Afril 14, 1900.J 
FORl;3T AND STREAM 
289 
Laconia; Samual Hodgson, Meredith; C. E. Dickerman. 
New Hampton; John B. Jewett, North Sanbornton; 
Secretary, Stephen S. Jewett, Laconia; Treasurer, Arthur 
W. Dinsmore, Laconia. The annual banquet of the 
League is to be held in Masonic Temple, Laconia, 
April 19. 
A Wareham, Mass,, report of Saturday says that trains 
from Boston that day were particularly noticeable for 
having so many fishing parties aboard, bound for the 
fishing preserves in that town and the Cape towns below. 
Sunday, the first day of the open season, was a good one, 
one Boston fisherman taking a string of twenty good 
trout. Members of the Tihonet Club and the Monument 
Club went down from Boston in good numbers Satur- 
day last, and if the sticklers for the enforcement of tht* 
Sunday law want to interfere, they should have their 
officers on these club grounds every Saturday night, to 
remain over Sunday. They might enlist the local fisher- 
men in the direction of enforcing the Sunday law, since 
already these local fishermen complain that all the best 
trout waters have been bought up, and are closed against 
all fishing, except by owners and invited guests. Still, 
some of these fishermen do not go without sport and 
fish, evidently. They are on or near the grounds the year 
round, and frequently appear with good strings of trout. 
As to where they were caught they are either silent or 
give the not over lucid answer of "Over j'-onder." 
One may read considerable nonsense in the Maine 
papers about "ice rotting," etc., and that the lakes will be 
clear earlier on that account. But really it is natural 
for ice to melt, and if it is "rotting," it is a new freak 
in natttral arrangements. Since ice melting is influenced 
altogether by temperature, it is reasonable to suppose that 
the Maine trout waters will hardlj^ be clear till the 
weather is warmer for a number of days than it has been 
tlius far. Special. 
Fish at the Boston Show. 
Editor Forest and Stream: 
Can it be possible that Mr. A. N. Cheney, in publish- 
ing liis article in the la.st number of Forest and Stream 
under heading of "Fish at the Sportsmen's Show," in 
tended that the public should understand that the fish at 
tlie Boston show were not in as gooG condition as those 
which he exhibited in the New York exhibition? It 
certainly would seem so, for if he did not agree with his 
friend, the Old Salmon Fisherman, why should he have 
published the article? 
My reason for taking the matter up is that I do not 
think it just to the management of the Boston show, who, 
at an expense of several thousand dollars, produced for 
the edification and instruction of tlie public one of the 
.most complete and improved modern aquaria ever con- 
structed, practically demonstrating -that large as well as 
-sinali fish can be transported and exhibited for almost any 
length of time in reasonably small tanks, if proper para- 
phernalia and care are used, and that the fish can be kept 
in perfectly health}^ condition and without the appearance 
' of fungus. 
It is very surprising to me that Mr. Cheney should allow 
anything to appear over his signature that would seem to 
compare unfavorably such an exhibition a.s the one in 
Boston with the one which he managed in the New York 
show, where it was evident thai very little money had 
been expended or trouble taken beyond the securing of 
a few small tanks and the transferring in cans of a few 
fish. I might here say that all of the fish at Boston 
were transported in one of the U. S. Government Fish 
Commission cars, which was kindly loaned by the Gov- 
ernment for the purpose, and which greatly simplified the 
iiiDving of fish to Boston without injury, but greatly in- 
ci cased the expense of the undertaking. 
In order that the public may make a fair comparison of 
the two exhibitions, I will give a list of the fish exhibited 
here, and invite Mr. Cheney to publish in the Forest .a.ni( 
Strea.m a list of the fish exhibited in New York. The 
Boston list is as follows: 200 brook trout (yearlings), 200 
rainbow trout (yearlings), 200 Scotch sea trout (year- 
lings). 200 stcelhead trout (yearlings). 200 Atlantic sal- 
mon (yearlings), 200 landlocked salmon (two years old), 
50 albino landlocked salmon (two years old), 25 Dublin 
Pond trout (14, to J/4 potmd each), 25 brook trout from 
Diamond Pond to 3^ pound each), 10 rainbow trout 
(larg'e), 12 Loch Leven trout (large). 8 aureolus or 
Stmapee trout (large), 12 lake trout (large), 5 landlocked 
salmon (large). T2 large-mouthed black bass, 12 pickerel, 
4 cusk, TO goldfish, 10 golden tench, 10 green tench. 
Mr. Cheney visited the Boston exhibition and very 
carefttlly examined the aquaria and the fish exhibited 
therein., and in the March 10 is.sue of your paper said: 
"It is the best exhibit I have seen anywhere at any time — 
not a permanent exhibition — and so far as the exhibition 
in Boston goes, it cannot, in my opinion, be excelled by 
any permanent exhibition in this broad land." 
Now, I would like to ask Mr. Cheney if he saw fungus 
on 'dny of the fish in the aquarium here, or if he saw any 
fish that did not look to be in healthy, condition? We 
had here exhibited fish of the salmon and trotit families 
weighing all the way up to t8 pounds each, and it can he 
proven by many experts, including the Fish Commis- 
sioners of Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont, that not 
a sign of fungus appeared on them from the opening to 
the closing of the show, and that not one fish was re- 
moved from the aquaria for any cause whatever. Can Mr. 
Cheney make this statement in regard to the New York 
exhibition? Richard O. Harding. 
New York Ttout Opening'* 
Editor Forest atid Stream: 
Why do the daily newspapers use up space on subjects 
of Avhich they know nothing? I beg to call your atten- 
tion to the inclosed clipping of yesterday's New York 
Herald, regarding the opening of the trout season. 
First — Where did the person who wrote this article 
get the information that "the New Jersey season has been 
open .since March i" ? 
Second — That "in Orange and Rockland counties it was 
difficult to get trout to rise," etc. 
Third — That "sonic trout were caught north -of Tarrv- 
town Heights." and lastly, that "the trout season legally 
began in the entire State [New York] on April I." 
Surely not from Game Laws in Brief. 
I fished in Mianus River, near Greenwich, Conn,,..y*Sr- 
terday: caught ten trout which averaged nearly a quartw 
of a pound leach. This for average size is better than I 
have ever done in the Adirondacks. F. S. D. 
New York, April 1. 
For a Study of Monstrosities. 
Editor Forest and Stream: 
' Dr. C. G. Seligman, St. Thomas' Host)ital, London, is 
engaged in experimental study of monstrosity produc- 
tion in fishes, and it is his intention to publish the result 
of his inquiries, hoping it may throw light on some_vexe<l 
questions — heredity, degeneration, and generally of ante- 
natal pathology. As I mentioned in a note in this paper 
a year or more ago, Dr. Seligman has undertaken this 
work purely from a scientific point of view, and has no 
financial interest in any fish hatchery. I inclose some 
queries which I would like to submit to the fish breeders 
of the United States and Canada, and if any one can 
answer any of them and will forward the answers to me. 
I will pass'them on to Dr. Seligman, who will give proper 
credit to all who may throw any light on the subject. T 
have sent copies of these questions to the United States 
Fish Comnn'ssion, but desire to reach all the fish breeders 
in the country and therefore ask for space in Forest and 
Stke.\m as the be.st means of doing so, and will ask that 
in making replies to all or any of the queries the num- 
bers here .given be used. A. N. Cheney. 
GLE.N.S Falls, N. Y. 
Quesiioai. 
1, Whiit salmonidie have you bred? 
2. TTave .vou seen double — i. e., two-headed, two-tailed, etc. — 
morislers halfli out of the eggs? Mention .species in which you 
have observed these. 
a. Have you .seen any two-tailed fish in which there was not 
doubling of the head end of the body? 
4. Have you ever seen any monster (double or single) alevins 
of the grayling? 
5. Have you ever seen any triple or quadruple monsters? 
6. Itave you ever counted the number of monsters hatched from 
a given Ijatch of eggs, taken from one or more fisbes — the number 
of eggs in the batch having been counted or estimated? 
7. Have you any facts tending to show or do you think that 
any one species or variety — e. g., S. lenencnsis is a variety of 6". 
fario — produces more monstrosities than another? If so, was any 
one form of monster especially common? 
8. In any of the cases you have observed of monstrosity pro- 
duction, have you considered that you could account for the 
formation of monsters? If so, how? 
9. Do you consider e-N.ternal conditions — e. g., heat, cold, naove- 
ment, etc. — responsible for the production of mon,sters? If so, are 
there in your opinion critical or special periods during which time 
tlieir action on tb^ ova produces monstrosity? (live any cases you 
may have observed, ^ i <4'-i#JI 
10. Have you bred any hybrid saltnonidw. Jf so, what crosses 
have you obtained? In these was there (a) a krge proportion 
of barren eggs; (b) a large proportion of monsters? 
11. In hybridizing, did you find that the milt had always to be 
from one of the species, the ova from the other? Thus it is com- 
monly stated that zebros, the hybrid between Salmo fario and 
Salm'o (Sulveliiiiis') fontinalis, are only produced from the milt ot 
foniinalis and the ova of fario, or that the milt of either could in- 
differently fertili2^ the otlier, 
12. Have any of your hybrids deposited fertile eggs in the ponds 
they are confined in? 
13. Have you been able to spawn any of your hybrids? 
14. If you spawned or milted any hybrids, were you equally 
successfiVl witli cock and hen fish. 
15. If you spawned any hybrids, with what mill did you fertilize 
their eggs? 
16. Did these eggs produce" (1) healthy alevins, (2) a large pro- 
portion of barren eggs, (3) a large proportion of monsters? 
17. Which parent did your hybrids most resemble in (1) color, 
marking, shape, etc.; (2) capacity for growth; (3) habits generally? 
18. If you obtained fertile eggs from hybrids, did the fish so 
produced breed true to the hybrid type or tend to revert to that 
of either? If the latter, how? 
19. Can you correlate the number of (1) barren eggs, (2) monsters, 
with the age of the strain of your stock fish — i. e., with the 
amount of inbreeding in your stock fish? 
20. Do you habitually fertilize by the wet or dry method? The 
metliod employed and any departure from usual method should 
be noted in answering above qiiefctions. 
AnticipAtion* 
Now the balmy wind is blowing, 
And the daffodils are showing, 
Every fisherman looks forward with delight-^ 
For the honey bees are humming 
That the warmer days are coming. 
And the gamy bass will soon begin to bite. 
In the blush of dawning tender. 
In the coruscating splendor 
Of the myriad liquid opals on the grass, 
There is thrilling isaspiration. 
As in glad anticipation 
The angler goes a-fishing for the bass. 
As the noontide rays are beaming, 
Shi-She-Bogo-Mah is gleaming 
Like the heaving, jeweled bosom of a queen; 
When from out the water flashing 
I-eaps a cavalier ?p dashing, 
And the lordly bass appears upon the scene. 
When the sun is fast declining. 
All his golden glories shining 
From the portals of his palace in the weet; 
.\nd the daylight slowly dying, 
Brings the swallows homeward flying. 
Cast the fly: the ktingry bass will do the rest. 
As above the lilies fragrant 
Darts a swift, erratic vagrant, 
'Tis the night hawk, with his sharp incessant cry. 
Like a swerving arrow glancing 
Thro' the clouds of midges dancing. 
Then the eager bass is watching for your fly. 
When the breeze t'ne pool is wrinkling. 
While the bobolink is tinkling, 
.•*ls he warbles in the meadow, half asleep ; 
When j'ou hear the robin calling. 
As the shades of night are falling. 
Then the bass will take the fly upon the leap. 
Earthly honors, wealth and glory. 
Crystallized in song or story. 
Are but triumphs which the angler can surpass ; 
When the happy man is luring. 
Hooking, ■[xlaying and securiiog, 
Wilh, scientific skill, a gatxly bass. Zmo. 
he Mmnet 
Fiztufcs. 
FIELD TRIALS. 
Nov. 13.— Chatham, Ont.— Tweltth annual field trials o£ the Is- 
ternational Field Trials Club. W. B. Wells, Hon. isec'y- 
JNov. IK.— Newton, N. C— Eastern Field Trial Club's tweaty 
second annual field trials. S. C. Bradley, Sec'y, Greentield Hiil. 
Gonn. 
Foxes and Hounds. 
DUiVBARTON, N. H., April 3. — Editor Forest and 
Stream: The past season m tins section has been an 
unusually poor one for fox hunting. Foxes wefe very 
scarce. For some cause they apparently did not breed, to 
any extent last spring. 1 have heard of hardly a young 
one being killed, the majority being old dog foxes ot large 
size. Again, the running has been very bad. Nearly ail 
the time there was just enough crust to ho],d tip a fox. 
While our dogs would follow under .such conditions for 
some time, it was very hard on them, cutting their feet 
and legs badly. Occasionally there would be a day when 
there was good tracking and pretty good running for the 
dogs, but almost invariably on such days the wind would 
blow a gale. 
One of my neighbors shot twelve foxes diiring .the 
winter, which is much the best score of any fox hunter in 
this locality. I have been hunting foxes about here for 
something over twenty-five years, and my experience has 
been that with a medium-sized, moderate-running dog 
which gave tongue fast and regularly, the average fox 
would stick to a comparatively small range, but as the 
years pass and the number of hunters and dogs increases, 
our foxes have been growing wilder each season. During 
the past winter nearly every one would either run straight 
out of hearing, or if circlitig at all it would be over a 
large tract of country, very seldom crossing the same place 
twice during the day, and alst^ keeping a long distance 
ahead of tlie dog, and it did not seem to make much 
difference wiielher the latter was slow or fast. 
i see by a recent issue of Fokkst anu Stre.vm that 
some Massachusetts fox hunters have been up to Aroos- 
took county, Maine. Some years since 1 went for 
several seasons in succession late in November to that 
region lying north of Patten, Maine. I was after 
caribou, aud at times went some sixty miles north of 
Patten. Judging from the tracks, foxes were very plenty 
in that region. From what I heard from men living along 
the road from Patten lo Ox Bow, there were no fox 
hounds at that time owned there. The native hunters 
said they did not want any hounds around, as they would 
chase deer and caribou, i did not hear of many foxes 
being killed in that region, although it was said a few 
were poisoned. I have killed in all some three hundred 
foxes, and with one exception all were killed in this 
neighborhood. The exception was one I killed in Town- 
ship No. 7, some twenty miles north of Patten. I shot 
him with a .45-90 rifle, the bullet cutting off a foreleg near 
the body. This fox w'as the finest red one I ever killed, 
and had a brush fully twice as large as an ordinary fox. 
As for the fox hounds said to be owmed in some parts 
of Aroostook county, we in this section have always pre- 
ferred dogs of similar build. I have one now — a small 
mottled hound with some patches of black and tan, stand- 
ing 18 inches at the shoulders and compactly built. He 
has l>een as good a fox dog as I ever owned. He is eleven 
years old, and t did not expect he would be of much use 
the past winter, but he holds out in a remarkable man- 
ner. One morning early in March (our hunting generally 
ends by the middle of March) I took him out to the 
woods just back of my house, hardly expecting to start a 
fox, as there was quite a crust — enough to hold up the dog 
most of the time. The old dog started one about 10 
A. M.. and ran him well until 4 P. M. That night there 
came about an inch of snow, and I went out the follow- 
ing morning. The dog was pratty stiff and foot.sore, and 
followed along in my snowshoe tracks until I found a 
fairly fresh fox track. The dog started of? as eager as 
ever, jumped the fox and followed him until after noon. 
He was badly used up when he came home, and it took 
him a couple of days to get over it. 
I know there have been some of what I call first-rate 
fox dogs owned in this vicinity. They were dogs which 
would work up an old trail, start the fox and follow 
him all day unless he holed. They were dogs with good 
clear voices, giving tongue fast and regularly after the 
fox was started. They would stick to a fox and follow 
him out either in roads, on stone walls or almost any 
place an old fox would take to when trying to throw the 
dog off, and they knew enough to come home after the 
run was ended. Some would pay no attention to other 
hounds they might hear. This depended usually on how 
they had been brought up. If trained to run alone they 
usually did so. 
If the Maine dogs will do what is claimed, they certainly 
are ahead in some points of any w^e have had. 1 never 
knew of a good running fox hound which could be called 
off a fresh fox trail unless he was completely tired out, 
and I never knew of a number of dogs being taken out 
together and being under such control that only the dog 
which was told to would go of? on a good track. If they 
were all being led and but one let loose, it might work. 
We find it pretty hard to get one of our fox hounds off 
a fresh track, even when we can get on the trail ahead 
of him. 
Hunting foxes in our New England style entails con- 
siderable hard work — long tramps, a good deal of stand- 
ing around in cold weather and shots usually few and far 
between. Nevertheless, there are a good many rnen 
who thoroughly enjoy it. and the number seems to be 
increasing. To some the love of the nitlsic of a hound is 
hereditarv. Others acquire it. No matter how it comes, 
it is usually incurable. I have killed all kinds of game to 
be found in the regions where T hunted, from a snipe to a 
moose, and huntitig our foxes is still as attractive as 
ever. In this region we get a pretty good dose of win- 
ter, with snow usually for four and sometimes five 
months in the year, yet I always regret in a certain sense 
to see it gr> olT in the spring, and this year perhaps more 
than ever, I cannot hop* that tny old do^j will be abls to 
