FOREST AND STREAM, 
[May 18, 1895. 
LAKE SUPERIOR "ROCK TROUT." 
Atlanta, April 29.— Editor Forest and Stream: In 
Forest AND Stream of April 20, '95, Mr. Hough, in speak- 
ing of the elegant little booklet issued by the 0. & N. W. 
Ey., quotes the following passage: "There is in Lake 
Superior a species of fish called rock trout, which are 
similar in appearance to brook trout but grow to much 
larger size. The smaller ones are often shipped as brook 
trout," etc. I had read that passage in the booklet and 
wondered, with Mr. Hough, what sort of fish was meant. 
The residents along the shores of Lake Superior on the 
Keweenaw Peninsula (the upper peninsula of Michi- 
gsn) catch, in the autumn, many large trout which they 
call reef trout. They are taken in gilluets and pound 
nets, and about Sept. 25, they begin to take the trolling 
spoon when trolling for them along the reefs, near the 
surface. Hence reef trout. The residents there consider 
them a distinct fish from the lake trout (Salvelinus 
vamaycusli), but in reality they are one and the same. 
They have the peculiar high color of a trout in a gravid 
state, quite different from that of the lake trout in sum- 
mer. The fins, part of the head and sometimes the entire 
belly are a bright crimson, giving them almost as brill- 
iant an appearance as a brook trout. With these highly 
colored lake trout there will be taken (in the nets) other 
lake trout whose appearance does not differ from those 
taken during the summer in, say, Lake Keuka, N. Y. "With 
them are also taken a few very large brook trout, the true 
fontinalis. He would have to be a tyro in the fish busi- 
ness who could not instantly distinguish the highly 
colored lake trout from the brook trout. There is no re- 
semblance between them, except that both look like 
trout. I have tried to convince the residents there that 
the reef trout is the lake trout, but they insist they are 
distinct species. It is possible that the rock trout spoken 
of in the C. & N. W. booklet is this reef trout. 
|T fear I can throw little light on the identification of 
the "rock trout" of Lake Superior except by stating that 
only the lake trout, siscowet and brook trout are native to 
its waters as far as known. If the "rock trout" is similar 
in appearance to the brook trout it probably has red spots 
and a square tail. The other two species (if they really 
can be called distinct species) have large pale spots and a 
forked tail. 
Lake trout run into many varieties and have received 
many names. The earliest eggs taken in the fall are ob- 
tained from the so-called "shoal trout" which is merely 
the namaycush with shore-spawning or reef-spawning 
habits.— T. H. Bean.] 
SALMON CHAT.— V. 
In my last chat I think we had our fish fast, and sup- 
posed to be foul hooked (i. e., hook caught outside, not in 
mouth) from his actions; our canoe is holding its ground 
against the current by the guides, the fish directly oppo- 
site goes to bottom, either on a sulking fit or he don't yet 
realize anything wrong (I opine a fish is not susceptible to 
a hook or wound). At once drop your canoe fair below 
the fish, put on him all the strain your rod or tackle will 
bear. It is just possible he may hold five minutes; one or 
less may suffice. 
Now he is off with a rush, away across the river 
and up stream: away he goes faster yet. Paddle, boys, 
paddle; follow the line across and tip. The idea and 
properly so is to prevent if possible the great extra 
strain the line must carry when across the strong cur- 
rent. When your line is in this position and the fish 
at the end of 100yds. of line leaps clear of the water 
(as common), the quick extra strain against the current 
is almost sure to release the fish, either by tearing out 
the hook hold or breaking the leader. Now, your men 
can't paddle one-third as fast as your fish is going. 
You have 100yds. of line out, the reel now revolving 
more rapidly than ever. "Oh! will he never stop? 
Paddle, boys!" This, if you can speak, is all you can 
say. 
Ah, here he is! Up he comes fine; it may be 2, 3 
or 5ft., turning a somersault. Perhaps he may come on 
top of the water slashing it with his tail in his anger; 
take a run to the opposite side of the stream; perhaps 
away straight up with another leap. Such a fish will 
soon exhaust himself. Or he may go to bottom to rest, 
or to try to release the nasty thing holding him by rub- 
bing. All you can do in such cases is to follow; keep as 
close as possible; never give him an inch of slack line or 
ease. Fight him from the start. No armistice. Don't 
hold him up against the current; that is only resting him. 
Get below him. Give him butt (strain your tackle all it 
will bear). Remember, the hotter the war, the sooner the 
fight will end. 
Hello, our fish is gone, line all slack! "Now reel up; 
down stream with canoe, boys; I fear he is gone." Now 
look well how you are putting that line on the reel. Don't 
look at the water. Guide it properly. Many a good fish 
is lost by an overlap hurriedly reeling up. At last you 
feel something. The fish is going down river as fast as 
you are. Probably he feels your check: turns like a flash, 
and is away up again at a 2:40 gait. 
"Check, boys." They are watching, and if bottom with 
pole can be had will soon follow. "After running 60 or 
80yds. or more he finds the drag of the line heavy, and 
tries bottom for a rest. It won't do. Between your strain 
on him and the current also he must move on. The great 
secret to kill is to keep your fish moving. 
Now the fish makes shorter runs, you can check him 
very soon. In fifteen minutes or less you should be able 
to lead him. Make him follow toward shore. He may 
take a few extra yards on a run or two as he finds him- 
self gradually coming toward shore; but you have mas- 
tered him, and he should be your fish, unless the hold of 
the hook gives out. As you are aware, every pull and 
jerk the fish gives is weakening and extending" that por- 
tion of the mouth which the hook holds. 
Select deep water, if possible, at the shore or bank 
where you intend landing your fish. If water is shoal he 
will fight wickedly before coming in. At last we can sight 
him as we quietly work toward the shore. Try now and 
lift his head up. While dropping your point to the water 
take all the slack line in you can get. Hold your reel and 
lift on the rod. See, he comes. Don't like it. Makes a 
little run. Just what we want. Make him do it again. 
Keep him at it. Now, if the river bank is fairly good you 
can step out. In any case, have the canoe handy to fol- 
low, if needed. But you should hold a fish at this stage 
of exhaustion and turn him after a 30 or 40-yard run, i 
he does get so far as that. Such a run will advance your 
interests more than his. and you can bring him probably 
to gaff on his return. Your gaffer may stoop down per- 
haps in a foot or more of water nearly in front of you, 
Your fish, when he comes within a few feet of shore 
turns to goout; but you are now able to hold himfrom doing 
so, and he will fight to get his head out. Your strain upon 
him stops that, consequently he swims parallel with the 
shore. When he gets a yard or two above or below 
the gaffer, you can turn him about, coming 
closer to shore every turn, at last coming in- 
side of the gaff hook. A quick draw is made, 
and our first fish is caught. In gaffing a fish 
I always run out the gaff, resting it on the bottom, it 
having an 8ft. handle. The fish will soon lead so as to 
come over or rather inside of the gaff hook, and if not 
caught it is the gaffer's fault. Some f ol ow the fish along 
shore and when they think it within reach strike over the 
top of the fish. Often the result of this mode is a broken 
leader and a lost fish. 
"One point, — in landing your fish, never have too short 
a line; always have two, three or more yards clear of your 
cast; keep back a little from the water, so that, if neces- 
sary, you can give line if needed by stepping toward your 
fish a yard or two. I have seen on some rods 18ft. casts; 
they, however, were not for novices. I use a very fine 
linen line with 80ft. of heavy silk spliced for casting with. 
The finer the line the less resistance it has in the current. 
A heavy long line getting across a strong current is the 
principal reason why a) many salmon aie lost." 
As to gaffing I prefer to do it from the boat or canoe, 
only if the gaffer don't know how, better not try, as the 
rod may go down one side of the canoe and up on the 
other. The easkst mode to do it (if you have a good 
smooth pebbly shore with room behind to walk back) if, 
when you have got your fish under controJ, so you can 
lead him and get him well in sight, to drop your point, 
hold your reel, and race back. If your tackle is good as it 
should be, you will find your fish, his length or more, on 
the shore. The point is to take him so rapidly he can't 
turn. To do this you need a leader to stand a good lOlbs. 
pull. I. Mow AT. 
TROUT FISHING AT NIGHT. 
In over-fished waters trout may be more chary or few< r 
in number. I hate to write about the voracious rascals. 
Often, when a salmon smolt or parr will take your salmon 
fly, and you are drawing the little fellow in to give him a 
chance to go and grow bigger, a rascally 2lbs. trout will 
grab him, sure to kill him and often get caught himself. 
Our small red squirrel is fond of the water. Often you 
will see him crossing the river with his tail up over his 
back. Woe be to him, though, if a large trout should sjy 
him. Down he would go like a flash. 
In our river there are many places where the refuse of 
the lumbermen, supplemented by fallen trees undermined 
by the water, make lodgments on the heads of islands 
and other places, nearly always having a good depth of 
water under the debris. All anglers know just what such 
a spot means in a river where trout are plenty. ELre 
they lie during the day. They are out, though, when 
night comes, prowling close to shore. Woe be to a mouse 
after a drink of water; in fact, if you draw an artificial 
one past one of those places, you are sure of a big fellow. 
Probably a half-dozen will chase the trout you have 
hooked! Take an imitation grasshopper and walk along 
shore, drawing it within a foot or two of the shore. No 
difference how dark it may be, you can catch them here 
on our river until satiated. 
Bettpr sport, though, you may find. Locate a salmon 
lay. There are such spots. You may have had him show 
himself to your fly, perhaps in your morning and evening 
fishing. Mark the spot well so that you can place your 
canoe just right for a nice drop over his lay. Take a 
light-colored fly, either a miller or a silver doctor; a pure 
white wing with a silver body is good. I have taken fish 
with all three of those flies after 11 o'clock. Of course you 
run the risk of losing leader and fish if you rise him and 
hook, but I tell you the fight is grand. The uncertainty 
of what is coming is worth half a dozen of hooks and 
linps. 
Trout! Bah! I hate the look of one, a ravenous brute 
(although not bad for the pan). John Mow at. 
■DEE P- W ATE R TARPON FISHING. 
Mr. E. vom Hofe, who has just returned from his 
annual Florida fishing trip, reports that he has brought 
to a successful termination experiments for catching tar- 
pon in deep water, and that he will bring out tackle next 
season tb»t will enable the fisherman to duplicate his 
success. Mr. vom Hofe fished in tidal passes where the 
current ran all the way from three to five miles an hour, 
and at various depths ranging up to 28ft. In such waters 
the tarpon is at its best and invariably makes a gamy 
fight, for it has plenty of sea room and a strong current 
in its favor. Trie angler who brings one to gaff under 
such circumstances may well be proud of his skill. 
Mr. vom Hole's party consisted of Joseph Mitchell, of 
Kansas Gity; Wm. Hazlewood, of Brooklyn, and Joseph 
Fredricks, of New York. They chartered a schooner from 
Ball Brothers, of Tanipa, and cruised south from Punta 
Gorda. Their supplies were sent direct from New York. 
They fished two days at Peace River, where Mr. Hazle- 
wood took a fish weighing 84lbs. Then they worked 
down the coast by Punta Rnssa, St. Carlos Pass and Little 
Mdrco, fishing at the two latter places without success. 
They took the inside course to BigMarco Pass, where they 
found tarpon in great numbers. At this point they fished 
in company with the Snyder and St. Clair party, of Kan- 
sas City. At Big Marco Mr. St. Clair hung a fish March 
29 that weighed I351bs., and the same day Mr. vom Hofe 
caught two, one weighing 106 and the other 861bs. 
Two days later Mr. vom Hufe caught another weighing 
llOlbs. As Mr. Mitchell had a hundred-pound fish to his 
credit, this made the record for the jjarty five tar r on. 
This record was increased to six a few days later at Myers, 
where Mr. Fredricks had the luck to secure a fish weigh- 
ing 1351bs. Later ihe party put in three days' fishing at 
Captiva Pass, where Mr. vom Hufe hung four fish and 
Mr. Fredricks two, all of which, however, were lost. 
Messrs. Hazlewood and Mitchell had meanwhile gone 
north. At Captiva the two remaining members of the 
party had great sport with the king fish, which at times 
were very plentiful. 
The Pennsylvania Fish Protective Association. 
A well attended meeting of the Pennsylvania Fish 
Protective Association was held on Saturday evening, May 
11, at the rooms, 1020 Arch street, Philadelphia. 
The legislative committee submitted a.lengthly report, 
having, according to instructions, again proceeded to 
Harrisburg to present to the Legislature the several reso- 
lutions of the association urging the defeat of the bill 
legalizing fish baskets in the streams of this common- 
wealth, and in connection with the Commissioners of 
Fisheries prevailed upon the Senate committee to with- 
draw the bill, which they did. With assurance of the 
success of a similar effort in the House, the result practi- 
cally destroys any attempt at this inimical legislatio n this 
year. -X^^l 
The report of the executive committee announced the 
following bills as having passed the Senate and before the 
House: Bill 271. This provides for making penalties 
mandatory, limits black bass taken to 9in. or over in 
length, and is an interstate bill, the same having passed 
both Houses of the New Jersey Legislature and was 
signed by the Governor of that State. 
Bill 268 This bill as amended provides for the appoint- 
ment of thirty wardens at $300 per year, all at large and 
under orders of the Fish Commissioners. The original 
bill asked for thirty wardens at $500 a year; and, as pre- 
riously reported by the Legislative Committee, it was im- 
possible to secure its passage in that form. 
House bill 382 is before the House on second reading; 
provides for the use of eel pots, a substitute for eel weirs, 
and not destructive to other fish. 
Another bill before the House, reported favorably by the 
House Committee for second reading, provides for abolish- 
ing certain pollution in various streams. 
Eeported infractions of the fishing laws were consid- 
ered and referred to the executive committee for investi- 
gation. 
Suitable resolutions of condolence were presented and 
adopted at the death of Frederick W. Brown, one of the 
most active and zealous members of the Association. 
Many interesting communications from non-resident 
members and others were read, containing favorable re- 
ports of the early fishing, the success attending the plant- 
ing of fish and fry, and the general good condition of the 
same when received from the several hatcheries of the 
State, a conspicuous feature of this correspondence being 
universal assurance that the laws regulating their protec- 
tion would be rigidly enforced. 
Many rf quests for fish wardens have been received, and 
Warden William Bruce hassecured the arrest and convic- 
tion of two violators of the laws at Easton, Pa. 
Mr. Edw. A. Selliers was elected to the vacancy in the 
executive committee. 
Interesting communications were considered from the 
Game and Fish Association of Baltimore, and Hon. John 
L. Sudler, of the Maryland Fish Commission, in regard to 
a movement inaugurated by the Association to secure 
their cooperation in having the Maryland laws amended 
to better provide for the protection of fish in the lower 
Susquehanna River. M. G. Sellers, Sec'y. 
Philadelphia. 
James River Black Bass. 
Lvnchbtjeg, Va., May 8. — Editor Forest and Stream: 
The catch of bass in the James River here at the city this 
season has been unusually large; and it is a great shame 
that there are no State laws protecting these waters above 
Richmond. Between this point and Richmond, 120 
miles, there are no obstructions over which game fish can- 
not readily pass. The river here is 900ft. wide, and there 
are no narrower points east of here; it is abundantly sup- 
plied with food, has excellent bottom, and if properly 
protected by the State would be one of the finest fishing 
waters in the United States. Being a mountain stream 
and fed by cool spring water, it runs fresh at all seasons 
of the year. I don't know of a stream in this whole 
country so badly taken care of and so much abused by the 
"fish -hogs" as is this same James River. It seems that 
the members of the Legislature are so afraid of not being 
re-elected that they are willing to bury themselves in the 
woods and turn a deaf ear to the appeals of the true lovers 
of the rod and gun for fish and game protection; and wink 
at the depredation of the pot-hunter and the net-fisher- 
man, which class seem to be largely in the majority on 
election day at the county polls. For all this, a great 
number of fine bass has been taken by hook and line, 
which goes to show a greater want of good laws well car- 
ried out. F. M. D. 
Grayling, Brook and California Trout. 
Saginaw, Mich., May 9. — The Pere Marquette River 
and Baldwin Creek were years ago stocked with rainbow 
trout. Ever since we have heard of good, big fellows 
being taken, but they must be increasing finely, for the 
first few days after the season opened this year the 
anglers had great luck. I have heard of a number of 
these trout having been taken running all the way from 
2 to 4lbs. in weight. A party of Detroit fishermen there 
one day last week got grayling, brook trout and Califor- 
nia trout, all out of the same stream, getting ten fine fish 
of the latter variety, W. B. M. 
New York Game Law. 
The Donaldson game bill passed both houses last week and was sent 
to the Governor. At the time of going to press it bad not yet been 
siened. It makes these close seasons for the State at large: Deer, 
Nov. 1 to Aug. 15 inclusive (hounding forbidden except Sept. 10 to Oct. 
10); wildfpwl. May 1 to Sept. 1; quail, Jan. 1 to Nov. 1 (protected in 
Genesee, Wyoming, Orleans, Livingston, Monroe, Oayuga, Beneca, 
Wayne, Tompkins, Tioga, Onondaga, Ontario, Steuben, Cortland and 
Otsego counties to 1898); woodcock and ruffed grouse (partridge), 
Jan. 1 to Aug. 15; snipe, plover, etc., May 1 to Sept. 1; meadow lark at 
all times; Mongolian pheasant to 1897. Fish close seasons: "Trout of 
any kind," Sept. 1 to April 15, lawful length 6in.; salmon trout, land- 
locked salmon, Oct. 1 to May 1; black bass, Oswego bass, except May 
30 to Dec 31 inclusive (in Lake George except Aug. 1 to Dec. 31); 
pickerel, pike, wall-eyed pike, Feb. 1 to 1'ay 1. Lawful length of bass, 
Sin. Muskallonge, March 1 to Msy 30; salmon, Aug. 15 to March 10. 
Long Island close seasons: Wildfowl, May 1 to Sept. 30; snipe, plover, 
etc., Jan 1 to June 30; woodcock, Jan. 1 to July 31; ruffed grouse, 
partridges, Jan. 1 to Oct. 30. Fish— Trout, except March 29 to Aug. 
ai; salmon trout, landlocked salmon, except April 1 to Sept. 30; black 
bass, except May SO to Dec. 31. Deer, protected for two years: hares, 
rabbits, except Nov. 1 to Dec. 31; black and gray squirrels, except 
Nov. 1 to Dec. 31. 
Salmon Fishing For Sale. 
Freebold, on the best fishing waters of the Southwest Mirimicli 
River (.Burnt Hill). For terms and particulars apj.lv to Thomas J- 
Conroy, 310 Broadway, New Ycrk City.— Adv. 
