172 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



[March 19, 1891. 



Deer Hunting Incidents.— West Lebanon, N. H.— I 

 take lots of comfort reading the experience of my brother 

 sportsmen, and it gives an added zest when it comes from 

 some of the waters that I have camped on. The account 

 of a trip to Cold Eiver, by F. Berkley Smith , in your 

 issue of Feb. 12, -puts me back twenty-six yea,ra and more, 

 when I first began to camp in the grand old Adirondacks. 

 I well remember that the first deer I ever shot was in 

 Long Lake, not more than two miles from the outlet of 

 that same Cold River. That feeling can never come to a 

 man but once in a life time. And speaking of that same 

 Long Lake (as you say) "reminds me." One of your cor- 

 respondents spoke of a strange shot made at a deer, and 

 asked if any one knew of a similar case. It was of a deer 

 killed by the bullet striking its horn, I can answer for 

 one that in the fall of 1865, when I was camping on the 

 lower end of that lake, my dogs drove in a fine buck. 

 He was so far ofl: that I shot the rifle barrel at him. He 

 was dead by the time I could row up. The ball struck 

 and split the left antler about 2in. from the head, I 

 always supposed that it was concussion of the brain that 

 killed him. I watch the paper very closely to see if 

 "Von W." has written anything, and feel well repaid 

 when I find something from his pen. I have followed 

 the hounds for over forty years till the present winter, 

 and now I feel as though I would like to ait in the 

 chimney corner with "Yoa. W." and talk of the days of 

 old, never to return; but the memory is sweet.— C, D. S. 



A LoNa-BARRELED GuN. — ^In the last Forest and 

 Stream I see a query from "Doctor" as to length of gun 

 barrels, I have in my possession an ancient "fowling 

 piece,'' brought to this country by a brother of my great- 

 grandfather, who lived at 

 Flatbush, L. I., some time 

 before tbe Rjvclu'ion, say 

 1760-70. The barrel is just 

 5ft. long, but the gun is 

 bexutifuJly balarcsd and 

 comes well to the shoul- 

 der. It was brought from 

 England, but from the 

 fleuv-de. lls on the barrel T 

 judge it to be of French 

 luaDrcacture, Tlie first 

 owner used it to shout 

 plover cn Long Island, 

 and the familv tradition is 

 that a colored servant 

 used to drive him in a 

 low gig, from which he 

 fired when lie got near 

 enouglj. An uncle of 

 mine luid it altered to 

 " ijercussion " about 60 

 years ago, and many a 

 gi-ay squirrel and some 

 ruffed grouse have I killed 

 with it w^hen a boy, I 

 sometimes think I will 



take the old gun out and • 

 try it again, with fine shot, 

 and see what it will do. 

 "The boys" always used 

 No- 3 shot in those old 

 days, but the old gun had 

 a fearful reputation as 



"sure death," and the "other boys" said I just knocked the 

 squirrels out of the trees with it without taking the 

 trouble to fire.— Von W. 



The full texts of the game fish laws of all the States, 

 Territories and British Provinces are given in the Booli of 

 the. Game Laws. 



THE OTSEGO BASS. 



A SCIENTIFIC INVESTiaATION. 



Editor Forest and Stream: 



As is already known, principally through tbe columns 

 of your journal, large numbers of the Otsego bass, so 

 called, have during the past two winters, and contrary to 

 all former experience, been taken with the baited hook, 

 chiefly through the ice. 



More wonderful still is the fact that, whereas the Core- 

 go w subsist naturally upon Crustacea, these fish, averaging 

 about lib, each, are almost invariably taken with a small 

 lake shiner or tiny fragment of the same. 



As the original Otsego bass averaged from 2 to 3lbs, 

 each, reaching in one instance a weight of 71b3,, and were 

 rarely if ever taken with the hook, howsoever baited, the 

 question whether the fish now taken is identical with 

 the original Otsego bass has been quite seriously raised. 

 By some it is fiatly disputed. 



To clear the matter up, I forwarded to Prof. T. H. Bean, 

 Ichthyologist of the Bmilhsonian Institution, at his re- 

 quest, one of the fish packed in salt, which reached him 

 in i)oor condition, partly disintegrated, and from this he 

 was unable to arrive at a satisfactory conclusion. 



My theory is that we have now in our lake three varie- 



Eemoving Dents in Guns. — One of your inquirers re- 

 cently asked about removing dents in gun barrels. Several 

 times I have carelessly dented the barrels of my shotgun. 

 The dents were in all cases removed by firing heavy 

 charges a few times, 1 loaned a friend metallic shells to 

 use in a gun of German manufacture, the chambers of 

 which proved to be much larger than those of my gun, 

 and when the shells were returned they coi:ld not be 

 placed in the chambers of my gun, they were expanded 

 so much, I made a die and forced them into it, but instead 

 of this compressing the shells they were cori-ugated. I 

 loaded them heavily, and the first discharge left the shells 

 as perfect in form and otherwise, so far as I could see, as 

 when they were new. — H. L, 



A Gun Cltib for Weymouth,— "Weymouth, Mass., 

 March 10. — An enthusiastic meeting of a large number of 

 sportsmen of Weymouth and Braintree was held this 

 evening to organize a club to enforce the game laws, for 

 stocking the woods with game, and for general develop- 

 ment of fine shooting. Charles E. Jacks was elected 

 president and C, Frank White secretary. The remaining 

 oificers will be elected at the next meeting. The club 

 will hold their first clay-pigeon shoot Fast Day, A large 

 number of applications have been received for member- 

 ship. South Weymouth sending eleven. We have a club of 

 enthusiasts qualified and protected by a doctor and lawyer 

 for emergency.— ^Chas. E. Jacks, Pres. 



What's in a Name?— The press reports relate that 

 "Wm. Slaughter, a wealthy farmer of Clay county, South 

 Dakota, has got himself into a remarkable tangle, from 

 which it will cost him more than $20,000 to extricate 

 himself. He was cau!2:ht yesterday by the sheriff of his 

 county and taken to Vermillion, together with nineteen 

 barrels of jjrairje chickens which he admitted having 

 killed. The penalty for violating the law is $10 for each 

 bird, and as he had 2,060 of the birds barreled up, it is 

 very easy to figure out the amount he is indebted to the 

 State. There are no loop holes in the law, and Mr. 

 Slaugliter has goods and chattels enough to pay for his 

 sport," 



Great South Bay. — The duck shooting in Great South 

 Bay, Long Island, is capital. An unusual wildfowl score 

 of twelve brant was made there last Saturday, by a gun- 

 ner who went out from Sayville, 



FOBHST AND Stbkam, Box 3,832, N. Y. city, lias dessriptlve Illa& 

 trated circulars of W. B. Lefflngwell's book, "Wild Fowl Shoot- 

 ing," wWch will be mailed ire© o& reciuest. The l30ok Is pro- 

 notmoed by "Ns^ait," "aiofiii," "Dick Swtvejler," "SyWUene" ana 

 other competeat authorities to be the best iareaeted on tbe sBbjeoi 

 extant. 



THE OTSEGO BASS. 



ties ''of the Coregonus albus, viz, (1), the original Otsego 

 bass ("an established misnomer for the common white- 

 fish"), averaging about Slbs., but attaining an extreme 

 weight'.of 6 or 7lbs, ; (2), the Lake Huron whitefish, averag- 

 ing 3 to 61bs., but said to attain a weight of 20 to 23ros., 

 and (3) the fish now taken, averaging lib. each, but reach- 

 ing to 3 and 4lb3., and that this fish is probably a fertile 

 hybrid, resulting from a cross between the original Ot- 

 sego bass and the Lake Huron whitefish, of which 300,000 

 were planted here in 1877. 



As this theory affords a logical solution of the doubt, I 

 have submitted it to Prof. Bsan, who, after another and 

 thoroughly scientific analysis of a perfect specimen, sent 

 to him in alcohol, herewith appends his conclusions, 

 which, having been reached with the utmost care, must 

 certainly place the matter beyond all further controversy. 



That the variations betAveen the fish now taken and the 

 original Otsego bass are neither structural nor organic, but 

 purely accidental, resulting from change of food and habi- 

 tat, I'am the more ready to believe since, upon this very 

 point, Dr. Bean's views concur exactly wirh those of the 

 late Gov. Seymour, formerly New York State Fish Com- 

 missioner, and one of the most careful observers of his 

 day. Elihu Phinney. 



COOPBRSTOWN, N. Y., Feh. 13. 



'•Mr. Eliliu Phinney, Coopei'sioiim, N. Y.: 



"The whitefish from Otsego Lake arrived in excellent 

 condition and will be permanently preserved in the 

 Museum collection. After having carefully gone over 

 the specimen and compared it with other individuals from 

 Otsego Lake and with the common whitefish from Lake 

 Michigan, I find certain differences, which are constant 

 in all the examples I have seen. The Otsego Lake white- 

 fish, to begin with, is a smaller fish than the common 

 whitefish of the Great Lakes; (2) if I may judge from the 

 specimens at hand, the snout of the Otsego Lake fish is 

 blunt and not obliquely truncate as in the common white- 

 fish; (3) the scales of the Otsego form are smaller than in 

 the common form, almost invariably exceeding 82 along 

 the lateral line, while in the common whitefish the average 

 is about 72. The fish you have sent me is most neariy 

 related to the common species of the Great Lakes 

 (Coregonus du])eiformiH), but if the differences which I 

 have pointed out prove to be constant the Otsego Lake 

 whitefish must be distinguished by at least a varietal 

 name, and would be written Coregonus clupeiforini'i var. 

 Otsego. You can better judge than I about the constancy 

 or variability of these characters, and I will be glad to 

 have as full "information on the subject as you can obtain. 

 Is the snout in your fish always even with the end of the 

 lower jaw, or does it pi'oject somewhat forward into a 

 conical point as in the common whitefish? What changes 

 do you notice in the breeding season, does the male acquire 

 a decided hump on tbe nape? 



"From present appearances your fish is more nearly like 

 tb«-< common whiteSah than anything else, and the dift'er- 

 ences which I have pointed out migiit be caused iu the 

 oommon whitefish after introduction into a lake like 



yours. You know more about the history of the hatching 

 operations at Coopersto wn than anybody else, and I should 

 be delighted to learn just what work you carried on there 

 years ago. Very respectfully, T, H, Bean," 



[One of the very best accounts of angling for whitefish 

 was published by Mr. Phinney in Forest and Stream, 

 Feb. 26, 1885, wherein he relates the experiences of Seth 

 Green, Charles Carpenter, Dr. Gar lick a-nd Judge Potter, 

 with a variety of baits. Seth Green recommended the 

 use of small minnows and red angle worms, very fine 

 tackle, the line to be left on the bottom and the fish 

 allowed to hook themselves. He always insisted upon a 

 light strike and careful handling, in order to avoid' tear- 

 ing out the hook. Mr. Carpenter was successful when 

 large schools of the fish were present in Lake Erie in 

 catching a few with oocki-oaches drawn rapidly through 

 the water. Dr. Garlick took them at Copper Harbor, 

 Lake Superior, bottom fishing at night, with small pieces 

 of fresh beef. Judge Potter saw a great many taken at 

 Sault Ste. Marie, Lake Superior, with the hook baited 

 with the June or soldier fly. The fishing was done just 

 before sunset in a deep, still pool, adjoining the rapids, 

 and the bait was allowed to rest on the bottom where the 

 fish were feeding. The whiteflshes consort in large schools 

 and are found in deep cold water in summer, approaching 

 the shore in cold weather. Dr. Garlick thus describes 

 the action of the common whitefish: "These fish bite 

 very gently, with no dash like the trout or other game 

 fish. You will barely feel a slow movement of the line 

 in your fingers. Then with a light strike you bring them 

 slowly to the surface and take them out with a landing 

 net.'" The methods recently pursued in Otsego Lake 

 have been so fully described by Mr, Phinney that we need 

 only refer the reader to 

 his excellent descriptions,] 



Onondaga Anglers' 

 Association, — Syracuse, 

 N. Y., March 7.— At the 

 annual meeting of the 

 Anglers' Association, E. 

 W. Jones was reelected 

 President; J. N. Babcock, 

 ^-<^ Vice-President; W. S. 



MacGregor, Secretary and 

 Attorney, and Clias. W. 

 Phelps, Treasurer, with. 

 M. J. French, George B. 

 Wood, F. J, Kendrick, 

 Charles H, Mo wry and C, 

 W, Smith as Executive 

 Committee, There was a 

 larse attendance of mem- 

 bers and much interest 

 man 1 ested in the worlc uf 

 the Association. Starting 

 one year ago with a mem- 

 bership of about twenty, 

 the Association now has 

 upward of 200 members. 

 The report of work done 

 during the past year in 

 capturing and destroying 

 nets and in detecting and 

 prosecuting net-fishermen 

 in the waters of Onondaga 

 county, shows that the As- 

 sociation has accomplished more in the work of protecting 

 fish during the past year than any other association in 

 the State, and that it has become a terror to the law 

 breakers, a.8 they have discovered that the Association is 

 determined to prosecute the fish pirates without fear or 

 favor. It was decided to stop the use of all dip-nets and 

 flat-nets and other illegal devices for fishing upon Onon- 

 daga Lake, Oneida Lake, the Seneca River and their 

 tributaries, and the shooting of pickerel, and that any 

 one detected in committing any violation of the law in 

 that respect should be prosecuted. A large number of 

 new members were admitted and the prospects are bright 

 for a large increase in membership during the coming 

 year, and for a very vigorous campaign against the 

 pirates, 



ANGLING NOTES. 



FLOUNDERS of large size, ^Ib, to 4lb3,, have been 

 taken in considerable numbers in Jamaica Bay. 

 The best bait seems to be sandworms, though when these 

 cannot be obtained soft clams will answer fairly well, 



• . 



The first run of striped bass may be looked for about 

 the middle of April, and the weakflsh follow about three 

 weeks later. The first are generally caught off Fort Ham- 

 ilton. 



In Professor Bean's list of fishes caught in Great South 

 Bay he omitted the redfish and spot. Almost every sea- 

 son one or more of these handsome fish are taken while 

 chumming for bluefish. And they are generally of good 

 size. The largest on record was the 35]b. fish killed by 

 Mr, Wilson, 



Some magnificent specimens of fresh cod have been 

 received from Boston dealers lately, John Sutherland 

 had one on exhibition this week that weighed 561hs,, and 

 last week received one of 611bs, in weight. Last season 

 his biggest cod weighed 861bs. These large fish are of 

 fine flavor with layers of cream between the flakes of 

 meat, and are at their best at this season of the year. 



Game Warden Kidd has been visiting Saw Mill Creek 

 in Westchester county. He found that a lime kiln where 

 they used petroleum to burn the lime was running the 

 refuse oil into the stream; also the managers of a couple 

 of pickle factories were allowing the brine to escape. 

 They were notified that imless the nuisance was abated 

 inside of ten days, suit would be commenced against 

 them. This stream has recently been stocked or is about 

 to be stocked by the State with trout. It seems a sh it-ne 

 that the tax-payers Avho contribute money to keep up our 

 stock of fish and game should be imposed upon oy these 

 people. 



The wisdom of changing the date of the opening of 

 the trout season from March 1 to April 1, both in Nev? 

 York and New Jersey, was again made apparent th ^^ 

 year. It seems that in recent years the clerk of th. q 



