Jan, 22, 1898.] 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
71 
osity or a meal, as they do not Seem to feed while hi 
fresh water. At atiy rate, no lure wc know will tempt 
them to take the hook, though their cousin, the tailor, 
will sometimes show great fondness for the fly. Years 
ago, before the Potomac was overfished, and the shad 
weighed i4lbs. instead of 5lbs., as now, sliad were fi-e- 
quently taken witli the fly— it is said. Since we found 
within the last year such interesting sport with the pick- 
erel and the fly we have renewed hopes of the shad, and 
mean to teach tliem something new this season, if we can. 
Henry Talbott. 
CHICAGO AND THE WEST. 
The Flofida Congress. 
Chicago, 111., Jan. 8.— Mr. August Hirth, of A. G. 
Spalding & Bros., the first delegate appointed by the 
Governor of Illinois to the Florida Congress of Fish- 
eries, will start for Florida the latter part of next week. 
Commissioners Bartlett and Cohen, also appointed, Avill 
hardly both go, or at least did not so intend at last 
accounts. Should the three be present, Illinois would 
certainly have cause to feel confidence in her delegation. 
Big Haul fof Protection. 
I often speak of the long-cOntinued fight between the 
wardens and the illegal net fishermen of Lake Winne- 
bago, Wis. — a war which has lasted for years and been 
fought with the utmost stubbornness in spite of changes 
in the statutes of the State and all sorts of efforts to 
avoid or evade the law. Yesterday the wardens made a 
big haul for protection on Winnebago, Capt. Johnson, 
with a posse of twent}'- Avardens, succeeding in capturing 
twenty miles of nets in different parts of the lake. All 
these nets were destroyed, and the fish taken from them 
were confiscated. Arrests of more than twenty fisher- 
men will follow. This coup, in face of the determined 
and at times murderous resistance of these lawless men. 
is certainl}^ encouraging to any one who has watched 
this long struggle, and who has had the principle of 
law-abiding citizenship at heart. It is thought that the 
blow wall be so severe for the market fishermen that they 
will not make much trouble after this. 
Market Fishers' Trost. 
The market fisheries of the Great Lakes each year mar- 
ket over ioo,ooo,ODolbs. of fish. Now they have formed 
a trust, following the trend of the times, and henceforth 
will combine for the systematic handling of this watery 
wealth. W. Vernon Booth, son of the old-time fish 
dealer of national reputation, A. Booth, is to be the 
head of the trust, although he is reticent about the whole 
transaction. He did say, however, that the object of 
the new combine will be not to defy, but to assist, the 
State fish wardens in their work, and to encourage 
the annual planting of fish, especially whitefish, in the 
'Great Lakes, which otherwise will soon be barren. Mr. 
Booth thinks the combine will be a benefit and not a 
detriment to the small local fisherman, as he can thus 
always have a market for his catch. He thinks the 
yearly catch of the combine, with improved methods, 
may perhaps run as high as iSO,ooo,oooIbs. of fish. 
There is no doubt that this trust will be a beneficent 
and amiable influence in the land, so long as it is allowed 
to do just what it likes in regard to netting fish. It will 
no doubt encourage the State hatching and planting of 
fish. No doubt it will also continue to bu)^ brook trout 
netted all along the shores of Lake Superior by the 
Indians and the "small fishermen," who will thus in- 
deed find a regular market. If the sportsmen of the 
country were one-half as well organized as the market- 
men, there would be more brook trout for the rod and 
less for the net. 
Hatchery Moved. 
The State Fish Commission of Wisconsin, at their an- 
nual meeting at Madison, Jan. 5, voted to move the 
branch hatchery from Milwaukee to Oshkosh, on Lake 
Winnebago. The hatchery at the latter point will be 
devoted principally to the raising of wall-eyed pike, the 
^ finest table fish native to Western waters. 
Deputy Goetter, of Chicago, caused the arrest of F. T. 
Evers, a fish dealer, at 1000 West Madison street, this 
city, and the latter was, on Jan. 3, fined $25 for having 
in possession under-sized perch. 
Deputy Wardens Stone and Johnstone last week ar- 
rested Adolph Beauregard at Shell Lake, Wis., for illegal 
fishing in Long Lake, where he was spearing. He got 
thirty days in jail, and his spears and outfit were de- 
stroyed and his fish confiscated. 
At Warsaw, Ind., Josiah Wysong was arrested some 
time ago for illegal fishing, and was fined $25. He ap- 
pealed, on the advice of his lawyer, W. H. Dennis. The 
case recently came up in the Circuit Comt, and Wysong 
got fined $75. I advise him to take it to the Supreme 
Court. 
Deputy Warden Ratto, of this city, yesterday caused 
the arrest and conviction of E. Mallett, a fish peddler, 
who was selling black bass less than iiin. in length. 
Mallett was fined $25 in the court of Justice Quinn, of 
Hyde Park. 
"Winter Fishing. 
Hand-line and tip-up fishing is in progress in great 
shape on Lake Minnetonka, Minn., this week, and the 
law is being violated to some extent. Warden Mann 
has pursued some of the illegal fishers across the ice, 
and though he cannot catch them, he has managed to get 
a lot of their outfits and their fish. 
At Day's Ford, on the Kankakee, Indiana, the carp 
are so thick that the farmers are driving them along 
to the open places in the ice, and there spearing them 
with pitchforks by the wagon-load. 
Illinois Commission Explains. ' 
Chicago, Jan. 15. — The Peoria Star, of Peoria, 111., 
came out last week with an accusation charging the 
Illinois Fish Commission with deliberate unfairness in 
the administration of the law. The Star stated that Bart- 
son & Hurley, a market-fishing firm, of Peoria, were di- 
rectly under the protection of the Fish Commission, 
who had instructed their warden, Brassfield, not to med- 
dle with Bartson &: Htitley's nets. The lattel- are the 
heaviest market-fishermen of the Illinois River. The 
Journal, of Quincy, 111.^ interviewed Commissioner Bart- 
lett on this matter and securetl froin him the following 
statement: 
The cpmTiiission is not in tlie least trying- to aid a monopoly, bvtt 
is simply protecting a highly important industry with a fair and 
proper interpretation of the law. 
Messrs. Bartson & Hurley are taking carp and buffalo out of the 
Illinois River Uir the Peoria market, into which, during' the heavi- 
est season, as much as about a carload of sucli fish daily is se,nt 
on an average. 
Mr, Brassfield, the deputy warden, found that Messrs. Bartj50n & 
Hurley's seine measured but l%in., whereas the law forbids the 
use of a mesh of less than 2in. Apparently Mr. Brassfield was 
right in thinking that the use of such seine' was violation of the 
law, but in fact it has been the practice of tlie commission and 
experienced wardens to allow ^^iu. for llie tarring of and shrink- 
age of the meshes, and the Commissioners did not wish to have 
the important industi-y of Bartson & Hurley interfered with, where 
to do so would have simply been to stop their work without just 
cause. Hence the orders of the Commissioners to Brasslicid to 
confine his work to his own county, 
In doing this the Commissioners did not mean any reflections 
on Mr. Brassfield, for they knew that his intenlfons' were good. 
They simply knew that he had not yet becoriie fatuitiar with tb-e 
just interpretation of the law. 
Fish Dealers get Concessions. 
It seems that not only the fish dealers of the Illinois 
River, but also of the city of Chicago, are up in arms 
against the new law, and since they don't like it of 
course they will have to be accommodated. The whole- 
sale dealers held a little convention here Jan. 12, meeting 
Commissioners Bartlett, of Quincy; Nat IL Cohen, of 
Urbana, and A. Lenk, of Chicago. At this meeting the 
dealers claimed that the. wardens have been entirel}'^ too 
active in enforcing the law, and have ^jrosecuted a num- 
ber of dealers for having in possession under-sized fish. 
The dealers said they could not always prevent the ship- 
ment of such fish to them. The market men then passed 
the following resolutions as being tlie sense of their 
meeting: 
Resolved, By the wholesale fiSli dealers of Chicago, assembled 
in conference with the Fish Commissioners of Illinois, that all 
of said wholesale fish dealers will use every means in their power 
for the purpose of preventing fish sold in this State of the size 
prescribed by the laws of the State of Illinois, and that said fish 
dealers will co-operate with the Fish Commissioners in every possi- 
ble way that wiU tend to perpetuate and protect the fishes in the 
waters of Illinois. 
Resolved, That the said Fish Commissioners shall instruct their 
fish wardens that there shall be no prosecutions under the present 
law against fish dealers for having fish in their possession under 
the size prescribed by the statute when said wardens are satisfied 
that said fish dealers came into possession of said fish inadvertently, 
and without knowing that they were of unlawful size, or where 
there is no intention of selling said fish or ottering the same for 
sale or in any manner of violating the law. 
Resolved, That the said Fish Commissioners instruct their war- 
dens that in all cases where fish under the statutory size shall be 
fotmd in the possession of fish dealers for the first time, that there 
shall be no prosecution for such offense, and that said fish wardens 
advise the dealer of his liability to fine and imprisonment for hav- 
ing said fish in his possession. 
Mr. Bartlett advised the dealers that the State Fish 
Commission did not wish to make the law a hardship, 
and did not wish to interfere with trade, but wished only 
to enforce the spirit of the law. Thereafter, he said, the 
deputies would be instructed not to piosecute dealers for 
first offenses.: 
This is concession No. 2 to the market interests this 
week, and I must confess that I am a trifle puzzled about 
indorsing the wisdom of my friends of the Fish Commis- 
sion in these matters. It is much a case of loophole 
again, and if you give a dealer an inch he will take a 
mile. It seems to tne that if one dealer is allowed to use 
a net, tarred or untarred, whose meshes measure i^in. 
instead of 2in., he is breaking the law, and so may all 
others break the law in the same way. If a dealer may 
be allowed to have short-sized fish in possession one 
time, it is the same as allowing him to have them in pos- 
session all the time. While no man of saitity would 
claim that the fish laws of Illinois are made for the 
sportsmen alone, it is no less true that the sportsmen 
of this State could say a word or two about the conces- 
sions \yanted by South Water street. We members of 
the Illinois State Association have met in conference 
with the game dealers of South Water street, just as the 
members of the Fish Commission have met the fish 
dealers. We found, as the Fish Commission has found, 
that these market-men were entirely willing to let the 
law alone so long as it was administered to suit them- 
selves. Barring concessions of this sort, they threatened 
all sorts of things at Springfield. Maybe I am wrong 
about this, but it seems to me that if we have a law in- 
tended for the protection of fish, that law ought to be 
enforced. If a deputy warden's hands are tied by some 
restriction or construction of the law, he will certainly 
grow less diligent in making his arrests, and hence the 
whole executive machinery of the law comes to a stand- 
still. I modestly venture the prediction that the Illinois 
State Fish Commission will regret its treaty with the 
dealers. I venture also to say that we shall now hear no 
more about the recent numerous arrests and fines for 
illegal fish selling. E. Hougpt. 
The Flofida Congress, 
The Florida Fishery Congress convened on Wed- 
nesday of this week. A full report of the proceedings 
will be given in our columns. 
The following persons have announced their intention 
of presenting papers to the congress. Others who haA^e 
papers in preparation are asked to send the titles to Dr. 
H. M. Smith, U. S. Fish Commission, Washington, 
D. C: 
Dr. Herman C. Bumpus, Brown University, Provi- 
dence, R. I., "The Importance of Extended Scientific In- 
vestigation." 
Mr. A. N. Cheney, Glens Falls, N. Y., "The Hudson 
as a Salmon Stream." 
Mr. John N. Cobb, Washington, D. C, "The Unde- 
veloped Fishery Resources of Florida." 
Prof. B. W. Evermann, Washington, D. C., "The Fish 
Fauna of Florida." 
Dr. James A. Henshall, Bozeman, Mont., "The Fish- 
eries of Florida." 
Dr. Bushrod W". James, Philadelphia, Pa., "Intei'- 
national Protection for the Denizens of the Seas and 
WaterAvays." 
Mr. Geo. F. Kunz, New York, N. Y., "A Brief His- 
tory of the Finding of Fresh-water Pearls in the United 
States." 
Prof. Edwin Ltntoh, Washington and Jeflferson Col- 
lege, Washington, Pa., "JPat-asitism a nong Fishes Con- 
.'iiderfed from an Economic Standpoint," 
Mr. William E. Mcehan, Philadelphia, Pa„ "The Re- 
lations of the State Fish Commissions to the Commercial 
Fishermen." 
Dr. H. F. Moore, Wa.shington, D. C. "Sonic Factors 
in the Oyster Problem." 
Dr. J. Percy Moore, Uuiversity of Pennsvl vaiiia, Phil- 
adelphia, Pa., "The Utility and Methods of Mackerel 
Propagation." 
Hon. Frcd'k S. Morse, Miami, Fla., "The Florida 
Manatee, its Habits, Uses and Protection." 
Mr, Ralph M. Munroe, Cocoanut Grove, Fla., "The 
Green Turtle and the Possibilities of hs Protection and 
Consequent Increase on the Florida Coast." 
Prof. Jacob Reighard, University of Michigan, Ann 
Arbor. Mich., "The Biology of Our Fresh Waters in its 
Relation to Practical Problems," 
Mr. John G. Ruge, Apalachicola, Fla., "The Oysters 
and Oyster Grounds of Florida," 
Mr, George W. Scobie, Titusville. Fla., "The Pom- 
pano and Other Fishes of the East Florida Coast." 
Dr. Charles P. Sigerfoos, University of Minnesota, 
Minneapolis, Minn., "Notes on the Ship-Worms." 
Dr. Hugh M. Smith, Washington, D. C, "Our Native 
Economic Sponges; their Nature, Protection and Culti- 
vation." 
Mr. Charles H. Stevenson, Washington, D. C, "The 
Present Inland Range of Shad Compared with Former 
Times." 
Mr. Livingston Stone, Cape Vincent, N. Y. 
Lieut. Franklin Swift, U. S. N., "The Oyster Grounds 
of the West Florida Coast: Their Extent, Condition 
and Peculiarities." 
Mr. W. Edgar Taylor, Louisiana Industrial Insti- 
tute, Ruston, La., "The Establishment of a Marine Bio- 
logical Station on the Gulf of Mexico." 
Mr. Charles H. Townsend, Washington, D. C, "The 
World's Seal Fisheries, with Special Reference to the 
American Fur Seal"; illustrated by lantern slides. 
Mr. A. F. Warren, Pensacola, Fla., "The Past, Present 
and Future of the Red Snapper Fishery in the Gulf 
of Mexico." 
Fixtttres. 
BENCH SHOWS. 
Feb. 15. — New England Kennel Club's fourteenth annual show, 
Boston. James L. Little, Sec'y- 
Feb. 21.— Westminster Kennel Club's twenty-second annual show. 
New York. G. de F. Grant, Sec'y. 
March 9. — St. Louis Kennel Club's third annual show, St. Lottis, 
Mo. Wm. Hutchinson, Sec'y. 
March 15. — Northwestern Kennel Club's dog show, St. Paul, 
Minn. E. D. Brown, Sec'y. 
FIELD TRIALS. 
Jan. Zi. — Pacific Coast Field Trial Club's trials, Bakersfield, Cal. 
J. M. Kilgarif, Sec'y. 
Jan. 24. — Chanipion Field Trial Association's Champion Stake, 
Tupelo, Miss. W. B. Stafltord, Sec'y. 
Feb. 7. — Alabama Field Trial Club's second annual trials, Madi- 
son, Ala. H. K. Milner, Sec'y. 
The U. a R T, C/ Trials. 
The trials were run on the club's preserve at West 
Point, Miss., beginning on Jan. xo. Prolonged rains had 
fallen for some time previous, so that the grounds were 
very muddy. However, mote rain fell during the week, 
as is related in its place, and added much to the labor and 
discomfort of the running. It was an unfortunate con- 
dition so far as the comfort of the running was con- 
cerned, but it did not mar the work noticeably. 
There was an excellent attendance of visiting sports- 
men, better than has favored the club in years. The 
president of the club, Mr. Norvin T. Harris, of Lyndon, 
Ky., was present, looking well after his long sojourn in 
Europe and Africa, and full of most pleasing reminis- 
cence of his hunting experiences in those lands, Mr. 
Edward Dexter, or Uncle Ned, as the boys endearingly 
call him, was there, and also there were Messrs. H. E. 
Smith, J. J. Odom, C. F. Eastman and Dr. Geo. Eu- 
bank, of Birmingham; Dr. L. C. Bacon, of St. Paul; 
Messrs. Jas. S. Crane and F. J. Patterson, Dayton, O., 
who became club members: Mr. Edward A. Burdett, 
Philadelphia; Mr. Flagg, of Boston; Mr. Ballard, Louis- 
ville; iVIessrs. John L. Barker. Racine, Wis.; R. B. Mor- 
gan, Gibsoti's Well, Teim.; J. B. Stoddard, Thomasville. 
N. C, and a number of local sportsmen. 
The judges were Capt, Joseph H. Dew, Nashville, 
Tenn.; Mr. W. B. Hamilton, Columbus, Miss., and W. 
W. Titus, of Sparta, Miss. They were most painstak 
ingly careful in establishing the equity of the competi- 
tion, and diligent and patient in conducting it. Their 
decisions were well received, and thcj^ deserved to he 
so. As a whole, the stake was well managed, though 
there was more httrry than was pleasing", as there always 
is when the handlers ride on horseback, a privilege which 
was accorded them after the first day, in consequence 
of the muddy condition of the grounds. 
The club held its annual meeting on Wednesdaj^ even- 
ing. It was exceptionally well attended. The officers 
elected are: President,, Norvin T. Harris; First Vice 
President, Edward Dexter; Second Vice-President, H. 
B, Dm-yea; Secretary-Treasurer, W. B. Stafford; Board 
of Governors: N. T. Flarris, Edward Dexter, F. R. Hu- 
tonk, E. A.'Burdette, H. B. Dtirvea, J. M. Essig, C, 1. 
Shoop, J. N. Scale, W. B. Stafford, H, S. Smith, P. 
Lorillard, Jr., J. A. Mcllhenny, George Crocker, Plobar.t 
Ames, St. Mark M. Alundy. The club decided to holtj'' 
but one field trial next year, the winter trial in Januarj^ at 
West Point, Miss. There will be a pointer and setter 
Derby respectively, one all-age stake for setters and 
pointers, and a members' stake, the prize of which will 
be the Hurstbourne cup. ^ The finances of the club were 
put in good condition, and it was sajd thaj; the profes- 
sional handlers who were members ha4 Fesigr!e4. 
