222 



FOREST AND STREAM SUPPLEMENT. 



[April 4, 1889. 



very stout. There are teeth on the root of the tongue. 

 Adult specimens become very much bleached in color 

 and uniform silvery. The red spots are large and less 

 numerous than in brook trout of the same size. 



25. The Brook Trout (Salvelinus fontinalis). Fig. 25. 

 — Generally called speckled trout or speckled beauty. 

 This well-known species ranges naturally from Labrador 

 to Georgia east of the Allegheniee, also in the Great 

 Lake region. It has been widely distributed westward 

 and across seas. It is recorded on good authority that 

 specimens weighing lOlbs. occur in the Rangeley Lakes 

 and Dr. Hoy has seen one of 121bs., but such examples 

 seem to be rare. The species has quite a reputation for 

 sea going, as will appear from articles recently received 

 by Forest and Stream, as well as from advices from 

 England. The color variations hi the brook trout are 

 astonishing. Tarleton H. Bean. 



TROUT OF THE NORTHWEST. 



FROM conversations with Capt. Charles Bend ire, U. 

 S. A., we have obtained the following information 

 about the trout of Oregon, Washington Territory and 

 Idaho: 



There is no better fishing anywhere in the West than 

 in Williamson's River, Oregon. Gairdner's trout abounds 

 in this stream and its tributary, the Sprague. The Wood 

 River, which flows into Klamath Lake, is an especial 

 favorite for spawning in the winter. Indians spear the 

 trout on their spawning grounds. At the season when 

 crickets are plentiful they must be used for bait in the 

 Sprague; flies will be refused. In Williamson's River, 

 from July to September, Gairdner's trout affords the best 

 fly-fishing I have ever enjoyed. My first sergeaut often 

 went out on Sundays, during the summer, and caught as 

 many as lOOlbs. of trout, ranging from 21bs. to 7 or 8. 

 The favorite fly was the white and red-ibis. These flies 

 were made in San Francisco especially fur that fishing. 

 Gairdner's trout reaches 211bs. in weight in this region; I 

 have obtained one weighing 14!|lbs. 



Clark's, or the red-throated trout, is very plentiful and 

 affords the best fishing in some of the tributaries of the 

 Snake River, especially Camas Creek in Idaho. Here 

 they average 2 or 81bs. in weight. Cceur d'Alene Lake, 

 Idaho, and Spokane River, Washington Territory, are 

 good localities for this species. The Indians depend 

 mostly on spearing and traps for their supplies. Bou- 

 viers trout, which is a little color variety of the red- 

 throated, is found only in Waha Lake on the top of the 

 Blue Mountains, or Craig's Mountain, near Lewiston, 

 Idaho. This is a very deep mountain lake, and apparent- 

 ly contains no other fish. The trout are nearly uniform 

 in size and none of them exceed 12in. in length. A 

 species called "salmon trout" runs up from Snake River 

 into Lapwai Creek. Idaho, in March and April to spawn. 

 They are taken in traps and are speared in large numbers, 

 but they will not take a fly or bait— not even their own 

 eggs. These fish vary from 5 to lOlbs.. and are full of 

 eggs when they come into the creek. From some of 

 them the eggs will run out when the trout are held up 

 others are not quite so ripe. ' 



"Bull trout" is a common name applied to the Dolly 

 Varden throughout the Northwest. The fish is not equal 

 to Gairdner's or to the red-throated trout either for eatim* 

 or sport. It seldom takes the flv in that part of the 

 country, being a ground feeder and softer in flesh than 

 the other two species. The bull trout rarely reaches 71be. 

 m weight. It is much more voracious than eith- r of the 

 others, killing every fish near it when closely confined 

 as m aquaria. 



MINGAN RIVER TROUT. 



WHILE we were at Mingan, southern Labrador, with 

 the Grampus in the summer of 1887, trout were re- 

 ported to be abundant at the falls of the Little Manitou 

 River, about 3 or 4 miles from a point on the Mingan 

 River opposite where the vessel lay and across a com- 

 paratively narrow neck of land from the harbor. There 

 had, however, been a freshet, and the muddy condition 

 of the water as well as the height of the river above its 

 usual level made fishing impracticable for several days. 

 Finally we were assured that the water had subsided 

 sufficiently to make it possible to catch some trout, and 

 the local Canadian official courteously tendered us the 

 use of his canoe, a kindness for which we were largely 

 indebted to the good offices of the gentlemanly com- 

 mander of the cruiser La Canadienne. 



Mr. Lucas was charged with the responsible duty of 

 providing the outfit of fishing gear, which was soon 

 ready, and, after "a long pull, a strong pull, and a pull 

 all together," he and I reached the foot of the falls. There 

 we met the Indian, Jean Batiste, who had been out with 

 us seal hunting a few days before, and his squaw, and 

 the keen-eyed aborigine told us, "trout, him plenty; him 

 no want to bite." 



On our way up we had also passed and hailed a dis- 

 appointed angler, who was returning to the harbor, and 

 whose story of failure was of the same tenor as that con- 

 veyed by the Indian. That trout were as plentiful as 

 heart could desire was evident— and beauties too ! They 

 could be seen below the falls jumping out of the water, 

 while every few minutes a nimble gymnast, his spotted 

 sides glistening in the sun against the dark background 

 of ledge or rushing water, sprang high in the ah- in this 

 effort to leap the fall. Near the fall was a deep pool, 

 about 50 to 75 feet across, that had been filled up by the 

 late rise in the river, but was now separated from the 

 latter by a narrow strip of beach, which was covered with 

 scattering alders. This pool was literally alive with 

 trout that could be seen jumping and breaking water in a 

 manner to make the nerves of an angler tingle to his 

 finger tips. My friend could not accept as final the re- 

 ports he had received and he would have been far less 

 an enthusiast if he had allowed the assertion, "they won't 

 bite at anything," to deter him from trying his luck. 

 Around and over the pool went the flies of all colors and 

 varying sizes, bait cut with the greatest skill; but no re- 

 sults, while the leaps and the flapping tails still tantalized 

 us. It was trying to the nerves, and no mistake ! I be- 

 came tired and disgusted with our lack of success, and, 

 sitting down by the falls, tried to console mvself by 

 watching the magnificent display of power exhibited by 

 the trout leaping up the rush of falling water. 



My companion was more patient and persistent. He 

 fairly ached to catch some of those trout. Failing in the 



pool, he whipped the river above the fall for some dis" 

 tance, and finally came back to his starting point. 

 Luckily at this time he remembered a spoon bait that he 

 had brought along, and, although we had repeatedly been 

 told by the local anglers that "spoons are no good "here," 

 he determined to learn for himself the truth or fallacy of 

 the assertion. However indifferent the trout may have 

 been to a spoon at other times, it was soon evident that 

 the glistening silver had great attraction for them on 1 his 

 occasion. No sooner had the cast been made than the 

 hook was struck by a handsome fish, and a few moments 

 later I was aroused from watching the tumbling water- 

 fall and leaping fish by a triumphant shout behind me. 

 Turning I saw a sight that pent the blood coursing through 

 my veins with accelerated speed, for there among the 

 alders stood Mr. Lucas, the embodiment of that special 

 happiness known to the successful angler alone. His face 

 was beaming with triumph as he held up his capture— a 

 trout that weighed o}lbs., of which a cast was made after 

 we returned to the vessel. 



What possibilities of "fish stories" before the scientific 

 societies and clubs of Washington crowded the brain of 

 my friend I cannot say: but it was plain that he felt that 

 the opportunity he had been looking for had come at 

 last. Like a prudent general, however, he calculated the 

 chances, and the first thing he did was to tie on a new 

 gut leader, so that no unnecessary risk might be taken 

 with the single spoon, which was our only dependence 

 for an afternoon's sport. Two or three medium sized 

 trout, weighing between 1 and 21bs. each, were soon 

 landed, aud the fish seemed so eager for the spoon that 

 we were beginning to settle down to business. I believe 

 I made some mental estimates as to how many it would 

 take to fill a barrel; but, alas for our happiness and the 

 prospective stories! just then the spoon was seized by a 

 big fellow with a vim, making the line hum and sing for 

 a moment, and then— off he went with our priceless 

 spoon. Never shall I forget the expression that spread 

 over my companion's face; it is impossible for me ade- 

 quately to describe it. It was a fit accompaniment to the 

 emphatic exclamation which greeted my ears and in 

 which surprise, disappointment and disgust were about 

 equally blended. Thus were our ambitions and expecta- 

 tions crushed in a moment, for only a single trout re- 

 warded hours of effort after the spoon was lost, and 

 although he was a noble fellow and fought with remark- 

 able skill and endurance, we could not forget our loss 

 and disappointment in the sport he furnished us, especi- 

 ally as we knew we should sail next day from Mingan, 

 and no other chance would be afforded* us to visit the 

 falls. J^W. Collins. 



TROUT FISHING IN UTAH. 



IN the month of June, several years ago, in company 

 with two friends, I went trout fishing in Lost Creek, 

 Wahsatch Mountain, sixteen or eighteen miles below 

 Park City, Utah. Nobody had fished there that spring 

 and trout wore abundant. I was using a large fly with 

 big wings, exactly like the pheasant, but gray, and the 

 mountain trout would not take it at all; they seemed to 

 be striking at something resembling a wasp. I trimmed 

 off the feathers with a knife, to imitate the wasp wings, 

 and then caught with that fly twenty-three trout ranging 

 from ^lb. to ljlba. The smaller ones were taken in the 

 riffles at the rapids, and the larger ones in pools between 

 the rapids. I had tried two or three other flies, but the 

 trout would not take them. At one of the rifHes I failed 

 to get a strike, when I saw on the opposite side a place 

 about two feet wide and two feet deep, where a stone had 

 fallen out from the edge of the bank. I tossed the fly 

 iuto this hole and three trout jumped at it, clean out of 

 water. I caught five, averaging 4lb. each, out of that 

 little hole when it was impossible to get a rise in any 

 other part of that riffle. These were the fiercest trout I 

 ever saw; there was no such thing as scaring them; if 

 they missed the fly the first jump, they would try it again 

 and again until hooked, sometimes throwing themselves 

 entirely out of water; we took between sixty and seventy 

 in all. 



made. A tightening of the line, a tug, a turn of the 

 wrist, and out came a lively, handsome trout. My spirits 

 rose, and a successful throw brought them up to summer 

 heat. Flies and mostpiitoes ceased to be unbearable, as 

 one after another a dozen fine trout were safely landed. 

 Now the biting slackened, but diffidently changing bait 

 for a fly showed that trout were still hungry. When the 

 sun came out a smaller fly proved attractive until it was 

 literally worn out. At last, after two hours, a bright sun 

 and dead calm put an end to our sport and we retired 

 with a good basket of the speckled beauties. When 

 counted we found we had caught 50 fish, whose weight 

 was 121bs., the four largest averaging a half pound each. 

 My own catch (I was selfish enough to do most of the 

 fishing) was 36. weight 9ibs. Another struggle through 

 the woods brought us to our boat and ended my most 

 successful trouting expedition. F. A. LrcAS. 



Willard Nye, Jr. ' 



SELDOM COME BY TROUT. 



CiAIiEFUL catechising of the inhabitants of Seldom 

 Come By, who visited the Fish Com mission schooner 

 Grampus, on which I was enabled to go to Labrador in 

 the summer of 1887, elicited the fact that there were two 

 ponds "about a mile off," said to contain trout and gulls. 

 Accordingly a scouting party w^as organized on the 

 morning of July 25, to make an armed reconnaissance in 

 that direction, and soon after breakfast we moved land- 

 ward. Landing at the upper end of the harbor, the first 

 attack was made on a little trout brook and resulted in 

 the capture of on e good trout and three ' ' tinkers. " March 

 was then resumed toward the pond— and what a march 

 it proved to be! If, as we were told, there waB a "sort of 

 blind path," we were too blind to find it, and stumbled 

 along over stones, through bogs and bushes, and among 

 the burned and fallen spruces that covered the ground 

 with a complete network. Often too weak to bear a 

 man's weight, they were strong enough to trip him up, 

 tear his clothes and ruffle his temper. Half an hour's 

 continual struggle, tormented by flies and bitten by mos- 

 quitoes, failed to bring the ponds within range of vision. 

 Capt. Collins led the way with a gun, closely followecl 

 by Frank with an oar, from which hung net, rope and 

 boots— paraphernalia to be used in the capture of sup- 

 posititious small fry. Hot and thirsty, I brought up the 

 rear with an axe, two fishing rods and a bag full of prb- 

 visions, convinced that if labor met its just reward 

 we deserved at least a ban-elf u I of trout. Still 

 struggling onward, almost discouraged, we forced our 

 way through a perfect abatis of fallen timber, and lo, 

 there was the pond! And a most unpromising looking 

 pond it was, too — apparently a mere flooded bog hole 

 fringed with bushes and here and there walled by the 

 ever present rock. Adopting my usual tactics in such 

 cases, "accoutereel as I was I plunged in," throwing out 

 here and there without any hope of success. Ten or fifteen 

 minutes was sufficient to justify my doubts, and wet and 

 bruised I returned to the spot where we first struck the 

 pond. Just then Frank, who had gone in the opposite 

 direction, shouted that he had found some trout, so with 

 a somewhat incredulous spirit I started after him, slipping 

 over rocks, sinking into mud, and stumbling over con- 

 cealed sticks. The spot where Frank direc ted me to throw 

 was not a promising one, being a shallow little cove 

 studded with rocks, between two of which my cast was 



SALMON FAMILY IN THE FAR NORTH, 



WHEN we reach the extreme northwestern corner of 

 our continent, at Point Barrow, where the writer 

 spent the two years from September. 1881, to August, 

 1883, we leave behind the myriaels of salmon and trout, 

 which we have come to associate with the name of Alaska. 



Only a few humpbacked salmon (Oncorhynchm gor- 

 buscha) with one or two salmon of a species not yet deter- 

 mined, and a very few individuals of the Pacific red 

 spotted trout (Salvelinus malma), of large size and bright 

 silvery color from long residence in the sea, are caught 

 in the shallow bays in the immediate neighborhood of 

 Point Barrow during the short summer. These are all 

 caught in gill-nets skillfully made of fine strips of whale- 

 bone, or of fine strong twine made by braiding shreds of 

 reindeer sinew. The nets are set with stakes at right 

 angles to the shore, in the shoal water of the larger bay 

 at Point Barrow, close to the great summer camp and 

 fair ground. Here the Esquimaux from the two Point Bar- 

 row villages assemble to meet the Esquimaux from Kotze- 

 bue Sound, who have traveled up to the headwaters of 

 the Colville during the winter, and have come down the 

 river with the spring floods and traveled westward 

 in the open water along the coast. Whitefish , too, chiefly 

 Coregonus lanrettce, are also caught in the nets, but the 

 fishing is really a very trifling affair. 



The natives, however, who go east to the Colville every 

 summer to meet the people from Kotzebue Sound and 

 the Mackenzie, find fish more plenty. One of my Esqui- 

 maux acquaintances, who went to the mouth of the Col- 

 ville in the summer of 1882, found the trout so abundant 

 that he fed his dogs with them. 



They told us, too, of the grayling, the "wing-fin," as 

 they call it, in the Meade River or Kulugrua, a stream 

 which flows into the Arctic Ocean about fifty miles east 

 of Point Barrow. This fish, they said, was never caught 

 in nets, but "ate a hook." We brought home several of 

 these hooks, made after the pattern so common in Alaska, 

 a sort of little "squid," made of a club-shaped piece of 

 walrus ivory, colored by charring the surface with fire, 

 and armed with a barbless hook. 



Wifh such a hook as this they probably angle for the 

 grayling, and perhaps also for the trout, using a short, 

 rough rod about a yard long, with a whalebone line, 

 longer than the rod. We never saw these used, for there 

 is no angling neat our station, except for the little polar 

 cod, which are caught through the ice in winter. 



The three species of whitefish, however, Coregonus 

 richardsoni, and O. nelsoni, which are large species, and 

 C. laurettfp, which is a small one, are the members of the 

 salmon family most important to the Point Barrow 

 Esquimaux, These are caught in the Meade River and 

 its tributary, Kuaru, chiefly in winter after the rivers 

 are frozen over. For the Meade River they say frerzes 

 down to the bottom on the shallow bars, so that the fish 

 are penned up in the deep holes and cannot escape to the 

 sea, as they do in the rivers further east. Many of the 

 natives go to these rivers to hunt reindeer in October and 

 early November, and again in February and March. 

 Here they stay in camp, and while the men are hunting 

 the women set their nets through holes in the ice and 

 catch a great many fine whitefish. Many a load of these 

 is brought in frozen hard by the returning deer hunters. 



On the whole there is very little about Point Barrow to 

 recommend it to the angler. Many a time did I regret 

 the enforced idleness of my Scribner greenheart rod. 

 which I never had a chance to put together during the 

 whole two years. 



I believe, though, that the enterprising angler. w r ho 

 will one day cast his flies over the virgin waters of Ku- 

 lugrua, will have wondeiful sport with the grayling and 

 trout. If the Esquimau can catch them with his primi- 

 tive tackle,- what couldn't a man do with civilized °'ear. 

 Smithsonian Institution, March 21. JOHN MURDOCH. 



A TWELVE-POUND BROOK TROUT. 



THE venerable and genial Dr. P. R. Hoy, of Racine, 

 Wis. , is one of the best illustrations of the benefi- 

 cent effects of natural history studies and out-of-door 

 sports in prolonging life and preserving strength. He 

 recounted to us recently his participation in the capture 

 of the celebrated 12-pound brook trout by Seth Green in 

 the Sault Ste. Marie, in 1875. Readers of Forest and 

 Stream will remember the description in this journal at 

 the time. The Doctor states positively that the fish was 

 a brook trout and that he saw it weighed on a pair of 

 "balances;" the weight was "down weight." When the 

 landing net was used, it was a question at first whether 

 the Doctor should go into or the trout come out of the 

 water. Dr. Hoy made the first studies of the food of the 

 whitefish, and secured many new animals in his early 

 deep-water explorations in Lake Michigan. 



BROOK TROUT AT SEA. 



ABOUT the middle of the winter of 1S86-87, I caught 

 a brook trout in a fyke net at the head of Great 

 Harbor, Woods Holl, in company with tomcod and flat- 

 fish. This w r as the second one obtained by me in salt 

 water. When the ale wives, or river herring, strike in 

 about July 1, the trout leave the streams in this vicinity, 

 and are seen no more until the first open spell in Febru- 

 ary. They come in with the smelt. When they arrive 

 they are of mixed sizes, 2in., 4 or 5in., and adults of 

 about 12in. Theii-spawning begins here about March 1. 

 Woods Holl, Mass V. N. Edwards. 



