April 17, 1807.] 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
Sll 
REMINISCENCES OF EXCITING SPORT. 
In tbe great reception room of one of the hafidsomest and 
largest of the club houses with which Long Island abounds 
a party of fifteen or twenty gentlemen were assemljled. It 
was the evening of the first day o^ the open season for trout 
fishing, an event to which the de"^btee8 of the beauty Salve- 
liilm always Ibok forward with the keenest anticipations. 
The weather of the early spritig day, though pleasant, had 
been somewhat cold, ahd patchfes of ice were still left in the 
quiet nooks and corners of the ponds and streams. 
The catbh, hbwever, had been very satisfactory, foi" the 
jjrfeserVes that the blub controlled were generously stocked 
with fish of goodly size and plumpness, and. the after-dinner 
smoke with which the anglers were now regaling themselves 
seemed the crowning point of the day's enjoyment. 
Seated in a semicu-cle before the rousing fire of oak and 
hickory loga !which blazed cheerily in the great fireplace, the 
conversatipii of tbe men naturally teemed with reminiscences 
of adventufe "by flood and field," and many were the good 
"fish stories" and hunting anecdotes that were exchanged 
before the hour arrived for retiring. 
"Yea," said one of the group, at the conclusion of a thrill- 
ing narrative that had been given by one of the veterans of 
the club, "we, who have handled rod and gun for years, 
have all passed through many interesting episodes, and some 
of them were, of course, intensely exciting. I certainly 
have had my share of them, and they sorhetimes come back 
to memory with a strange vividness. 
"Of these experiences an incident that occurred in my 
younger days while on a shark fishing trip at Nantucket is 
perhaps worth recalling this evening. 
"I had hooked a large 'man eater," and with two of my 
companions was drawing him to the surface; the line used 
was, of course, a stout one, for the strength and weight of 
the shark are very great. 
"Slowly we hauled up the fish; slowly he yielded, foot by 
foot, until his huge, horrible form appeared near the side of 
the yacht. I think I never saw anything more hideous and 
wicked than that shark, and his cruel eyes, his enormous 
mouth, armed with rows of the sharpest teeth, and the rage 
with which he snapped at the boat and lashed the water into 
foam, I shall never forget. 
"Our skipper was just at the point of dispatching the 
brute when, turning downward with a sudden dart, the shark 
dived, and the line slipping through our hands permitted him 
to descend to the bottom again. 
"As it was running out with almost lightning speed I was 
caught by the leg in a bight, into which I had incautiously 
stepped, and in an instant I was over the side and following 
the shark. 
"It is utterly impossible for me to describe the sensations 
that I experienced, as I was drawn down deeper and deeper 
in the water. I could feel the pain from the rope about my 
leg, a pain that was increased by my companions holding the 
line and drawing upon it ; but the pain was as nothing when 
compared with the terrible pressure upon my lungs and 
brain. 
"Singularly enough, I did not entirely lose my presence of 
mind; I knew that nothing but a turn in the rope held me, 
and I thought that if I could in any way twist my leg around 
I should be released. 
"But in vain; my struggles were useless, and everything 
began to grow dark. 
"I must say that my sensations at this juncture were not 
unpleasant; the ringing in my ears, the pressure on my 
lungs, were forgotten and I seemed to be floating in a sort of 
dream. 
- "Of course the length of time that I remained in this con- 
dition was probably less than a minute, but it seemed almost 
eternity. 
"Fortunately for me, before it was too late, the hook be- 
came detached from the shark and I was drawn to the sur- 
face by my friends and lifed into the yacht. I was not en- 
tirely unconscious, for I felt the shock of being laid upon the 
deck of the boat, but it was a pretty close call. My friends 
soon resuscitated me, and I was able to hobble ashore when 
we reached the dock, but I was obliged to use crutches for a 
week afterward. 
"This, gentlemen, was my most exciting experience and I 
never want another like it. I will close my story by advising 
all who go shark fishing to be careful when they get a bile 
not to step into a bight of the line; it is not a knot, but it 
holds with all the tenacity of one." 
"What an inordinate amount of salt water you must have 
swallowed," said another of the group who had been quietly 
throwing smoke rings across the room, "and how nauseating 
the recollection of it must be to you. Now I once had a 
somewhat exciting adventure, but it happened in fresh water, 
which is more agreeable to swallow; the story is hardly 
worth the telling, however — " 
"Go on, go on," came from all parts of the room. 
"Very well, then, since you insist upon it. I was at the 
time of this incident the guest of one of the lessees of a 
famous salmon river m Canada, and had the privileges of 
some of the choicest pools. 
"Two of the best guides on the stream had been assigned 
to me, and 1 kept them and myself at work every day from 
morning until night. On the occasion to which I refer I 
had hooked a fine fish in a small pool, below which was a 
sti'etch of very wild rapids nearly a half mile in length. 
The salmon was strong and gamy, and I had quite a fight 
with him in the pool; but before he could be gaffed he started 
down the rapids, still stcurely hooked, and we followed him 
in the canoe. What a wild run that was, and how exhilara- 
ting it seemed as we rushed down the steep white incline of 
roaring water! 
"At the foot of the rapids were numerous boulders, and 
the passage soon became more and more dangerous. I still 
held to my fish, however, trusting to the dexterity of my 
guides; but in one of the worst places the setting pole in the 
hands of the bow canoeman broke, the canoe crashed against 
a sharp ledge, and In an instant I was in the furious 
waters. 
"I do not know how it happened, perhaps it was because 
lam a good swimmer; but I was carried down the current 
unhurt, save by a few bruises from the rocks, uutil I almost 
reached the verge of the great falls. 
"At this juncture the outlook was grave indeed, for I 
knew that if I was carried over the crest nothing could save 
me; for the descent of upward of 40ft. down upon a ledge of 
jagged rocks would mean utter destruction. 
"In some way, however, I was drawn near the shore, and 
I made tbe most strenuous efforts to eSect a landing j but tbe 
force of the stream was too much for me, and I had about 
concluded that I Was to be 'gathered in,' when I saw abreast 
of me and within mf teach the gunwale of the nearly sub- 
merged canoe, which had drifted down the stream. 
"Instinctively I seized it, and before the verge was reached 
the frail ci-aft became firmly Wedged between a boulder in 
the stream and the rocky shore, and, working my way to the 
inner side, I cravi^led out upon the ledge, where I sank com- 
pletely exhausted. 
"It was not long, however, before 1 was aroused by the 
voices of nly guides. They had bsen more fortunate than T, 
^ud when the canoe strucfe they jumped upon one of the 
rocks, and leaping to others with tne agility of accomplished 
river men, they reached the shore in saftty. 
"When they joined me they fished out the luncheon 
basket, which still remained in the canoe, and finding a bot- 
tle of brandy they gave me a cup, which soon revived me, 
and it was not long before we chmbed up the bank and pre- 
pared for a long tramp through tbe woods to our camp. 
Before we started, however, we clambered down the cliff to 
the pool below the falls for the purpose of searchiog for such 
articles as might havQ, floated down from the canoe. 
"We had been there but a few moments when we saw a 
salmon jump. He was the fish that I had hooked, and we 
discovered that my line was still attached to him. 
"Now comes the most incredible part of my story: The 
guides cut a long sapling, and attached to the end of it a 
hook, which they made from a forked stick, and wading 
out into the water they began dragging for my rod, which 
they assured me was there and being dragged about by the 
salmon; and soon, greatly to my surprise, they actually 
hooked it up uniojured, placed it in my hands, and I had 
the satisfaction after all of fighting my fish until he was 
conquered and landed." 
"Oh, oh!" came from all over the room. 
"It's a fact, gentlemen; I know it sounds 'fishy,' but it 
actually occurred; and you will believe me when I state 
that it is a common practice among the natives in some 
localities of Canada — those who have no rod and reel — to 
hook a salmon and throw their pole, which is a stout, dry 
sapling, into the water and let the fish exhaust itself; the 
sapling floats upon the water and offers just enough resist- 
ance to keep the salmon in motion, and he soon wears him- 
self out in endeavoring to free himself." 
"The story that we have just heard," said a short, florid, 
sandy-haired man, after the comments which it awakened 
had ended, "is very interesting to me. I have often wished 
that I might have the opportunity of giving battle to a big 
and vigorous salmon, but such has not been my good 
fortune, and I regret exceedingly that I cannot give a thrill- 
ing account of some hunting or fishing experience through 
which I have passed, but unfortunately I have had none. 
"My angling has been limited to brook fishing for trout, 
and my hunting has been confined to snipe and partridge 
shooting; but I once had an adventure which was certainly 
exciting enough while it lasted. 
"I have always been an enthusiastic canoeist, and the ex- 
cursions I have taken, sometimes many days in length, are 
almost innumerable. I have always carried a camping 
outfit in my canoe, consisting of a compact little cooking 
kit and a small shelter tent; and when necessity compelled 
me — and sometimes even when it did not — I would stop at 
the close of a day's paddling, land at a promising spot and 
camp for the night. 
"On one of these outings I found myself at sundown in a 
locality destitute of houses, and as 1 had worked steadily all 
day I concluded that I would land and prepare for a night's 
rest. 
"I soon found a nice spot, where, running my canoe 
ashore, 1 stepped out upon the beach and proceeded to re- 
connoiter. 
"Climbing up the bank of the river, I passed through a 
little growth of birches and maples, and came out upon a 
stretch of open land, which evidently served as a pasture. 
"There were a few trees scattered about, and beneath one 
of them waa.a number of cattle. I did not pay much atten- 
tion to therd, but continued my investigations. At length, 
satisfied that the spot I had selected would prove desirable 
for a camping place, £ began to retrace my steps; as I did 
so I noticed that one of the cattle had left the others and 
was following me. 
"At intervals he would utter a low, hoarse bellow and paw 
the earth, throwing it into the air in clouds. I saw at once 
that I had an ugly bull to contend with, and began to hurry 
toward my boat. 
"But the brute managed to get between me and the river, 
■ and I soon discovered that there was nothing left for me but 
to cut and run for one of the trees in the pasture. 
"Gentlemen, I am sorry to say that I am not much of a 
sprinter. 1 am not built that way, but in the language of 
the novelists, 'fear lent wings to my feet,' and I give you my 
word I made a very quick dash for my objective point. 
Not a second, however, was there to spare, for as 1 dodged 
behind the tree the bull brought up on the other side of the 
trunk. 
"He gave me no time to recover my wind, but sprang 
around the tree endeavoring to impale me with his horns, 
which I noticed were sharp to a degree. I see you are 
laughing, gentlemen — it was a ridiculous scrape to get into. 
"Around the tree he darted, bellowing and gi-owling sav- 
agely, and around to the other side 1 dodged, trying as well 
as I could to keep the trunk between us, and to a looker-on 
it would have been a comical sight indeed to see us waltzing 
in that old pasture. 
"At last a favorable opportunity presented itself, and I 
sprang for a limb that was just within my reach. 1 suc- 
ceeded in grasping it and was swinging myself up when the 
bull made a lunge, and one of his horns fastening in a por- 
tion of my clothing ripped it off as quick as a flash, the horn 
at the same time giving my leg a vicious rasping. 
"It hurt abominably, but the pain turned my fear to an- 
ger. I was mad clear through, and longing for revenge; but 
I was powerless. 
"Astride that limb I sat for a short time rubbing my leg 
and using, I am sorry to say, very profane language, the 
bull in the meantime hooking at the tree and mw and then 
rearing on his hindlegs in his efforts to dislodge me, a ad so 
near me did he come in these attacks that I could almost 
have kicked him. 
"As I sat there watching my enemy and rubbing my leg, 
my hand struck against a hard object in my hip-pocket; it 
was my whisky fllaskl 
"I have read of the intense joy and gratitude with which 
shipwrecked mariners have found a spring of water, but I 
doubt if ihey felt a keener satisfaction than I did at my dis- 
covery. The flask was nearly full, and never did good old 
Bourbon taste as it did tben; it was simply nectar. As { 
took a modicum an idea struck me, and a good one it proved 
to be. 
"Pouring the liquor into the flask- cup until it was nearly 
full, I watched my opportunity, and when the bull reared 
for another stab at me I dashed the contents of the clip into 
his eyes 
"The effect was simply magical. The heast gave a snoi-t 
and bellow, and sidling away froni the tree he pawed the 
earth, laid down upon ths grass and rolled over, and per- 
formed all sorts of contortions, as if in the greatest agony. 
"Seeing that mv enemy was for a short time disabled, you 
may be sure that I quickly descended from my perch and 
hurried to my canoe ; but I selected another camping place 
for the night, where no animals were being pastured." 
Roars of laughter and applause followed this story. He 
was a pudgy little man, and the quaint manner in which he 
descritied his adventure was very mirth-provoking. 
"A vicious bull or horse is a dangerous animal," said one 
of the gentlemen when quiet had been restored, "but neither 
of them is as bad as an ugly moose, for he is sometimes the 
incarnation of wickedness. I once had an adventure with 
one which came near costing me my life. 
"It happened a little over two years ago in northern Maine. 
I was hunting in the neighborhood of Mt. Katahdin, and had 
as companion one of the most experienced and successful 
guides in the State. Although we had been in the woods 
several days, we had not. seen or heard a moose, or in fact any 
other large game, and I had about determined that a change 
of locality had become a necessity. Early one morning, 
however, my guide, who was the most expert moose caller I 
ever met, succeeded in attracting the attention of a big bull, 
and soon we heard him crashing through the woods in our 
direction. 
"On he came, bounding over underbrush and windfalls, 
uttering at intervals a peculiar, discordant note. With the 
guide I was ensconced in a little clump of sapling spruces, 
where I waited with ready rifle for a favorable opportunity 
for a shot. The guide repeated the call, and the moose drew 
nearer; the call was again given in a very low tone, and soon 
the huge animal came into view. He was a magnificent spe- 
cimen, with very widely spreading and perfect antlers. 
"I had raised my rifle to my shoulder, and was at the point 
of firing, whea tuore was heard a cracking of sticks a shirt 
distance to the right of us, and in a moment a cow moose 
appeared upon the scene. She was, of course, instantly dis- 
covered by the other, and it took but a moment for him to 
join her. 
"'I've called many a bull,' whispered th.e guide, 'but 
never a cow moose before.' 
"I made no reply, but again raising my rifle was about to 
draw the trigger when the smashing cf slicks caused by 
some large animal was again heard m tbe direction from 
which the cow moose had come, and another male bounded 
through the thicket and joined the others. 
"The scene that followed was the most remarkable that I 
ever witnessed ; it was a battle that I shall never forget. 
"In an instant the bulls came together with an impact that 
seemed to shake the earth; with a loud clash their antlers 
met and became interlocked, and then, straining every nerve 
and fiber and muscle, each of the savage animals tried to 
force the other backward or from his feet. Around they 
swung, now here, now there, sometimes the advantage being 
with one and as often with the other. 
"Ever and anon their weapons became separated, and then 
the duelists sought by quick leaps and dexterous lunges to 
adroitly reach within each other's guard and strike a vulner- 
able spot. 
"The agility, the celerity of attack and defense that were 
displayed in this battle were astonishing and hardly to be 
expected from such huge and apparently clumsy animals. 
I gazed upon the scene almost entranced — even forgetting 
that I had a rifle and was there to kill — and if it had not 
been for ray guide, who touched my arm and pointed to the 
cow that stood gazing stolidly upon the fight, I dare say that 
the duel would have continued until one of the bulls was 
conquered. 
"The action of the guide and his whispered remark, 
'There is always a female at the bottom of all trouble/ 
aroused me, and, aiming at one of the bulls, I fired. The 
discharge of my rifle alarmed the cow and she quickly dis- 
appeared in the forest, but the others paid no attention to 
the report and continued their battle. 
"I thought for a moment 1 had missed my aim and was 
about to send another ball into my quarry, but he began to 
waver and stagger about, and soon grew so weak that the 
other forced him down and began viciously to gore him. 
"Disapproving of such unchivalric conduct toward a con- 
quered foe, but not wishing to kill the survivor, we emerged 
from our covert and advanced toward the bull, expecting, of 
course, that on discovering us he would take flight; but in so 
doing we made a serious mistake, for the moose turned like 
a flash, and charging upon us caught the gujide before he 
could escape, and gave him a toss that I thought was fatal, 
and then swung for me. I had no time to take deliberate 
aim, but holding my rifle almost at arm's length I fired, and 
he dropped as if struck by lightning, the ball having pierced 
the thick skull at the only vulnerable point, and entered the 
brain. 
"The guide was badly bruised, but not seriously injured, 
and he was iti a short time able to flay the two carcasses. 
" 'I've had lots of scrapes with moose,' he said, 'but that 
was nearly the worst of all.' " 
"By .love !" exclaimed one of the group when the story 
was concluded, "that was an adventure worth having. I 
have always longed for an opportunity to meet a big and 
lusty moose, but have not yet had that pleasure. I mean, 
however, to make the effort next fall, and it will be strange 
if I do not succeed, plentiful as they now are in the Maine 
woods, 
"My largest game thus far has been our common deer, of 
which 1 have killed quite a number in different sections of 
the country. I have still-hunted and stalked them with 
hounds in the North, and pursued them with hounds 
in the South ; in "fact have had my share of experiences 
in all the methods that are followed. .Jack-hunting I 
have tried but once, and probably shall never attempt it 
again. The incident is hardly worth descritnng, but it may 
prove somewhat interesting to those who have never hunted 
in this manner. It occurred during one of my outings a 
number of years ago in the North Woods. A small party of 
us had been encamped for several days, sub-isting on trout 
and the different 'store goods' we had brougnt with us, 
"The supply of these, thougn abundant in quantity, goon 
grew monotonous in variety, and it was finally decided that 
nothing but 'freeli meat' couid satisfy Hixq oravings oi oa| 
