30 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



[July 14, 1893. 



JUGGING FOR CATFISH. 



Among the diverse modes of fishing in the great rivers 

 of the Mississippi valley there is one that is known as 

 jug-fishing or "jugging" but more properly float fishing, 

 and is much in vogue with those who fish for recreation. 



A dozen or more earthen jugs tightly corked, or blocks 

 of wood, to which a baited line a few feet long is attached 

 generally complete the outfit; but these make-shifts are 

 clumsy and inconvenient and the better way is to secure 

 the requisite number of air-tight tin cans four or five 

 inches in diameter and twelve or fifteen inches long with 

 a ring at one end to which the line or leader is attached. 

 They are usually kept in stock where fishing tackle is 

 sold, but can be made by any tinsmith. They should be 

 painted white to prevent rust; and besides they are more 

 readily seen in the water. 



About two o'clock one warm afternoon of last August 

 Harry and 1 loaded thirty-three floats (there's luck in odd 

 numbers you know) in a light running skiff and pulled 

 up the river about four miles to while away the afternoon 

 and take in a few catfish. The river was smooth as glass, 

 not a breath of air stirring, and o'd Sol was getting in his 

 work as if it was his last chance for the season. 



Coming to a suitable place we pulled across the river, 

 throwing out the floats two or three rods apart with hooks 

 baited with scraps of fresh meat from the butcher shop. 

 We were "honin fur cat" and werecoaxing them to leave 

 the gravelly and muddy depths of the Mississippi to come 

 up and take a bite. 



The floats move oft" in line like a file of soldiers on par- 

 ade. Now they break ranks, some lay behind, others 

 advance. Some drift into shallow water and the lines 

 drag the bottom. We row over to them, shorten the lines, 

 examine the bait, and start them on their journey again. 

 The floats in the eddies bunch up like a flock of teal as if 

 in consultation, then they separate. Some swing off to 

 the right, others to the left, others advance like skir- 

 mishers, and a few bring up the rear while the skiff floats 

 silently a hundred yards behind. 



"There's a bite!" Over to the extreme left a float goes 

 down with a jerk and comes up with a jump; down it goes 

 again, bobbety, bob, bob, now it goes up stream with a 

 rush, then toward the bank. "It's a big one." Swiftly 

 and quietly with muffled oars we piill over to interview 

 him. 



"Easy now, don't grip the line as if you were checking 

 a lumber raft: take it between your forefingers and thumbs 

 and pull him in gently: if he struggles turn him loose till 

 his fight is over; the float will hold him. There, let him 

 fret a little longer. Now try him again. Don't lift him 

 out of the water for he may not be safely hooked." 



The skifi: is cautiously tipped until its edge is level with 

 the water and he is floated m without a struggle. He's 

 a "blue cat," a twenty -five-pouuder if an ounce. He is 

 dropped into the "live box" in the bow of the skiff; and 

 the hook is baited and dropped overboard. 



There's trouble with the lower float in the center of the 

 current; it's spinning like a top but don'tgo under, "That's 

 a little one, "a fiddler." Down we goto the front and 

 take in a three-pounder, just enough for a good meal if 

 you are really fish hungry. 



The floats have now drifted to both banks and the line 

 is three- fourths of a mile in length; but there is not a 

 ripple on the water and you can see them without 

 trouble. 



"There's another bobble" near that tow head. He's 

 lively but it's not a big one. He's moving down stream 

 toward that drift pile." Then we row over and head 

 him off and when his dance is done float him in, a good 

 fifteen-pounder. This is safer than a landing net, for 

 uxiless the fish is well hooked or completely tired out he 

 is apt to plunge and you may lose him in the moment of 

 victory. 



We rest on our oars until the floats pass us, then we 

 take our position in the rear again where we can over- 

 look the scene of action. 



Now we float a mile or more without a bite or nibble, 

 "There's a float that seems to be sinking. I wonder if it 

 leaks." It is still for a few minutes but slowly comes up 

 again. "It's a turtle and you can bet your biggest fish 

 he's stole your bait." 



We drop quietly down and replace it and pick up a half 

 dozen straggling floats and drop them noiselessly in deep 

 water alongside an island and pull back to our position, 

 to await results. On looking back there are but five 

 floats in sight and away we go to see about it. But the 

 missing float pops up suddenly as if to catch breath and 

 down it goes again. In a few minutes it comes up thirty 

 yards lower down. 



"That's the biggest one yet and we mustn't lose him. 

 He's too near the bank, he'll get fast in the willows and 

 then good bye," 



The boat is quietly backed down between the fish and 

 the bank and by striking the water with an oar blade we 

 drive him into safer quarters where he can take his time 

 to finish the battle. When he got quiet down went the 

 gunwale and we floated him in and took in several 

 bucketfuls of water at the same time, but that is a small 

 matter to a fisherman. 



This was the biggest flsh we caught and I will not say 

 how much it weighed lest some of your readers might 

 say it was a fish story and wouldn't believe any of it. 



We had spent so much time in taking him in that our 

 nearest floats were a quarter of a mile down stream and 

 when we reached them three were daccing like puppets 

 and made lots of sport for the next half hour, but we 

 secured all the fish. 



As it was nearly sundown and we were nearing home 

 we picked up the floats and pulled into port. Our seven 

 "blue cats" weighfd 125Ibs., a pretty good catch for a 

 four hour run. We divided liberally with our friends 

 and had an abundance for ourselves. 



Our luck that day was better than usual, but was not 

 remarkable; I have seen better work when the run was 

 longer and the water in the right stage and condition. 

 At other times we might go over the same course and get 

 nothing for our trip but fisherman's luck. 



I could a fish tale unfold that would harrow up a fel- 

 low's feelings because he was not there himself, of phe- 

 nomenal catches and big fishes of the western rivers in 

 early days that would fafl on incredulous ears except 

 among those living near those streams and to whom such 

 things are no marvel. , Cameron. 



An Oregon Trout. 



OfiEGON is productive of many remarkable things, 

 amopg wbirh may mentioped troyt, Mr. John 



Williamson, who is in the employ of F. M. Warren, at 

 the Cascades, has brought from that place a trout 3ft. in 

 length and weighing 13lbs. This monster trout was 

 captured in one of the waterwheels at the Cascades. Mr, 

 Williamson says that in all his twenty years' experience 

 he has never seen anything to equal in size or weight the 

 fish that has been captured. — Portland Telegram., 



Big Salmon * Score. 



Mr. Stanford White, of the well-known firm of archi- 

 tects, McKim, Mead & White, returned last Saturday 

 from the Eestigouche Eiver where he has been angling 

 for salmon. In a little over three weeks' fishing he killed 

 forty-six fish, the aggregate weight of which was 1,049 

 pounds. This is the best salmon score for the Restigouche 

 Club to date, and is well worth recording. 



Hemlock Lake Association. 



A NUMBER of gentlemen met at Frank J, Amsden's 

 office this morning and perfected an organization to be 

 known as the Hemlock Lake Association for the Protec- 

 tion of Fish and G^me. Officers were elected as follows 

 President, L, A, Pratt; Vice-President, L. G, Wetmore, 

 Secretary and Treasurer. F, W. Emerson; Executive Com- 

 mittee, Wm, Manning, Gso. A, Eeynolds, E. B. Ashley, 

 F. J, Amsden, Geo, P. Marten. The object for which the 

 Association has been organized is a most meritorious one. 

 It is to prevent as much as possible illegal fishing in the 

 lake. This will be gratifying not only to cottagers at the 

 lake but to citizens of Rochester generally, for it is a fact 

 that there has been a great deal of illegal fishing at the 

 lake. In many instances the poachers have left set lines 

 in the lake such a length of time that the water has been 

 polluted more or less by the decaying fish, and so many 

 fish have been taken from the lake by set lines and nets 

 that the stock has become diminished to such an extent 

 that it is difficult for legitimate sportsmen to make a re 

 spectable catch. Similar associations for the protection 

 of other bodies of water have been formed in different 

 parts of the State. The local association will take steps 

 to prosecute all persons found fishing illegally in the 

 lake, and all property owners and cottagers at the lake 

 will be asked to become memheTa.—BocTiester Union and 

 Advertiser, June 27, 



Conesus Lake Association. 



A DUMBER of cottage owners at Conesus Lake held a 

 meeting in F. J. Amsden's office this morning and per- 

 fected an organization to be known as the Conesus Lake 

 Association for the Protection of Fish and Game. OfiSl 

 cers were elected as follows: President, Horace McGuire 

 Vice-President, L. L. Williams: SecretLry and Treasurer, 

 Daniel C. Bascom; Executive Committee, John C. Hiy 

 den, Lewis Ennecker, Willard G. Eich, Geo. Field, H. T. 

 Jaeger, The object of the association is the prevention 

 of illegal fishing at Conesus Lake, which has heretofore 

 been carried on to a considerable extent. All cottage 

 owners at the lake and others interested in the protection 

 of fish will be asked to join, and steps will be taken to 

 prosecute all persons found fishing with nets and set lines 

 at the lake, — Roe/iesfer Union and Advertiser, June S9. 



Better than Bait. 



The boy had been sitting for three hours watching the 

 bob on his fishline when the man came along, 



"What are you doing there?'' said the man. 



"Fishin'," said the boy. 



"Got anything?" said the man. 



"Yep," said the boy. 



"What?"' said the man. 



"Patience," said the boy, and the man offered him 

 four dollars a week to come down to the railroad office 

 and answer questions.— De^roisi Free Press. 



Quebec Trout. 



Quebec, June 3.— I have just returned from a short 

 excursion on the Tourilli Club territory, up the St. Anne 

 Eiver, where, notwithstanding the height cf the waters, 

 which are overflowing its banks, we were fortunate 

 enough to kill seven brook trout over 31bs, pach. the 

 largest being 51bs. Van V. 



LONG ISLAND SOUND STRIPED BASS. 



A petition extensively signed and sent to the New York 

 Fish Commission sets forth the great decrease in the game 

 fish of the Sound, particuhtrly between Fort Schuyler and 

 Rye Neck and Oyster Bay. "Within twenty-five'years it 

 was not uncommon for an angler to secure one hundred good 

 flsh, of five or six sorts, in a single day, at any point within 

 the bounds named, but now such a catch is xihbeard of, un- 

 less it be of the coarser sorts, such as flounders and eels. 

 That an improvement of the angling in the Sound would be 

 of great advantage to our towns, does not require proof; and 

 it appears to be a discrimination against salt water angling 

 when the ponds and streams of the interior of our State are 

 supplied with trout, etc., and these waters, so near New 

 York city, are comparatively neglected. We therefore re- 

 quest that you will, as soon as practicable, commence an 

 annual distribution of eggs or fry of salt-water flsh, but 

 especially of the striped bass (Lahrax Imeatus) and weak- 

 fish (O^olit/iu.s re(7fl!?is), in the waters of the sound as indi- 

 cated," 



In response President Huntington advised the petitioners, 

 July 1: "We have had one of our men at Barnegat Bay, and 

 otherwise made efforts to secure weakfish eggs, thus far 

 without success; hope to secure some yet this season, also of 

 sea bass, and perhaps of other .salt-water fish. Could do 

 nothing with striped bass this season, as our finances are 

 very close, and it would incur a considerable expense to get 

 the eggs and handle the flsh, as the coast of North Carolina 

 is, from the most reliable information obtained after a dili- 

 gent investigation, the only location where the eggs can 

 with any certainty be had. Our appropriation for nest year 

 having been increased, we will then make the effort, and 

 hope for success." 



American Fish in Germany. 



Max v'ON DEM Borne wrote the Commissioner of Fisheries 

 June 18, 1892: "The two dogfish sent by your Kindness last 

 year have spawned, and many hundreds of yonng dogfish 

 were seen around a parent flsh. The same happened with 

 the long-eared sunfisb sent last year. The calico bass un- 

 fottttoateljr died dunng the severe wJttter." 



Yearlings Versus Fry. 



Mr. Chas. F. Orvis has informed the U. S. Fish Commis- 

 sion that he intends to rear 20,000 brown trout to yearlings 

 before putting them into his ponds, for he believes the 

 comparative failure of restockin.g their streams has resulted 

 from the fry having been nearly all destroyed very soon after 

 they were planted, 



Mr. J. G. Bailey, president Silver Springs Milling Co., 

 Rogers, Ark., wrote to Mr. William F. Page that a yearling 

 rainbow trout received from him at Silver Springs Decem- 

 ber, 1890, or January, 1891, jumped out of his race April 21, 

 when 28 months old. It was 22in. long and weighed 31bs. 

 dressed. No food has been furnished them. This was a 

 female full of eggs, 



American Fisheries Society. 



No. 81 Fulton Street, New York, June 1.— Editor Forest 

 and Stream: We are anxious to have at least 600 members 

 present at the next annual meeting, which will be held in 

 Chicago on the second Wednesday in August, 1893. All 

 persons interested in the Society and its work are cordially 

 invited to join as members. Edward P. Doyle, Sec'y, 



lennet 



NOTES AND NOTIONS. 



Prevention of cruelty to animals is making rather a 

 noise just now, various societies existing for this alleged 

 purpose, being very active in various demonstrations, and 

 unfortunately these demonstrations are much more in the 

 line of punishing some one for assumed cruelty than in a 

 preventive direction. A prominent magazine devoted to 

 household .'science recently put the question whether the im- 

 pertinent and presumptous interference with private rights 

 by these societies was not a greater evil than the cruelties 

 they seek to suppress, and startling as such an inquiry is at 

 first sight, it is worthy of serious consideration. The under- 

 lying trouble attendant on the work of all such societies is 

 the sentiment on which they are founded going the way of 

 all sentiment and swallowing up considerations of practical 

 utility or even common sense. It is practically certain that 

 sentiment, that may almost be called fanaticism, is a neces- 

 sary part of any such work. None will be apt to devote 

 much of their time to a work so essentially abstract in 

 its character from practical motives; "the gameis not worth 

 the candle" is the viiw practical men would take. Asa 

 result, fanatics, necessarily with ill-regulated minds, impa- 

 tient of restraint or moderate measures, come to the front 

 in .such work, and the cruelty they practice and the enor- 

 mous as.sininity they develop is simply natural evolution, 

 soon arriving at the conclusion that an enforcement of law 

 is a secondary matter, that their views of what the law 

 should be is the right ground to proceed on. 



Such idiotic procedures as opposition to vivisection, de- 

 horning cattle, many sports, etc., are the result of mental 

 fermentation that cannot and will not be tolerated in an 

 enlightened country. To vivisection we owe all the htnlliant 

 triumphs of modern surgery in saving many human lives, 

 dehorning cattle is wisely done for the benefit and comfort 

 of the animals operated on, and the transient pain produced 

 is many times outweighed .by their subsequent comfort. 

 Sports have long been an enjoyment of many of the noblest 

 men the world was ever adorned by; and indulge in ab- 

 stractions as much as fanatics may, it is useless to attempt 

 to persuade the world that men, standing far above their 

 fellows in self-sacriflcing works of mercy, are cruel in their 

 devotion to sports, 



A most ludicrous spasm of prevention of cruelty societies 

 is the performance in Cincinnati of such a society undertak- 

 ing the work of killing vagrant dogs: sentiment has no 

 place in such work. It is just as thoroughly a police duty 

 to remove the hordes of va,grant and worthless curs that 

 infest our cities as it is to suppress rowdyism, and it is just 

 as much the duty of municipal governrnents to incur the 

 cost of protecting the public from one evil as the other, and 

 that irresponsible agents of a S, P. C. A. will continue to do 

 the work as satisfactorily as sworn public officers is not to 

 be expected, and if the prospect of making money by cap- 

 ture of vagrant dogs becomes a factor, the worst excesses of 

 the dog-catcher will soon be excelled. This may seem un- 

 warranted, but have not the outrageous assumptions of 

 authority by such agents given a strong color of probability 

 to such a belief? This suggests the only protection the 

 public have from such men is a resolute defiance of their 

 threats and commands, thereby teaching them that obedi- 

 ence to the law on their own part is the only condition on 

 which they will be tolerated. 



As to "dog catching," The Onlooker would again impress 

 it on all municipalities that the foundation of the abomina- 

 tions of the business is the wretched "per head" system; 

 make it a matter of duty of regtilar police officers to cap- 

 ture stray dogs and the work will be better done and with- 

 out the disgusting features that now characterize it. 



The Onlooker regrets that the respected editor of the Lon- 

 don Stock-Keeper should misconceive his exception to the 

 remarks as to that "noble" incident and assures said editor 

 that nothing was further from his intent than any reflec- 

 tions on the motives directing the unforttanate remark. The 

 Onlooker cannot but hold that the remarks to this were 

 hasty, inasmuch as the editorial columns of Forest and 

 Stream have always been free from gush and maudlin sen- 

 timent, and an error of writing or print was more likely 

 than that slush like the unfortunate word was the fact. 



The Onlooker. 



DOGMATICS OF DOGDOM. 



Bloodhounds are sometimes used to track criminals 

 which do not take their tracks with them, but setters and 

 pointers will make a good stand on "footpads." 



According to recent versions of the two matters, the man- 

 ner in which a Colorado wolf glimmers in the horizon and 

 the manner in which a high class field trial dog ranges are 

 one and the same. 



Field trials must be most destructive competitions, for in 

 the reports we read that nearly every dog "breaks his back" 

 at some stage of the race. 



It is generally admitted and presented as a special feature 

 of merit that coursing is the noblest of sports, because the 

 dogs run honestly, they being out of control of man for the 

 time being. The converse of this suggests itself, and is a 

 sad commentary on the honesty of rnan. 



— §— 



About the most pathetic scene in life is that of an old 

 maid buying a Newfoundland because that breed is famous 

 for saving children from drowning. 



-I- 



Man or dog does not look right when out at elbows. 



— §— 



Did you ever see a dog "toe the scratch''? If not. watch 

 oue wMck has J»»»ge or fleas, THE Cynic, 



