76 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



[Jait. 36, 1893. 



while a pot of invigorating tea was ever at otir elbows 

 As Byron says in "Don Juan;" 



'•fTotliing more sure at moments to take hold 



Of the best feelings of manldnd, wMch gro'w 

 ^lore tender, as ^ve every day behold, 



Than that all-softening, overpowering knell. 

 'I'he (oesin of the soul — the dinner bell." 



The weather, which was delightfuJly pleasant when we 

 started in the morning, had now changed into the A^ery 

 reverse. Broad tumultuous rain clouds, with, tlieir jagged 

 breaks of flaming orange and crinkling gold, which ever 

 and anon flashed out as if to remind jovi of the parting 

 beauty of the morn, were jailing np in heavy masses 

 around the sun and over the azm-e blue. Tlie wind also 

 freslieued as if to harmonize with the dismal picture 

 forming, and the waves, ever ready to acknowledge their 

 master^ rose tip and shook their foamy heads with unmis- 

 takable ■\dgor. I thought this a good time to try the 

 waters around the lee side of the island in hopes of arous- 

 ing some gleaming beauty of the deep; so taking my rod, 

 tiy-hook and landing net, I clambered down to the edge 

 of a rocky clitf , and commenced sending my flies on a 

 mission of duplicity. It Avas cast after cast, and flutter 

 after flutter for fully an hour, and rmtil I had covered 

 aU the available ground, and not a single ripple broke 

 axound my lures. 



"Oil wlica'e is the angler's joy and the artist's dream, 

 Oh where is tlie spotted trout of the mountain stream?"' 



I sang, as 1 returned to camp in a somewhat discon- 

 solate mood at my failure. 



The boatmen, having finished their dinner, were hard 

 at work as I retm'ned from my fi-uitless outing, and in a 

 fair way to soon have the camp in good shape. The pro- 

 A'isions they had well covered with tarpaulins, and had 

 established the cook-house and dining-tent in a little open- 

 ing between two small hills, while our tent had been ad- 

 vantageously placed on the apex of the highest elevation, 

 where it could make immediate acquaintance with either 

 a hurricane or a zephyr. The boys with an eye single for 

 their comfort, had erected their tent to our right, m a 

 deep depression that sheltered them from unruly winds. 

 Our settlement was somewhat scattered and on difiierent 

 plains. We had to go down to meals and u]3 to our tent, 

 while the boatmen had to go down for the provisions and 

 up to the dining tent, and had also to go both up and 

 down as well as over to their quarters. It was a soi-t. of 

 an all roitnd settlement, with plentjr of yard room front, 

 back and sides. The tents were well anchored with heavy 

 stones, and looked as if they would stand any ordinary 

 blow, but if one of those howling blasts of cyclonic ten- 

 dency ever did organize to attack that particrdar twin 

 sister — the ofl: sister — Ned and I were in for a lively time, 

 as our tent was reaUy the church spire of the island. 



We made no fui-ther attempt that afternoon around the 

 island for the iridescent tribe, as Ned Avas satisfied I had 

 completely covered the ground, andthatit Avould be loA^e's 

 labor lost "to resort to any further beg-uilement. 



Alex. Stabbuck. 



[TO BE CO^^TX^aTED.] 



ANGLING NOTES. 



Prof. Phinni, Finny or Funny. 



A FEW week- ago I mentioned a newspaper clippmg, 

 sent to me i-v a i'rreud, which related with great scientific 

 detail hoAV Prof . Phiimi had discovered that fish swarm 

 over Niagara Falls, passing from the sea to the Upper 

 Lakes. This friend, a neAvspaper man, noAv writes me: 

 "After I sent you the clipping from the Journal I had a 

 little curiosity to find out who wrote the article, but I 

 did not succeed . The other day I received a letter from 

 a friend of mine in Chicago," dated at the Press Club. 

 This friend an innocent appearing fellow, who has done 

 a heap of good rt ork for the Journal . "Bram," as he was 

 usually called, is of saiiotimonious countenance and was 

 often mistaken for one of our prominent clergymen; hence 

 he was looked upon as the soul of veracity and it was 

 generall\ thouglit that tliere Avas no gidle in hirn. Now, 

 this letter, which lie A\ rote to me, asked if I had noticed 

 an article in the Journal signed Iia' Prof. Phinni in regard 

 to fish climbing up Niagara Fails, and if tlie sportsmen's 

 papers bad made a iLy comments thereon, and what Avas 

 my opinion on the suljject. I promptly replied that I liad 

 seen the article and sent it to yon and you had given it a 

 'yazoo' in Forest A^^D Stream, that none of the sports- 

 men's paper had giA-en it serious attention, knowing that 

 it was an infernal lie, wiitten \}y Ananias. This morn- 

 ing I received a card from this Chicago lamb, on which 

 was written: 'I am deeply grieved that you shotdd 

 speak in such disparaging terms of Prof. Phinni, who 

 is one of the most veracious of men, and the more espe- 

 cially as his name is a pseudonym of my own. If you 

 don't believe the story I can show you the falls'.'' 



I am rather surprised that the article in question Avas 

 not widely copied at once, but it will bob up in a year or 

 so and go the rounds of the daily papers, as did the item 

 about the experiment that the U. S. Fish Commission was 

 making to remove the bones in the shad by crossing this 

 fish Avith the jelly fish. 



Protect Pike-Perch, _ 



In the list of suggestions offered to the Ncav York State 

 Association as to the proposed changes in the fish and 

 game laAv (I am aware that the Association has since post- 

 poned all action for a year), I find no reference whateA'er 

 to pike-perch. At present this excellent food and game 

 fish, a fish far superior to either the pike or the pickerel, 

 is not protected in any of the Avaters of the State except 

 in the Susqueharma and its tributaries, Avliere it has a 

 close season from Nov. 1 to May 30. The law says: 'No 

 fish shall be fished for, caught "or killed in any^of the in- 

 land f i-esli waters < if this State in any manner or by any 

 device e>:ce]jij angling, saA'e onl3^ etc." If pike-perch are 

 not netted then all signs fail." Pike-perch need a close 

 season far more than pike or pickerel; and furthermore 

 there should be a limit to the size of pike-perch to be 

 legally taken. It is a shame to ah concerned that in the 

 fish markets bunches of little inke-perch about as big as 

 sardines should be exposed for sale. 



Ip 1890 and '91 the State planted 8.500,000 pike-perch 

 fry, but as yet no measures have been taken to protect the 

 growing fish or to give them a close season Avhen groAvn. 

 Mt, Skintier, of tht? exepi^ii^e conmoitteet of tih© State 



Association, Avrites me that Commissioner Bowman and 

 Supt. Green Adsited the St. LaAvrence last August and de- 

 clared that the river Avas in need of a large planting of 

 I pike-perch, and Mr. Skinner reahzes fully that the fish 

 t should haA^e a close season. When I Avrote that inke- 

 perch need a close season far more than" pike (pickerel) I 

 had in mind that the maximum number of eggs fur- 

 nished by a pike-perch is about 200,000, while the maxi- 

 mum number furnished by the pike is over 600,000; and 

 for the purpose of comparison I may add that the number 

 of eggs furnished by a black bass of olbs. is about 20,000. 

 All these things should be taken into consideration when 

 fish laAvs are to be framed. 



The "Cold Snap" and Future Fishing. 



I wonder hoAv many fishermen realize the effect this 

 cold Aveather may hawe on stream trout fishing in the 

 futirre? On the southern border of the Adirondacks the 

 streams were low Avhen *the cold Aveather came, and on 

 all sides I hear that the water has frozen solid to the 

 bottom in very mairy of the streams, and tliis must mean 

 disaster to the spawning beds of the trout in the moun- 

 tain brooks. The sources of the brooks being frozen, a 

 thaAv now^ would send the water Avhirling away on the 

 surface to the larger streams. When the trout "beds are 

 dry and frozen solid the ova is worthless, and the break- 

 ing up of the thick ice may plough up beds further down, 

 so I fear that the prospect for a large crop of trout fry 

 next spring is not rosy; but, perhaps, it will be a good 

 time to cross this bridge when we come to it. 



Senator Kenna as an Amateur Photographer. 



Forest and Stream has just come, and I find in it a 

 reproduction of one of the late Senator Kenna's photo- 

 graphs, and a friend asks hoAv he took the picture which 

 he apxaears in. He had just taken a photograph of his 

 two comjjanions and A\-ithout moving the camera he put 

 in a new plate and took his seat on the stump, and told a 

 colored man that Ave had Avith us to take off the cap when 

 he said "now," and to put it back Avhen he repeated the 

 word. This accounts for Senator Kenna's lips being 

 .slightlj'- parted in the original photograph in the j)osses- 

 sion of the editor of Forest and Stream. Senator Kenna 

 excelled as an amateur photographer, and photography 

 was something of which he Avas particularly fond. In 

 looking over his personal letters I find f i-equent allusion to 

 his camera. In one he says: "I had scarcely touched 

 the latch string on my return from Washington, before I 

 had to be off again — this time for Jefferson county in the 

 eastern part of the State, the scene of -John Brown's in= 

 surrection, trial and execution. John Brown's body is 

 said to be still marcliing on. If that be so, it is about the 

 only thing I haA^e not fired my camera at since I saw 

 you." 



Annoimcing his return to the United States Senate after 

 a long contest he uses this allegory in conclusion: "When 

 I started in the amateur photograph line I had not con- 

 templated aU the difficulties Avhich sometimes beset the 

 adventurer of the camera. I had the focus all right, and 

 the picture in the end de\'eloped finely, but the exposure 

 required a longer period than Fleet Avould Avant to sit on 

 a rock or the Texas Club hold a rod without a bite. It 

 was, seriously, a serious sort of an affair." I could fill a 

 page with extracts from these letters, eA^ery one breathing 

 the loA'e of nature, but I conchtde with one of a dift'erent 

 character. Fleet Porterfield was Senator Kenna's kennel- 

 man, huntsman and boatman: a colored man that I fully 

 believe would haA e given his life for his master (on one 

 occasion when Mr. Kenna was thrown out of his boat in 

 running a rapid and a fall m the river. 1 sav\- Fleet di\ e 

 for him before his feet were fa.irly below the surface), and 

 in scores of photographs that 1 liaA'e Fleet is represented 

 sitting on a rock. "I ha\ e just read >oiir letter in Forest 

 AND Stream, and it attoi'ded me much pleasure, in whicli 

 Fleet had his regular standard shai-e. * * * Your 

 article gav^e him a very tleserved tribute. * « * Oh, 

 the days on the Greenbrier! Thej'^ will coute back with 

 pleasing recollections as long as I liA-e!'" A. N. Cheney, 



INCLOSURE OF BROOK TROUT. 



Editor Forest and Stream: 



I shotdd be vei-y much obliged for some information and 

 your opinion on the following subject: I haA-e a small 

 stream, about a mile in length and aA^eraging four feet in 

 width, which rises and runs its entire course on my own 

 property, emptjdng into a large lake at the end. As I can 

 completelj^ protect the stream, I intend putting some four 

 or fiA'-e hundred yearling brook trout into it. in hope of 

 getting some really good fishing in time. 



First — Conld these trout be put in in February, provided 

 the stream is thoroughly open? 



Second — Would a, dam at the end of the stream be the 

 best A\'ay to keep tJie trout from rtmning into the lake? 

 A strong wire nettmg at the mouth of the stream would 

 surely be carried aAvay in the spring freshets I suppose, 



Oavahgena. 



[Brook trout can be successful^ planted even under the 

 ice by cutting holes for their introduction. Yearling 

 trout are now being distributed in frozen northern streams. 

 Eainbow ti'out are feeding in the aquaria in Washington, 

 D. C. , in water that is almost icy cold. Y'oung salmon 

 just out of the egg are found in water not many degrees 

 above the freezing point. Wire netting at the mouth of 

 the stream described Avill be swept away by floods: the 

 only safe and practicable means of pennuig will be by a 

 well-built dam. We take for granted that the sti-eam is 

 subject to great changes of level and has a rapid flow, 

 otherwise it woidd not be a typical trout brook. An im- 

 portant subject in connection with the stream is the 

 amount and kinds of fish-food it contains. If it is not 

 supplied witli insect larva?., fresh-water shrimps, harmless 

 minnows, and suitable vegetation, it will be necessar}' to 

 introduce these essentials. See Forest and Stream 

 catalogue of books on trout rearing. 



A New Boston Firm. 



Among the bitsiness changes of 1893 is one in the well 

 known Boston firm of fishing tackle and fine cutlery 

 dealers, formerly known as Geo. B. Appleton & Co. The 

 name has been changed to that of Appleton & Bassett, but 

 there will be no departure from those business methods 

 which have, in the past, achieved success and popularity 

 for the "old stand" at No. 304 Wsjehingtaftatreet. 



REARING BLACK BASS. 



Editor Forest and Stream: 



EiCHMOND, Ky., Jan. 7. — ^I have an artificial pool 21 x 

 41 X4ft. fed through a lin. or 4in. pipe from our water- 

 works lake. I built this pool last summer, just below the 

 dam of the lake, Avith the vdew of using it as a hatchery 

 for black bass, so I could add fresh blood to the lake each 

 year. There are twenty-two big-mouthed black bass in 

 the pool now, which I brought from St. Marys, 0., last 

 October; they weigh from If to 2ilbs. each; they are fed 

 on minnoAvs, beef hearts and grain. I Avould be pleased 

 if you Avouki kindly gi\'e me the addresses of gentlemen 

 Avho have had experience in hatching and raising bass, as 

 my information on this branch of the business is very 

 limited and I desire to Avrite to them. 



Chas. S. Powell. 

 [You will get much better i-esults by transferring your 

 large bass next spring to a larger body of water, perhaps 

 to the lake of which you write. The pool is too small 

 for a breeding pond. The bass build nests in shallow 

 water along shore on sandy and pebbly bottom. They 

 protect the nests and young until the fry are able to forage 

 for themselves. A pond covering one acre AA^otdd not be 

 too large for the fish mentioned. In a GoAwnment fish 

 pond in Washington, covering several acres, fifteen big- 

 mouthed bass were placed la.st spring. The progeny of 

 these adults numbered 50,000 and upwai'd of 30,000 of 

 these were reared to an average length of 4in. during the 

 summer; the rest Avere lost through the cannibalism of 

 the larger individuals of the offspring. This pond was 

 abundantly stocked with minnows, carp and smaU sun- 

 fish, which served admirably as food for the bass. At 

 Neosho, Mo., Mr. W. F. Page feeds the fish commission 

 bass Avith fresh liver. In most localities , minnows form 

 the sole food of the bass. Y"ou can obtain information 

 from Mr. Page, Neosho, Mo. ; Dr. Eudolph Hessel, U. S. 

 Fish Commission. Washington. D. C; W, J. Huddleston. 

 Remington, O.; Hon. W. J. Green. FayetteAdlle, N, C.r 

 and Col, Gilbert 31oyers. Washington, D. C, You avUI 

 find, hoAveA'er, that the common shiners, or minnoAvs, of 

 Kentucky Avill answer Avell for introduction into your 

 bass waters. The young mud shad or gizzard shad Avill 

 also prove suitable, and the brook silverside has served 

 admirably whereA^er it has been tried. We mention these 

 because they ai-e common fish of your region. Tlie growth 

 of the large-mouth bass under favorable conditions is re- 

 markable. At the pond in Washington several hundred 

 of the young when only fiA-e months old measured nearly 

 10m. in length, the result of generous feeding. If you 

 Avant to prevent cannibalism giA^e your bass all the min- 

 nows they Avill eat.1 



Snakes Galore, 



A SMALL bottle in the exhil^it of the U. S. Fish Com- 

 mission for the World's Fair attracted our serious atten- 

 tion in the early morning a fcAA- tlays ago. Its capacity by 

 actual measurement is ordy a, half pint, but its potential- 

 ity is not to be measured by its size in ounces, for it is 

 packed full of snakes, all belonging to a .single brood, al- 

 though forty-one in number. 



Mr. (reo. A. Seas^lc forwarded the bottle from Wythe- 

 Adlo. Va., and labeled it as follows: 



"This bottle contains forty-one young water moccasin 

 snakes. Avhicli were taken from the body of the mother, 

 killed m Black Bass Pond., at WytheviUe, Va., station, 

 Aug. 8, tiS92. The mother snake was 40in, in length and 

 6in. in circuiJiierfnee. 



Perhaps some reader of FOREST .VND STREAM may be 

 able to estimate Li it- prospective destrojdng power of this 

 tamilv: tt:e prol)]em is too difficult for us. They were 

 located m the riick ))ass pond. too. Avhere the greatest 

 nnscluer w as posmlde. since this bass has a small' mouth 

 and feeds upon worms, .small shells, insects and cms- 

 taceans. Had t!ie>' chosen the pond containing ratnboAv 

 trout m.ilici-> Would li.i\e turned out differently when 

 they readied a tan' sizr. for the rainboAv can kill .snakes 

 with great ease and r;ti)Khty. Evidently the water moc- 

 casin lb as - -Wise as a sei-i»ent,'" although by no means as 

 "harmle.ss as a dove."" B. 



Fish Plentiftil in North Carolina, 



"C. H." has Avritten the following letter to the Evening 

 Telegram , Washington, D. C. : "I have just come on from 

 Newberne. N. C, Avhere I haA^e been sojourning through- 

 out the entire cold term. Never before have the adjacent 

 waters been so croAvded with fish, chiefly sea front and 

 mullet, Avitli some red drtim, and the protracted cold 

 Aveather has had the eftect to render them torpid. They 

 sw^arm mto the Neuse River and up the jL^-ent above the 

 citA^ in dense masses, so that they are scooped up with 

 baskets, dipped Avith nets and picked up with oyster tong-s. 

 Seines dropped over the bows of fishing boats just below 

 the city are hatded in full of fish. The quantities mar- 

 keted are numbered by the milhons. The fish are large, 

 fat and delicious. " 



Readers of Forest and Stream avIU recall Mr. HaUock's 

 mteresting account of North Carolina fishuig, pubhshed 

 Feb. 18, 1892. He referred to the capture of shad, blue- 

 fish, red drum, croakers, Aveakfish and mullets in Decem- 

 ber, while in January the hst Avas increased by the addi- 

 tion of spots, perch, pickerel and black bass. The fresh 

 waters are prolific and the sea yields a plentiful harvest, 

 yet angling, according to Mr, HaUock, is a dead art in 

 Noi'th Carolina watex-s, as f ^^r as the native population is 

 concerned. 



St. Augustine Fishing. 



St. Augustine, Fla., Jan, 21, — Fishuig does not appear 

 to have been enjoyed by manj'-. Whether this is due to 

 the weather being too chilly for the anglers to go near the 

 water or the fish not coming to the bait, I am unable to 

 say; but I hope soon to investigate the subject and may let 

 you knoAv the result. 



For one accustomed to fly-fishing for salmon and troxit 

 in Canadian waters, bait-fishing has httle attraction; but it 

 may do for a imssetemps and be a novelty in its way. 

 No doubt the fish wih prove so, for I am told when your 

 hook is taken you never can tell, unless you know his tug 

 at the line, whether you have a young shark or a sea trout 

 or some other hideous or beautiful denizen of the waters 

 fastened on nntU he reaches the smface. 



J. IT. Gregory, 



