616 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



[Jxnm 15, 189S. 



BOSTON RODS IN MAINE WATERS. 



Boston, June 10.— The height of the trout season in 

 Maine waters is over, so far as the spring season is con- 

 cerned, and many of the parties have retumc^d and are 

 returning. Still there are others who wiil go for fly-fasliing 

 purely, and thev wiU follow up all of the month of June, 

 ■md well into July. There will then be a lull till late m 

 Au"-U3t or during the heated term, when the fall lly-hsh- 

 ingVili he^in. Thus far the season is proving f an-ly satis- 

 factory as to numbers of trout, but there is a lack of size 

 noticeable in the trout taken in the Rangeleys and Moose- 

 head, showing that the supply of trout is being heavily 

 drawn upon, and showing the great need of artificial 

 stocking to keep up the supply. It is suggested by some 

 of the best trout fishermen who visit the Maine waters 

 that the quantity of trout that any one fisherman is al- 

 lowed to take and bring out is far too great. It is sug- 

 gested that Solbs. to a trip is all that any one angler should 

 be allowed to catch and bring away, and this would seem 

 to be a most reasonable restriction. Such a restriction is 

 also advocated by some of the best guides and camp keep- 

 ers in the Rangeleys. They believe that only by some 

 such measure can the supply of trout be kept up. The 

 readers of the Forest and Stream will generally agree 

 with them, and will grant that the man who desires to 

 catch more than 251bs. at a trip had better go into the 

 fresh fisli business somewhere on the wharves, where he 

 can glory in the quantity he can handle. 



Tlie Akerman party, Mr. and Mrs. Akerman and Mr. 

 and Mrs. Harris, of New York, had fair success at the 

 Upper Dam, and later at The Birches, Mooselucmaguntic 

 Lake. Mr. Harris got a trout of some 51bs. The Magee 

 party, a very large one, early mentioned in the Forest 

 AND Stream, was at The Birches for some time. The 

 ladies took some big trout. The senior Magee, the 

 founder of the iVlagee Furnace Co. , of Boston, was with 

 the party after all, though it was feared that sickness 

 uught hinder him. He has visited tlie Rangeleys nearly 

 every vear lor many years. Mi's. Magee, one of those 

 most kindly ladies that everybody loves for their experi- 

 ence and excellent good sense, was with the party. 



Tlie Camp Stewart party had excellent success, not so 

 much in the great quantity of trout taken as in the way 

 tlie fates decreed, or the luck turned. Miss Blanche M. 

 Stanley, of Newton, who never put a line into the Range- 

 ley waters before, or indeed ever fished for trout at all, 

 took a 61bs. trout before she had fished an hour on her 

 first trip out. Indeed this young lady went to the lakes 

 wholly for sketching, and did not fish at aU till the trip 

 was nearly over. Miss Edith M. Hayward, of Chestnut 

 Hill, also a novice in trout fishing, who also went for 

 sketching, took thii-teen handsome trout, with one over 

 81bs, Mrs. W. T. Farley, another lady who had never 

 visited the Rangeleys before, made a good record of nine- 

 teen trout, though thoroughly tired out from a recent 

 visit to the Columbian Exhibition. Mi's. W. K. Moody, 

 who has a previous record of an 81bs. ti'out, took a 6- 

 pounder this time, and hooked another that parted the 

 line that had just held the Olbs. iish. The guide, Charles 

 H. Cutting, claims that it was a lOlbs. fish. The gentle- 

 men of the party, W . T. Farley, of the diy goods firm of 

 Farley, Harvey & Co. , H. S. Kempton and W. K. Moody, 

 both of the Boston /Jemi!d, each made good records of 

 trout. 



The parly of the Iiiglewood Club, members and invited 

 guests, retm-ned to Boston on Friday after a two weeks' 

 absence at the home of the club, Inglewood Manor, in 

 New Brunswick. To say that the party had a good time 

 and a most successful trip only about half expresses the 

 fun and the general enjoyment. Much of the success 

 and comfort of the trip is due to Mr. Leroy S. Brown, 

 chairman of the house committee, and of the firm of 

 Blaney Brown & Co. , of Boston, and a good deal of the 

 fun the boys enjoyed is due to Harry B. Moore, of J. E. 

 Soper & Co. , whom the readers of the Forest and Stream 

 may have heard of before. The fishing was excellent 

 and some big strings were made, that of Harry Moore 

 and his cousin, Geo. C. Moore, being the biggest for any 

 one day. It numbered well up into the hundreds of trout 

 and salmon. But the small ones were aU immediately re- 

 turned to the water as soon as counted. The best part of 

 the fun was that the fishing was all with the fly. The 

 most successful cast was made up of the Parmacheene- 

 belle, brown-hackle and professor. Brook trout and land- 

 locked salmon were the principal fish caught, though one 

 or two members of the party think that they caught 

 English brown trout, with which fish some stocking of 

 the Inglewood waters has been done. But they were 

 little fellows, and so quickly returned to the waters that 

 identification was not thoroughly estabhshed. Brook 

 trout were taken in abundance up to 2^ and 31bs. in 

 weight, with landlocked salmon up to 31bs." 



The annual meeting of the club was held on June 7, 

 and two new directors were chosen, Mr. J. Nelson Parker, 

 of Cobb, Bates & Yerxa, and Mr. Harry B. Moore, of J. 

 E. Soper & Co. 



The list of those present at the annual meeting is as fol- 

 lows: Auclri w S. March, Newton; Gen. D. B. Warner, 

 St. John, N. B. ; Samuel Shaw, Newton; Joshua Knight, 

 Musquash, N. B. ; Leroy S. Brown, Cambridge; Albion H. 

 Brown, Boston; H. F. Sparrow, Cambridge; J. Nelson 

 Parker, Boston; J. A. Faulkner, Lowell; Henry B. Moore, 

 Jamaica Plain; George C. Moore, North Chelmsford; E. 

 Noyes Whitcomb, Boston; J. Merrill Brown, Boston; 

 Henry P. Brigham, Boston; George E. BarnhiU, St. Jolm. 

 The number of members of the club at the annual meet- 

 ing would have been greater had the meeting been earlier 

 in the trip, smce several members had stayed their allotted 

 time and gone home. 



Speeches were made by President A. S. March and Gen 

 D. E. Warner, George E. BarnhiU, Samuel Shaw, Leon- 

 ard B. Knight, Geo. C. Moore, John A. Faulkner, E. Noves 

 Whitcomb and H. B. Moore. 



Gen. Warner stated there was no doubt whatever as to 

 sea salmon entering these waters, which information gave 

 niucii satisfaction to members of the club. Mr Harry 

 Buck, of Orland, Me., an expert in the construction o"f 

 hshway s and a man of much experience with salmon con- 

 ni-med the above. 



Mr. Moore mentioned what he considered to be a grow- 

 mg tendency among fishing sportsmen to exaggerate as 

 to the weight and number of fish they take. He had 



noticed this tendency with some degree of pain dimng the 

 past few years, and he feared that it was growing. He 

 dwelt upon the beauties of truthfuhieas iipon all fishing 

 occasions. Rod and line sportsmen should stick strictly to 

 the truth on every occasion. "It is beneath the dignity 

 or a trout fisherman to stretch the truth concerning the 

 size of his fish. To feed a trout with pebbles or railroad 

 iron should be frowned upon." , mi. 



The boys cheered him, and Harry smiled. They could 

 not help thinking of the moose stories and the deer stones 

 he has told for the Forest and Strea^i. They wondered 

 who made up that bogus telegram on the way down._ Ihe 

 porter rushed into the car— the party had its own private 

 car both ways— and shouted "Dispatch for Mr. Leroy S. 

 Brown." Poor Brown came forward. It read: "Meet me 

 in Bangor." It was signed by Charles T. Spear, or ap- 

 peared to be, one of Brown's best customers. Brown 

 rushed out of the car at the next station. There was not 

 time to send a message. Harry followed hini. The tram 

 was about to start. "Boys," he shouted, "I can t go! 

 Then to Harry Moore, "Look out for my baggage! Ihe 

 train was starting. "It is bogus," Harry whispered 

 hoarsely in his ear. Brown's face lighted up. He got on 

 board the train a happy man. The boys got hold of the 

 idea, and how they cheered, The dispatch was entirely 

 the work of Harry Moore, the advocate of truth. At first 

 it had been signed by H. F. Sparrow, but behold Sparrow 

 was one of the party, and it had to be changed after the 

 train started. „ , 



Jtine if .—The finest catch of trout of the season thus 



BLACK LAKE. 



In St. Lawrence county, N. Y., near the St. Lawrence 

 River, is a lake, dotted with islands, with a picturesque 

 shore, which fills the fisherman's dream. It is twenty 

 miles long, four miles across at its widest part and con- 

 tains more fish than any other body of fresh water of the 

 same size in the country. U. S. Fish Commissioner Mc- 

 Donald says it is the best fresh-water fishing in the United 

 States, and he ought to know. At least thirteen different 

 varieties of fish there abound. There is no end of black 

 bass and wall-eyed pike (and they bite), Oswego bass, mus- 

 calonge (not thick, but a good many), pickerel, rock bass, 

 yellow perch, eels, catfish, bullheads, sturgeon, mud shad, 

 and suckers (swimming and on shore). All are caught 

 there in qua,ntities that makes the lake appear like a 

 feeder to a fish market. The lake gets its name fi'om its 

 dark, vegetable water that comes out of the Adirondacks. 

 Its foot 'is three miles from Ogdensburg and it extends 

 south parallel with the St. Lawrence river about five 

 miles back. In 1891 a party of gentlemen, among whom 

 were Hon. Lorenzo Crounse of Nebraska, now Governor, 

 Assistant Postmaster General Rathbone of Ohio, U. S. 

 Fish Commissioner McDonald, Hon. Amos J. Cummmgs, 

 Hon. Eugene G. Blackford, Hon. Robert B. Nooney, 

 Thos. J. Murry, John W. McDonald, and others visited 

 the lake as the guests of Amasa Thornton. The result of 

 their visit was the organizing last year of the Black Lake 

 Club, whose members 'and officers are as follows: 



.JohnR. Andrew.s, New York; Jas. M. Allan, Chicago; W. Bourke 

 Cockran, New York; Lorenzo Croimse, Omaha, Neb.; Eugene (j. 

 Blackford, Brooklyn; .Jas. A. Briggs, New York; Ernanue Emste i. , 

 New York'; Charles Foster, Ohio; Wm. B. Grace, New York; Char les 

 W. Hackett, Utica; .John 8. Leurman, CatonsyiUe, Md.; Edwaid 

 Lauterbach, New York; Thomas J. Murray, Washington, D. C., 

 Marshall McDonald, Washington, D. C; Robert B. Nooney, New York 

 Frank Pommer, I^ew York; Jas. Phillips, Jr., Fitohburg, Mass.; 

 Thos. B. Reed, Portland, Me.; Bstes G. Rathbone, Han^ilton, Ohio; 

 Isaac Seligman, New York; Amasa Thornton, Pop<^ Mills N^ Y, ; Jere. 

 M. Wilson, Washington, D. C. ; Wm. R. Weed, Potsdam, N. ^. 



Officers: Charles W. Hackett, President; Eugene Q. Blackfoid, 

 Vice-President; Robert B. Nooney, Secretary and Treasui-er. Man- 

 agers: Charles AV. JIackelt, Eugene G. Blackford, Estes G. Rathbone, 

 Robert B. Nooney, Amasa Thornton. House Committee: Eugene G. 

 Blackford, Robert B. Nooney, Wm. R. "S\ eed. 



The club has a fine club house, boat house, etc., and 

 members' wives and families can accompany them. 



The illustration was made from a photograph of fiBh 

 caught in the lake. The inscription explains by whom. 



BLACK LAKE STRINGS. 



The above strings of fish were caught by ex-Secretary of the Treas- 

 ury Foster, and ex-Assistant Postmaster-General Rathbone, members 

 of the Black Lake Club, in Black Lake, New York. The smaller 

 string, consisting of twelve black bass and two pike, was caught by 

 ex-Secretary Foster in two hours on the morning of Oct. 11, 1893, 

 after which he drove twelve miles and made a political speech, prob- 

 ably Ihe best he ever made. The large string was cauglit by Mr. 

 Rathbone, on Oct. 9, 1892, in violation of the Fourth Commandment. 



far was seen in the window of Messrs. Appleton & Bas- 

 sett to-day. It consisted of three brook trout, the largest 

 weighing 7flbs., the next 6Albs. and the third 611)s. These 

 beautiful fish were caught by Messrs. Chas. Z. Bassett and 

 his friend, Mr. G. N. SmaUey. On the same day the 

 lucky sportsmen took a trout 'of 3lbs., one of 2ilbs. and 

 several smaller fish. They were aU taken in Toothacher 

 CoA'e, Cupsuptic Lake, and near Billy Soulc's camps, 

 The gentlemen axe high line of anything that has been 

 in that section this spring. But Mr. Bassett also has a 

 record of a 51bs. trout taken at the Upper Dam with a 

 fly the other day. The veteran angler and annual visitor 

 to that fishing ground, Mr. Freeland Howe, of Norway, 

 Me. , was in the boat at the time, but he had not been hav- 

 ing the luck that fell to Mr. Bassett. It took nearly an 

 hour and a half to bring the big fish to the net, Mr.'Bas- 

 sett's rod being only a small one of 6oz. He says that he 

 is convinced of the possibility of subduing even larger 

 trout with fight rods. The only requisite is plenty of 

 patience and skill. The 5-pounder in question was 

 hooked through the under jaw in such a manner that his 

 mouth could not be forced open by the power of the rod 

 and hence the long time it took to bring him to the net. 

 ^ The Col. Rockwell party, at AUerton Lodge, had fair 

 fishing, though no big trout were taken till towards the 

 end of the stay, when Mr. C. H. Andrews, one of the 

 senior proprietors of the Boston Herald, took a trout 

 weighing .5ilbs. But such is luck. A day or two after 

 the party came out, Mr. Rice, of Springfield, was fishing 

 in Bugle Cove, the very point where the Rockwell party 

 had done much fishing, with a friend whom he was very 

 anxious should take a big trout. Soon other sportsmen 

 heard some loud shouting, and they rowed up. TJie fdiend 

 of Mr. Rice— I have not his name— had succeeded in land- 

 ing a 91b. trout. This is the largest trout mentioned this 

 season, at the Rangeleys. As luck alwavs has it, the 

 lucky gentleman had never fished the Rangeley waters 

 before. 



At the Narrows, Richardson Lake, some good trout 

 have been taken, but not as large as are usually caught 

 there. In fact, the fishing, as a whole, at all points in 

 those waters, has not been up to former seasons. The 

 gentlemen of the Stevens party, at Camp Vive Vale, did 

 not have their usual good luck with big trout. Mr. Fred 

 Stevens thinks he was too early, having arrived as soon 

 as the ice was out. and he wnu'd like to go again a little 

 later Special. 



Niagara Anglers* Banquet. 



LOCKPOBT, N. Y., June 10.— The tournament banquet 

 iven the victorious Reds by the conquered but conquering 

 ailues at the Niagara last night was a fitting compamon 

 piece to the most successful outing ever held by _ the 

 Niagara County Anglers' Club. "He wins who waits, 

 it is said, and this occasion realized as never before the 

 significance of this old aphorism. Stuiging under the 

 defeat of May 31, the Blues especially enjoyed the pa,r- 

 oxysms of the once gloating Red men, as they arose in 

 response to an imperious summons from Toastmaster 

 Hatch, to speak to text and sentiment heard for the fi.rst 

 time at the moment of trial. The time waiting for the 

 signal for banqueting was spent in swapping fish stories, 

 and some big ones were told. The dining hall of the 

 hotel presented a pretty appearance with its long lines of 

 tables. At the head sat President Jerome E. Emerson 

 and near him C. W. Hatch, leader of the forlorn hope of 

 Y'oungstown. The Rev. G. W. Powell said grace. Mine 

 Host Jackman had ransacked the bountiful storehouses 

 of the four quarters of the globe and presented a menu 

 over which a gastronome might gloat. The seiwice was 

 excellent. Beautiful roses adorned the board, and above 

 the feastei-s floated the banner and title of the now famous 

 club. Right cheerily they dined, and the while Lawson s 

 Orchestra discoursed inspiriting music. Soon the solid- 

 feast was over and the fighter began. Fragrant Havanas 

 were lighted and all were in a receptive mood for fim. 



President Emerson in a f eUcitous speech presented to 

 Judge Millar the club gold badge for the largest string of 

 black bass. The winner thought it ought to be called the 

 "good luck" badge, as he attributed his success as much . 

 to luck as science. 



John A. Merritt made the presentation speeches. The 

 press prizes for reports of the excursion were announced 

 as follows: 1st, Sun; 3d, Journal; 3d, Union. 



Captain Hatch, as the toastmaster of the evenmg, pre- 

 sided with ease and ability. Nearly all the Reds were 

 present, and the responses to the toasts were excellent. 

 For impromptu addresses a body of men could not well be 

 gotten together an v where who could well excel in apt 

 rephes and telling" hits. As story tellers F'. K. Sweet, 

 W. A. Williams, Judge Millar, W. J. Ransom, Dr. E. W. 

 Gantt and W. J. Jackman carried off the palm, although 

 all deserved a prize. M. H, H. 



Connecticut Legislative Ways. 



Hartford, Conn., May 2Q.— Editor ForeM and Stream: 

 In an editorial in the Forest and Stream of May 35 you 

 say thait "Connecticut game and fish bills are referred to 

 the Committee on Agricultaire." This is an error. The 

 bills relating to lish are referred to Committee on Fisheries 

 or to Judiciary Committee. Your other words hold good, 

 however. We are indebted to the Committee on Agri- 

 culture for a bill taxing female dogs $10.15, while male 

 dogs are taxed $1.15. The same committee have reported 

 favorably on a bill appointing a dog warden for each 

 county, and also making the owner of dog liable to fine 

 of $7 if his dog is off his premises from 10 P. M. to 6 A. M. 



This committee's room is very appropriately named the 

 "Hay-mow.'' 



The committee on Agriculture consists of nine mem- 

 bers, one senator and eight representatives. I am indebted 

 to Senator Coffey for many courtesies, but the other mem- 

 bers did not look with favor on some measures (that were 

 good) with any degree of interest. They cling (and 

 always will cling no doubt) to the idea that any legisla- 

 tion "touching game, is to get at the poor farmer's boy. 

 When a rural legislator gets that idea firmly rooted in 

 the gray matter then: 



"They say he has no heart, but I deny it; 

 He has a heart — and gets his speeches by it." 



This committee makes no pretensions (and could not 

 rightly) of knowing anything about game protection— ex- 

 cept Senator Coffey, but he is only one of the nine. 



A. C. Collins. 



