218 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



[April 4, 1889, 



SHOW-WINDOW TROUT. 



THE opening of the trout season in Massachusetts was 

 not a favorable one. The day followed a snowstorm 

 on Sunday, with even a foot of the white mantle of whi- 

 ter in some of the northern towns of the State. Some of 

 the noted sportsmen of Boston and other cities wero in- 

 tending to be about the first at the noted trout streams of 

 the South Shore, but the day began with a heavy rain, 

 which continued till night, and hence the dreams of 

 trout were not realized. Still the sight of trout rods and 

 flies handsomely displayed in the windows of the tackle 

 stores has left its mark, and pleasant weather will send 

 the fishermen to the pools; with what results we wait to 

 see. Until of late the season has been very early, and 

 many of the streams are free from snow water much 

 earlier than usual. Thursday, the 4th, is Fast Day, and a 

 legal holiday in this State, and, though the Governor 

 does not enjoin it upon the people in his message, yet 

 some of the sportsmen will improve the day with rod and 

 reel. The indications at present are that the trout season 

 will open earlier in Maine than usual— that is, that the 

 ice will be out of the trout lakes earlier. The winter has 

 been a very mild one, and some of the rivers in that 

 State, that are sometimes ice-bound till the middle of 

 April, have been clear for a couple of weeks already. It 

 is expected that the appearance of salmon in the Penob- 

 scot, at Bangor, will be unusually early. Already more 

 salmon have been taken than usual at the mouths'of the 

 rivers. 



If one thinks for a moment that sport with rod and 

 line is on the wane he need only to have watched the 

 crowd on Washington street in front of Appleton's 

 window on Monday. The occasion was one of the finest 

 displays of live trout there has ever been made at that 

 noted tackle resort. In spite of the rain the window was 

 thronged all day, and it was a rare sight to see the pile 

 of umbrella tops, one against the other. The display in- 

 cluded about seventy trout in the tank and window pool. 

 Among the fish was a landlocked salmon or blackspot 

 that measured almost 24in. in length, and is really the 

 largest fish ever attempted in a window display in this 

 city. The specimen was from the hatcheries of Fish 

 Commissioner Hodge, of New Hampshire. At first there 

 was a good deal of doubt as to whether so large a fish 

 could be brought to Boston a live, but bv constant dipping 

 of the water, whereby aeration of the water was kepi 

 up, the feat was accomplished. The nose of the fish was 

 somewhat bruised by contact with the can, however. 

 The display also contains a large number of brook trout 

 of good size, and one or two specimens of rainbow trout. 

 Some very fine specimens of hybrids, crosses of our 

 native trout with English trout, attracted the attention 

 of sportsmen, though it was the general verdict that the 

 beauties of the brook trout are lost in the hybrid. These 

 trout are from the Gilbert hatcheries at Plymouth, Mass, 

 In the markets the display of dead trout was much 

 smaller than usual, probably owing to the storm of the 

 day before. Special. 



A LITTLE RANK HERESY. 



Editor Forest and Stream: 



If I were to meet the demand made on me it must be in 

 counterfeit coin, for I have but a very slight acquaintance 

 with 8. fonUnalis, and in praise of him could only ap- 

 propriate the words of those who have been and are his 

 intimates. 



I never caught more than three dozen trout in my life 

 and those such little fellows that it was a shame to a 

 grown man to catch them. They were so small that all 

 the gaminess they could show availed them nothing, nor 

 gave their captor any sense of triumph. The sport seemed 

 to me about on a par with that of catching minnows for 

 bait, and the fish caught of about the same value as so 

 many shiners, dace or chubs. 



I would rather catch one 31b. bass than a big basketful 

 of such fry, and I believe that the charm of such fishing 

 lies more in the beauty of the scenes and the close assev 

 ciation with wild nature, to which its enthusiastic 

 votaries are led, than in the sport itself. 



Though what I have written applies only to the de- 

 pleted streams of which alone I have knowledge my 

 opinions will be deemed heretical, and no doubt I shah" 

 suffer excommunication by bell, book and candle but I 

 will not deny them. Awahsoose. 



the shallower and smaller streams the trout take the fly 

 greedily, and no better place can be found for learning 

 the art of fly-fishing. One can miss two fish out of three 

 and yet make a fan- catch. Small plain-colored flies are 

 the best, those with gray bodies and light wings being 

 preferred to all others. 



No one should venture alone far into this wilderness, 

 and some light and nutritious raw provision, with salt 

 and some matches should be carried by every member of 

 a party where they separate at all. None but strong and 

 experienced woodmen should go in without a guide. The 

 tramping and fishing are very tiresome work, and do not 

 leave energy enough to do the cooking and the extensive 

 wood cutting which the cold might require. Camping in 

 the White Mountains and camping by a lake or river are 

 very different things. 



Guides can probably be procured through S. B. Elliott 

 at Waterville, and certainly at Pollard's, North Wood- 

 stork. Charles Huckins of North Woodstock will be 

 found to be a faithful "guide, philosopher and friend." 



Keep the body dry with a rubber or oiled coat, the lat- 

 ter is the better, but let the legs from the knees down 

 take care of themselves. They can be dried by the even- 

 ing hie whenever necessary. 



Carry a Nessmuk knapsack, and have a compass and a 

 map of the country. Take "Woodcraft"' in the pocket or 

 m the head. 



Take plenty of time. Do not let a day's rain rob the 

 whole trip of its fruit. Make ample allowance for mis- 

 chances. Penn. 



Tasmania* Salmon and Trout.— Salmon and trout 

 have been introduced in Tasmania. The first trout was 

 hatched May 4, 1864, and the first salmon, May 5, 1864. 

 The first salmon was caught Dec. 4, 1878. Salmon and 

 trout fishing, with rod and fine only, ends April 30. The 

 net fishing for salmon begins Sept. 2 and ends Feb. 28. 

 Licenses to fish with rod and line for salmon and trout 

 cost 10 shillings each for the season, 5 shillings for one 

 month, and 2 shillings 6 pence for one week.— Watch's 

 Tasmania n Almanac, 1889. 



Dayton, Ohio, April 2.— Rod fishermen are having 

 early sport catching goggle eyes and rock bass. Chan- 

 nel catfish are biting freely at minnows, and hundreds 

 are taken on trout lines set hi the rivers at night. Phil 

 Wenz caught 120 Saturday and Sunday nights. The 

 Sevens Club will bivouac on the Miami Paver Thursday 

 and Friday of this week, and have invited a partv to 

 the first fish fry of the season. * ' 



WHITE MOUNTAIN TROUT. 



THE following notes are based upon two weeks' ex- 

 perience in the Franconian regions, and upon in- 

 formation gathered from others who had frequented the 

 same locality: 



There are plenty of trout in all the tributaries of the 

 Pemigewasset. Near North Woodstock it requires some 

 knowledge of places and skill in angling to get much 

 but these qualifications will always produce some results' 

 Between the Flume House and the Profile the Pemige- 

 wasset will generally furnish fifteen to forty fish in a 

 half day. All the branches coming in from the west 

 have still better fishing than the main river. The streams 

 on the east are very steep and not so good. 



The fish in all the region are small except in the lakes, 

 where they are hard to catch. From 6 to 8in. is the 

 average length, though an occasional fish will reach a 

 foot. Some streams have a great many small fish in 

 them, while others have them fewer in number and of 

 larger size. 



The upper branches of the Mad River, near Waterville 

 furnish good fishing, but the best part' of the region is 

 the primeval wilderness lying along the tributaries of the 

 East Branch of the Pemigewasset. To reach this one 

 must take at least two whole days and camp out. It can 

 be approached either from Waterville or North Wood- 

 stock. Eight miles of good trail from Waterville brings 

 one to the forks of the Hancock, from which point the 

 two forks and the main stream can be fished. There are 

 also other tributaries within reach. Large catches are 

 sometimes made here. In going in from North Wood- 

 stock five miles takes one to the Hancock Branch, up 

 which are fine camping and fishing grounds. Four miles 

 further up the East Branch and the Franeonia Branch is 

 reached. Above this branch the streams fork in all 

 directions and are full of fish. Professional fishermen 

 can catch trom 15 to 251bs. a day. To reach these waters 

 takes hard and laborious tramping. 



The bait usually used is the worm, but a narrow strip 

 of fish a« inch long is equally taking with large fish. In 



Spkixofielu, Mass., March 30.— Editor Forest and 

 Stream: Trout fishing in this vicinity has been so poor 

 for the past few years that I have scarcely taken my rod 

 out of its case, but the announcement of a "trout supple- 

 ment" next week has set my fingers tingling, and as the 

 past whiter has been very favorable, I shall ere long with 

 renewed hope spit on my bait and "try. try again."— 

 Shadow. 



The Menhaden Industry. — A communication on the 

 menhaden industry by Mr. Maddox, which was crowded 

 out of this week's issue by the pressure of articles previ- 

 ously received, will be published next weak. 



S. Allcock & Co., of Standard Works, Redditch. have 

 been awarded a first-class order of merit for fishing tackle 

 at the Melbourne Centennial Exhibition, this being the 

 only first-class order of merit granted for fishing tackle. 



Seines, Nkts of every description. American Net & Twine I 

 Mfrs., 34 Commercial st., Boston, or 199 Fulton st., N. Yl—A&V, 



Co., 



RAINBOW TROUT IN FRANCE. 



TN the Sacramento and the M. Cloud River the spawning 

 JL season of the rainbow trout extends over a large part of 

 the year, from January to the middle of May. In the east- 

 ern United States it occurs ordinarily from March to May 

 sometimes in June. At the Jardin d'Acclimatation in Paris' 

 eggs have been obtained April 24; at Andecy, Feb 18 The 

 South Side Club, on Long Island, have taken the eggs as 

 early as Dec. 22, [and Mr. F. N. Clark has secured them if 

 we remember aright, about as early as this. At Allentown 

 Pa., Supt. Crevelmg obtained eggs Dec. 1.] At Andecy the 

 rainbow furnishes mature eggs in its second year; at the age 

 of 18 months the eggs are developed, and sterile females at 

 this age are rare exceptions. Verv few at that time reach 

 the weight of 1J< pounds even among the spawning fish. 

 Hence the rainbow spawns earlier in life than most of the 

 other salmonoids. 



A remarkable fact, very favorable to restocking, which we 

 are astonished not to have seen recorded anywhere, is that 

 the rainbow, prqdtices-daiible the number of eggs indicated 

 as the average for the other species. It is generally admitted 

 that a trout yields 1,000 eggs for each pound of its weight- 



to the pound of the fish is under 1,000 in all the recordslvr- 

 amineu. | 



It is above all in the vigor which they show in their in- 

 fancy that the fry of the rainbow merit attention; in the 

 first place, the egg is less easily affected by sediment and 

 this makes it practicable to hatch them in water containing 

 some impurities, as the Americans have already observed. 

 The absorption of the yelk sac, whether rapid or slow, is ac- 

 complished without accident: and when it reaches the age 

 tor feeding, the young fish accepts its food without hesita- 

 tion, while so many others belonging to less hardy species 

 perish with hunger. During its first summer it grows and 

 prospers m waters which exceeds 68deg. Fahrenheit as ob- 



dmarily so common at this age are unknown to the rain- 

 bow. In short, it is only when speaking of the alevins of 

 thin species that we will voluntarily believe a fishculturist 

 who pretends to have suffered no loss in rearing trout. 



It appears to us that if the rainbow trout is anadromous. 

 it should vegetate in confinement instead of developing 

 quickly as it does. At no period have we observed among 

 ours a sickly condition, nor even a mere agitation which 

 would seem to indicate a need of migrating to the ocean, 

 and, on the contrary, we have always seen them at Andecv, 

 thriving wonderfully alongside of bur salmon which veget- 

 ate miserably.— A. d'A udvviUc, in Bulletin de. Pisciculture 

 Pratique, Jan. .1 and. 15, 1889. 



NEW FISH COMMISSION STATIONS; 



^Htf United States is now building at Put-in-Bay; Lake, 

 SJ he largest tlshcUltural establishment in the 

 world. This location was selected after an examination of 

 al t the available sites, the land to be occupied was given to 

 the Government by Mr. Valentine Doller. The object of 

 this station will be to collect, clean up and develop white- 

 fish eggs to the period at which they can be distributed to 

 other stations. The State and Government hatcheries on 

 the Great Lakes will receive their supplies from this estab- 



; to. 

 000 

 ii. be' 



"equipped at the start with 2,000 jars. " 



At Neosho, Missouri, work is in progress on the new hatch ^ 

 ery tor rambow T trout and such valuable native fishes as 

 may be accessible in the Ozark Mountain region. Rainbow 

 trout have flourished at Verona,' in Montgomery county 

 where they were planted by the U. S. Fish Commission 

 several years ago. 



On the McCloud River, California, a building is in prb= 

 -'ess of construction for permanent quarters for the rainbow 

 trout breeding establishment. 



In Maine the new station for salmouidffi at Craig's Brook 

 is going forward, and also the auxiliary station at Ells 

 worth, which -will be devoted to rearing salmon in Donds 

 LVd ' - Atkins now lias in charge 120,000 salmon "fry td 

 liberated 1 VeaCh the SiZ8 ° f fiilgerlin S s bef °re they are | 



MAINE'S NEW SEINING LAW: 



ON March 13, 1889, chapter 2bl of the Public Laws of 

 Maine of the year 1885, relating to migratory fish, was 

 amended so as to read as follows: "Section 4. The taking 

 of mackerel, herring, shad, porgies or menhaden, and the 

 lis Mug therefor, by the use of purse and drag seines is pro- 

 hi luted m all small bays, inlets, harbors or rivers where any 

 entrance to the same or the distance from opposite shores of 

 the same, at any point, is not more than three nautical 

 miles l u width, under a penalty upon the master or person in 

 charge of such seines or upon the owners of auy vessel or 

 semes employed in such unlawful fishing, of not less than 

 sMuu nor more than $500 to be recovered bv indictment or 

 action of debt, one-fourth of the penalty to the complainant 

 or prosecutor, and three-fourths to the county in which the 

 proceedings are commenced, and there shall be a lien upon 

 the vessels, steamers, boats and apparatus used in such un- 

 lawful pursuit, until said penalty with costs of prosecution 

 is paid, but a net for meshing mackerel or porgies of not 

 more than 100 meshes in depth and a net for meshing her- 

 ring, ot not more than 1 70 meshes in depth, and a net for 

 nieshing shad of not more than 75 meshes in depth, shall not 

 lie deemed a seine." 



HATCHING EGGS OF SHEEPSHEAD. 



in naxcnmg a luu.uuu eggs of the sheepshead in Charlotte 

 Harbor, Jlorida. This is the first successful attempt to 

 develop the eggs of this important fish. On March 22 another 

 lot of 3,000,000 eggs was collected and placed in the jars. 

 The eggs are buoyant and measure one thirtv-second of an 

 inch in diameter. The time of hatching is about two days. 

 The time of spawning of the sheepshead was not clearly 

 known to the officers of the Fish Hawk, and it was only by 

 the accidental capture of a lot of ripe fish in the seine that 

 the opportunity to develop the eggs occurred. Capt. Piatt 

 was very prompt in utilizing the circumstance to the advan- 

 tage ot fisheulture. 



CHAUTAUQUA LAKE FISH HATCHERY.— A State 

 iish hatchery is about to be established on Chautauqua 

 Lake, about four miles from Jamestown, N. Y. Commis- 

 sioner R. U. Sherman selected Green and Brown's tract, on 

 the east shore of the lake, as a site for the building The 

 hatching operations will be under the charge of John 

 Mason. Owners of property surrounding the lake sub- 

 scribed 8500 toward the expense of the undertaking It is 

 expected that 2,000,000 fry of the muskellunge will be hatched 

 this season for the lake, and in future various bodies of 

 water throughout the State will be supplied from this sta- 

 tion. The fry are to be kept until they are a fortnight old 

 and measure three-quarters of an inch in length. The fe- 

 males after being stripped will be returned to the lake. 



^"No Notice TaKen of Anonymous Correspondent*. 



15. 8. V., Baltimore, Md.— See. our angling department, for an- 

 swer to your query. 



Wknonah, N. H.— There is no standard. Write to Mr. J. OT, 

 Newman, 6 Hamilton place, Boston, Mass. 



A. E. E., Lodi, O.— The New York season for black bass is from 

 June 1 to Dec. 31, inclusive, with exceptions for special locations: 

 for ducks, Sept. 1 to May 1; for squirrels, Aug. 1 to Feb. 1. 



C. M. W., Providence. R, I.— Choose a 12-bore, one barrel modi- 

 lied choke, the other cylinder. The gun you name will shoot both 

 styles of cartridges. Write to F. H. F. Mercer, Ottawa, Canada. 



C. W., Flatbush, N. Y.— We have no record of the dogs you men- 

 tion. Write to Mr. Ethan Allin, Pomfret Centre, Conn. A blue 

 helton is a white dog with black ticked markings. Well bred set- 

 ters are of various colors, and a black, white and tan is not. «o far 

 as color goes, better bred than those of other colors. 



A. C. K., New York.— Will you kindly tell me if it is possible to 

 get. ruffed grouse eggs and where they can be purchased? Also, if 

 they can be shipped to England. I have a friend who is very de- 

 sirous of starting them on his place at Stampshire. Ans. We 

 think it exceedingly doubtful that you could get the eggs, and 

 even if you did there would not be much hope of raising the 



SAM Lovel's CAMPS.— What George W. Cable has done 

 and is doing for the Louisiana Acadians, Rowland E. Robin 

 son is doing for the New England Yankee. In the present 

 volume and its predecessor, "Uncle Lisha's Shop," he des- 

 cribes with genial humor and, in places, touching pathos, the 

 life of the inhabitants of a little Vermont town 40 years ago. 

 Their days of hard but honest toil, their evenings spent in 

 story-telling and "courtin' " and, now and then, their in- 

 dulgence in a hunting or fishing trip, are depicted realistic- 

 ally in the best sense of the word. It is principally of these 

 times of recreation, their excursions into the forest or to the 

 lake shore, that "Sam Lovel's Camps" treats. Two of these 

 camps there were, one "on the Slang," where Antoine, Pel- 

 atiah, and Sam trapped for muskrat, and one "on the lake " 

 where the same trio, re-enforced by Solon and Jo Hill, hunted 

 and fished and had many startling and comical adventures. 

 The story is interesting throughout, and as it closes with 

 the marriage of Sam and Huldah, the reader cannot forbear 

 a sigh and a wish that it may not be long before Mr. Robin- 

 son issues another book equally delightful and worthy of 

 praise.— Concord (N. H.) Independent Statesman. 



"Sam Lovel's Camps" is full of quaint character draw- 

 ing.— Cambridge Tribune. 



