J™ 35, 1891.1 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



457 



The rest of Tthe band axe now in full flight. Under 

 ordinary circumstanoas it would have been useless to 

 have followed them, but for two reasons I was now will- 

 ing to risk a few hundred yards of a chase. I believed 

 that the old doe which Joe had just killed was the leader 

 of the band, and without her they would not go very far. 

 There was a big buck in the band, but deer do not follow 

 a buck very well. Then again, just beyond where we 

 had first seen them the sidehill was bare of trees and 

 from a little rise of ground beyond I knew I could see 

 quite a long distance up the side of the mountain, I con- 

 cluded to trail them to the top of the ridge. So, leaving 

 Dan to hunt up his doe, I struck out. On reaching the 

 top of the ridge no deer were to be seen anywhere. Had 

 they run straight ahead I must now see them climbing up 

 yonder sidehill. Ah! here is their track turning to my 

 right. They made a digression, as my teacher used to 

 say, and are heading for a low pass which leads into the 

 next gulch. Shall I follow them? Now I wind them. 

 They can't be very far. If I hurry I may catch them on 

 the other side of the hill. Stumbling, slipping and breath- 

 less I had almost reached the pass, when I saw the deer 

 coming back on their old trail and looking for their leader 

 — or for me. They found me, but only exhibited to me 

 seven heads and necks — one the head of the monstrous 

 buck, the rest were does. All in a bunch they stand 

 eager and excited, ears erect and nostrils expanded. 

 Shall I shoot? At a distance of one hundred yards, at 

 that moment, a deer's head was a very small mark. 

 While I hesitated they withdrew, dodging back over the 

 hill. I hastened up the hill, almost reaching the top 

 when hero they come trotting back. I was now nearly 

 on a level with them and could see their whole bodies. 

 Again they bunched, facing me; but the buck was gone. 

 The six deer were about seventy-five yards distant and 

 standing so closely together that their bodies seemed to 

 touch each other. For a moment my eyes feasted on the 

 Bight, which to me was a handsome reward for the toils 

 of the ascent. Here is your picture deer but far grander, 

 far nobler — so wild, so fearful, so inquisitive, so full of 

 life and beauty — reminding one of the words of the Arab 

 in his farewell to his steed, "My beautiful, my beautiful, 

 which standeth proudly by." But now was no time for 

 soliloquy. Deer or sheep had to furnish the camp with 

 its winter supply of meat. 



A shot, a fall, a scatter, bunched again, a second shot, 

 a frantic leap by a young doe, and like leaves before a 

 tempest driven they turned and fled. Two does are not 

 yet satisfied, go leaving the other three they turned back 

 and climbed still higher up the hiU. How proud they 

 looked ! Was ever peacock prouder ? With head and 

 tail erect they trot around as you may often have seen 

 a horse when turned out to pasture after a few days rest. 

 Now a jump on all fours, now they stand, stamp their 

 feet, hesitating, not knowing which way to flee. I am 

 excited and out of breath. Watching a chance when 

 they were standing 150yds. away I shot. They jumped, 

 separated, and again joined each other. Another shot, 

 and another, and another. At length, disgusted at my 

 ill luck I dropped on to my knees and taiiing careful aim 

 had the satisfaction of seeing one of the deer jump high 

 up into the air and then they both fled down the hill fol- 

 lowed by a wild bullet to hasten their escape. One hun- 

 dred yards and one of them grows faint. She reels, she 

 circles, she falls; and with one convulsive struggle she is 

 dead. 



Retracing my steps to where I first shot, there lay a 

 fine yearling doe quite dead. Taking the trail of the 

 wounded deer I at once found blood sign, and in a short 

 distance found him lying where he had fallen, never to 

 rise. The rest of the deer I saw in the distance crashing 

 through the dry poles. Dragging the last deer, a year- 

 ling buck, to the first one, I went after the other one, 

 and finding it dragged it also to the same place. Hearing 

 the shooting Dan had come up and wanted to know where 

 the deer were. I soon showed him three. "My," he said, 

 "you did do well ! I wish I had gone with you. But I 

 had no idea you would catch up with them." "Well, 

 Dan," I said, "I am sorry you were not with me, for you 

 missed one of the grandest chances in your life to get a 

 deer." 



It was now after sundown and we were six miles from 

 home. So, hastily dressing the deer, we dragged them 

 down into the gulch and hung them up high and dry. 

 Dragging the first deer to the same place we hung it up 

 with the others. It was a monster blacktail doe, as large 

 as any doe I have ever seen, We did not weigh her, but 

 she must have dressed close to l751bs. The others were 

 two yearlings — buck and doe — and one two-year-old 

 blacktail doe. Washing om* hands in the snow, we hm*- 

 ried down to the horses. On the way, of course, Dan had 

 to listen to every little detail of how each deer was 

 killed. DoUie and Charlie were mighty glad to see us, 

 as they had about decided to camp out and eat fir boughs 

 that night. Old Charlie whinnied for us when we came 

 in sight; but Dollie did not like the smell of blood on my 

 coat sleeve, and would not for some time let me mount 

 her. Less than an hour's ride landed us again at camp. 

 It was now half -past 7, While we ate our supper and 

 smoked our pipe, we lived over again one of the most 

 successful short hunts I have ever had. The next day we 

 took a wagon, and hauling our deer to camp, we hung 

 them up with the three I had killed a few days before. 

 Delighted with the prospect of plenty of fresh venison 

 for a while, we were now willing to go back to our work. 



Debbbotirne. 



Minnesota Notes.— Preparations are well under way 

 for the survey of Itasca State Park, the last Legislature 

 having passed a bill appropriating thirty-iive sections of 

 land around Lake Itasca for this purpose. This means 

 as much to the people of this State as the much-talked-of 

 Adirondack Park to the people of New York. There are 

 about 100 beautiful lakes embraced within the proposed 

 park limits. The killing of all kinds of game is prohib- 

 ited, and the taking of fish otherwise than with hook and 

 line at the legal season. The general care and super- 

 vision of the park is for the present vested in the State 

 Auditor and a commission appointed by the Governor. 

 Down at Cromwell last week two men were out in the 

 woods, and coming across two moose they killed them 

 in defiance of the law. Information has been lodged 

 against them, and it remains to be seen if the law will be 

 enforced or not. In such cases the fine cannot be less 

 than $50.— Myron CootEr (Detroit City, Mima., June 

 15). 



Pabadox Gun.— Nutley, N. J.— Editor Forest and 

 Stream: For the information of "B. R of Buffalo, who 

 desires to be enlightened as to the "Paradox" gun made 

 by Holland & Holland, I would say that it is described 

 by Sir S.imuel Baker in "Wild Beasts and their Ways," 

 as follows; "It is a smooth-bore slightly choked, bixt 

 severely rifled for only l^in. in length from the muzzle. 

 This gives the spin to the projectile sufiioient to insure 

 accuracy at the distance mentioned (lOOyds.), The No, 

 12 Paradox weighs Sjlbs. and carries a bullet of Ifoz, 

 with 4idrs. of powder. It shoots No. 6 shot with equal 

 pattern to the best cylinder-bored gun," If "B. R.'' 

 desires further information and will write to me I shall 

 be pleased to answer to the best of my ability. — C. J, 

 Gaoler. [This gun was de scribed and targets printed 

 in our issue of Aug. 5, 1886.] 



"Winchester Gun Grease" does not sound nice, but 

 it is said to do the business, and that is nine points of the 

 merit of a gun-rust preventive. The Winchesters have 

 used it themselves, and whatever is good for them ought 

 to be good for other people. 



"That reminds me." 



IN Florida the past winter a favorite practice among 

 the boarders was to throw out baited lines from the 

 wharf and leave them over night. Mr. K., who was 

 much averse to fishing on Sunday, was taking an early 

 walk on the morning of Feb. 23^ which happened to be 

 the Sabbath also. Seeing a laige fish at the end of the 

 line he took hold of it, and, forgetting himself, pulled in 

 what proved to be a channel bass, which weighed nearly 

 271bs. He proudly exhibited it, but was sorely troubled 

 to find that he had caught a fish on Sunday, The boys 

 plagued him a good deal, when he finally evolved the 

 following: "It is wrong to fish on Sunday, but I find on 

 looking it up that this is Washington's birthday, a na- 

 tional holiday, therefore Sunday don't count, and that 

 lets me out." 



\m mid 



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

 Territories and British Provinces are given in the BooTt of 

 the Game Laws. 



QUEEN OF THE ROD. 



Editor Forest and Stream: 



Your issue of May 15 contained an account of the catch- 

 ing by Mrs. Geo. T, Stagg, of Frankfort, Ky, of a tarpon 

 weighing 2051bs. This, certainly, is a most remarkable 

 achievement, but I will tell you of another capture by 

 the same lady, equally as exciting and skillful. 



It was my pleasure to be with Mr. and Mrs. Stagg for 

 two weeks this winter on Capt, Vail's boat, the Rock 

 Ledge, at Jupiter, Dade county, Florida. We were fish- 

 ing every day, the principal catches being bluefish and 

 channel bass. During all this time Mrs. Stagg caught 

 the greatest variety and largest fish, and in all my ex- 

 jierience I have never seen a lady handle fish from boat 

 or shore with as much skill. Sharks were very numerous 

 this winter and we caught some big ones with the regu- 

 lation tackle. Our house-boat was located about half a 

 mile from the inlet and ocean beach and at the junction 

 of the Loxahatchie and Indian rivers. 



A big sawfish had been caught in the net of one of the 

 natives, and Mrs. Stagg c©ncluded she must have one to 

 add to her already big string. On the morning of March 

 21 JMi'. and Mrs. Stagg and the guide. Wells, started for 

 Sawfish Bay, about half a mile above our boat on the 

 Loxahatchie. I had been out to the beach bathing, and 

 on my return to the boat was told that Mrs. Stagg had 

 made fast to a big fish, and that from the deck I could 

 see the whole performance. When I first saw the fishing 

 party they were about a quarter of a mile oft', and had 

 evidently worked the fish down the river about the same 

 distance from Sawfish Bay. AVe all came to the con- 

 clusion it was a sawfish, and a big one. It became evi- 

 dent after a while that, if the fish was landed, some 

 assistance would be necessary, so Commodore Hughes, of 

 New York, well known to eastern yachtsmen, started out 

 with the mate in a yacht tender, armed with a harpoon 

 spear. The fish was now in mid-stream and making 

 some desperate, long and deep runs. Mrs. Stagg stood 

 up in the stern of the boat handling the big load in a 

 masterly manner. Her heavy tarpon tackle was pnt to 

 its greatest strain ; at times the tip of the rod would be 

 drawn clear to the water, so fast was the run of the big 

 fish. Wells, the guide, an expert boatman, had all he 

 could do to keep the stern of the boat in the right direc- 

 tion. The fish was doing all of the towing, and, in the 

 first forty minutes, had brought the boat down opposite 

 our landing, fully half a mile. The commodore, in the 

 meantime, was trying his best to get a crack at the big 

 fellow with the harpoon. Only once did he succeed in 

 getting even a chance and then the water was so deep I 

 thought we would have to fish for the commodore, as he 

 nearly went out of the boat in his efl'ort to land the 

 harpoon. 



The fish was now evidently making for the inlet, and 

 we knew if he succeeded in reaching the swift water of 

 the channel the jig was up. The party was now opposite 

 the steamboat dock and several boats had joined the pro- 

 cession, keeping at a respectful distance, however. All 

 of the natives and visiting sportsmen to the number of 

 about thirty were on the deck, and many were the shouts 

 of encouragement and prayers for the successful landing 

 of the hia fellow. Twice the fish ran under the boat and 

 we thought he was suxely lost: but good tackle and good 

 judgment will land a whale, and we were gratified to see 

 that Mrs. Stagg still had the best of it. Down stream 

 they all went, straight for the inlet. The water here was 

 deep and it was simply hang on and trust to luck. If the 

 fish ran into the shallow water on any of the numerous 

 sand bars he was pretty sure to be captured ; if he kept 

 the channel straight out, he was lost. Now it was that 

 skillful work on the part of the fisher and the boatman 

 gradually worked the fish out of the channel and into 

 the Bhalxow water, Over an hour had passed since the 



first strike and the boats were nearly half a mile below 

 us. The fish could now be plainly seen from the boats 

 and it was apparent that he had met his match and was 

 fast tiring out. Now was the time for Commodore 

 Hughes to get in his work, and as the big fellow stopped 

 for an instant to gather his strength, down went the 

 grail and he was captured. A big shout went up from 

 the spectators and we waited for the big one to be towed 

 in wnth considerable expectancy. An hour and ten 

 minutes was the time of the battle, and the fish had run 

 more than a mile. When we hauled him out on the land- 

 ing we showed the lai'gest shark any of us had ever seen 

 caught with rod and line. He weighed 2o31bs. and was 

 8ft. 4in. long. No need to stretch these dimensions, the 

 story is big enough in its truth. 



When the train came over from Lake Worth that after- 

 noon the hook had not been taken, from his mouth and 

 the rod with the line were standing near the big fish. I 

 doubt if one-half of the seventy or eighty people from 

 the train, few of them fishermen, believed that any such 

 fish was taken with so light a tackle. 



When Mrs. Stagg first struck the fish, she as well as 

 the others in the boat, thought they had a sawfish. It 

 was about fifteen minutes before the captive disclosed 

 himself enough to discover his identity. 



I am anxious to hear Mrs. Stagg's accoimt of the catch- 

 ing of the big tarpon. I doubt, however, if she had a 

 much harder fight than she did that day on Loxahatchie. 

 Mr. Stagg about this time pm'chased from Commodore 

 Hughes the handsome little cruiser Tarpon, and Mr. and 

 Mrs. Stagg shortly after left for the Gulf, where their 

 success with the silver king is now a matter of history. 



W. H. Case. 



LooKPORT, N. Y., June 6. 



ANGLING IN CANADA. 



A DOZEN members of the Springfield Pish and Game 

 Club of Springfield, Mass., arrived here in great 

 style on Friday last, on their way to their angling head- 

 quarters up the line of the Quebec and Lake St. John R. 

 R. They came all the way here by special car, and went up 

 to Chambord on a special train. The party consists of E. S. 

 I3rewer, president of the club, D. N. Coats and E. M. Coats, 

 of the Monarch Parlor Car Company, D, W. .James, of New 

 York, C. A. Nicholls, of Springfield, Chas. A. Bryon, of 

 Brooklyn and H. W. Fenner, of Providence, R. I. They 

 enjoyed splendid sport, and most of them have now left 

 for their homes. Another party of the same club is ex- 

 pected here by another special car to-morrow, and will in- 

 clude Col. V. M. B. Edgerly, president of the Massa- 

 chusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company, Louis H. Orr, 

 president of the Springfield Printing and Binding Co., 

 Walter H. Wesson, of Smith & Wesson, Mi'. Cheney 

 silk manufacturer and Dwight O. Gilmore, proprietor 

 of Gilmore's Opera House. 



But the ijrincipal Mecca of American anglers just now 

 is Lake St. John and its immediate surroundings, where 

 fishermen are just now matching their finesse against the 

 warlike ouananiche or fresh-water salmon. Mr. Boswell 

 made a large catch last week at the mouth of the 

 Ouiatchouan, but his fish were comparatively small, 

 averaging but S^J-lhs. each. The larger fish are now to be 

 had at the Gx-and Discharge or in the Peribonca River, 

 Anglers may be interested in knowing what flies have 

 been successful at the Grand Discharge during the present 

 month. As a rule these fi^h do not take a very large fly. 

 In fine weather the black-gnat has proved a hilling fly, 

 and on darker days a taking bait has been a bright body 

 with gold or bronze stripes, partially covered with green 

 fuzz, and having white wings. The Childers, the Jock- 

 Scot and the green-hackle have also been very successful 

 flies, a.nd with some anglers the silver-doctor is a favor- 

 ite. Take these and a few more of the same kind up 

 with you to the Grand Discharge, secure a guide and a 

 canoe, sjxd if you know anything at all aborxt casting a fly 

 and playing a fish that knows how to fight, above all if 

 you can appreciate a foeman worthy of your steel, you 

 will long cherish a fond remembrance of your visit to the 

 home of the ouananiche. But go loaded for bear, and by 

 no means forget to have with you a few extra leaders and " 

 tips. 



I have just seen an afternoon's catch of Lake Edward 

 trout brought to town yesterday by two Quebecers. It 

 weighed 561bs. in all, and included six fish of 41bs. each 

 and upward, and all beautiful specimens of the true 

 Salmo fontinalis. 



Saknon fishermen are passing through Quebec almost 

 daily on their way to the famous streams of the North 

 Shore or of the Baie des Chaleurs. Messrs. Alec. Denis- 

 town, of Edinburgh, and T. B. Cartwright and Hope 

 Brooke, of England, are here now on their way to the 

 Mingan River, Mi*. Walter Brackett, of Boston, the 

 famous painter of fish pieces, who is also an artist at 

 killing the salmon, left to-day for Tadousac, to fish his 

 pools on the Marguerite. 



If the Canadian Parliament adjourns early enough, 

 Lord Stanley, the Governor-General, will join his family 

 at Stanley Cottage on the banks of his salmon stream, and 

 there Prince George of Wales will be again their Ex- 

 cellencies' guest. There are at present upon th^ Cas- 

 capedia River R. G. Dun, of Dun, Wiman & Co., New 

 York, and Mrs. Dun, E. W. Davies and Mrs, Davies, C. 

 B. Barnes, F. Nicholls, G. E. Strong, G. Hecksher and J. 

 N. Skelton. 



Dr. Green and G. F. Smith are fishing theBonaventure 

 River; B. Dutton, of Boston, the Little Pabos: Thos. Mur- 

 doch, of Chicago, the York River, and J. C. Tappin, H. 

 A. Tappin and C. L. Tappin, of New York, tlie Dart- 

 mouth. 



Sir Charles and Lady Hunter are at Gaspe, and the 

 Grand Pabos is being fished by Brent Good, president of 

 the New York Lyceum Company and by H. Newton, Geo. 

 M. Hard, G. H. Richardson and others. 



Mr. W. C. Whitney, who was Secretary of the Navy in 

 the Administration of President Cleveland, passed through 

 Quebec yesterday, accompanied by his brother-in-law, O. 

 H, Payne, and Mr. M. H. Hanna, on his way to the God- 

 bout. 



Mr. Harry Sanford, of New York, returned yesterday 

 from Chicoutimi, where he has enjoyed some" splendid 

 trout fishing. E. T, D. Chambers. 



QrrEBEC, June 19. 



A Book About Indiaks.— The Forkst and Stream mil mail 

 free on application a descriptive circular of Mr. Grinnell's book, 

 "Pawnee Hero Stories and Folk-tales," giving a table of contents 

 and Bpeolmen illustrations from the volTame.— ^du. 



