Amu, 9, 1891.] 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



231 



"I was just about to go out oa the marsh after a few 

 ducks this morning," said Mr. Sadler. "I don't much be- 

 lieve in spring- shooting, but I have not had a hunt for a 

 long time and I thought I would try for a bird or two, 

 especially as the snipe have not got up yet. I only sa\v 

 one snipe on the grounds I hunted over the other day. 

 However, it looks like rough weather, and I concluded 

 not to go." 



"How many duck clubs have you around here?'' I asked, 

 "and how large are they?" 



"We have two large ones up at the head of the bay," 

 said he, "and several smaller ones." 



Then we fell to talking about the duck clubs, and Mr. 

 Sadler said— but never mind what he said, for there isn't 

 room to tell about these Sandusky duck clubs now and 

 doit as it should be done, and we may best postpone that 

 for a little while, until we have more facts and more 

 time to classify. Meantime the main fact in American 

 history seems to be that Mr. Sadler and I are to-morrow 

 to see again a real, live brook trout — if we have luck; for 

 it is snowing here now, and the indications are for colder 

 weather to-morrow, E. HouGH. 



BEiVEE Tra-PPINO.— In Mr. Griffin's paper on beaver 

 trapping, printed in our last issue, a typographical error 

 occasions confusion in the first column of p. 208, about 

 three-fourths the way down the column. As printed the 

 directions read: "Having chosen my spot I take a lot of 

 mud from the bed of the creek and make a little mound 

 like the ones formed for sitting and rolling on by the 

 animal himself. I then dig out a place lai-ge enough to 

 hold the trap in the edge of the bank, splasliing water 

 over the digging to make it look natural and old. Just 

 under water and on the bank above it I set up a little 

 step on which are a few drops of the beaver medicine. 

 This should be fastened to the trap either by a slender 

 twig or a piece of black thread so that the animal, when 

 he dives in the water, will carry it with him. This is to 

 keep the other beaver from smelling it. The traj) is set 6 

 to Gin. below the water's surface, and the end of the step 

 is Sin. above water, and a foot or more to the landward 

 side of the trap." They should read: "Having chosen 

 my spot, I take a lot of mud from the bed of the creek, 

 and make a little mound like the one formed for sitting 

 and rolling on by the animal himself. I then dig out a 

 place large enough to hold the trap in the edge of the 

 bank just under water, splashing water over the digging 

 to make it look natural and old, and on the bank above 

 it I set up a little stick, on which are a few drops of the 

 beaver medicine. This stick should be fastened to the 

 trap either by a slender twig or by a piece of black thread 

 so that the animal when he dives into the water will 

 carry it with him. This is to keep the other beaver from 

 smelling it. The trap is set 6 to 9in. below the water's 

 surface, and the end of the stick is 6in. above water, etc." 



G-AME IN MONMODTH COUNTY, N. J. — Hornerstown, 

 March 31. — So far as I have learned by observation and 

 otherwise, quail and partridges through this section have 

 wintered in good shape. Although they were sharply 

 hunted last season their number now seems to be quite 

 large, so if nothing happens there will be plenty of bird 

 shooting next fall. Rabbits also have wintered well. 

 Many of them are to be seen as one goes through the 

 open iields and sproutlands. Should judge the number 

 is larger than common for this time of the year: also 

 the numbers of English hares — the increase of strays 

 from Lorillard's late game preserve near Jobstown — are 

 to be seen in the fields, and their number seems to be in- 

 creasing from year to year, so the farmers and local gun- 

 ners say. As game, tiie hunters around here much pre- 

 fer the common rabbit {Lepus sylvatwus) to the hare. 

 As to small birds, although having lived in different 

 parts of this State for a number of years, I never recol- 

 lect seeing so many large flocks of them before as I have 

 seen this spring, especially of robins and blackbirds: often 

 the woods and fields are full of them. The uncommonly 

 large flocks have at different times reminded me of their 

 migrating period in the fall. — A. L. L. 



Bob White and the Other Whites.— Unlike the 

 young broods of the woodcock, which are mute, save the 

 twitter with which they rise, the bevies of quail appear 

 to be attached to each other by tender affection. If dis- 

 persed by accidental causes, either in the pursuit of their 

 food, or from being flushed by some casual intruder, so 

 soon as their first alarm has passed over they begin calling 

 to each other with a small, plaintive note, quite diffei'ent 

 from the amorous whistle of the male bird and from their 

 merry, day- break cheeping, and each one running toward 

 the sound and repeating it at intervals, they soon collect 

 themselves together into one happy little family. If, 

 however, the ruthless sportsman has been among them 

 with his well-trained setter and unerring gun, so that 

 death has sorely thinned their numbers, they will protract 

 their little call for their lost comrades, even to night fall; 

 and in such cases — I know not if it be fancy on my part- 

 there has often seemed to me to be an unusual degree of 

 melancholy in their wailing whistle, — Fjeank Eokbester, 



The Knee Eest foe Aiming.— A correspondent with 

 the signature "H. S.," writing in Forest and Steeaji 

 of Feb. 12, has mistaken my object in sending you a 

 photograph of the sitting position for shooting with the 

 rifle at game. I was well aware of the wiping or loading 

 rod havmg been used as a rest by hunters in America 

 many years ago. Mr. Ruxton, a British officer who 

 traveled through the Eocky Mountains in 1846, writes of 

 the trajjpers in some of the fights with Indians, dropi^ing 

 on one knee and resting the rifle barrel on the loading 

 rod, I sent the photograph in order to draw attention to 

 tlie superiority of sitting down with an elbow on each 

 knee, over other positions, when taking long shots at 

 game, and my chief reason was the hope that, by some 

 sportsmen trying this, a certain number of animals might 

 be killed on the spot instead of escaping to die in misery 

 from their wounds. The use of a stick, in addition, give's 

 a little extra steadiness, but is not actually necessary for 

 even very close shooting,— J. J. M. 



Game on Jekyl Island.— Jekyl Island Club, Bruns- 

 wick, Ga., April 1, — The recoi'd of game shot during sea- 

 son 1890-91 is as follows: Qaail 3,516, English pheasant 

 17, wild turkey 4, deer 6, ducks 80, marsh hens 36, wild 

 hogs 11, doves 59.— E. G. Grqh, Supt, 



A Montreal Game Case.— Montreal, April 3.— Yester- 

 day afternoon was almost entii-ely taken up in the Police 

 Court with the case of the Fish and Game Protection 

 Club of the Province of Quebec against D. P. Irish, man- 

 ager of the Canadian Exjpress Company, for carrying 

 three carcapses of deer, addressed to Hon. Geo. A. Drum - 

 mond, in the close season. During the progress of the 

 case it came out that the deer, with sixteen others, had 

 been killed on Longue Pointe, an island comprising 2,000 

 acres, in Lake Erie, owned by the Longue Pointe Game 

 Club, which has only fifteen members, of whom Senator 

 Drummond is one. The president of the club, a well- 

 known lawyer from Toronto, named Harris, was in court 

 as a witness, and it appeared that the deer, which were 

 killed on Nov. 10, had been kept in refrigerators till now, 

 but, as the warm weather was coming, it was decided to 

 have them shipped to friends of the club. Those that 

 were shipped to the United States were refused admit- 

 tance, and the elaim of Mr. Walker, the attorney for the 

 Quebec Fish and Game Club, is that in this province it 

 takes a special permit from the Commissioner of Crown 

 Lands to import game even killed in season. Decision 

 was reserved. 



New York Game Bill.— The Assembly has passed the 

 game code bill without amendment. 



'^^ ^tfd ^w^r fishing. 



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

 Territories and British Provinces are given in the Book of 

 the Oame La ws. 



DYEING FISHING LINES. 



Editor Forest and Stream: 



Will you please inform me (or have some of your read- 

 ers to do so) what is a good homemade dye for fishing 

 lines that will give them a fixed color, or dye them 

 black, and at the same time not injure them by rotting, 

 swelling or otherwise gi-eatly affecting the form, texture 

 or size of the line?? 



In explanation of the question I have to say that I 

 never find any lines in the market dyed to suit my taste, 

 and it is souietimes. recently, difficult to find any tliat 

 are suitable, otherwise as to size and quality, for the 

 locality. I therefore often have to do my own dyeing. 



While my mind is on this subject I shall give' you an 

 idea I have as to the appearance a line for\i8e in very 

 clear water should have, which idea I have often put in 

 practice with apparent success; and inasmuch as 1 have 

 not heard of any one else using lines prepared in the same 

 way it may prove new, and possibly of some value, to 

 Forest and Stream. If so, I shall be happy in having 

 contributed a mite to heighten the success, and therefore 

 increase the pleasures, of the "gentle sport." 



I will first give a brief description of the nature of the 

 streams in middle Tennessee, to which my fishing ex- 

 perience is limited. 



As will be seen from the map prepared by the State 

 Commissioner of Agriculture, and from any otiier geo- 

 logical map of the State, the great central basin of this 

 State is surrounded by an elevated region many miles in 

 extent known as the "Upland Rim." This region is very 

 rich in iron ores and timber, but affords scanty soil and 

 scarcely any lime. For this reason the streams which 

 have their rise and courses in that particular section are 

 very clear, the bottom being often plainly visible at a 

 dejjth of 6ft. or more, forming a marked contrast with 

 the streams of the adjacent basin the waters of which 

 are, when the weather has been fau-, a blueish green 

 from the lime held in solution, and at other times turbid 

 with extraneous matter carried by rain from the rich 

 fields and from the outskirts of towns. 



In "ye olden time" both classes of streams fairly 

 swarmed with the finest fishes, as the country did with 

 deer and buffalo; for was not this the most highly prized 

 hunting ground of the red men north and south whose 

 mutual jealousies forbade the tribes of either section to 

 possess it as their own? For many years after the coun- 

 try %vas settled these lowland streams were the paradise 

 of the awkward fisherman with primitive tackle, and 

 those were the days when the ubiquitous "one-gallussed" 

 boy with his home-made line and sycamore pole is said 

 to have laid the city dude, with his fine seagrass line, in 

 the shade. Delicate tackle and extra skill could not be 

 a great necessity in taking game fish in a na,rrow stream 

 in which black bass and rock bass abounded and which 

 held substances in solution to such an extent that a log- 

 sunk to the depth of 1ft. could not be seen. I have my- 

 self had the smaU-mouth bass — which is a much more 

 wary fish than the large-mouth, of which there are none 

 in this immediate vicinity— to take the bait in 18 or 20in. 

 of water and within 10ft. of where I was standing, and 

 yet no glimpse of the fish could be seen. From the fa- 

 cility, therefore, with which almost any kind of fisher- 

 man could take fish, and from the constant seining, the 

 streams have been almost entirely denuded of fish, and I 

 believe that, whether from the fouling of the streams or 

 from the washing away of bars and the decay of drifts, 

 bringing the bottoms of the streams almost to a dead 

 level instead of the alternation of rapids, pools, eddies 

 and holes that formerly existed, the few bass that remain 

 are abandoning these lowland streams and seeking more 

 congenial quarters, and the blue cat is filling, to some ex- 

 tent, the abandoned habitations. Be that as it may, if 

 one's duties are such that he cannot devote some days to- 

 gether to fishing, to him it is farewell to the finny tribes — 

 "Othello's occupation's gone." I believe this is true of 

 about all the limestone waters of , Tennessee and Ken- 

 tucky, 



In the clear streams in the upland rim and mountains 

 it is somewhat different. The country is more sparsely 

 eettled, and so the army of invasion is smaller. Again, 

 the "nigger -pole" (common rod without reel) is not an 

 elfective weapon against small-mouth bass in clear water; 

 and again, these streams afford in many places good pro- 

 tection from seines in the shape of shelving rocks, under- 

 mined banks and deep pools. 



Of course the sport is not comparable here to what it is 

 in the hundreds of other places la the country. Ten or 

 twelve bass averaging one pound is a fair day's sport, 

 and oftea one must put up wiih five or six, although you 

 may now and then find a man with imagination strong 

 enough to magnif j tljis latter number into food enough 



apparently to feed several thousand people. I doubt not 

 that there is quite as much real enjoyment in taking a 

 dozen bass in these streams as there would be in taking 

 fifty in Florida; from which sentiment you will see that 

 we regard ourselves in this line, 



"As tlie indifferent children of tlie eai th, 



Happy in that we are not over happy; 



On fortune's cap we are not the very button." 



In the clear water the bass are very wai"y and will not 

 take the hook when the angler is in sight. It is necessary 

 to cast to a great distance and to remain concealed. As 

 a fom'-pounder is a great rarity a.nd the common run iis 

 below two pounds, a very small line must be used' — one 

 smaller than many first-class dealers advertise. A white 

 line is quite a conspicuous object in clear water, and I am 

 satisfied that bass cannot be taken readily when one is 

 used. It is necessary to use a line that cannot be seen 

 readily, and tliis is all the more necessary in casting, as 

 Dr. Henshall says truly that in that style of fishing the 

 leader muso be discarded. To prevent the line from 

 being seen by the game, manufacturers have, as we ail 

 know, made lines of various different solid colors, and 

 also braided and twisted together threads of different 

 colors. Either of these is better than a white line, but 

 they still fall short of the requirement. The point I in- 

 sist upon is this, that that which enables the human eye, 

 as well as the fish's eye, to catch and follow a line of any 

 kind is the continuity of the line as to form and color, 

 and e coriv<irso, breaks or irregularities in contour or 

 color have a strong tendency to prevent the eye from 

 following up the line. In other words, irregularity, so 

 far as the vision is concerned, destroys a line. If a line 

 be speckled or ringed, the continuity is not broken, be- 

 cause it is still regular in that form. ' The line should be 

 so dyed as to run from one shade to another, then per- 

 haps to spots, and tlien to other shades, so as to make the 

 whole irregular and unsystematic, 



I have dyed in this wav by wrapping or balling the line 

 up upon itself so as to leave irregular interstices for the 

 penetration of the fluid, and then dipping in the juice of 

 a walnut, warm, and renewing after a short time. The 

 line can then be wiped off with a wet rag. Applications 

 of water immediately after dyeing will reduce the shade. 

 A line dyed in this way is not readily followed by the eye 

 at some little distance: and I imagine when stretched on 

 the bottom of a stream it would attract little more atten- 

 tion than the gravel and small twigs and stems of leaves 

 that often lie there. 



An illustration of the manner in which the eye can be 

 misled by a broken line is this: Many a bass angler has 

 spent hours of suspense lest the "one-gallused" boy 

 should do harm to his bucket of shiners, or "steel-backs," 

 in his absence. Let the fisherman cast his minnow 

 bucket into the stream and fasten the cord to a root or 

 stone at the shore; if the water be clear the cord will 

 probably be seen very plainly. But then let him take 

 two or three switches, or say a small branch with several 

 twigs, and place them, in an apparently haphazard man- 

 ner, at the surface and at a slight ang'le over and across 

 the cord; and he will find, especially if shadows be cast, 

 that he will have to look close in order to locate the cord. 



This may all be regarded as very trivial and I may find 

 in course of time that I have come too quickly to a con- 

 clusion , but from fishing in company with others and 

 from sometimes using two rods at once, my observation 

 and experience lead me just now to believe that the best 

 results have been obtained with 6uch a line as I have de- 

 scribed, and I would suggest that anglers elsewliere on 

 similar waters, especially where bass are wary, give it a 

 trial, if the idea has not already been p]-actically tested 

 by others. P. M. 



FKANKtiiN, Tenn. 



[Hon. H. C. Ford, president of the Pennsylvania Fish 

 Commission, makes a beautiful olive colored dye for gut 

 by the following process: "Take two empty tomato cans; 

 pour into one about an inch of Stafford's" writing fluid; 

 then pour in water until the can is over half ftiU. Put 

 two tablespoonsful of logwood into the second can. and 

 pour in water until two-thirds full. Bring both to a boil- 

 ing point on your range. Then take your hank of gut, 

 from which the rough ends have been severed, and im- 

 merse iu the ink can a minute and a half. Hold it under 

 the hydrant a short time to wash out the superfluous dye, 

 and then plunge into the logwood can for two minutes. 

 Then wash off the superfluous dye as before. If the color 

 is not dark enough repeat the process in both cans." We 

 have seen this gut used in clear water and know that it 

 is highly effective. Doubtless the same method will be 

 av,ailable for lines. Walnut leaves and shells have been 

 used to produce a brown color from a very early date, 

 with alum to fix the color.] 



HONNEDAGA (JOCK'S) LAKE. 



Editor Forest and Streavi: 



The Adirondack League Club now has a fish and game 

 preserve of 120,000 acres in the great northern wilder - 

 ness of this State. In addition to the Blake estate trac t 

 of 85,000 acres to which the club obtained title last year, 

 it has recently secured control of Township No. 5,' con- 

 taining 35,000 acres, adjoining the Blake tract. The club 

 has decided to change the name of Jock's or Transparent 

 Lake to "Honnedaga," the old Indian appellation. A. 

 D. Barber, .Jr., who has conducted the Forest Lodge at 

 Jock's Lake for four years past, has been appointed 

 steward for the club and will continue to conduct the 

 Lodge. He is now engaged in erecting two new build- 

 ings for himself, and also has the supervision of the con- 

 struction of four cottages on the lake. One of these, for 

 L. O. Snyder, of Buft'alo, to cost $2,500, will be located 

 at Flat Rock, and a second for M. W. Barse, of Olean, 

 after the same plans, will be built, L, B, Jones, of New 

 York, is putting up a cottage in the colonial style of 

 architecture at Big Rock Bay, M. M. Pomeroy, other- 

 wise known as "Brick" Pomeroy, is also to build a neat 

 cottage at the head of the lake. The season promises tq 

 be early at the lake although the snow in the woods is 

 still 3ft. in depth, and the ice on the lake is from 20 to 

 24in. thick. The beauty of the Lower Stillwater on the 

 West Canada Creek, three miles from Jock's Lake, has 

 been spoiled this winter by the lumbermen who have 

 erected a dam there and felled all of the spruce timber in 

 the vicinity. The iuaibermen are a-lso making great 

 inroads on the soft timber on Black River near North 

 Lake. Mi-, Barse is quoted as saying that palace cars 

 will be rimning to North Lake by Aug. 1. Pobtsa. 



Utxca, May 5. 



