Ave 1, 1889,] 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



29 



stantly the beauties of the landscape were out of sight 

 and mind, and the keener instincts of the angler aroused 

 for the coming fray at the first musical turn of the reel 

 handle. A noiseless, backward sweep of the oars stopped 

 the boat, and Snakeroot was on his feet with a world of 

 expectancy in his eyes, leaning eagerly forward await- 

 ing the next move of the fish, which had stopped after 

 running off twenty or thirty feet of line. 



"Pickerel, from the symptoms," said Sam, and very 

 gently the point of the rod was raised to ''feel of him," 

 and as the line tightened the fish made a quick dash, 

 jerking the rod down straight, which knocked the curve 

 of anticipation out of old Sam's spine, and with a smart 

 "swipe" he "smote him full sore," and the first battle of 

 the campaign was opened. 



Pulling out three or four rods from the rushes, having 

 quickly reeled up to prevent fouling the lines, the "skip- 

 per" held the boat in position to watch the ffin, hut the 

 fight was short ajid uninteresting. Foiled in two or 

 three efforts to reach the rushes, the fish swung out in 

 the lake and went by the boat with a rush that made the 

 line hiss, but the pull of the rod stopped bim inside of 

 thiity yards, and he was reeled back with little resist- 

 ance to within striking distance with the gaff — a villain- 

 ous-looking Canada pike of four or five pounds. 



As he lay there slowly working his pectorals and glar- 

 ing wickedly at us, I reached out and hit him a smart 

 whack on his partly exposed head that stunned him for 

 an instant, and reversing it, jerked the steel through both 

 jaws and lifted him in the boat, where the club finished 

 the murder, for it does look like murder to kill a brave 

 fish that has fought a good battle and lost against super- 

 ior strength and generalship, even though it be a pirati- 

 cal, predacious pickerel. 



With a grin of intense satisfaction, but without utter- 

 ing a word at scoriug the first fish ahead of the skipper, 

 old Sam hooked on another frog and we resumed our 

 way around the head of the lake at a slow pace that 

 would keep the frogs a couple of feet or more under the 

 water. 



As we passed a patch of "muskrat" grass a little fur- 

 ther along, the music of the click brought Sam to his 

 feet again, and with the tightening of the line and the 

 strike a moment later, a bass went into the air with a 

 glorious leap that made us hold our breath until he 

 struck the water with a splash and the rod bent in a 

 graceful curve, proclaiming that he was "still thar," as 

 Sam tersely expressed it. Then ensued a brief, fierce 

 struggle, old Sam silent and unmoved the while, except 

 for a subdued chuckle and a sparkle in his eyes that be- 

 tokened the intensity of his pleasement at "hanging" the 

 first bass. 



Once again after a wild rush the fish left the water, 

 only to fall back to his death: for the hook still held and 

 at last he was gently led alongside and lifted by thumb 

 and finger in the boat, a clean built, black-backed, small- 

 mouthed bass of not quite 31bs weight, as registered by 

 Sam's "instantaneous pocket scale." 



This was encouragement for sport ahead, but we fished 

 diligently along for a mile or more down the south shore 

 without striking another fish. 



The water was shallow, 4 to 8ft. deep, for 200yds. out 

 from shore, with a scattering gr owth of bulrushes that 

 marked the line of deep water, good looking territory for 

 long snouts; but we could lure them from their hiding 

 places with neither frog nor troller. 



Along this shore to the very water's edge was a hue of 

 woods that rose in gradual ascent to the top of the moun- 

 tain, a half mile back, so dense that from the camp across 

 the lake it looked like a great green carpet spread evenly 

 over the entire slope. It was a rare and eA-er-pleasing 

 picture, and Old Knots spent hours in his comfortable, 

 high-backed camp chair, placed at the end of the little 

 dock, lost .in silent contemplation of "his landscape," as 

 he called it, and filled with an "absorbing interest in the 

 beauties of nature," utterly oblivious to the "near adja- 

 cency" of that hapless camp stove that had ministered to 

 his comfort in so many pleasant camps before. 



On bright afternoons, when the sun had got around 

 where its slanting rays brought out the full glory of the 

 landscape, he would sit there in silence till the shadows 

 from the hills behind fell on the camp, gazing abstractedly 

 across the lake, weaving, us we fancied, quaint figures in 

 the carpet of living green, the while yanking out with 

 lancewood switch some heedless sunfish or pert young 

 perch that had fanned lazily in near the dock, attracted 

 by the wiggling worm, that to its simple mind had no 

 connection with the harmless-looking little stick project- 

 ing motionless over the water — this, as he said, "just to 

 add spice to his enjoyment." Sitting there with his land- 

 scape spread out before him, with his rod, his pipe— the 

 old brown friend that had solaced him for many a year 

 in eun and shadow— he was a picture of serene and indo- 

 lent content; his cup of happiness was full to the brim, 

 and if ever honest angler got full measure of enjoyment 

 out of his camp with the least possible exertion. Old 

 Knots got it at the camp on Echo Lake. Kingfisher. 



A SALMON SCORE. 



rpHERE is one club of anglers, holding the lease of a 

 J. Canadian salmon river, who have abundant cause 

 to be satisfied with their season's work. The fishing- 

 began June 15 and was continued until July 1. Six fish- 

 ermen were on the river, and their catches were as 

 follows : 



Number. Average Weight. Total Weight. 



No. 1 93 21' 6 los. 2,0'fllbg. 



No. 2 ii 23^ " 1,038 " 



No. 3 72 24% " 1,778 " 



No. 4 51 32» 5 " 1 153 " 



No. 5 74 23 " 1 704 " 



No. 6 70 33' „ " 1,548 " 



Total 404 32.881t>s. 9,3481bs. 



.The Big Bass Record. — A correspondent, A. F. N., 

 reports from Renovo, Pa., that a black bass of large size 

 was taken in the West Branch of the Susquehanna, at 

 that point, last week. It measured 29fin. in length and 

 weighed 9lbs. 15oz. It was speared by torchlight, and 

 surely deserved a better fate. Another black bass which 

 deserves to go on record was captured at Greenwood 

 Lake, July 24, by Nat Davy, a guide who was at the 

 time out with Messrs. H. J. Phillips and J. N. Lewis. It 

 was a big-mouth, measured 24iin. In length, 16iin. girth, 

 and weighed 7£ibs. It was taken by skittering close to 

 shore. 



TROUT OF THE POOLS. 



CENTRAL LAKE, Mich., July 18.— Editor Forest and 

 Stream: I had hoped that what I have heretofore 

 written about late spawning trout would have moved 

 others of your correspondents to state facts about their 

 experience in this regard, and relating to other waters 

 than those which I have fished. Perhaps we shall yet 

 hear from some of them, for I know that there are those 

 who have caught many more trout than I this season. 

 I yesterday took seven, of which four contained spawn, 

 apparently ripe. I regret that I cannot truthfully say 

 that I was sorry that I had killed these trout, for some of 

 them were unusually large for these waters, and one in 

 particular I had, in Irish phrase, put my "comether" on 

 some time ago. 



One of your entertaining correspondents not long since 

 alluded to the fact that in the experience of most anglers 

 there are pools apparently fitted to contain good trout, 

 yet there they are "never" taken. I know such places, 

 anil have usually found the explanation of the apparent 

 dearth of fish to be that the pool was tenanted by a trout 

 whose wisdom rendered him proof against the ordinary 

 allurements of the angler, while his size and pugnacity 

 kept other trout from occupying a portion of his chosen 

 retreat. 



With this opinion, I one day, some three weeks ago, 

 approached with great caution a bend in a brook where 

 the water swirled in an eddy beneath overhanging trees 

 and bushes, and had scooped beneath the bank a glorious 

 lurking place for alarge trout. I had always tried it in pass- 

 ing, but invariably without success. Creeping cautiously 

 behind a large cedar tree, I made a cast beneath the pend- 

 ant foliage, which landed my bait (not fly) several feet 

 up stream and quite out of my sight, for it was much as 

 if I had been fishing from a sentry-box, and casting 

 around to the back thereof. The bait was taken, but not 

 so greedily as to lead me to suppose that I had aroused a 

 whale; and when after a moment I lifted the tip, I was 

 surprised at the fuss kicked up at the end of my line. 

 Steering the trout clear of roots and bushes, I was cau- 

 tiously drawing him in, when the hook pulled out and I 

 left lamenting. 



I yesterday found myself at the same place, and no bite. 

 Some five yards distant was a similar pool, only more 

 brushy, and which, like the first, had always disappointed 

 me. Over this the cast was made, and the bait taken 

 exactly as my trout had seized the other. I gave all the 

 time necessary for gorging the hook, perhaps a little 

 more, as I wished to make sure work. Then I moved my 

 rod tip south and by west, so as to clear the branches, 

 and I had him. 



In a pool where there were about twenty roots and 

 sticks to the square foot, nothing is easier than to let the 

 trout foul the line over some of them, but in about two 

 miuutes he was within reach, and shortly lay quivering 

 among the hepaticas. This trout weighed 15oz. In that 

 brook they seldom exceed ilb. to -Jib. 



Having deposited my capture among some freshly 

 gathered ferns at the bottom of my creel, I moved down 

 stream to a large log which stretched across, below which 

 was a pool where I seldom missed a capture. Making a 

 cast, I was rewarded by a minnow, and supposed, there 

 were no trout there. Another cast sent the bait a few 

 feet further on, and it was taken. The trout was a large 

 one, and before I had landed him the snood parted close 

 to the hook, and the fish disappeared. I stood upon the 

 log, looking disconsolately into the clear, shallow stream, 

 when behold ! my trout appeared in sight and evidently 

 in trouble. He darted here and there, half turned upon 

 his side, and floated near the surface with his nose above 

 water; then settled to the bottom of the pool, just under 

 my eye. While I was gazing, surprised, and uncertain 

 what I should do next, the trout again rose near the 

 surface, and lowering the butt of my rod I tapped him 

 on the head, and then stepping into the brook, I managed 

 to slip my hand under his gills and to lift him out of the 

 water. He w T eighed fib. 



The hook had caught in his throat, and, as I concluded, 

 disorganized his breathing apparatus. He would prob- 

 ably have died had I not succeeded in capturing him. 



Kelpie. 



NEWFOUND LAKE FISH. 



TN reply to a letter of inquiry which we sent to Commis- 

 JL sioner Riddle, he writes of the great lake trout of 

 Newfound Lake, New Hampshire: "In reply to your 

 inquiry of yesterday I inclose you two paragraphs from 

 the Manchester Union of July 13. The fish are a supe- 

 rior quality of lake trout; on account of the very clear 

 water they are much better eating than our common 

 lake trout. The weights of the fish were given by Capt. 

 R. W. Musgrove. of Bristol, and the names of those who 

 caught them. He is a reliable man, and his statements 

 are correct. The Legislature now in session will make 

 an appropriation to build a hatching house at Newfound 

 Lake, and it will be complete this fall in season to fill the 

 troughs full of eggs. No finer landlocked salmon can be 

 found in this section than at Newfound Lake, excepting 

 at Sunapee Lake The commi ssion have planted thousand s 

 of young fry within the past four years and thousands 

 of young salmon can be found in the tributaries of New- 

 found Lake at this time. George W. Riddle. 



The Union describes Newfound Lake as "one of the 

 most charming bodies of water that dot the face of the 

 earth, a gem of which New Hampshire may well be 

 proud. Lately it has become famous by reason of the 

 catch of lake trout and landlocked salmon, which has 

 been heralded through the columns of Captain Mus- 

 grove's excellent paper. It is needless to say that the 

 people of the towns surrounding the lake are enthusias- 

 tic, for in size and number of trout taken no New Eng- 

 land lake compares with it. It is about seven miles long 

 and three miles wide at the broadest part, opposite the 

 Lake View House, and of depth, over 200 feet in some 

 places. It has a large watershed, and is fed by Cocker- 

 mouth River, Fowler's River, and half a dozen or more 

 good trout brooks. 



"It is a natural trout water aaid has always yielded 

 tribute to the spear in spawning time, but has not ex- 

 cited real sportsmanship until within three years. There 

 have been several plants of lake trout and landlocked 

 salmon, and their comparative immunity from pursuit 

 by anglers has given them opportunity to develop re- 

 markably. The introduction of the spoon hook has 

 taught Bristol people that there is more sport in landing 

 a 101b. trout or salmon in a legitimate way, than in 



spearing a bushel when they are performing the natural 

 offices of the reproduction of their species, and public 

 sentiment accordingly protects them from vandalism 

 very effectually. Their greatest enemies now are the 

 devouring sucker, eel and shadwrites, which fatten upon 

 the spawn in the fall. 



"The notoriety given the lake is drawing sportsmen 

 from all over New England, and while their coming is 

 welcomed and desired, the people about the lake wish to 

 guard against the practical extinction of these desirable 

 fish by the establishment of a hatchery, where the spawn, 

 stripped from the fish, may be hatched out, and the fry, 

 when in some measure able to take care of themselves, 

 returned to the waters of the lake. 



"The success of the Commission in increasing the stock 

 of game fish in Sunapee Lake in spite of continuous fish- 

 ing seems to warrant the attempt at Newfound. Black 

 bass, trout and salmon have contributed to make Sunapee 

 Lake a popular summer resort, and real estate values 

 have increased until hitherto worthless pasture lands are 

 bringing from $200 to §1,000 per acre for building lots for 

 summer cottages. The mammoth trout of Newfound are 

 sure to draw increasing numbers of fishermen annually, 

 while the lake affords peculiar attractions for cottagers. 

 Its outlet is two miles from Bristol village, where the 

 visitor must leave the cars, which precludes the possibil- 

 ity of the lake being thronged with excursionists. It is 

 preeminently a place for fine summer residences. The 

 present dream of people interested in its development is 

 a Bmall steamer, with a stage line from Bristol to Ply- 

 mouth, the latter being only about ten miles from the 

 upper end of the lake." 



The record of fishing in the lake, as kept by Capt. R. 

 W. Musgrove, editor of the Bristol Enterprise, gives the 

 following scores for five weeks for trout and salmon: 



"The season opened April 16 and practically closed 

 May 23. During this time W. C. Ross and John F. 

 Rogers, of Bristol, caught one trout weighing 101 bs., an- 

 other lolbs. and four others, weight not given, also a 

 landlocked salmon weighing 161 bs.; George H. Fowler 

 and C. N. Drake caught 19 trout weighing 1851bs., that 

 being 4 of lOlbs. feach, three of 91bs. each, 2 of 71bs. 

 each, 2 of 31bs. each, 2 of 121bs. each, 2 of 61bs. 

 each, 1 of 131bs., 1 of lUlbs., and 1 of 201bs.; 

 W. H. Wheeler and Henry Bout well, Fitchburg, Mass,. 



2 trout, one weighing o and the other 13lbs.; iFred 

 Holmes, Hebron* 3, weighing 8, 10 and 81bs., also 2 

 trout and a salmon, weights not given; George Follans- 

 bee, Bristol, 2 trout, one weighing 8£ and the other 71bs.; 

 Charles Alden and George H. Wood. Laconia, the former 

 catching 1 of 6jlbs. and the latter 4. weighing 5*, 8. 4, 

 8ilbs. each; E. F. Pike, Bristol, 5 weighing 47ilbs.'; Capti 

 W. A. Bickiord, Bristol, 3 weighing 12, 10 and 71bs. each 

 and 2 weight not given; Marshall Ballou one weighing 9 

 and another 81bs. : Moses Noyes, Craig and Lund, Nashua, 



3 trout, weighing 7, 8 and 121bs. ; F. W. Colley, Bristol, 

 trout weighing 8, 9, 10, 5, 10 and 91bs. each; William 

 Ackerman, Bristol, one weighing 91bs. ; H. Tukey, Bris- 

 tol, 2, 8i and 5flbs. each; James Colley, Bristol, 1 of 81bs. ; 

 Charles Mason, Bristol, 4, weighing 12, 10, 8$ and 51bs. 

 each, and 2 salmon, weighing 8 and 131b3. each; Albert 

 Hill, Boston, 1 of 8lbs , and Henry Thayer, Boston, 1 of 

 lOlbs.; Frank Huse. Ashland, trout weighing 5, 6 and 

 lOlbs. each; Frank Sanborn, Franklin, 1 weighing 8ilbs.; 

 N. Adams, Bristol, trout weighing 9, 10, 12 and lOlbs.; 

 A. Adams, Bristol, trout weighing 9, 4 and 12lbs. each; 

 Capt. Saunders, Bristol, trout weighing 11,5 and61bs.; 

 Frank Mudgett, Lake Village, 1 trout weighing 19£lbs. ; 

 Chas. Fox, Hill, 1 trout weighing Hlbs.; G. Sumner, Law- 

 rence, Mass., 1 trout weighing lOlbs.; F. F. Roby, Bos- 

 ton, 1 trout weighing l2lbs.; Phillip Adams, Bridge- 

 water, 2 trout weighing 7 and 81bs.; Henry Rogers, 

 Hebron, 1 trout weighing 81bs.; S. S. Clark, Hebron, l of 

 81bs.-; Fred Hall, Bristol, 1 of 121bs. ; Dr. A. Q. Ballou 1 

 of 81bs.; Gen. H. L. Porter, Concord, 1 of 12lbs.; Gust 

 Walker, Concord, 1 of lOlbs.; James Ballou, Bristol, 1 of 

 lllbs.; C. H. Hinds, Franklin, 2 of lOlbs. each; Darius 

 Cross, Bristol, 2 landlocked salmon; D. H. Sleeper, Bris- 

 tol, 1 of 4-pbs. and a 81bs. salmon; Rev. C. H. Taylor, 

 formerly of this city, 6, 3 of 91bs. each and the others of 

 10, 11 and olbs., one salmon weighing 4lbs., Mi'. Taylor's 

 catch being the result of two days on the lake; J. F. 

 Rogers, Hebron, 3 trout and 1 salmon, weight not given, 

 making a total of 109 trout, weighing 976ilbs. and an 

 average of 91bs. each, " 



Susquehanna River Fishing.— Harrisbure-, Pa.— The 

 Susquehanna is one of the most magnificent rivers in this 

 country for the small-mouthed bass and the Susquehanna 

 salmon (pike-perch). It is not necessary to mention any 

 particular location, as there is good fishing from tide- 

 water, at Port Deposit, to Renova on the West Branch, 

 and in the entire Juniata. Harrisburg is well supplied 

 with anglers; private and social club houses are numer- 

 ous and well appointed, and located near good fishing 

 grounds. Many visitors from distant cities have gone 

 home full of praise for the generous hospitality shown 

 them, and highly pleased with the large strings of fine 

 fish caught. While there are a good many who depend 

 upon the delusive fly, the majority stick to the stone-cat 

 and the lamprey eel, which are the most killing in these 

 waters. Since bait is so scarce and high priced some of 

 our people are trying a new and lazy method to capture 

 the wary bass. When the water is muddy rods and lineB 

 are discarded and parties go out in row boats, and by 

 keeping in near the grass, close to shore, the fish are 

 frightened into jumping out of the water and frequently 

 into the boat. A short time since, a party of tour, at 

 Marietta, had thirteen bass jump into their boat. As the 

 writer, with some gentlemen, was returning one dark 

 night from an island in the river, holding a lantern to 

 guide us, three fine large bass jumped into the boat. 

 They were, no doubt, attracted by the light. We have 

 quite a number of lady anglers here who handle the rod 

 with a skill equal to that of some of our oldest veterans. 

 One of them, Miss E,, successfully landed a black bass 

 weighing 41bs. 13oz., and another bass, weight Slbs. 8oz., 

 was taken by one of our other lady anglers. Louis Kapp- 

 han, with Mr. Hartz, at Coxestown, took twenty-five 

 bass, the largest of which weighed 4£lbs. Geo. Meredith, 

 a railroad engineer, captured fifteen bass at Dauphin, the 

 largest weighing 61bs. I hope to give you some good 

 records later on. — Dwair. 



Bluefish at the Mouth oe the Merrimac. — It is 

 reported that a bluefish was caught near the mouth of 

 the Merrimac River on July 22. 



