Jan. 30, 1890.1 



FOREST AND STREAM 



29 



ANGLING NOTES. 



MR. G. W. THORNE, of Colorado Springs, one of 

 the prominent anglers of Colorado, stated in a 

 recent conversation with the writer that the most killing 

 flies in the Upper Rio Grande were the following; Coach- 

 man, rnyal-coachman, cowdung, brown-palmer, gray- 

 palmer, black-gnat and brown-hen. They should be 

 dressed on sproat hooks Nos. 4, 5 and 6. He owns a 

 ranch at Wagonwheel Gap, and speaks in the most 

 enthusiastic manner of the fishing there. The water is 

 exceedingly cold, and the trout (Salmo purpuratus) are 

 very large and good fighters. 



A great many fishermen lay in a stock of live minnows 

 in the fall, to be used as bait for pickerel fishing through 

 the ice. They are easily kept in any place where the 

 water will not freeze. While this style of fishing is not 

 of the highest grade, yet in winter when there is no other 

 sport it is not to be despised. It affords the angler an 

 excuse for being out of doors in good, healthy, bracing 

 weather, and there is considerable fun and excitement 

 when fish are reasonably plenty. A good fire on the shore 

 with a sufficient supply of refreshments for the inner 

 man will add to the comfort of those engaged in the 

 sport; and if the wind sweeps over the ice as it generally 



1 »rs on those mountain ponds, one can not be too warnily 



•••«< h 



s.flroe of the best and most convenient things in the way 

 of refreshments on a cold day is the liquid condensed 

 beef. It comes all ready seasoned in small glass bottles, 

 and each bottle will make twelve or fifteen cups of beef 

 tea. All that is necessary is a tin cup, and the sportsman 

 can have his hot or cold cup of beef tea with very little 

 trouble. Two teaspoonsful of the liquid to a cup makes 

 it plenty strong enough. It is far better than liquor in 

 any shape. 



A recent letter from St. Stephen, New Brunswick, men- 

 tions the fact that they, too, are having a very open 

 winter. No snowshoeing up to date and the streams yet 

 open. Everything looks" like a good winter for fish and 

 game, and an early fishing season is predicted, especially 

 for salmon . 



Complaints are still coming in regarding the lawless- 

 ness about the Raquette Lake region of the Adirondacks. 

 A gentleman recently returned from there says that no 

 attention is paid to the enforcement of the game laws in 

 that part of the country. Guides, sportsmen (?) and hotel 

 keepers do as they please. Neither did the authorities 

 seem to make the slightest effort to arrest the thieves 

 that committed the robberies in that section last season. 



A letter from Orange county, N. Y., states that the 

 brooks are open, wild flowers to be found and trout ris- 

 ing, as if it were April instead of January. The same 

 writer states also that there is a fair stock of ruffed 

 grouse left, and as the farmers are killing a good many 

 foxes, there is some hope for good shooting next fall. 



Speaking of foxes, it is singular that one so rarely sees 

 them while out in the woods. During a shooting and 

 fishing experience of over thirty years the writer has 

 never seen but two. While wading quietly down a trout 

 brook these ran across the stream on a log; they were 

 quite young and very pretty. It is not unusual to see 

 deer, mink, otter, beaver and very many other wild ani- 

 mals; but wolves and foxes seem very hard to see. Prob- 

 ably they do most of their hunting at night. 



THE YELLOW-FIN TROUT. 



THE following description of the yellow-finned trout 

 of Twin Lakes, Col., is given by David Starr Jordan 

 and Barton Warren Evermann, in the forthcoming Vol. 

 XII., of the Proceedings National Museum: 



Salmo mykips macdonaldi subsp. nov. Type in U. S. 

 National Museum. 



Head. 4 to 4-,^, in length; depth, 4£ to 5; D. 2, 12. A. 

 1, 11. B. 10. Scales, 40-184-37, about 125 pores. Length 

 of type, 10in.; other specimens from 5 to 8in. 



Body more elongate and more compressed than usual 

 among the trout; head long, compressed, the snout mod- 

 erately pointed; mouth rather large, the jaws subequal, 

 the maxillary extending beyond the eye, If to 2 in head; 

 hyoid teeth present, small; opercle longer than usual, its 

 greatest length 4£ in head, somewhat greater than eye, 

 its posterior margin strongly convex. Eye 5+ in head; 

 snout 4J; gill rakers short, x + 10. 



Scales quite small and regularly placed. Pectoral fin 

 moderate, If in head; ventrals 2. Caudal moderately 

 emarginate, the lobes equal, If in head. 



Color silvery-olive, a broad lemon-yellow shade along 

 the sides: lower fins bright golden yellow in life; no 

 trace of red, except the usual crimson dash under the 

 lower jaw, never wanting in Salmo viykiss. 



Body posteriorly and on dorsal and caudal fin profusely 

 speckled with small pepper-like spots, smaller than the 

 nostril, and smaller than in any other of the forms of 

 Salmo mykiss. Occasionally these spots are numerous 

 on the anterior part of the body, and even on the head, 

 but usually they are very sparse before the dorsal fin. 

 A round dark diffuse blotch on cheek behind eye. 

 Pyloric coeca about 40. 



Stomach containing some vegetable matter, bones of 

 suckers, and what appears to be a very large flat white 

 worm, apparently swallowed as part of its food. 



About ten specimens of this species were taken with 

 the fly in the lower Twin Lakes, about 15 miles southwest 

 of Leadville, a beautiful mountain lake tributary to the 

 Arkansas River. 



Most of the specimens were taken by Mr. George R. 

 Fisher, of Leadville, a very enthusiastic and very well 

 informed angler, who first'made known to us the exist- 

 ence of the species and accompanied our trip in search 

 of it. 



There are two kinds of trout native to this lake, the 

 yellow-fin or salmon trout, above described, and the 

 smaller "greenback trout," also found in the Arkansas and 

 Platte, Salmo mykiss sto7nias. 



The yellow-fin trout lives largely on the gravels and 

 about the north or sunny side of the lake. It reaches a 

 weight of 7 to lOlbs., the very large fish being usually 

 taken with the spear; specimens of 131bs. weight are 

 reported. The species never leaves the lake except to 



spawn, and most of them spawn in the lake. It has never 

 been seen in the river, and rarely in very deep water. 



This fish feeds very freely on young suckers and even 

 on young trout. It spawns in. spring, and the suckers 

 infest its spawning beds, devouring the eggs. 



The flesh of the yellow fin trout is very pale, and more 

 watery th an that of the other trout of Colorado. In flavor 

 its flesh is not inferior to the other species. The color of 

 the flesh may be due to the fact that it feeds on fishes 

 rather than Crustacea. The "greenback trout" (S. m. sto- 

 mias) feeds on Crustacea and has very red flesh. 



We have taken pleasure in naming this species for Hon . 

 Marshall McDonald. U. S. Commissioner of Fisheries, in 

 recognition of his services in spreading the range of 

 Salmomdw in America. 



University of Indiana, Jan. 10. 



OREGON SALMON ANGLING. 



HERE is a letter sent by one of our Portland (Oregon) 

 readers to a friend in New York. The informa- 

 tion will be welcomed: "Last year was the first time to 

 my knowledge that salmon would take the fly in Oregon 

 waters away from tide water. That they would do so 

 was discovered accidentally by a gentleman who was 

 fishing for trout in the Clackamas, a mountain stream 

 about twelve miles from here. The fishing was best 

 from May 20 to June 15, and many large catches were 

 made. My brother landed fourteen in one day, the 

 largest of which measured 39in. in length. They ran 

 from 24in. to 36in. in length, and were all landed with- 

 out help and after strong fights. My brother's catch 

 was only an average one and was excelled on several 

 occasions by gentlemen of my acquaintanc. 



"Most of the fishing is done in a beautiful pool 200yds. 

 long and 40yds. wide, where the water is shoal on both 

 sides, quickly deepens to a depth of 6ft. or 7ft., and at 

 its head has a current of about ten miles an hour. 



"The favorite fly is of a reddish cast and is a hard one 

 to describe, but can be procured here from local dealers. 

 The most killing fly is one with wine body and brown 

 speckled win gs. Others used were black- hackle, coach- 

 man, professor and bright red flies. If you come out 

 bring a salmon rod with you, as the work is too heavy 

 for a, trout rod, and the best success is had from long- 

 casts well out in the cm-rent, the fisherman standing on 

 the shore or wading out in the stream as he may prefer. 



"June, July and August are considered the best 

 months to visit Puget Sound and Alaska, and I would 

 advise you to engage your passage north as far ahead as 

 practicable, as the steamers can seldom accommodate all 

 the tourist travel that offers. 



"Should you come out here I will be glad to assist you 

 in having some good sport with the rod, and if the 

 salmon take hold this year as well as they did last you 

 vou will be able to 'catch more fish than you can carry. " 



W. F. B. 



MYSTERIOUS STOCKING OF PONDS. 



Editor Forest and Stream: 



Will you explaiu correctly how it is that fish are found 

 in ponds of water having no outlet? For instance, here 

 in Texas stockmen build large reservoirs by digging out 

 the earth and building embankments which never over- 

 flow, and in the course of a few years they are well 

 stocked with fish. I have heard this accounted for in 

 various ways, but not to my satisfaction. Possibly I have 

 not read Forest and Stream closely enough. T. J. S. 



[Artificial ponds such as you describe may be stocked 

 with fish in one of several ways: (1) By human agency: 

 (2) by means of fertilized adhesive eggs carried on the 

 feet of aquatic birds or the bodies of insects; (3) by the 

 action of wind storms. We have been fortunate enough 

 to receive specimens of fish which were rained down in 

 the streets of a Nebraska city and found them to belong 

 to a species common in the vicinity. If you have the 

 opportunity, send to Forest and Stream some examples 

 of fish discovered under the circumstances related and we 

 will be able to tell whether or not they are indigenous to 

 the region in which your ponds are located. You can 

 mail them in dry salt, or, better still, soak them a week 

 in alcohol, then take them out and wrap them in cloths 

 moistened with alcohol, place them in a pasteboard or 

 wooden box and send by mail. The dispersion of fresh- 

 water fishes is one of the most difficult and interesting 

 problems of ichthyology, and you can do us good service 

 by aiding in its elucidation.] 



Brook Trout Spawning in January.— Baltimore, Jan. 

 14. _ Editor Forest and Stream: Many thanks for copy of 

 Forest and Stream of Jan. 9 instant. I was already in 

 possession of the number. I take it regularly from our 

 news dealer, Crowley; can't do without it, must have it, 

 and hope to live long to enjoy its contents. The " Fish 

 of Florida Waters" is very interesting and the pictures 

 of thoses fishes are beautiful. What labor it must be to 

 kill the tarpum ; all labor and very little sport. I am 

 very much of the same mind as Dr. Henshall. "I do 

 not particularly fancy that kind of angling." I will stick 

 to the brook trout and wade in our mountain streams so 

 long as the good Lord gives me strength to cast a fly. 

 Yesterday, the 13th, the mercury registered 60°, and I 

 went up the Northern Central Railway thirty miles to 

 kill a few trout for an invalid. After taking a dozen or 

 more I dressed them and found in one, Sin. in length, ova 

 almost ready to spawn. I stopped fishing at once. Now 

 I will ask if this is not remarkable, that trout will spawn 

 in January ?— E. S. Y. ]In Pennsylvania the spawning- 

 season of the brook trout usually begins in October and 

 continues until the middle of December; but in FOREST 

 and Stream will be found records of spawning as late as 

 April in Massachusetts and in May, June, July and Au- 

 gust in Michigan. See Forest and Stream of May 16, 

 June 13 and Oct. 3, 1889.] 



Ice Fishing.— Portland, Me., Jan. 24.— I am sorry to 

 say the parties suspected of the outrage at the landlocked 

 salmon hatchery at Edes Falls have again escaped justice, 

 the Grand Jury failing to find a bill against them. This 

 I believe is the third time an attempt to hold them has 

 fallen through. Ice fishing for pickerel has been carried 

 on with great success all about Cumberland county this 

 winter, favored by the absence of snow and the prevail- 

 ing mild weather. Local fish dealers report handling 

 larger quantities of this fish than for ten years past.— 

 C. D. S. 



An Indefatigable Angler.— Chicago, Jan. 18.-Editor 

 Forest and. Stream: I have lived during the months of 

 March and April at my winter home, Buena Retiro, near 

 the village of Enterprise, Fla., for five years. There I 

 became acquainted with that noble old manandindefati- 

 cable fisherman, Mr. Benson, who, I am informed, had 

 made his home at the Brock House and fished the waters 

 of Lake Monroe for nearly twenty years. The other day 

 my Florida paper, published at Orange City, briefly 

 noticed his death. It was a death notable for its appro- 

 priateness. He died suddenly in his boat while playing 

 a splendid bass. He fell suddenly and uttered no word. 

 He often told me that he believed he would die in that 

 manner. I have no particulars of his life, but I think he 

 was a native of Boston and fished the Northern waters in 

 summer. He must have reached the age of eighty, if not 

 more. He usually went to Enterprise in December and 

 remained till May 1 , fishing every day except Sunday. 

 He was a man of large means and very benevolent. If 

 any of your readers know more about him the facts ought 

 to be given.— E. M. H. 



Indiana Blass Bass in January.— North Vernon, Ind., 

 Jan. LI. — I saw to-day six bass, ranging from ilb. down, 

 caught by Mr. A. Johnson with hook and line in one of 

 our streams, the Muscatatack, within a half mile of town. 

 It is unusual to catch bass in any of our streams later than 

 Dec. 1 or earlier than March 1. I have never seen any 

 caught between these dates until to-day. The fish were 

 caught with minnows and were gamy. Our county (Jen- 

 nings) has fifty miles or more of good bass waters. The 

 large and small-mouth are both plenty. The streams are 

 rocky, with numerous riffles, and the pools between are 

 never over 6ft. deep at an ordinary stage. Would like to 

 know if any bass have been caught since the first of the 

 year in similar streams. — W. 



Weight of Lake Trout.— Albany Jan. 19, 1890.— 

 Please give me the weight of the largest lake trout 

 caught in Schroon Lake, N. Y.; if there is no such record 

 give me the weight of the largest one caught that you 

 have on record.— W. P. W. [We have no complete 

 record of weights of lake trout from Schroon Lake. In 

 Dr. Good's "American Fishes" you will find a statement 

 concerning an example of 4ft. Sin. It is not uncommon 

 to hear of individuals weighing 401bs.] 



Tarpum in Texas.— Beeville, Tex. — Recently experi- 

 enced anglers have discovered that we have the genuine 

 tarpum or silverfish in the bays that fringe the Gulf of 

 Mexico; and the sport of hooking them, but seldom land- 

 ing the game, affords both amusement and excitement, 

 as any one will testify who has experienced this rare 

 sport.— T. J. S. 



That Florida Number (Jan. 9) was a grand one. The 

 retrospect by "O. O. S." was worth a year's subscription. 

 His picture of the pine land orange grower would be hard 

 to beat, and the Charlotte Harbor fishing paper by "F. S. 

 J. C. is well done. But what is the use to specify all we 

 get in the Forest and Stream?— G. A. B. 



A FISH HE WILL REMEMBER. 



THE following ingenuous note comes to the Forest and Stream 

 bearing the postmark of a railroad station within three hours, 

 of New York city. The hero of the story lias not seen ten sum- 

 mer^ when he shall have become old and experienced in the art 

 of angling, it is safe to predict, he will still rehearse with pride 

 and pleasure this first youthful exploit with the big bass: 



Editor Forest and Stream: 



One dav last summer Papa, Harry and I went fishing on 



Lake We were on the lake almost an hour; and I began to think 

 1 -wouldn't get a bite, when all of a sudden something gave the 

 line a terrible ierk, and the pole bent way down in the water, 

 almost pulling me out of the boat. I was frightened and called 

 to Papa He said hold on to the pole until he could get there. It 

 was a big black bass; it weighed 3 pounds and 0 ounces. .Tust as 

 we pulled him iu, lie bit the line right off. It does not seem much 

 to write it. but when I felt it jerking at the pole I thought it was 

 an immense fish, perhaps a shark. But the best sport is trout 

 fishing, and when the season opens again, as the law is on now, I 

 will send you down two nice ones. TV illte Cash. 



Fishing in Florida Waters— Anglers who intend visiting 

 Florida this coming winter will find it to their advantage to in- 

 spect the superior tackle for tarpon and other fishes, manufac- 

 tured by Thomas J. Conroy, 65 Fulton street, NewYork.— A.dv. 



jgisljcuHttrq. 



THE HOWIETOUN FISHERY. 



THE current price list of this famous establishment of 

 Sir James Gibson Maitland, Bart., announces the suc- 

 cessful exportation to New Zealand of over half a million 

 eggs of salmon taken from the Tay, Forth and Tweed 

 districts. 



Atlantic salmon have been artificially landlocked, but 

 with no results of commercial importance. They have 

 proved valuable, however, for crossing with Loch Leven 

 and brown trout. ' • . 



American landlocked salmon have yielded eggs in ponds 

 at Howietouu, but the variety is much more delicate than 

 the artificially landlocked Atlantic salmon. Rainbow trout 

 have prospered far more than our landlocked salmon and 

 have bred in confinement. 



Crosses between salmon and trout have been carried to 

 seven-eighths blood of trout and one-eight salmon. The rate 

 of orowth and ratio of weight to length have increased, but 

 there has been a slight decrease of fertility, especially in 

 the case of female crosses, and sexual maturity has shown 

 itself earlier in some female crosses than is usual in either 

 parent. , „-,,..,, 



Attention is drawn to the great success ot redds l n stock- 

 ing large bodies of water. Eggs on the point of hatching 

 are used for this method, and they are laid on gravel and 

 require no care if the location- be properly selected. 



Yearlings are recommended most highly for general pur- 

 poses, because of their ability to stand transportation, find 

 their osvn food and accommodate themselves readily to 

 ponds. 



No difficulty has been experienced in shipping trout m 

 iced water for a journey of tweuty hours duration; but if 

 placed after such a journey in water of a higher tempera 

 ture, some, loss will arise from inflammation of the gill?. 



March fry are considered best for English waters and ? i a 

 fry for Highland water, 



