2^0 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
LMa-rch 3^, 1897. 
Michig^an Goose Flight. 
Platntille, Mich., March 11.— Wild geese going North, 
lots of them. Kobius last -week; probably Avintored near 
here. S. B. Negus, of our place, has a fine specimen of the 
great horned owl alive ; no use here, maybe some one would 
like it. J. H. M. 
Weights of Deer in Maine. 
EusTis, Me.— I am surprised at "what are called large deer 
in Florida. Our Mane bucks go as high as 3701bs. dressed; 
those of 2601bs. are quite numerous; and those of 2301ba. to 
SoOlbs. are common. H. 
m mid §.iv^r ^isJiing. 
FLY-CASTING AT THE EXPOSITION. 
Special Report for Forest and Stream. 
Rather more than a year ago Mr. J. J. Hardy, of England 
(then the champion salmon fly-caster of the world), wrote 
me a letter, which I quoted in this journal, suggesting that 
the conditions under which fly-casting tournaments in Eng- 
land were held required to be changed materially to elimi- 
nate certain objectionable features, which we on this side 
characterize as fakes. He mentioned the black-leading of 
lines to prevent their sinking before they were recovered on 
the back east, and that a fine and lighter line was spliced to 
and behind the casting line to enable the caster to shoot the 
casting line to a greater distance than if his line was all of the 
same size. At the time I said this was all new to casting 
tournaments on this side of the water. Particularly he 
mentioned that In the champion classes in England, in 
which rodmakers contested, rods were specially made for 
the contests, and were not such rods as were used in ordinary 
fishing. The tournament held in Madison Square Garden 
last week was the first fly-casting contest to be held in this 
country since I quoted from the letters of Messrs. Hardy 
and John Enright, the present world's champion salmon 
caster, and for the iirst time a black-leaded line was used in 
this country. It was, however, used but once, although the 
nse of it was traceable to the information furnished by Mr. 
Hardy's letter, printed in Forest and Stream. As to the 
fine light line back of the casting line, it has never been used 
here to increase the length of the cast. 
It is true that in some cases rods have been specially made 
for casting tournaments, but in other cases ordinary fishing 
rods have been used in making record casts. The special 
construction consists in making the rod stiff enough to lift 
the heavy line used in the tournaments. In one instance in 
the recent contest a "C" line was used on a oj^oz. rod, but 
usually a "D" line was used, whether the rod was 5^i', 7 or 
lOoz. in weight. The rod used by Mr. Hawes in his record 
salmon cast of 138ft. at Central Park some years ago was an 
ordinary fishing rod with which Mr. Hawes has killed 
salmon before and since the tournament. The rod with; 
which Mr. Leonard made his champion cast of 106ft. was a 
rod of lOoz., lift. long. It has an independent handle of 
maple, which makes the rod a little heavier than it other- 
wise would be. The rod used by Mr. Cooper Hewitt in his 
cast of 100ft. 5}{in. was 10ft. long and 5>^oz. in weight. 
The cast was a switch cast. Mr. Leonard, who was second 
with an overhead cast of 100ft. SJ^in., used a rod of 10ft., 
weighing 5%oz. In giving weights of rods it should be 
stated, for purposes of comparison, whether the rods had 
solid reel plates or not; but some of them had solid plates 
and some had reel rings only. In a rod of about SJ^^oz. the 
solid. reel plate weighs >.<oz. more than the rings, "and in 
heavier rods the difi'erence is ^£oz. There were no rods used at 
the tournament, and I think I handled them all or nearly all, 
that could not be used in ordinary fishing, although some of 
them were stiffer than would be necessary if lines of smaller 
caliber were used on them, and the most of them were ordi- 
nary fishing rods made for fishing purposes only. To be 
sure, such rods were unduly strained when the heavy salmon 
lines were lifted again and again to be cast with all the pow- 
er of the caster's arm, but I believe not a single rod was 
b^-oken. 
Any one reviewing the records found in this issue of For- 
est A3SrD Stream will notice that some wonderful casts were 
ihade and many records were Smashed, and yet the reader 
may feel that there has been a falling off in form of some of 
the previous record makers. It must be remembered that 
this tournament was held early in the season, with little or 
no opportunity for practice, as the blistered hands of nearly 
every contestant testified, and it was held indoors for the 
first time under conditions which were novel. Fbr instance^ 
when Reuben Leonard was casting about 100ft. overhead, hi* 
fiy would strike the flags decorating the balcony boxes be- 
hind him on his back cast nearly every cast, and he told me 
that when he made his record cast of 106ft. he felt his line 
going smoothly behind him, and concluded that his fly and 
leader had gone into one of the boxes. All the overhead 
casters had the same thing to contend with, and the switch 
casters had to contend with the spectators, who would get 
in the way and be caught in the loop of the line. 
Hiram Hawes has used in all his previous tDurnaments^ 
and in fishing, a slow tapered rod; but in the dead air of the 
Garden he could not get his fly out as he could if he had had 
a quick tapered rod. I noted his casting for him one day in 
practice and he cast 102ft. as clean and neat as possible with, 
a rod of 7oz. On the other hand, Leonard always used a 
medium tapered rod, and he had no difficulty, as his records 
show, in getting out his line when there was nothing in the 
way behind him. It will be noticed that when it came to> 
accurate casting around and under obstacles the long- 
distance men got a shade the worst of it. 
Some of the cleanest, neatest casting done during the week 
was done in practice before the crowd gathered to almost lap- 
over the edge of the tank- Mr. T. B. Mills's cast of 110ft,. 
9J^in. was a most wondprf ul performance, and it is a matter 
of regret that he should have lost his fly and failed to score 
his world-beating cast; but Mr. Leonard has cast 111ft. in 
practice, overhead, with single-handed rod; and Mr. Cooper 
Hewitt has cast il3ft. in practice, so that it need not be^ 
feared that record-breaking in fly-casting has come to an 
end, whether the next trial shall be made indoors or ul the 
open air. 
When the next tournament does take place it is to be hoped 
that the rules will provide that switch casting will not com- 
pete against overhead casting, for it is like matching a trot- 
ting horse against a side-wheeler; and make the classes for' 
rod makers and tackle dealers separate from the classes for- 
amateurs and fishermen pure and simple. In this latter sug- 
gestioa I am glad to say one of the best-known tackle dealers, 
who las a fly-caster is very near the top, fully agrees with 
me. Fly-casting tournaments can be made very popxxlar, as 
witness the attendance at the Garden, but give the club men 
and fisherrhen generally a chaace to win without the risk of: 
two or three champions walking all over them, 
A. N. Cheney. 
There were in each class three prizes, a bronze, a silver andl 
a gold medal. 
Casting was done in the afternoon and evening. It proved 
to be a decided attraction, and was closely watched by large 
numbers of spectators. The casting tank was made of wood, 
with a metal lining. It was 78ft. long, 10ft. wide, and con- 
tained 3 to Sin. of water only, enough forthejpurposes of cast- 
ing. Continuing from one end of the tank and level with it 
was a wooden platform 40ft. long, on which was a small 
movable box-shaped platform 1ft. high. This served for the 
contestants to stand on when casting, and for the long casts 
was moved back from the end of the tank. Rules, results 
and records are given herewith. 
Rules Governing the Contest. 
Rule 1. The contests shall be governed by two judges and 
a referee. In case of disagreement the referee shall decide. 
Rule 2. Arrangements shall be made by the judges so that 
they may accurately determine the point at which the fly 
falls. 
Rule 3. All persons competing for prizes shall pay an en- 
trance fee as follows: .$2 for one event or $5 for three or more 
events. Post entries may be made, but no entry allowed 
after content commences. 
Rule 4. The order in which contestants shall cast shall be 
determined by the judges. The contestants must be ready 
when called upon by the judges. 
Rule 5. The leader and fly in each contest must be intact at 
at the time of record by the judges. 
Rule 6. After the contestaiat has taken his place npon the 
stand the time shall be allowed from the time the contestant 
says "ready." The first cast thereafter shall count. The 
longest cast during the five minutes succeeding shall be taken 
as his record for distance. 
Rule 7. The rod must be held in one hand while casting. 
Rule 8. The barb and point must be removed from all hooks 
used. 
Rule 9. Trout flies of the usual Professor type, not smaller 
than No. 12 or larger than No. 8, shall be used in the con- 
tests, unless otherwise specified. 
Rule 10. Time will be allowed, in cases of accident, to make 
repairs, at the discretion of the judges. 
Rule 11. All other difficulties arising shall be decided by 
the judges. 
Single-handed Long-Distance Trout Flt-Casting 
CoNTJiST. — Open to those who have never cast more than 
75ft. in any contest. .Judges: James L. Breese, T. B. Stew- 
art; Referee, W. C. Harris. Rule 1.— The rod must not ex- 
ceed lift. 6in. in length. Rule 2.— The leader must be of 
single gut, and exceed 9ft. in length. Rule 3.— Straight for- 
ward and back casting only allowed. Rule 4.— One fly shall 
be used. 
1 W. G. Levison 57ft. 3. .1. von Lengerke 29ft. 
8. Dr. H. L. O'Brien 49ft. Victor R. Grimwood. .25ft. 
Single-handed Long-Distance Trout Fly-Casting 
Contest.— Open to those who have never cast more than 
60ft. in any contest. Judges: H. C. de Rham, D. T. Ken- 
nedy; Referee, Dr. S. M. Nash. Rule 1.— The rod must not 
-exceed lift. 6in. in length. Rule 2.— The leader must be of 
single gut, and exceed 9ft. in length. Rule 3. — Straight for- 
ward and back casting only allowed. Rule 4.— One fly shall 
be used. 
1. C. M. Roof. 67ft. Dr. H. L. O'Brien. . . . ,53ft. 
2. H. S. Wells 66ft. W. C. Spencer 52ft. 
■3. Wallace G. Levison ... 54ft. 
Light Rod Single Handed Flt-Casting Contest for 
Distance only.— Open to those who have never cast over 
65ft. in any contest with a rod of 5;i.i0z. or under. Judges: A. 
N. Cheney, G. P. Morosini, Jr.; Referee, T. B. Stewart. 
Rule 1: Rod not to exceed 5%oz. in weight. Rule 2: Leaders 
must be of single gut, and exceed 9ft. in length. Rule 3: One 
fly only shall be used. 
1. C. G. Levison ....... ,74Kft. H. L. O'Brien 66ft. 
2. H.S.Smith 68).^ft. D. Brandreth 65ft, 
3. Clarence M. Roof.... 68fc. D.T.Kennedy ...61ft. 
Light Rod Single-handed Fly-Casting Contest itor 
Distance only.— Judges: Thos. B. Stewart, Clarence M. 
Roof; Referee, Robt. D. Lawrence. Rule 1: Rod not to ex- 
ceed tfioz. in weight. Rule 2: Leaders must be of single gut, 
and exceed 9ft. in. length. Rule 3: One fly only shall be 
used. 
L P. C. Hewitt... 100ft. 5Xin. 3. Thos. B. Mills. .. .83ft. 6in. 
2. R, C. Leonard.. 100ft. 3>tin. Hiram Hawes 78ft. 
Bass Fly-Casting Contest foe Distance only.— Open 
to contestants who have never made a record of over 70ft. in 
any contest. Judges: A. N. Cheney, T. B. Stewart; Referee, 
R. C. Leonard. Rulel: The leader shall exceed 6ft. in length. 
Rule 2: One No. 4 fly shall he used, and will be furnished 
by the judges. 
1. B. R. Hewitt. 79ft. 3. D. Brandreth 68ft. 6in. 
2. C. H. Mowry 72ft. W. C. Spencer 53ft. 
Bass Fly-Casting Contest for Distance only.— Judges: 
T. B. Stewart, H. O. Stanley; Referee, C. G. Levison. Rule 
1: The leader shall exceed 6ft. in length. Rule 2: Oue No. 4 
fly shall be used, and will be furnished by the judges. 
L R. C.Leonard.. 101ft. 6in. Chas. B. Mills 92ft. 
2. H, W. Hawes.. 98ft. S^in. E. R. Hewitt 75ft. 6in, 
3. P. C, Hewitt... 95ft. 
Single-handed Trout Fly-Casting Contest for Ac- 
•GURAcr ONLY.— Judges: T. B. Stewart, W. C. Harris; 
Referee, W. S. Allerton. Rule 1: After the contestant has 
signified his readiness he shall make five consecutive casts at 
a mark. The distance at which the fly drops from the mark 
at each cast shall be noted and the sum of all these distances 
in feet and inches added together shall be subtracted from 
100. The contestant having the highest average shall be de- 
clared the winner. Rule 2: One fly only shall be used. Rule 
3: The leader shall exceed 6ft. in length. Class 1: The dis- 
tance shall be 65ft.; Class 2: The distance shall be 50ft. 
50ft. 
Accuracy.* 
65ft. 
W. H. Hammett 
85 
D. T. Kennedy 
91.5 
93.5 
D. Brandeth 
89 
C. G. Levison 
87.5 
83".5 
77 
85.5 
H. W. Hawes 
..,.81.5 
91 
90.5 
92 
E. R. Hewitt 
87.5 
89.5 
C. M. Roof 
84.5 
Casper Hewitt 
90 
87" 
* Fractions of a foot are given in decimals. 
Awards. 
Class 1: First, D. T. Kennedy, gold medal; second, R. C. 
Leonard, bronze medal. Class 2: First, D. T. Kennedy. 
Single-handed Long-Distance Trout Fly Casting 
CfmTEST.— Judges: R. N. Parish, Dr. C. M. Nash; Referee, 
W. C. Harris. Rule 1: The leader must be of single gut, 
and exceed 6ft. in length. Rule 2: One fly must be used. 
1. R. C. Leonard 106ft. C. G. Levison 73ft. 
:2. Thos. B. Mills 91ft. Clarence M. Roof. . . . 72ft. 
3. D. T. Kennedy 76ft. 
Obstacle Casting for Distance.— Judges: T. B. Stewart, 
D. T. Kennedy; Referee, R. N. Parish. A horizontal bar 
shall be placed in front of- the contestant at a distance of 
30ft., and 9ft. from the water level. Rule 1: The leader must 
be of single gut and exceed 6ft. in length. Rule 2: One fly 
must be used. 
1. E. R. Hewitt 75ft. P, C. Hewitt 69ft. 
% R. C. Leonard . . . .74ft. 9in. D. Brandreth 60ft. 6in. 
3. Hiram Hawes 69ft. 6in. 
Obstacle Fly-Casting Contest for Accuracy and 
Delicacy.— Judges: R. N. Parish, John P. Elton; Referee, 
Harry R. Harris. Details of conditions and rules to be left 
to the judges. There will be placed on the left side of the 
tank (which is 10ft. wide) a bush overhanging the water 3ft. 
and above the surface 3ft., distance from the casting plat- 
form 30ft. ; also another hush under like conditions on the 
right side of the tank, distant from the platform 40ft. The 
contestant who places the fly most delicately and nearest the 
side of the tank to take first award. 
John T. Landman . . . mj4tt. Hiram Hawes 4.5i& f t. 
R. C. Leonard .39^ft. P. C. Hewitt . 36 9-lOft. 
D. Brandreth 86 9-lOft. E. R.Hewitt 36ft, 
Clarence M. Roof . . . .24 9-lOft. 
Awards: 1st, Clarence M. Roof (first for accuracy); 3d, E. 
R. Hewitt; 3d, D. Brandreth, 
Brandreth awarded first honors tor delicacy. 
Switch Casting Contest for Distance.— Judges: Robert 
B. Lawrence,Nash T. Smith; Referee, T. B. Stewart. An ob- 
stacle will be placed back of the contestant in a manner 
prescribed by the judges. Rule 1: The leader must be of 
single gut and exceed 6ft. in length. Rule 2: One fly must 
be used. 
1. R. C. Leonard 91ft. 6in. 3. C. H.JVIowry 62ft. 6in. 
2. P. Cooper Hewitt. 90ft. 
SINGLE-HANDED LONG-DiSTANCE Tkout Fly-Casting CON- 
TEST.— Judges: Robt. B. Lawrence, S. M. Nash; Referee, J. 
L. Livingston. Rule 1: The rod must not exceed lift. 6in. in 
length. Rule 2: The leader must be of single gut and ex- 
ceed 9ft. in length. Rule 3: Straight forward and back cast- 
ing only allowed. Rule 4: One fly shall be used. 
1. R. C. Leonard.. . .105ft. 6in. Thos. B. Mills 90ft. 
2. Hiram Hawes.... 9Sft. 6in. John T. Land man. 82ft. 6in. 
3. P. Cooper Hewitt 95ft. 6in. N. S. Smith 78ft. 
ANGLING NOTES. 
Women at the Sportsmen's Show. 
A New York nevsrspaper, in giving an account of the open- 
ing of the Sportsmen's Exposition in Madison Square Gar- 
den, says: "The old dictionaries do not give a feminine for 
gunner, and the 'brolhers of the angle/ beloved by Izaak 
Walton, cared little for women save the mUkmaids, who 
would slake their thirst from the brimming pail~; but in these 
modern times the women are as prominent in outdoor recrea- 
tions as men." 
It is lamentably true that in the days of Izaak Walton the 
women of that time cut no particular figure as devotees of 
angling, or if they did there is no record of the fact; but all 
that is changed for the better, as is shown by the concluding 
sentence that I have quoted. If the writer had stopped 
there I would not have written this note, but he goes on to 
say: "There were as many women as men at the show' last 
night, and the makers of guns, fly-rods, athletic goods, boats 
and launches cater for the women's trade fully'as much as 
for the custom of their brothers. This medley of the sexes 
in search of the latest novelty in their particular sporting fad 
gave animation to the gathericg." What I object to is the 
woid fad, and I deny that women as a rule follow any branch 
oi sport as a fad. Let us see what a new dictionary says 
about the word: "Fad, n. A trivial fancy adopted and 
pursued for a time with irrational zeal; a matter of no im- 
portance, or an important matter imperfectly understood, 
taken up and urged with more zeal than sense; a whim; a 
crochet; a temporary hobby." If there are any women 
who have taken up sport, such as angling or shooting, as a 
fad. I do not know of them. 1 do know, however, many 
earnest, sensible women who have taken up sport, in one 
branch or another, seriously and for their own profit and 
pleasure, and who pur£ue it as faithfully and intelligently as 
any man. and who are as accomplished in the field as the 
men. There is a letter on my desk received within the past 
twenty-four hours, and it says: "I send you a newspaper 
clipping. Present it to every one interested forme," and I 
know of no better way to present it to every one interested 
than through the columns of Forest ajjp Stream, and here 
it is : 
"The open season hereabouts for upland game (grouse, 
quail, etc ) is over, but the markets and stores are full of 
these birds, presumably from other States The law which 
permits the sale of birds at this time of year if killed outside 
of the State is a great boon to the market-shooter If I sell 
the storekeeper ten couple of quail shot in New York or New 
Jersey, and he tells the law that he bought them fiom a man 
who killed them in Japan or any other old place, what are 
you going to do about it? Stop the sale of game out of sea- 
son, no matter where shot, gentlemen, or you will have no 
game to sell in a few years." 
The writer of the letter who sends the clipping says fur- 
ther : 
"There is no doubt that this is the only way to pre- 
serve the game, for just as long as game can be sold openly 
just so long game will be killed secretly out of season and 
sent to market from this State (New York) under cover, and 
once in market it appears as game killed 300 miles beyond 
the borders of the State. We have got to face the conse- 
quences of this very bad law (Section 249), and the sooner 
wB~do it the better for our game." 
The writer of the letter is a woman, one of the bravest 
little women that it is my good fortune to know, and she is 
always battling for the welfare of the fish and game of the 
State. She knows the difference between good laws and bad 
laws, and if half of the men who claim to be sportsmen had 
her energy and were possessed of her unselfish interest in 
the fish and game, and had acquired the same knowledge in 
the field that" she has of what is absolutely necessary to pre- 
serve the game, the bad laws would be wiped from 
the books. If one should meet this refined, womanly 
woman at some great social function in town-^thorough- 
bred to her finger tips — one might imagine perhaps 
that sport would be with her a fad; but change 
the environment to the country of forest and strtjams, and 
with double gun, rifle or rod she asks no allowances from 
the men, but stands at the scratch, whether the game be deer, 
bear, fox, birds or trout, and then it would be a brave man 
indeed who could look into her honest eyes, sparkling with 
enthusiasm, and tell her that she considered sport a trivial 
fancy. When she tells you that there is something loose in 
a law that provides that "No person shall kill or take alive 
more than two deer in any season," and yet three men may 
go into the woods and kill six deer while two of the men do 
not fire a gun, the criticism does not arise from the fact 
that she considers deer shooting a temporary hobby. When 
she says, "Much as I love deer shooting, I would willingly 
hang up my guns in the gun room to remain unused rather 
than have the slaughter of the past few years continue," it 
is not a whim. Standing on a runway while the hounds 
were running a fox, a deer appeared before her, started by 
the dogs; she said: "I was watching for a fox, but I wanted 
that deer, for my deer hunting had been most wretched 
during the deer season ; but as I brought my gun to my 
shoulder it flashed into my mind that the deer season had 
closed, only a few days, to be sure, but closed, and I lowered 
the gun and watched the deer until it passed out of sight." 
I hope some day to be permitted to tell of a score she made 
trout fishing. The trout can be numbered on the fingers of 
one hand, but many an angler with frosted paw would be 
exceeding glad to mark the weights of the trout in his fishing 
record as liis own catch. Secretly I have, in my heart, long 
