352 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



[Mat 22, 1890. 



SILKWORM GUT. 



FEW people outside of angling circles seem to know what 

 the gut used by fishing tackle manufacturers to snell 

 hook and flies with, and to make leaders or casting lines 

 of, is really made from. Some believe it to be catgut, 

 while others believe it is taken from the intestines of 

 fish, and many who have given the matter considerable 

 attention have very erroneous ideas on the subject. Even 

 the various works on angling have published articles that 

 are far from correct. 



We therefore take pleasure in calling the attention of 

 all those of our readers interested in this subject to the 

 excellent and exhaustive article just published in the 

 last supplement of "Appleton's American Encyclopedia," 

 written by Mr. Chas. F. Imbrie. of the old fishing tackle 

 firm of Abbey & Imbrie. Mr. Imbrie has given the mat- 

 ter careful attention, and having long been identified 

 with the manufacture of silkworm gut, is well able to 

 describe the process from beginning to end. We quote 

 the following extracts from his paper and regret that we 

 have not space to publish the whole article: 



" The province of Murcia, Spain, has always enjoyed a 

 practical monopoly of the manufacture of silk- worm gut. 

 Though the industry is small, it has long attracted the 

 attention of silk culturists all over the world. Gut is 

 still made in Sicily; but the quality of the Sicilian pro- 

 duct is invariably poor, and as it can therefore compete 

 only with the very lowest grades of the Spanish article, 

 it is hardly possible that there can ever be a profit to the 

 manufacturers. Silk culturists in China, Japan, France, 

 Italy and the United States, have done their best to pro- 

 duce a marketable quality of silk-worm gut; but they 

 have never succeeded, unless the fortuitous manufacture 

 of a few strands of a fan quality can 

 be considered success. In the United 

 States, China and Japan, a long, heavy 

 gut has frequently been made; but in 

 no instance has the strand had the 

 tensile power of much lighter Spanish 

 gut. The numerous and invariable 

 failures to produce a good quality of 

 it outside of Murcia force the conclu- 

 sion that there are unique conditions 

 favorable to its manufacture there, 

 and insurmountable objects to its man- 

 ufacture elsewhere. 



* * * * 



"When the worms are quite ready 

 to spin, not an hour before or after, 

 the/ are thrown into a tub half filled 

 with a strong mixture of vinegar and 

 water. This kills them instantly. 

 They are left in this pickle about 

 twelve hours — generally over one 

 night. This gives a consistency to 

 the silk-bags, of which there are' two 

 in each worm. The next morning the 

 worms are taken out of pickle and 

 broken in two, cross-wise. The gut sacks are, with a 

 little experience, easily removed. Each of the sacks 

 is taken at either end, while it is soft, and stretched 

 as far as it will go. If the pickle is strong, the gut is to 

 a certain extent shorter aud thicker; if it is weak, the 

 gut is longer and thinner. If it is too strong, the gut 

 pulls out crooked and lumpy and cracked; if it is too 

 weak, the gut has not enough consistency to draw out. 

 When the gut is stretched out as far as it will go, it is 

 thrown on the floor, and the extreme ends almost im- 

 mediately curl up. The gut is covered with a thin fila- 

 ment called came, or flesh. Toward the end of the day 

 the gut is washed in pure water and hung up where a 

 current of air will pass through and dry it. When it is 

 thoroughly dry the strands are tied in bundles of from 

 5,000 to 10,000, and in this state it is sold by weight to 

 those who prepare it for the market. 



vincial inland waters. I have the honor to be, sir, your 

 most obedient servant, E. E. Tache, Asst. Com. C. L. 



The resolutions are as follows: "Resolved, 1. That 

 this House deems it its duty to assert, in the most solemn 

 manner possible, the rights of the Province of Quebec to 

 the fish in the rivers and lakes aforesaid, which right it 

 has, possesses and enjoys in virtue of the British North 

 America Act, of the decision of the Supreme Court in re 

 Regina vs. Robertson and of the above-mentioned Pro- 

 vincial acts. 



"2. That this House hopes that the Executive of the 

 Province will take all constitutional and legal means to 

 resist such encroachment of the Federal authorities upon 

 the rights of the Provinces, and to remove the uneasiness 

 which the Order in Council of the 26th December last 

 and the subsequent proceedings of the Federal author- 

 ities might cause to the free and complete enjoyment of 

 such fishing rights." 



NEW ENGLAND TROUT AND SALMON. 



STILL the fronting parties are in order, and it seems 

 as though the interest was never nearly as great. 

 Saturday morning the railway stations were actually 

 thronged with persons bearing fishing rods. At the sta- 

 tions of the Boston and Maine over thirty rod caees were 

 counted at the departure of the 9 A. M. train. On Mon- 

 day morning there were eleven rod cases at the Eastern 

 Division at the same hour. The fishing parties are 

 numerous, and they are starting every day. But thus 

 far the results have been disappointing. Very high 

 water has been encountered on most of the Maine lakes 

 and streams. At Moosehead the water has been two 

 feet higher than it should have been for several days, 



1, Female Moth and Egge (BobiihJJX mart), produces about 200 t ggs. 2. 

 days old. 4, Worm 14 days old. 5, Worm 'Z\ days old. U, Worm 30 days old. 7, Worm 42 davs old, and 

 uuite ripe lor drawing or spinning. ° 



Worm 3 days old. 3, Worm 7 

 _ ja. 7. W 



8, Gut-sack, there being two in each worm. 



''The quality of gut is determined chiefly by its fresh- 

 ness, color and roundness. The freshness can generally 

 be determined by the fuzzy end. If this is a clean, clear 

 white, and not parched, the gut is probably new. The 

 color of the gut itself should be a pearly white, without 

 the faintest tinge of yellow, and should be very lustrous. 

 The roundness can be determined by the eye and touch. 

 The hank should be slightly twisted toward the sunlight 

 (not any artificial light), and this will generally bring out 

 the "flecks" or flat dead white spots, which reduce the 

 quality. By passing the second finger and thumb up and 

 down a strand, any roughness or flatness will instantly 

 be felt. The rough strands of good gut are never worth 

 more than three-quarters what the round ones are, and 

 are sometimes worth only half. There should not be 

 over 15 per cent, of rough strands, and the gut is unusu- 

 ally good if there are not more than 7 per cent, of rough 

 strands. It is customary for tackle-makers to stain gut 

 before using it. When the gut is stained it Bhould be 

 what is known as "mist coler;" that is, it should be the 

 color of clouds ( without any rainbow tints). There should 

 not be the faintest tinge of blue or green. Gut appears 

 smaller after it is stained, though it is if anything larger. 

 Before attempting to knot gut it should be soaked in pure 

 water. Thirty minutes should render regular gut pliable, 

 forty minutes will soften padron. marana should be 

 soaked at least an hour, and double thick niaraiia not 

 less than three hours. Hebra will require six hours." 



CANADIAN SALMON LEASES. 



THE following letter, for copy of which we are in- 

 debted to Mr. Henry P. Wells, is self-explanatory. 

 Its publication has been delayed, but we put it on record 

 as a part of the history of the case. Mr. M. Duhaued is 

 the Commissioner of Crown Lands for the Province of 

 Quebec; Mr. E. E. Tache the Assistant Commissioner: 



Quebec, March 21, 1890, —Henry P. Wells, Esq., New 

 lork: Sir— The Honorable M. Duhaued, C. C. L., directs 

 me to tender you his best thanks for your substantial 

 article "Canadian Fishing Leases," which he has read in 

 the edition of Forest and Stream of the 13th inst As 

 regards the protest of the Federal Government, the Com- 

 missioner authorizes me to say, for the information of all 

 whom it may concern, that the Government of the Pro- 

 vince of Quebec hold themselves responsible for the 

 leases of fishing privileges issued by the Commissioner of 

 Crown Lands. Herein inclosed is a copy of the resolu- 

 tions introduced to the House of Assembly by the Hon- 

 orable the Prime Minister, in connection with our pro- 



with the result that very few trout had been taken 

 up to Saturday night. Indeed, some of the sports- 

 men who were the first to be off when the ice 

 left, have come home in disgust. But others who have 

 started later and who can afford to stay until the waters 

 subside, are pretty sure of good luck. Neither are there 

 any reports of good catches yet from the Rangeley waters. 

 There are many Boston gentlemen absent at these waters, 

 and others will follow this week. It now looks as though 

 the later fishermen will be the more fortunate this year. 

 Cold and rainy weather is not conducive to comfort in 

 the early springtime, neither does it bring trout in abun- 

 dance. The Stevens camp party, the owners of Campe 

 Vive Vale, at the Narrows, Richardson Lake, will start 

 in a day or two, and from them there will be likely to be 

 reports of good catches. Last year Mr. Shattuck, of that 

 party, landed a 91b. brook trout. 



The reports from the trout streams in this State con- 

 tinue to excite the wonder of everybody. More than 

 double the usual number and weight of trout are being 

 taken this year. Rev. Mr. Jaynes, of Newton, who is a 

 lover of the woods, the stream and the rod, fished the 

 trout streams of the Cape last week with remarkably 

 good luck. He made a score of 30 in one day, with 

 Ulbs. his largest. Even the streams of little Rhode 

 Island are panning out more trout than usual. Mr. E. 

 M. Gillam, commercial editor of the Boston Advertiser, 

 and Mr. Fottler, statistical clerk at the Chamber of Com- 

 merce, took a troutingtrip down to Providence on Satur- 

 day. Their point of destination was East Greenwich, where 

 the Saturday before the gentleman who was to guide 

 them had taken 19 trout from one stream. They reached 

 the fishing ground late in the afternoon, in the midst of 

 a scalding sun, and hence their score w-as poor, though a 

 couple of Alb. trout were taken among a lot of smaller 

 ones. They consider the trip not a bad one, since they 

 left Boston about noon and were back again before 12 P. M. 



Reports from the salmon fishing at Bangor are not en- 

 couraging, and it begins to be given up as an off season. 

 Several Boston gentlemen tried the salmon there last 

 week, but without success. Still sportsmen continue to 

 try the pools day after day, and a few salmon are caught. 

 The discussion of this salmon question has led to a novel 

 bet between two enthusiastic salmon fishermen of Ban- 

 gor. One bets the other that he can land him 

 with an ordinary salmon rod, reel, fly-hook and line. 

 The sportsman to play fish is to swim in the 

 water, with the book attached to a belt around his 

 body, and in spite of all his swimming the sports- 

 man with the rod in hand is to tire him out and 

 to bring him to the net. The length of the line is to be 

 limited to 100yds. If the swimmer breaks the line or the 

 rod by fair means he wins. If Be is drawn to the boat 

 despite his efforts, the handler of the rod wins. The 

 hook is attached to his back by means of the strap and 

 he is not to touch it with his hands. He is said to be an 

 expert swimmer, while the fisherman is also expert with 

 the rod and reel. The contest is to take place as soon as 

 the water is warm enough, in the river opposite the 

 salmon club house. Special. 



KENTUCKY WATERS. 



BEDFORD, Ky., May 2.— Editor Forest and Stream: 

 The angling fever would be high here, but for the 

 prevailing cold east wind. There are said to be more fish 

 in the streams this spring than have been known for 

 many years, owing, perhaps, to the mild winter and high 

 waters. The fishing points most noted are Little Ken- 

 tucky River, Corn Creek and Barebone, emptying into the 

 Ohio in this county. The backwater in the first named 

 extends nearly five miles from the Ohio. Angling is the 

 prevailing mode in these waters, but in the Ohio large 

 seines are used by the maiket fishermen. Black bass, 

 yellow and blue cat, white perch, calico perch and some 

 salmon are the kinds caught here. All these bite at min- 

 nows, and all except the bass and calico perch can be 

 taken with angleworms or dead bait. For black bass, 

 which, next to the salmon, is the best as well as the 

 gamest fish in the list, the early fall season is the best. 

 There have been, however, some fine catches already this 

 spring. There is little said about fish laws here, for the 

 reason that the streams cannot be successfully seined 

 on account of the roughness of bottoms. Some are taken 

 with set-nets and traps in violation of law. A bill is now 

 pending before the Legislature for the better protection of 

 fish and game, having the warden system as a feature. I 

 have not heard it much discussed in the country, but'the 

 senator from this county is strongly opposed to it. I 

 doubt whether such a law would be popular or effective 

 though the desire to better protect game and fish is in- 

 increasing and would be better promoted than ever be- 

 fore. There is hot a gun club in this county, though 

 there are several successful and enthusiastic sportsmen 

 TAYLORSV1IXE, Ky., May 8.— But for the prevailing 

 cold weather angling would be "all 

 the rage" here now, the wattr is right 

 and fish are plenty. This town— the 

 county town— lies in the deba letween 

 Brashear's Creek and Salt River— the 

 latter running through Spencer county 

 near its center. Both streams afford 

 fine sport. Beech and Crooked creeks 

 ^V^^ also are large enough to harbor the 



finny tribe. If angling be too slow, 

 an ample catch of blue or channel cat 

 can be had any night by putting out 

 a trot line at evening and "running" 

 it in the morning. The kinds of fish 

 caught are the same as I have men- 

 tioned heretofore. The people are 

 becoming more in favor of the execu- 

 tion of the laws for protecting fish 

 and game, and we may reasonably 

 expect better sport in the future. 

 There are a few good shots here who 

 own well-bred dogs and good guns, 

 and the game birds, quail exclusively, 

 are generally thinned out by the end 

 of the season in February. The city 

 sportsman angler can reach this point by rail, get his 

 boats and minnows here, and enjoy the-blessings of good 

 hotels, and if one stream be too muddy the other is apt 

 to be right; and it would be hard to find a better place 

 for a few days' angling. 



A big fish pond is to be made near this town by a com- 

 pany of gentlemen as an investment. A charter was 

 granted a few weeks ago, and it is proposed to purchase 

 a tract of land which is favorable for the purpose. " By 

 erecting a dam a few feet high a pond of several acres 

 can be made, and in a short time we may expect to see 

 the work completed. It is expected to stock the pond 

 with silver perch, and such other kinds as can be suc- 

 cessfully raised in these waters. Besides the fish pond a 

 preserve for game will be provided on the same ground 

 It is thought that when stocked the pond will pay a hand- 

 some percentage by charging each person a small price 

 per day for the privilege of angling. It is hardly an ex- 

 periment, as there are examples of the kind in other parts 

 of the State. Ex-Senator Gilbert is the leading man in 

 the project, and I am satisfied that a little exertion will 

 secure success. There are already some private fish 

 ponds in the county, which produce abundance of fish, 

 especially German carp. Salt River is widely famous as 

 the haven of unsuccessful candidates. To "go up Salt 

 River" is to be defeated. J. s. M. 



ANGLING NOTES. 



AN angler just returned from Maine states that there 

 is considerable snow and ice about Moosehead Lake, 

 and the water was entirely too high for good fishing. He 

 had the good luck to kill a 20lbs. salmon at Bangor, but 

 at that point he also had to give up fishing on account of 

 high water. He thinks that between the sawdust and 

 the nets the salmon on Penobscot are having a hard time 

 of it. 



Dingman's Ferry. Pike Co., Pa., May 17.— Dr. Fulmer 

 and two guests of the High Falls Hotel took seventy- 

 three trout to-day from Dingman's Creek, between 

 Beaver Dam and Fulmer Tannery, most of them measur- 

 ing from ten inches upward. Our streams here are giv- 

 ing better sport than ever before. 



From the Restigouche come reports of plenty of ice and 

 snow yet, so that the fishing will be unusually late on 

 that river. A letter just received from St. Scephen 

 states that salmon are now being taken on the fly in the 

 St. Croix River. 



Trout fishing on the famous Beaverkill is excellent this 

 spring. It was fairly good last summer, but a letter re- 

 cently received states that it is better than it has been 

 for the last ten years. The water there is rather high, 

 but if we have no more heavy rains it will be at its best 

 the last of this week. 



The black bass anglers are getting ready for May 30: 

 and judging from reports received the sport will be 

 unusually good. The guides at Greenwood Lake and 

 Lake Hopatcong expect a great many visitors on Memor- 

 ial Day, and they are making preparations for an ample 

 supply of bait and boats. 



Old anglers say, "Put not your trust in splicing cutty- 

 hunk or twisted lines of any kind to braided lines. The 

 'lay of the twisted line runs down to the leader and is 

 apt to twist it off close to the hook, and large fish have 

 been lost in that way." 



The Jamaica Bay. Bill.— The bill passed by the New 

 lork Legislature respecting nets in Jamaica Bay has not 

 been signed by Gov. Hill, and it is said that the Governor 

 does not intend to sign it. A petition is in preparation 

 urging him to give it his approval. 



