March i6, 1901. 1 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
211 
that black bass or pike had been planted or made their 
way into the lake, and therefore tlie q.irestion was asked 
of the applicant if the water did not already contain black 
bass and the so-called pickerel. This is a literal copy 
from the reply of the applicant: 
"It appears that you must have misunderstood about 
black bass being in Lake. Therefore. I will state 
that I have no remembrance of black bas.s having been 
caught in it. and am able to show that the lake has been 
faithfully fished for manj' hoiU"s by several persons during 
the last year, for pickerel, with little or no success, and 
t cannot understand why it is not a profitable and safe 
lake to stock with brook trout." 
If this is not an evasive reply, I don't understand what 
ct)nstiti;tes evasion. Tfie applicant has "no remembrance 
of black bass being caught in the lake," but he does not 
say that they are jiot in it, and people have fished for 
pickerel in the lake. Why did they fish for pickerel if 
there were none in it? But he admits that they had little 
or no success. The letter concludes: 
"As it is a natural trout water, my idea is that it is 
not folly to plant brook trout," he having been told that 
it would be folly to plant brook trout to feed black bass 
and pickerel. A. N. Cheney. 
The Tuna in Newfoundland. 
St. Johns, Newfoundland, Feb. 28. — Editor Forest and 
Stream: In looking over the current number of Mun- 
sey's Magazine I was greatly interested by an article on 
the tuna fishing at Santa Calalina Island, California. 
What magnificent sport it must be to hook or play such 
enormous fis|i as those described, with rod and gear of 
ordinary character. May I ask is the spojrt confined to 
this locality, or to the Pacific coast only, as I have never 
heard of it on our side? If such be the case I do not see 
why it should be so, as the fish, so well known to our fish- 
erraen as the horse mackerel, is •gurte abundant on our 
island shores in summer time. 
I have seen these agile marine acrobats disporting in 
our bays and inlets scores of times, and have frequently 
attempted to shoot them, but their movements were too 
quick for me. It never occurred to me, nor to any here 
I know of, that they would afford such noble sport with 
rod and hook as that described in the article referred to. 
Only last summer I was surrounded with these sportive 
gentry while crossing the beautiful Humber Sound, Bay 
of Islands, and for days together they could be both seen 
and heand. dashing the water up like a miniature sub- 
marine explosion. During this time the weather was 
simply superb, and the surface of the water like a mirror, 
especially in the early morning. 
I have witnessed a similar scene many times before in 
ilmost every one of our inland waters. On one occasion 
in Placentia Bay, a shoal of these fish, numbering thou- 
sands, was seen to advance toward our schooner, in a 
line of a mile or more in length. Their advance could 
be distinctly discerned for a long distance by the dis- 
turbed line of water, but more particularly by the con- 
tinuous and extraordinary acrobatic feats, in the air, of 
the leaders of the van. 
If hen these active deni?:ens of the deep afford such 
unparalleled sport, here is the ideal locality for indulging 
in it to the fullest extent, and I would wish to draw your 
sportsmen's attention to the fact. I will be happy to 
furnish any further information in my possession if re- 
quired. 
In connection with this matter it is rather curious to 
find that the two places particularly alluded to in the 
Munsey's article, vi?:., Avalon and St. Catalina, should 
both be extant in Newfoundland, and dating back too, 
especially the latter name, to 1500. Catalina or St. 
Catherine's was supposed to be given to a harbor in Trinity 
Bay, by Cortereal. Avalon was the name of Lord Balti- 
more's' colony here, and the name now applies to the 
whole peninsula, or easternmost projection of Newfound- 
land. James P. Howley. 
A Day with the Pickerel. 
Boston, March 7.— Editor Forest and Stream: White- 
hall Pond is quite an extensive body of water in the 
pleasant little village of Woodville, in the town of Hop- 
kinton, some thirty miles from this city. It is one of the 
storage basins of Boston's water supply, and many years 
ago, when Col. Horace T. Rockwell, ex-president of the 
Alassachusetts Fish and Game Association, and myself 
composed two-thirds of the Boston Water Board, we had 
considerable dealings with the entire water supply of 
that vicinity. The pond is liberally supplied with the 
usual varieties of fish common to such waters. Wood- 
ville boasts a first-class hotel, owned and managed by 
Mr. Leroy S. Coolidge, where the comforts of this life 
abound and where sportsmen are made to feel entirely 
at their ease. 
Our day with the pickerel came about this way. Mr. 
CooHdge is a member of the House of Representatives 
this year from his town, and Col. Rockwell meeting him 
one day, referred to the fishing in Whitehall. He was 
iaformed that it was still good and that if he would make 
up a party, Coolidge would do his part to secure them a 
pleasant outing. And he kept his word. Tuesday, 5th 
inst., five enthusiastic fishermen — Col. Rockwell. William 
S. Hinman, S. R. Raymond, F. N. Ganong and the writer 
— after a pleasant ride by rail to Ashland, electrics to 
Hopkinton and carriage to Woodville, arrived at the 
Reservoir House at 6 o'clock. Supper over, the evening 
was passed as is usually the case when a few good fel- 
lows get together, and it didn't seem a 'great while be- 
fore breakfast was ready. Shortly after 8 o'clock we were 
on the pond, where upward of sixty holes had been cut 
and most of the lines were in when we got there. 
It had rained and snowed a little the night before, and 
the walking was a little soft, but we had all seen the con- 
ditions so much worse that we didn't mind it at all. For 
a couple of hours there was lively work — the flags were 
going up in all directions. Col. Rockwell and Billy Hin- 
man might be termed heavy weights, and, of course, 
couldn't sprint with some of the others, therefore they 
took things leisurely, giving the fish plenty of time to 
get a goo4 hoH of the b«tit before they took the line to 
feel thenl out. They generally got their fish, however, as 
the others did theirs. The frsh generally run small, 
though we got several of good size. As usual, the biggest 
fish got away. In this instance Mr. Raymond was 
handling the hue, pulling a big fish into the hole, where 
several of the party could see him, when he gave a .sudden 
flop and away he Avent under the ice. At noon we counted 
thirty-seven fish and stopped. Then to the hotel for 
dinner, then a couple of liours go-as-you-please, then to 
the city, all agreeing that though brief it was an occasion 
full of genuine enjoyment, and that under favorable con- 
ditions fishing is the best of sport; it is "not all of fishing 
to fish." Wm. B. Smart. 
Cold Storage Trout Culture. 
VI ChsgAgo,- March y.^EdMof Forest and Stream: I 
have read with a great deal of interest and still greater 
surprise an article which appears in the Inter-Ocean of 
this date, which is signed by George E. Oster. Here it is: 
In 1S73 I ^vas residing at Junction City, a pretty little city 
located in a romantic spot on the banks of Mill Creek, in central 
Wisconsin. I remember the date because it was rny twenty-first 
birthday. I had wjndered along the banks of the stream for a 
distance of perhaps two miles, when I ran on to an old hunter 
who had cut a hole in the ice, through which he was fishing for i 
trout. He was meeting with great success, for scattered all around 
him could be seen the speckled beauties, where he had thrown them 
as he took them off his hook. T was invited to help myself, which 
invitation T cheerfully accepted, and I proceeded to put a num- 
lier of the fish in my game bag. • 
It was just 4:47 o'clock when T returned home that afternoon, 
tired and hungry, and after hanging up my rifle took one of the 
largest of the trout and placed it out in a large cold-storage ware- 
house that stood near my house, intending to present it to Uncle 
Sam Carson for his breakfast the next morning. The fish was 
forgotten, and as a result lay in that warehouse solidly frozen 
until Tune 10, 1884. 
On the night of the date last mentioned, just about eleven years 
after this fish had been placed in the cold storage, the building 
was totally destroyed by fire. During the process of the fire the 
fire department, in the effort to save the property, had thrown 
sufficient water to fill up the cellar, which, by the way, was walled 
up in rock and cement, and was, therefore, water-tight. Three 
years later it was decided to robuild the cold-storage warehouse 
upon the site Originally occupied, and men were set to work pump- 
ing the water out of" the cellar, which the rains had kept well 
fileld. To our amazement 447 fair-sized speckled trout were taker 
out, besides the old one, which had evidently fallen into the cellar 
at the time the warehouse was destroyed, thawed out and 
spawned. The original trout was easily identified, one of its eyes 
having been accidentally knocked out and a part of its tail broken 
ofl^ before it was placed in the warehouse. 
Any one doubting the truthfulness of this story can easily 
satisfy himself by writing to Frank Blood or Arthur Sturtevant, 
of Stevens Poin^ Wis., or to Eugene Sheppard, of Rhinelander, 
Wig. George E. Oster. 
The article states as a cold fact, attested by three living 
witnesses, that in February, 1873, he obtained a brook 
trout, which was frozen solid. He further says that he 
deposited the trout in a cold storage warehouse, where it 
remained solidly congealed for a period of eleven years, 
when the building was destroyed b/ fire. Deponent fur- 
ther testifies that three years later the cemented cellar of 
the former warehouse was found to be a veritable trout 
• pond, from which were taken 447 "fair-sized" trout, as 
well as the prolific mother of them all. 
Of course there cannot be the slightest doubt of the 
literal truth of this extraordinary sequence of circum- 
stances; and the contemplation of the facts simply ex- 
cites in the minds of all laymen the most utter conteinpt 
for the addle-headed stupidity of modern pisciculturists 
and their alleged scientific methods. What a solemn lot of 
humlDUgs they must all be, with their array of hatching 
troughs, screens, running waters, artificial food, etc.. to 
say nothing of their ignorance of parthenogenesis in 
trout. 
A has the scientific pisciculturist — let his name be 
anathema 1 Let the name of Seth Green be painted over 
with blue mud and the United States Fish Commission be 
forever abolish ed. Zero. 
Fish in Wisconsin Waters. 
La Crosse, Wis., Feb. iS.— Editor Forest and Stream: 
Our beautiful country, one of the finest in the world and 
keeping apace with if not outstripping many others 
in its diversified and varied industries, finds problems 
to meet and solve made so through the mistakes of others. 
New species of fish which at the time were thought to 
be valuable additions to our commonwealth hav^e proved 
to be the greatest source of nuisance which cotild be em- 
ployed for the destruction of fish a hundred times their 
superior, which nature so plentifully provided homes for 
in otir fine water courses. 
The German carp is an evil worker in our finest streams, 
where the bass, pike, perch and many other kinds of fish 
have made such lucrative and pleasant enjoyment for the 
angler. They were introduced some twenty years ago. 
Advance representations were made of the wonderful 
properties and wholesome use of this fish. Wiscoiisin 
being for improvement, wa? able to secure fry at this time 
which came from Washington, D. C. They were planted 
in some of our finest streams and ponds — ^tributaries of 
the Mississippi River. Their woeful destruction of other 
fish is now becoming apparent, and it is said that their 
propensities for destroying the spawn of other fish are 
alarming, while they are found to be of no use. either as 
an edible fish or a sporting one, so they are left alone to 
nniltiply and are fast becoming the preponderating fish in 
the streams. What will be the outcome? We have no 
prophets to foretell. In recent years they can be seen be- 
low the hiany Governnient dams (for preserving the 
channel for steamboats) in innumeralale numbers, rolling 
and tumbling over each other, yet they are seldom caught 
with a hook, as they are ilot a fish that bite, but are more 
the nature of the sucker. They are more destructive to 
spawn, being much larger and stronger. Tkey have very 
coarse flesh. 
In tlie spring of 1899, following a severe cold winter, 
which gave great thickness to" the ice, a part of the water 
of the Neshonoc Pond, on the La Crosse River, went 
out, and this left the ice resting on the muddy bottom. 
It remained so for some time, until finally thawed out by 
the spring rains and warm weather. The fish which 
were caught under the ice and smothered were 90 per cent, 
carp, as other active fish had been in the channel and had 
escaped. The wind drifted these dead fish to the shore 
as they rose and came to the surface, and one could travel 
for a mile or more and find the shore strewn with them 
by the wagon load. And yet the strearps show no per- 
ceptible falUnf of Qf these fish, 
Our State made a great mistake in allowing their dis- 
tribution in its waters. But now we have ^ot them, and 
no one has a remedy for their disposal, while great fears 
are entertained that their final destruction of other fish 
will be the sequel. 
We have many kinds of fish which are yet found in our 
streams to entice the angler out for a holiday when con- 
ditions are favorable. The speckled or brook trout may 
be said to head the list in choice. These can yet be 
found in the smaller streams in our county that are kept 
stocked, but not in the quantities they were nearly fifty 
years ago, when we first began to take them, with any 
kind of an alder pole, wrapping-twine fish line, and salt 
pork for bait, using this in the early season before grass- 
hoppers hatched out. Grubs and angleworms' were not 
fottnd in these early days, and fly-fishing was unknown. 
The streams were quite alive with trout, and on favor- 
able days one could secure a string of two dozen in an 
hour's time which would satisfy any family of the pioneers 
which was not very small (ours was eight). 
The bass may be said to be the best sporting fish in our 
streams, and when it is on the table is truly a treat to the 
most delicate appetite. Last year there was little success 
in fishing, owing to the continued high water, which kept 
up all summer, though a few were caught above Winona, 
where the water cleared up to some extent. Those not 
previously caught are left for this year, and we hope to be 
favored with better conditions when La Crosse will be one 
of the best points on the river. 
Wall-eyed pike and other varieties are also found in 
our waters, and when one gets a 4 to lo pounder, as is 
often done, he has something worthy of notice, not only 
while landing him, but till the last bone is picked. The 
meat is delicious. There are also the croppies, sunfish 
of similar size, pickerel, catfish, and which are taken in 
considerable quantities. The angler can pick his favorite 
to fish for. I intended to say something about native game 
Lefore I closed^ but can touch on the subject in a later 
issue. O . S. SissoN. 
Destrtjction of Spectacle Pond Fish* 
Providence, R. I., March Editor Forest and Stream: 
Where are the Commissioners of Inland Fisheries of 
Rhode Island? Fish are being scooped out of holes cut 
in the ice on Spectacle Pond in the town of Cranston by 
the barrels full. An ale and lager beer brewery is said 
to be the cause of all the trouble. It seems that a certain 
brewing company was restrained from dumping refuse 
into Tonque Pond some time ago on account of the pollu- 
tion which it occasioned, and so got permission to run 
their refuse over a farm. This refuse consists mostly of 
ammonia, which has been used in the manufacture of 
ice, and when the grotmd is not frozen is absorbed by 
it : but since the ground has frozen up so hard it runs 
over the top of the ground and into the pond, and the 
pond being covered by ait exceptionally heavy crop of 
ice, the fish are either dying or dead. This pond was 
stocked with small-mouth black bass in 1897 or 1898, and 
some had been taken from there last summer of 3 pounds 
weight. Something should be done to stop such wanton 
murdering of game fish put there by the Commissioners 
of Inland Fisheries. Mr. Henry T. Root, one of the 
Commissioners, told me last summer that Mashapang 
Pond was stocked at the same time. 
The close season on bass commenced March i, but I saw 
two which came from Kingston, which were caught 
through the ice Sunday, Mar^h 3 and which weighed 9V2 
pounds. There does not seem to be much protection for 
bass in this State; nobody seems to care whether they 
are caught all the year round or not. 
There "are two ponds in this State where there is no 
close season on bass ; these are Moswansicut, in the town 
of Scituate, and Sneach's Pond, in the towm of Cumber- 
land. The trout law is lived up to very well ; one seldom 
sees one out of season, and generally that is caught by 
accident. The trotit season opens April i and closes 
July 15. Seldom. 
Maine Lakes Becomingf Adifondacfcized. 
Boston, March 11. — The matter most discussed at 
Bemis and the Rangeley lakes at present is what is known 
as the Decker purchase. This is a strip of shore land 
on the earterly side of Mooselucmaguntic Lake of about 
three miles in length. It is situated south of Haines 
Landing, and is backed by a high mountain. The lots 
are for sale, and that fact makes them more desirable for 
sportsmen, or rather summer cottagers, since no other 
land can be purchased on that lake, or the Upper or Lower 
Richardson, for that matter. The heirs of E. S. Coe own 
all the rest of the land on the shores of these lakes, and 
under the policy of Mr. Coe, when alive, they still decline 
to sell an inch of land. The camps on Richardson and 
Mooselticmaguntic lakes are all on leased land at a yearh- 
rental of $50 for five acres. That the Decker land can be 
owned will doubtless make it attractive to summer resi- 
dents, though the seclusion that the sportsman so much 
loves will all be gone when camps are constructed on 
lots of only 100 feet lake frontage and 30 feet back. It is 
reported that Capt. Fred C. Barker has secured ten lots 
and will build camps on them similar to those at the 
Birches. He will also put in a wharf before the ice goes 
out this spring. John E. Stephens, of Rumford Falls, has 
bought three lots and will build a cottage this season. 
Clement R. Hooper, of Philadelphia, has bought two 
lots, and R. E. Taylor, station agent at Bemis, and A. S. 
Hinds, of Portland, one lot each. Alas ! for the seclusion 
of Bald Mountain camps and Allerton Lodge ! They are 
in danger of becoming .the center of a row of summer 
cottages. ^ Special. 
Editof Harmswofth Plays with Big- Game* 
Mr. Alfred Harmsworth, the noted editor of the Lon- 
don Globe and other English newspapers, who is fishing 
at Boca Grande, is having much sport, taking big and 
little fish. One day this week a monster porpoise was 
harpooned, one end of the three-quarter-inch rope at- 
tached to the harpoon being fastened on the steamer Belle 
of Myers. For three hours tjie steamer was hauled 
around by the porpoise, when it was completely tired 
down and towed to the shore, where it took six hpurs to 
get the fish up on the beach. The porpoise weighed fully 
TjOoo pounds, — Fort Myers Press, 
