170 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
IAto. 28, 1897. 
CHICAGO FLY CASTING TOURNAMENT. 
Chicago, 111., Aug. 19. — Mr. Mansfield's record-breaking 
cast of lllift, added to his recent startling performance 
at San Francisco, points unequivocally to the fact that 
there has come to the front a man who is unmistakably 
superior not only to the men he met in Chicago, but to all 
the other men who have in previous times met and re- 
corded their ability with the rod and fly. Mr. Mansfield 
not only broke the record, but he broke it with a margin 
which has an actual championship tang to it, a sort of 
head-and shoulders significance which leaves his winning 
without a regret or a reservation in the mind of anybody. 
No accidents or fouls or untimely puffs of air, no shortcom- 
ing of any kind, will be urged by any unsuccessful one as 
reason for his not casting lllift. Had all the anglers of 
the country been together, or a larger portion of them, it 
is highly improbable that anyone would have crowded Mr. 
Mansfield for his place. He may feel repaid for his long 
irip across the continent to measure rods with the cracks 
of the middle West; and the gentlemen who met him may 
be equally glad to have had him come, see and conquer 
them so handsomely. His work was really the feature of 
the tournament. 
The other work, while good, has been surpassed, and is 
likely to be again surpassed by the men who did it. Mr. 
Davidson has previously beaten his record for this tourna- 
ment with the bait rod, and although his friends in the 
other classes have put down records of which they need 
not be ashamed, they may hope to do as much again. Mr, 
Peet came strongly to the front, and Mr. Babcock, with his 
win in the interesting event of the roll-casting contest; 
])roved himself a finished handler of the fly rod. It is 
likely that these two feel very well satisfied with their for- 
tune. Among those who were near them in the totals 
were several who possibly might be willing to go into the 
matter a little further before concluding that they had 
done all that lies in them to do. Mr. Davidson kept up his 
local reputation for evenness of performance. 
Among outsiders present were Messrs. Fred Divine, of 
XJtica, N. Y.; W. F. Fames, of St. Louis, and G. A. Stevens, 
of Moline, 111. These did not compete, so that really the 
contest was San Francisco against Chicago, single represen- 
tative of the city by the Western sea taking two firsts, for 
long distance fly and for dry fly casting in accuracy and 
delicacy, to say nothing of secon'l in roll-casting, which fell 
behind the first by only one-third of 1 per cent.! The Chi- 
cago men met a good one in Mr. Mansfield certainly, and 
they are proud to know him. 
The arrangements at the park lagoon were well made, 
and the spot was in every way worthy of the assembly of 
even a larger number of contestants. The officers did all 
possible for the comfort of those in attendance, and the 
parting of the friendly competitors was made with the 
generally expressed pleasure that all had gone well in the 
second open tournament of the Chicago Fly-Casting Club. 
A large and interested crowd of spectators lined the banks 
of the lagoon, and at times made trouble by their curiosity 
and eagerness. The preparations for the events, the buoys, 
courts, tents, decorations, etc., left nothing to be asked, and 
the judging was acceptable to all, even to those who did 
not win. The following table will show the winners and 
records for each event of the tournament in accurate and 
accessible form: 
£f oS «lg 
O U '2 fc, 73 g hCfc. 
bo S » O ^ a • a ^ 
s Is gp; &a 
? §5 §g .«! §g 
PS >4 Q <i 85 
W. H. Babcock QCfU 54' 8*6" 81 73 8]U S\\ 
I. H. Bellows 70' 3' 87 li'jk 94K 
0. H. Chadwick 76' V 95^ 
L.F.Crosby 78' V .. 59^ .. 91 
F. B. Davidson 98' 69 . • 84^,^ . . 
B. Vr. GoodseU 9,1% 61' 4»6' 83 79% n\ 
F. Gardner , .. ., 9i 
B. D. Letterman 98' 4' .. .. .. 932, 
0. A Lippincott 84' 66 79fg 821. 90 
O. G. Ludlow Qi% 64' 6' 78 62}^ 71 1, ^i'K 
G. A. Murrell ....823^ 79' 5V 77 h.% 78<„ 953, 
H. A. Newkirk........ 79 71' IV .. 9lM 63'a' ^5^^ 
F. N. Peet 76 75' 92 87 85^,5, 95<^ 
G. W. Strell 63% SfsJs 
J. E. Strong 62J^ 61' 7V 65 64 77§«^ .. 
W. A. Mansfield 90 lllJi 85% 86'. 
G. A. Blubm 89' 'a' 91 1. 
H E. Hascall 84' Ilia* ., ,. 943, 
M. D. Smith 79' 10'>6" t33j 
J.J.Parker. ,, .. 8^3^ 
HOLDKES OF MEDALS. 
Long Distance Bait, F. B. Davidson, 
Roll Casting F)y, W. N. Babcock. 
Long Distance Fly, W. A Mansfield. 
Distance and Accm-acy, H. A. Newkirk, 
Accuracy and Delicacy, 'W. A. Mansfield. 
Bait Casting Accuracy, F. N. Peet. 
Special prize for highest general average in all was won by F. N 
Peet with 58"s6o pei cent. 
The weather during the first day of the tournament was 
marked with steady wind, which became puffier later dur- 
ing the day. On Friday night heavy rain fell, but Satur- 
day was pleasant. The long-distance fly-casting event, 
which turned out in such surprising manner, was the last 
event of the tournament, and was begun late in the even- 
ing, it being 6:45 when Mr. Mansfield went to the plat- 
form. The conditions were then good for casting, and 
■with the last man of the last contest the record went 
down. Mr. Mansfield received hearty applause as his 
success became known, and acknowledged it with becom- 
ing modesty. In his work, the San Francisco crack is 
beautifully easy, keeping a perfect control of the vital back 
and understanding his tools as though they were part of 
his own nervous system. In long-distance work he uses the 
dropped loop below the guides, and starts the slack for- 
ward with admirable time. His work is with fall arm, 
and his delivery carries nothing of physical exertion with 
it, though it goes without saying that there must be edu- 
cated muscle back of the rod which pitches a line to the 
distance of a gun shot. Mr. Mansfield's rod is a tourna- 
ment tool, lift, long, and weighing lOJoz. With this rod 
he gave us the prettiest sj^ectacle of casting the fly with 
which the anglers of this vicinity have ever been favored, 
and with which no other country, by the way, has ever 
been authentically favored. He may take his record back 
to Frisco with him, but let him remember that he had to 
come to Chicago to make it, and let him not hope to beat 
the Chicago record when he unrolls his line next October 
at the tournament of his home club. E. Hough. 
CHICAGO AND THE WEST. 
The Season's Big Fish. 
Chicago, 111., Aug. 21.— Mr. C. J. Schweilzer, of Kansas 
City, caught on Aug. 11, in the Wisconsin River, near Kil- 
bourn, Wis., a black bass weighing lOlbs. This is thought 
to be the largest bass ever taken in Wisconsin. 
The Traverse City Herald reports a rainbow trout weigh- 
ing 51bs. 13oz. (weight fifteen hours after taken from the 
water), taken in the Boardman River by Washington 
Round, of the G. R. & I. Ry. With him were Messrs. W. 
J. Hobbs, Sam lies and O. P. Carver. A small brown 
trout, weighing Iflbs., was caught by the same party. The 
Boardman was last year a good trout stream, and it cer- 
tainly holds the record for the lower peninsula of Michi- 
gan this year. 
By the draining of a reeervoir at Denver, Col., large 
numbers of fish, more especially carp, were left stranded 
and were taken. One carp is said to have weighed 261bs. 
Yet a still larger carp is reported from Hagerstown, Md., 
one described as weighing 351bs., measuring 3ft. iin. in 
length, and 22in, in girth. 
Some Catches. 
Dr. Gonzales, of Crawfordsville, Ind., caught in Cedar 
Lake, Ind., seventeen bass, all over lib., among them five 
which weighed over 51bs. each. 
At Tomahawk Lake, Wisconsin, and in adjacent waters, 
some good sport has been had this month with miiscallonge 
and bass, as I learn from a friend just returned. At White 
Sand Lake, Mr. Hugh McDonald, of Covington, Ky., got 
one 'lunge weighing 24lb3. At Tomahawk, a Mr. Slack, of 
Ft. Worth, Tex., in one day took twenty-two bass, running 
from 21 to 4Jlbs. At Trout Lake, two ladies were out fish- 
ing one day last week and both got strikes at the same 
time, one fish proving to be a pike and the other a 'lunge. 
The pike was landed, but the 'lunge broke away after get- 
ting under the boat. On Tomahawk Lake, week before 
last, Chas. Fliegel took one 'lunge weighing 81bs., W. S. 
Kibby one weighing 121bs., R. C. McPherson one weighing 
131b8., Chas. Johnson one of 51bs. and one of 121bs. In 
Gilmore Lake, J. Erickson got one weighing 141bs. In 
Tomahawk Lake, Mrs. B. W. Sherman, a cottager spending 
the summer there, got two weighing 18Ibs. each and one 
weighing 221bs. C. La Salle got one of 221bs. in Toma- 
hawk Lake, and Tom Curran, of Rhinelander, got four 
'lunge which together scaled 411bs. A. C. Paterson, of 
Chicago, took one of 121bs. and one of 71bs. J. Chadwick, 
also of Chicago, landed one of 261bs. In High Lake, E. L. 
Caldwell and Mr. Dyer got several 'lunge running from 9 
to 161bs. In Jute Lake, W. E. Kelly and M. J. Smiley, 
of Chicago, in one day caught 100 bass, sixty-eight of 
which weighed over 211bs. each, and one of which 
weighed 5^1bs. Peter the Guide, fishing in Star Lake, 
killed a good 'lunge weighing 231bs. In Clear Lake, 
Mrs. Henry Payne, of Humboldt, was fortunate enough 
to kill a fine 'lunge— 341bs. in weight and 4ft. 7in. 
long. In the same waters. Rev. F. B. Jolly and 
others, of a La Grange, 111., party, took sixteen 'lunge of 
various weights. A. C. Allen got twenty-two bass one day, 
each of more than 21 bs. weight. Mrs. A. E. Williams, 
wife of a lumber dealer who is in business at Star Lake, 
probably holds the muscallonge record for the season, for 
she has done little but fish all summer, her husband pro- 
viding her a guide and boat as she likes. Since May 1 
Mrs. Williams has caught, in Star, Partridge and Ballard 
lakes, seventy-five muscallonge. She has had eight over 
201b8. each, and her biggest fish weighed 231bs. Her 
guide, a man named Rouleau, has in the same time cau»ht 
ninety-seven muscullonge in all. The heaviest fish taken 
in these waters seems to have been 361bs., two of that size 
being recorded, one taken by Chas. T. Kuhn, of Chicago, 
in Squaw Lake, on Aug. 14, and one taken in Tomahawk 
Lake by Mrs. B. W. Sherman. Other weights of fish 
taken by Mrs. Sherman during the summer run 201bs,, 
141bs., 161bs., lOlbs., 121bs., 151bs, 341bs., 221bs., with very 
many more running from 51bs. up; certainly a very good 
showing for the two ladies, Mrs. Williams and Mrs. Sher- 
man, and one which I do no think has been surpassed by 
any rod of the vicinity. Ambrose Risden, of Chicago, go't 
one 'lunge weighing 12Ib8. Chas. Jenks, of the North- 
western Road, Evanston, got one of 71bs.; and John 
Branch, his companion and fellow townsman, got one of 
1 libs., these two gent emen also taking one day twenty - 
two bass averaging IMbs., some going as heavy as 3Jlbs. 
In Rock Lake and Clear Lake, the Street Brothers, of 
Chicago, caught 100 bass, of weights from lilbs. to 21bs. 
In Squaw Lake, Wm. Walker, of Indianapolis, got one 
'lunge weighing 121bs. All the above records are exclu- 
sively printed in Forest and Stream. 
Where Is It? 
Mr. J. SchafFer, of Chicago, tells a friend that he can 
take him, within two hours' run of Chicago, to a lake in 
Indiana where he can catch bass, pike and muscallonge. 
He asserts he is not mistaken about the muscallonge part 
of it, but declines to give the secret of his locality. It is 
not an impossible thing that any water tributary to the 
Mississippi River may have muscallonge in it. I have 
known this fish taken in central Iowa, in the Skunk River, 
and have recorded an instance of large 'lunge being taken 
by Mr. Dupuy in Taggart Creek, Ky. I do not know of 
any Indiana lake, however, in which I should expect to 
find a muscallonge. 
Lake Trout from the Whaleback. 
The big whaleback excursion steamer Christopher Co- 
lumbus plies between Milwaukee and Chicago, for the 
most part depending for its traffic upon young persons who 
want to go up to Milwaukee to get married, the laws of 
Wisconsin being very encouraging to this industry. It 
would not occur to any one that the whaleback would be a 
good boat for trolling purposes, or that the waters thus 
traversed would be very good for the man who wanted to 
get a fine fat lake trout. Yet this month, so a Mend of 
mine tells me, a man by name of Penney, of Chicago, took 
a notion to do some trolling while on his way up to Mil- 
waukee, and he caught a 51bs. lake trout in Lake Michi- 
gan. He had out about 100ft. of line, and says that the 
speed of the boat made the fish feel as though it weighed 
at least 201bs. I have never heard of a lake trout being 
taken for years in this part of the lake by any means, let 
alone trolling from a whaleback. The item is exclusively 
printed in Forest and Stream. 
Iowa Streams for Fishing. 
Mr. W. F. Paul, of Charles City, la., writes some inter- 
esting notes regarding the fishing in some of the streams 
of eastern Iowa. All these Iowa rivers emptying into the 
Mississippi were once splendid fishing streams, but sheer 
neglect, combined with illegal and destructive fishing, 
ruined them almost utterly. The day of modern methods 
is just beginning to dawn in Iowa. In his letter Mr. Paul 
says: 
"Fishing has been great sport in the Cedar and Shell 
Rock rivers this season, fine specimens and good numbers 
have been caught, mostly bass and wall-eyed pike. In 
most instances live bait is used, such as minnows and soft- 
shell crawfish, and also small frogs, though crawfish seem 
the most favored at present. 
"A few of our local fishermen are having fine success at 
the Shell Rock River. Three of them went there and 
caught over 1001 bs. of fish in one day, and two others 
caught in the same length of time 72lbs., and they were 
beauties, averaging about 3 Jibs, each for the bass and about 
7 to 7ilbs. for pike. 
"In the Cedar we are catching more fine specimens of 
wall-eyed pike and pickerel, as commonly called here. 
Several 101b. pike have been taken from this stream this 
season and many good strings of bass. Considering all 
these fine catches we pride ourselves as having fine fishing 
streams in our vicinity. 
"The Charles City Game and Fish Club, of Charles City, 
la., offer a reward of $10 for the arrest of each person who 
can can be shown on reasonable proof to have killed any- 
protected game before the legal season, or taken any fish 
from its streams by any other means than hook and line, 
as allowed by the Iowa fish laws." 
Closed Streams In the Yellowstone Park. 
The National Park has long been known and exploited 
as one of the most wonderful fishing grounds in the world, 
but it seems that even its swarming streams can be and 
have been over-fished. On Aug. 12 Col. Young, the new 
superintendent at the Park, issued a circular prohibiting 
fishing in the Gardiner River from its mouth up to the junc- 
tion of the east and middle forks; also in Glenn Creek, 
Indian Creek, Willow Creek, Obsidian Creek and Beaver 
Lake. All these streams are close to the main roads be- 
tween the entrance of the Park and the upper geyser 
basin, and tourists have fished them so much, on account 
of their accessibility, that it appears the supply of trout is 
well on the way to exhaustion. I opine that the protec- 
tion will be the sort that protects, as it has been in the past 
in all the accessible portions of the Park. E. Hough. 
1206 BoYCE Building, Chicago. 
ON MINNESOTA WATERS. 
Sioux City, Ih— Editor Forest and St/ream: Our object 
in this letter is to give the plain, unvarnished truth, and to 
guide and direct amateur sportsmen to fields of unlimited 
sport. 
On June 6, eight disciples of Izaak Walton left behind 
them the many worries and cares of city life, and bent their 
course for the fishing waters of the smiling lakes of northern 
Minnesota. For some time we had all been reading up on 
the beauties of Minnesota lakes as set foi th in railroad and 
booming town literature, in which the writers espaiiatcd on 
the health-giving qualities of the boundless pine forests, or 
the bracing air on the crystal waters of the silvery lakes. 
The resinous pme trees, the sweet perfume of the blossom- 
ing plants and shrubs, and the cool and refreshing draughts 
of the gentle zephyrs over rolling waves of the lakes, it was 
therein set forth, would inject the elixir of life into our fag- 
ging souls and stir up the weakest to better activity. The 
woods, we were told, abounded in elk and deer, the lakes 
were fairly black with wild ducks and geese, and the waters 
teemed with fish of all kinds— you could see them on top of 
the water, not by the thousands, but in myriads, so that in 
a very short time you would fairly tire of fishing. These 
fairy tales of the forest and lake concerning the fowl and 
fish so worked on the minds of some of our inexperienced 
sportsmen that our first night at Park Rapids will ever be a 
memorable one to us all. 
Allen, a big, auburn, whole-souled fellow, one of our 
party, struck the bed as soon as we reached the hotel. Our 
landlord, being a little crowded for space, had put six of us 
into one room. Allen was soon in the land of nod^ and the 
rest were on the eve of retiring when the sleeper made a sud- 
den movement and startled us all by crying out in his sleep: 
"Got a bite — hold him. Bill, hold him— don't give him slack 
line — pull him in — there! see, he has swallowed hook and 
all " 
We first tried Park Rapids, in Hubbard county. The 
fishing in this vicinity was good, where we could get out to 
the lakes, but it was difficult to get there. For tlie way 
Park Rapids advertised, the accommodations are very poor, 
The lakes are all some distance from town, and there is but 
one place in town where boats can be gotten, and that is at 
a hotel, and the landlord will not let you have those imless 
you stop at his house and pay his price. The liverymen 
want a fortune to take you to the lakes, and more if you are 
fortunate enough to find a boat to be taken out. We folded 
our tents and stole away from the hungry sharks among the 
dead pine trees and tamarac brush, and left them to feed 
upon a new school of "shiners." 
We next pitched tent at Detroit City, about fifty miles 
southwest of Park Rapids, on the Northern Pacific Railroad. 
Here the genial landlord of the Fair Haven House met us 
with two teams and took us to his place, six miles south of 
Detroit, on the eastern shore of Lake Sallie. We were all 
happy once more, as we got settled into a house all by oiu- 
selves. It was but a few moments and we were in full pos- 
session of the coveted resting place. We were at home, in- 
deed, and a father could not have made things pleasanter for 
his children than did E. McNeil, the accommodating and 
obliging proprietor. We were all happy. The weather was 
fine, the scenery grand, the fishing excellent. Here beautiful 
bodies of crystal pure water are held in nature's calm em- 
brace by the emerald foliage of the oak, elm, lime, balm of 
Gilead, poplar and birch. The hillsides and valleys were 
smiling in their new dresses of sweetest spring flowers, and 
the birds were twittering their vows of love to each other, or 
carrying sticks and straws to distant treetops, where in- 
stinct combined with art taught th^m to build their nests and 
raise their young. 
Day after day we rose early in the morning and left in the 
best of row boats for distant parts of the lakes, only to rettu-n 
for supper in the evening loaded down with the finest pick- 
erel, pike, black and rock bass. 
