- 

 imity. A Cottage stood Within fifty feet of whete he was 

 enjoying himself. The country is literally alive with 

 hi Ms. Partridges are plentiful and deer so abrhidant in 

 spin'? pjace§ a§jro render, it needful to' keep dogs ofh the 

 watch to prevent .them from 1 injuring the oranges, of 

 which fruit they aire said to be ^efy forid. Bass fishing 

 on the lakes in the vicinity is said to be tmsurpstsse'd. 

 Boats and boatmen can be had at moderate rates,, and 

 those who are disposed to try salt-water fish have only to 

 take the steamer that passes daily and visit Jupiter Inlet, 

 about 100 miles toward the tropics. 



Indian River lias long enjoyed an enviable reputation 

 for the excellence of its fishing, and it will no doubt be 

 news to many who read this screed that if you would en- 

 joy that fishing you must go further south than Rock 

 Ledge, Fifteen miles below, at a place called Tropic, 

 directly opposite the mouth of the Banana River, which 

 flows parallel with the Indian, and between it and the 

 ocean; fishing is said to be very good, and duek shooting 

 unsurpassed, 



One of the drawbacks experienced by anglers here Is 

 the difficulty of procuring bait* There are neither clams 

 faor grabs here. Mullet bait is the stand-by, and that is 

 difficult Of procurement as 1 have ascertained by my own 

 experience. Most of the fishing in Lake Poinsett is done 

 with "spinners," "bobs"' or "flies;" Sometimes a strip of 

 fat bacon is Used as a lure by the trolley but generally 

 speaking the gaudy "spinner" is used. In the Indian 

 River, which is broad and shallow^ there is an abundance 

 Of mullets; which are the principal table fish, but never 

 take the bait; At certain seasons the cavalla become 

 plentiful and occasionally sea bass of a very large sitfe are 

 taken in.it. Catfish with heads as hard as though made 

 of cast iron are always, arourid. I caught a few good- 

 sized ones yesterday and had tliem for supper. They 

 seemed as toothsome as our Delaware River "white cat- 

 ties," but are not much esteemed here. 



To-day I have been spending an hoar or two on the 

 steamboat wharf, catching big catfish, the only species 

 of the finny tribe that does not appear to be affected by 

 the high water. As so®n as the steamer arrives the 

 ugly things gather around the wharf to partake of the 

 offal from the cook's galley. A handful of bread thrown 

 on the water brings them to the surface, where they 

 contend vigorously with each other for the choice mor- 

 sels. Procuring a piece of raw beef I baited a hook 

 with it, and in less than five minutes had a tug at my 

 line which fairly startled me I had hooked a big fellow, 

 and for five or ten minutes had real good sport with 

 him. I at length exhausted him and brought him help- 

 less to the steamer's side, when one Of the negroes at- 

 tempting- to lift him on to the boat found him too heavy 

 for my tackle. The snood parted and I had the poor 

 satisfaction of seeing him sink out of sight. I am sure 

 he would have weighed 201bs. He was as black as the 

 inside of a stove, as Were several other large ones which 

 were secured, though not nearly the size of the first. 



[This is the great catfish, Mississippi cat, or flannel- 

 mouthed cat of recent authors, Amiurus nigricans, and 

 is said to reach lOOlbs. in weight.] 



The proximity of New Smyrna to the fishing grounds 

 is a strong argument in its favor, with anglers at least. 

 The landing is within 50yds, of the hotel, boats and boat- 

 men are abundant, and fishing good enough to meet the 

 wishes of the most exacting. The neighboring forests 

 abound in quail and deer, with an occasional snake of 

 the harmless kinds, the rattlers having been pretty well 

 cleaned out by the long, slender blacksnakes, which are 

 their deadliest and most implacable foes. Cormorants, 

 pelicans, sand cranes, and other large birds that find 

 their subsistence in the water are very abundant and 

 add very largely to the general picturesqueness. At 

 certain seasons ducks are very abundant and are shot in 

 great numbers. Excellent oysters are found in the Hills- 

 borough River near the town, and, in their season, crabs 

 are reasonably abundant. Clams are scarce, readily 

 commanding a penny apiece. Those that are native to 

 the waters have to be dug out from their hiding places 

 in the sand at low tide. The principal supply is obtained 

 from St. Augustine. Many of the oyster shells found in 

 the mounds and in smaller collections along the river in- 



dicate thfit either the oysters taken thef e in the time of 

 the mound builders were touch larger than those at 

 present found in the river; of that the latter have materi- 

 ally deteriorated, though still of good size and excellent 

 quality. Beds of "coon oysters" abound along the shore; 

 as in many other of the estuaries along the Florida sea 1 

 coast. There are millions of them, the flavor of which is 

 very fine, but. their diminutive size prevents them from 

 being profitably utilized." 



THE MENHADEN MEN. 



Editor Forest and Stream: 



Allow me through your columns to correct a statement 

 which was made in your valuable paper dated Jan. 4, 

 and appears Upon the tenth page under the caption "The 

 Menhaden Question Again* over the initials G. E. N., 

 who strikes out by expressing his surprise at some well 

 known anglers upholding the policy Of the menhaden 

 pirates. This is the first time to my knowledge that this 

 disreputable title has been applied to the enterprising 

 menhaden fishermen of our coast, and it is unjust to our 

 citizens to use it as it has been used in this article re- 

 ferred to. He carries the impression that they are called 

 pirates away down East, which is totally untrue, for they 

 prosecute their business under a license granted by the 

 United States, and I am not aware that it is customary 

 for tliis Government to license pirates. He further states 

 that he is satisfied if the anglers to whom he refers would 

 investigate the menhaden business their opinion would 

 be Changed* I will call his attention to the fact that the 

 Menhaden fishermen have always invited investigation 

 and have materially assisted every one who has called 

 upon them for information; The universal result of in- 

 vestigation has been to satisfy investigators that their 

 position wa$ a correct one and is indorsed by the best 

 scientific ability of this and other countries - that the 

 ria'rfo'w-gaiige Opinions put out by such men as G, E. N. 

 will soon explode, arid if is evident that the law makers in 

 this State are convinced that they have been misled by a 

 gang of men of which G. E. N. is the foremost represent- 

 ative. As to his statement of the menhaden men skin- 

 ning their noble river of all food fish is too ridiculous to 

 answer; that they did enter the river this past season for 

 the capture of menhaden is totally untrue. They caught 

 ail the fish they needed along the beaches from Small 

 Point to Griffles Head, where they have a lawful right to 

 fish unrestricted as to distance. Notwithstanding the 

 statement that appears in that article that they have been 

 fishing in defiance of the law and that they were going 

 for them and they would probably pay the penalty, we 

 would respectfully suggest to the gentlemen the perusal 

 cf the Statutes of Maine as amended that he may amend 

 his statement in accordance with the law as it now exists. 



As to the personal allusion to me, I pass it by as not of 

 sufficient iniportariC'e to waste any time upon. Regard- 

 ing the law which he says I am to assist in its repeal is 

 mere speculation on his part. I am fully convinced that 

 such a bill could be effected at this session, of the Legis- 

 lature with very little effort, and that the people of this 

 State are becoming satisfied that it should be repealed as 

 well as all other fish laws relating to salt water fisheries, 

 but up to the present I have not taken an active part in 

 any fish legislation, having other matters to look after 

 which occupy my entire time. Lutheb Maddocks. 



BooinuAV, Me., Feb. 16. 



SUSQUEHANNAH W all-Eyed Pike.— Mr. W. L. Powell, 

 of the Pennsylvania Fish Commission, gives the follow- 

 ing interesting information about the wall-eyed pike, or 

 "salmon" of the Susquehannah (Stizostedion mireum): 

 "I do a great deal of fishing for the salmon in question. 

 t watc'h the catches as reported from the different parts 

 of the river above Columbia dam, When the water was 

 in condition about as many have been caught during the 

 last year as usual, particularly about Millersburg on the 

 Susquehannah and on the Juniata. At Mud Island, below 

 Columbia dam, the catch was very large; at Fife's Eddy 

 more were Caught with hook and line, but all about one 

 pound in weight} no larger ones were taken. The river 

 seemed to be full of small fish. Two years ago the writer 

 Could catch at this point from 20 to 30 a day of fish that 

 would rdn from One to five pounds. Last year they were 

 all small. In my opinion ; on account of the high water 

 last year, and my close watching of the spring seiners, 

 very little fishing was done, and we will have better fish- 

 ing here than for a long time. I think that the stocking 

 of our streams with this valuable fish is one of the most 

 important moves of the U. S. Fish Commission, as it is 

 one of the most desirable as a food fish, and at the same 

 time a fine fish for angling." 



Natashguan Salmon Club.— Montreal, March 1.— 

 Charles Henry Butler, of the New York law firm of Holt 

 & Butler, has been in Montreal and Quebec for several 

 days making the final arrangements for the organization 

 of the Natashguan Salmon Club, which has obtained a 

 lease of the famous Grande Natashguan River, one of the 

 largest and probably the finest of the salmon rivers on 

 the north shore coa6t. Among the members of the club 

 are Senator Edmunds, of Vermont; Senator McPherson, 

 of New Jersey; Gen. W. Y. W. Ripley, of Rutland, Vt.; 

 Judge C. Aime Dugas, of Montreal: Wm. H. Parker, of 

 Montreal; I. S. Morrison, of Norwalk.Conn.; and Francis 

 O. French, John J. Waterbury, Walton Ferguson, Julien 

 T. Davies, Col. Finlay Anderson, Geo. C. Holt, Charles 

 Henrv Butler, Edmund F. Hoi brook, Thos. Stokes, Henry 

 P. Wells, and Wm. D. Baldwin, of New York. Salmon 

 are very plentiful in the Natashguan, and there is ample 

 room for a large number of rods. The fish can be handled 

 from the shores and islands. 



Me. Ernest Vliet has been appointed Acting General 

 Passenger Agent of the Milwaukee, Like Shore & West- 

 ern Railway, in place of Mr. Geo. S. Marsh, who lately 

 resigned. This road reaches some very choice shooting 

 and fishing grounds, and we presume Mr. Vliet will pur- 

 sue the same generous policy toward sportsmen as did 

 his predecessor. 



Pickerel Fishing near Natick. — A party of three 

 fishing with live bait in Morse's Pond, near Nafick, Mass., 

 on Feb. '22, caught twenty-three good-sized pickerel, five 

 of them very large. On the following day the same party 

 took fifteen pickerel, four large ones among the number. 

 They hooked a few yellow perch both days. 



Sagadahoc Fish and Game Association. — Bath, Me., 

 — The annual meeting of the Sagadahoc Association for 

 the Protection of Fish and Game was held at the office - 

 of Dr. Packard, Bath, Me. It was voted to expend fifty 

 dollars in additionally stocking with bass Nequasset Lake 

 in Woolwich. The following were elected officers for 

 the enstthlg year: President, Dr. C. A. Packard; Vice- 

 Presidents, James Purington, William E. Hogan; Secre- 

 tary and Treasurer, Geo. E. Newman; Executive Com- 

 mittee, Geo. H. Nichols, S. W. Carr. Augustus Hatch, 

 F. H. Patten, Chas. H. Greenleaf. The following reso- 

 lutions were presented and adopted, and by vote of the 

 Association a copy will be forwarded to the Legislature 

 and to the United States Fish Commission: Resolved, 

 That the Sagadahoc Association for the Protection of 

 Fish and Game fully recognize the vigilant and vigorous 

 efforts of James Bailey, fish and game warden, resulting 

 in the detection and prosecution of violators of our fish 

 and game laws, and desire to place upon record this 

 testimony of their appreciation of his valuable service. 

 Whereas, the seining of mackerel, menhaden, shad, etc., 

 on our . coast and within our rivers and bays, not only 

 tends to the depletion of our migratory food fishes, but 

 their eventual extermination, as is evidenced by the fact 

 that not more than 20 per cent, of the mackerel caught 

 by seining are of suitable size for commerce, the remain- 

 ing 80 per cent, being destroyed, as testified to by disin- 

 terested and eminently truthful citizens who have been 

 in the business; therefore Resolved, that it is plainly the 

 duty of all citizens to protest against this wanton disre- 

 gard, of the material welfare of the present generation 

 and those who come after them. Resolved, that it is 

 plainly the duty of the Legislature of our coast-lying 

 States, and of Congress to prohibit under severe penalties 

 the use of seines in any manner within three miles of the 

 coast and within the bays thereof. Resolved, that we 

 view with extreme solicitude and distrust the employ- 

 ment of persons in the Fishery Commission of the United' 

 States who are not only employed in the menhaden and 

 mackerel seining, but who are personally interested in 

 the repeal of such laws as we already have restricting 

 the desolating and ruinous practice. 



The Fly-Casting Tournament.— New York, March 5. 

 — Editor Forest and, Stream-: A meeting of this associa- 

 tion will be held on Saturday, March 16, at 3 P. M. at the 

 laboratory of Mr. E, G. Blackford, Fulton Market, to 

 make arrangements for the coming tournament. Former 

 rules will be reconsidered and members are requested to 

 suggest what changes they may deem advisable. — H. P. 

 Wells, Pres., 140 Nassau street; G. PoEY.Sec, 114 Wall 

 street, New York. 



Baron Munchausen was among the names registered- 

 at a St. Augustine hotel recently, and we hear that the 

 gentleman who bears that name is now on a fishing ex- 

 cursion on the west coast of Florida. Despite his name 

 the Baron is said to be a very modest- speeched man and 

 never exaggerates the size of a fish caught. 



FOKEST and Stream, Box 2.833, N. Y. city, has descriptive illus- 

 trated circulars of W. B. LefflnarweU's book, "Wild Fowl Shoot- 

 ing," which will ho mailed free on reguest. The book is pro- 

 nounced by "Nanit," "Gloan," "Dick Swiveller, ?r "Sybillene" and 

 othei' competent authorities to be the best treatise on. the subject 

 extant. _______________ 



MICHIGAN FISH COMMISSION. 



THE eighth bi-ennial report for 1887 and 1888 of the State 

 Board of Fish Commissioners of Michigan is an ex- 

 ceedingly interesting and instructive document of sixty-six 

 pages, "besides an appendix devoted to an historical sketch of 

 fish commissions and various other papers. For convenience 

 and despatch the supervision of the stations and depart- 

 ments of work was divided among the Commissioners. Dr. 

 Parker becoming responsible for the stations at Glenwood 

 and Petoskey, Mr. Bissell assuming charge of trout, breed- 

 ing and the Paris station, while the Detroit station and the 

 grayling experiments were assigned to Mr. Whitaker. Mr. 

 A 'J Kellogg having resigned the office of secretary in 

 March, 1888, Mr. Geo.D. Mussey, of Detroit, was appointed 

 to fin the vacancv. Early in the report the Commissioners 

 urge the necessity of protection of black bass and muskal- 

 lunge by preventing the killing of the young of these fishes. 

 The results of fishculture in the State are found to be very 

 gratifying and are beginning to be generally appreciated. 

 Brook trout culture has received a marked degree of atten- 

 tion in accordance with an unmistakable popular demand; 

 1.(539,000 of these fish were planted in 244 streams, located in 

 46 counties. This is what the Commissioners say of it: 



"The planting of brook trout has been the most popular 

 work carried on by this board. It has been so successful in 

 palpable results, results so easy of demonstration, in which 

 so many people are interested, in so many widely separate 

 localities, and the benefits to individuals and the commu- 

 nity are so direct, that a permanent and decided impression 

 has been made upon the public opinion throughout the 

 State favorable to the continued culture of these fish. This 

 pubi ic opinion is justified by the satisfactory condition of very 

 many trout streams, which have been made so by our arti- 

 ficial methods; and it will he, much increased and intensi- 

 fied when the work of 1887 and 1888 begins to be realized." 



The report of the secretary on his investigations into the 

 condition of the fisheries and fish, with especial reference to 

 the whitefish, is creditable for its thoroughness and gratify- 

 ing for the universal testimony of fishermen and dealers to 

 the success of artificial propagation. He was instructed to 

 pursue his inquiry on the shores of Lakes Huron and Michi- 

 gan, and gives the following analysis of his notes of inter- 

 views with the different fishermen: 



"At Tawas, Alabaster, An Sable and Gravelly Point the 

 catch of whitefish in 1887 and 1888 exceeded the amount 

 caught in any year for the past ten years; the gam has been 

 steady and is the result of artificial propagation At Thun- 

 der Bay. Alpena, and up to Presque Isle, while whitefish are 

 decreasing in number, the present supply is believed to be 

 due to planting, and the fishermen believe in artificial propa- 

 gation, without which they think there would be no white- 

 fish at all. At Cheboygan and Hammond's Bay the white- 

 fish catch has been steadily increasing since 1885, and the 

 season of 1888 is the best since 1885, and the increase is due 

 to planting. At Mackinaw City, Mackinac Island and St. 

 Ignace there has been a noticeable gain, and more whitefish 

 are caught now than for a number of previous years. A 

 great number of small whitefish are seen there, and those 

 engaged in the business believe these to be the result of 

 planting. At the Chenneaux Islands large numbers of very 

 small whitefish are taken, salted and sold for from one to 

 one and one-fourth cents pt>r pound, and ultimately reach 

 the consumer as herring. At Bois Blanc Island the white- 



