3B0 
FOREST AND STREAM 
[May 4, 1901.. 
j'-oung stock in the pond ; it had been eaten as soon as 
born. The reason that tlie farmer's trout brook now 
contains no trout is because the farmer and others has had 
the same mistaken idea about trout that the author of the 
letter gives expression to. He thought he could catch all 
the baby trout as thej'- came to be of fingerling size and 
the stock would be kept up in some mj^sterious manner by 
a merciful providence. 
"Kill the big trout and let the little ones grow to six 
inches by statute law (not five) and the brook will be 
replenished. The trout will spawn at least once before 
they can be captured legally, and with each recurring sea- 
son there will be a stock of young fish to grow to breeding 
age and size before they can be lawfully caught. 
"There never was a more mischievous, misleading letter 
written upon the subject of fishculture than the one we 
refer to. The author thinks fish commissions useless, yet 
fish commissions hatch from 95 to 98 per cent, of the eggs 
they take- from trout and nature hatches less than one per 
cent. Cut off the supply of young, vigorous breeders and 
the fish commissions could not hatch fry fast enough to 
feed trout over one-half or one pound in weight protected 
from capture by law. * * * 
"If all male trout could have rings in their noses and 
be led with leading sticks and the female trout hatched in 
box stalls, and the fry herded in pastures by watchful 
men, then Dr, Prime's plan might work ; but until trout 
are taught to eat hay and oats and stay on a farm with- 
out jumping fences and escaping, we will have to continue 
to breed fish in water ; strengthen our excellent fish com- 
missions, protect young, healthy, breeding fish ; kill the 
old cannibals and fine or send to jail the netter and finger- 
ling hunter for non-compliance with just and reasonable 
laws. 
"There is not a stream, other conditions, such as food, 
temperature and due observance of law, being favorable, 
where the six-inch law is enforced but the trout are in- 
creasing. The farmer does not eat his chickens the mo- 
ment they break the shells, nor his calves before they are 
six weeks old, and a thoroughbred fisherman does not 
kill baby trout under six inches and feel that he is enjoy- 
ing manly sport. * * * We can charge the letter only 
to lamentable ignorance of the life and habits of our 
trout, but coming from such a source it might work in- 
jury if it were passed by unnoticed, as it would be if 
written by another pen. We have attempted to write 
mildly upon this subject in face of the fact that a grievous 
wrong is done to our fish commissions bygone whom we 
feel would uphold them if he understood better the ad- 
mirable work they have accomplished and are accomplish- 
ing, but such changes as are advocated in the letter, if 
followed, would surely be the means of destroying our 
trout fishing," 
Except to cut out a good part of letter and 'comments, I 
■ can, after a lapse of years, see no changes to be made. 
I feel now what I said then, only more so. 
Commeats To-day. 
The big trout which would be protected under the pro- 
posed plan would not be the best breeding fish. The let- 
ter states : "Each pound trout, if left to live, will be 
ancestor to a hundred thousand trout, and the breeders 
will live ten or twenty years, continually producing." This 
is a most unfortunate error to put in circulation. A year- 
ling trout, if well grown, will produce eggs, but a trout 
that is called a yearling Avill really be eighteen or twenty 
months, old. They are born in the spring and spawn in 
the fall, so that a "yearling" at the spawning season may 
be twenty months old, and a two-year-old may be over 
two and a half years. Eggs have been taken froni a year- 
ling trout that was four inches long, but in a hatchery it 
. is not customary to take eggs from yearlings, although in 
exceptional cases it has been done when the fish are well 
grown. At two and three years of age trout produce 
strong, plump, healthy eggs. One establishment in this 
country breeds from two-year-old fish and never from 
older fish. One of the most successful of the English 
establishments breeds from two and three year old fish ; 
but remember that the two and three year olds are really 
nearer three and fours years respectively, and these, I 
think, are the best fish for breeders. Four and five year 
old fish may be used as breeders, but after that, while 
they may produce a greater number of eggs, they are 
apt to be small relatively and the resulting fry is less 
strong and vigorous than the fry from younger fish. As 
an example : Last autumn there were a lot of six, seven 
and eight year old fish in a breeding pond, but few, how- 
ever, of the latter age. At first it Avas determined not to 
take spawn from them, but for certain reasons they were 
finally spawned and the eggs were kept separate from the 
eggs of younger fish. The impregnation of the eggs of 
the old fish was imperfect as compared with the eggs of 
young fish, and the fry were weak. A flood came, wash- 
ing surface water into the pond feeding the hatchery, and 
with the surface water was mud, and the hatchery troughs 
were so thick with it that it was impossible to see the 
fry. Of course the fry were all removed at once, and no 
harm came to the fry from the eggs of the young fish. 
The fry from the eggs of the old fish died, the gills be- 
coming inflamed and distended until death ensued. 
Just here it occurred to rne to look at a book written 
by Fredefic M. Half or d (Detached Badger, of the Lon- 
don Field), author of "Floating Flies and How to Dress 
Them" and "Dry Fly-Fishing," etc., one of the best 
known of English anglers. The book is entitled "Making 
a Fisher}'," which is the English for improving the fish- 
ing in an English stream — keeping down weeds and the 
enemies of trout, and keeping up the stock of trout for 
angling purposes. -There are two things which struck 
me at once as bearing on the point of this note. , First, a 
rule under "Limits," which reads, "No trout or grayling 
to be killed under thirteen inches in length. Any under 
this length to be at once carefully returned to the water." 
Second, under "Netting," to remove anything that may 
injure the fishing. "When a net is once on a bank all 
•■ trout-.-aad grayling should be promptly taken out; old or 
ill-conditioned specimens should be knocked on the head 
and the remainder deposited in bait cans or carriers." 
Under "Poachers" there is this, "Among fish, chub, perch 
and eels are certainly destructive; and overgrown trout, 
especially old male fish, are dreadful sharks, Wherever 
mi whenever, in.pl^in^ nPU or P|ther Jfie^^s of catching 
fish, any of the above are secured, it is hardly necessary to 
say that they should not be returned to the water." 
Here is a book of over 200 pages devoted exclusively to 
the care of a stream to maintain trout fishing in it at its 
best, written by one of the most ad.vanced anglers of this 
day who treats the subject from a business standpoint, 
considering pounds, shillings and pence, in a desire to 
obtain the best possible fishing now and in the future, and 
the whole tenor of the book is to preserve the small 
trout and kill off the large ones. 
"But it is an English book !" Yes, I know that, but 
it is the only one I know of in the English language de- 
voted exclusively to this subject, and what is good for 
an English troi^t stream can be applied with profit to an 
American trout stream, for the principles are the same on 
both sides of the water. A trout 6^2 inches long, measur- 
ing to end of tail, weights ounces — at least one that I 
weighed did, A trout of Mr. Halford's limit in good 
condition would weigh a pound. The 6-inch fish would 
produce from fifty to one hundred eggs, and the 13-inch 
fish from 1,000 to 1,200. If trout cannot be caught under 
6 inches, and the law is enforced, there must be some 
natural increase, though the eggs from the yearlings are 
not as good as from the two-year-old; but preserve the 
6-inch fish and some will escape capture the second year 
and produce better eggs and more of them. If big fish 
only are protected, the stock must deteriorate for breed- 
ing, and weaklings be the ultimate result, aside from the 
fact that the old breeders are cannibals. 
As I am writing the Forest axd Stream for April 27 
comes in and I find an editorial article in it regarding the 
breeding of the lobster, and desire to call attention to one 
paragraph: "Based upon these well-established facts 
(that lobsters do not, as a rule, produce eggs until they 
have reached a length of loYz inches) of lobster life, the 
lawful limit of those which may be caught has been made 
in Massachusetts 10V2 inches; in other words, the statute 
declares that no lobster may be caught until it shall have 
had a chance to breed." 
Now the question is, if it is desirable, in order 10 keep 
up the stock of lobsters in the sea, that they should be 
allowed to grow to a size that will allow of their spawn- 
ing before capture, will not the same principle apply to 
brook trout in a stream that can be netted and otherwise 
poached in season and out in spite of protectors and 
statutes? — for it would seem that a lobster in the s^ has a 
better chance for life under prevailing conditions than a 
brook trout in a mountain brook. 
Seeing Is Believing. 
On more than one occasion I have said that so many 
remarkable things have occurred in the fish world that 
were absolutely true, that I had reached a condition of 
mind that I never disputed a fish story, however im- 
probable it might appear on its face. My friend. Col, 
William Cary Sanger, Assistant Secretary of War, in a 
personal letter makes a suggestion to me tliat will here- 
after enable me to listen to any kind of a story aboUt 
fish. He says of a certain story (which I will not tell 
here) : "It reminds me of the man who told of the 
most extraordinary and improbable event and ended by 
saying, 'I would not have believed it if I had not seen 
it, to which the listener replied, T hope you will allow me 
the same privilege.' " 
Now I am ready to listen to any kind of a fish story 
that any man in America or elsewhere would not have 
believed if he had not seen it himself, and Col. Sanger 
has my profound thanks. A. N. Cheney. 
CHICAGO AND THE WEST. 
Beginning of Bass Season. 
Chtcago, III., April 27,— Bass fishing has begun in this 
part of the world, more especially by those .good folk 
who wouldn't kill a spring chicken until all~the shell 
w^as off its back. As usual Cedar Lake, Ind., is the first 
water near here to report returns. N. B. Soper sent up 
word to-day that on yesterday he caught the legal limit, 
twenty bass, at Cedar Lake. This h^is started up several 
of our fi.sherman who have gone to Cedar Lake to-day. 
We should hear of bass fishing within the next two weeks 
in the many lakes of the Fox Lake chain north of here. 
Troat, 
The trout season has begun in the earlier streams of 
Wisconsin. I received a very pleasant invitation from 
Mr. John B. McLeod, of Milwaukee, to join him and 
Mr. Miller on their preserved stream for a few days. 
Tlieir party left Milwaukee yesterday, and it is with cer- 
tain heart burnings that one must stay behind, because 
a week ago Mr. McLeod was out for three hours and 
took thirty "sweethearts," as he expresses it. If this 
warm weather extends as far north as Waupaca, these 
gentlemen will have nice sport. This is the same stream 
upon which Mayor Harrison and his friend, Mr. Wash- 
burne, have promised to spend a day or two later in the 
season, and it is doubtful if they could do much better in 
Wisconsin. 
The Washfaurne Combination, 
By the way, mentioning Mayor Harrison and Mr. 
Washburne recalls the ancient friendship which exists 
between these two. They have both been mayors of 
Chicago, and perhaps it is this common experience in 
grief which draws them so close together, and which 
leads them now and again to take to the woods to hide 
their sorrows. Mayor Harrison does not deny that Air. 
Washburne is a successful trout fisherman, but he depre- 
cates the methods employed by the latter gentleman. 
The following is the formula, as given by Mayor Harri- 
son, for the celebrated Washburne combination, which 
is warranted to cause any old trout to- leave its happy 
home. The list-begins at the hand fly, or that nea.rest to 
the tip of rod,- and reads in order as follows: One artifi- 
cial fly, any color so it is red; one large gob of garden 
hackles; one number one spinner; one artificial frog; one 
artificial mouse; one phantom minnow; one artificial 
grub. In the opinion of Mayor Harrison and others 
this combination is npt' strictly orthodox for a fly-fisher- 
jTifin, As to Mr. Wasfjbwrne, }ie pimply smiles ancj gsks 
his friends to come up to his office aiid see the S-p6und 
trout which now adorns the wall. ' 
Wonder if He Counted Them All. 
A St. Paul newspaper states that the hustling executive 
agent S. F. Fullerton, is going to put in 100,000,000 wall 
eyed pike in Cass Lake this summer. 
The Saginaw Crowd. 
The good car W. B. Mershon will go into commission 
at Saginaw next week, and at midnight of the 8th of May 
its long, low, piratical form will be seen counting the ties 
north of Saginaw to some mysterious stream regarding 
which no better information is obtainable than it is "up 
north." The party will consist of ten. This is one more 
chance I had to decline. Sometimes I think it is tough 
to be a newspaper man, and think I could -enjoy a job 
similiar to that of the lily of the field, which toileth not, 
neither does it .spin. There will be some lilies on that 
car. 
Fly-Fishing on the Evergreen. 
Any open stream suitable for fly-fishing in the State 
of Wisconsin is apt soon to be fished out. It is with 
great pleasure, therefore, that I print the following kind 
and brotherly advice from Mr. Sam J. Ryan, of the 
Evening Crescent, Appleton, Wis. It is not every one 
who will tell about good trout fishing when he finds it, 
and Mr. Ryan deserves the thanks of all good anglers. 
His letter reads as below: 
"I have discovered something that may be of interest 
to some of your readers. Since the Evergreen has been 
logged, the lower end of the stream no longer affords 
the trout of i, lYz and 2 pounds it once did. The Oconto 
streams just north and east of the Menominee reservation 
yield only small fish, but in large quantities. Another 
field has been opened, op will be this spring. It is in 
Langlade county on the upper stretches of the Oconto 
streams, where there are also a few little lakes. To get 
there, go by rail to Aatigo, then east twenty-eight miles 
to Markton, Langlade county, and drive to A. M. Maed- 
er's sheep farm. At the latter place there is some fish- 
ing, by walking one mile, but the best is several miles 
nortli in the wilderness, where last summer one string 
of thirty brook trout was caught, weighing 74 pounds. To 
get up there guide and tents are necessary, which Maeder 
has for small parties of -three and four people. On one 
of the streams up in this wilderness a raft has been built 
and affords excellent, fly-fishing; there the big ones are 
taken. Mr. Maeder is not in the resort business, but 
can in a pinch take care of four or five fishermen (no 
more) and can furnish tents and guides. He is an ardent 
angler and from his residence in this city for several 
years, we can say he is O. K. in every respect. 
"It seems 4o me this is the best chance (outside of 
Prairie River) for fly-casting with some hope of reward 
in this State. 
"Please understand I do not write this to give Mr. 
Maeder any free resort advertising, for he does not need 
the money he might charge boarders, but to put all ven- 
turous trout anglers in way of new grounds." 
I have referred to this new locality on the Evergreen 
Mr. Geo. M. Eckels, of Chicago, who wants to go some- 
where about June i. I hope he will do well. 
To-day I was talking with Dr. Boyesen, of Black River 
Falls, Wis., and he told me as a piece of exceptional 
valuable angling news that the best place he knew of in 
Wisconsin to fish for trout was a place called Dudley, on 
the Prairie River. This was hardly any secret, as I have 
before now told about many delightful experiences on 
that charming little river. 
The Wisconsin anglers get action a little earlier in 
the season than the average Chicago fisherman. This 
is what the Appleton paper says regarding certain streams 
and certain persons of the delightful sporting grounds of 
upper Wisconsin: 
"Many parties go to Shawano and thence to the Oconto 
streams north and west twenty or thirty miles. Otto 
Kuehmsted swears by the Oconto, and says nothing can 
be better. It is certainly a fact that in numbers the trout 
in the Oconto outshine those of any other stream, but 
they are not so much when it comes to size. The old 
tales of 1,000, 1,200 and 1,500 trout brought down by 
parties of three or four from the Oconto River are hap- 
pily no more told." 
Dr. and Mrs. W. H. Meeker are planning an early 
May trip to Wild Rose in Waushara county, where they 
had good success last year. Messrs. Will Stoppenbach, 
P. M. Conke3' and S J. Ryan will probably have a few 
days in May on a Michigan stream near Floodwood, 
where there is room enough to cast a fly without catch- 
ing a tag-alder branch every time the line goes out. 
E. Hough. 
Hartford Btni,DiNG, Chicago, 111, 
Jib Mmnet 
Leading dealers in sportsmen's supplies have adveitised in our 
columns continuously for a quarter-century. 
Points and Flushes. 
The American Kennel Club Stud Book, the official stud 
book of the American dog world, for the year 1900 is now 
ready for distribution. It is the seventeenth volume. Be- 
sides the registrations, which number from 54,328 to 59,- 
208, there is a vast fund of general information, such as 
a list of the active members, associate members, bench 
shows and bench show winnings of 1900, cancellations, 
champions of record, corrections. Executive. Board 1900, 
fox hound and beagle trials 1900, kennel names, prefixes 
and affixes, officers American Kennel Club and associate 
members 1900, Pacific Advisory Committee 1900, re-regis- 
trations, standing committees 1900, transfers, etc. Address 
Mr. A. P. Vrendenburgh, Secretary A. K. C. 55 Liberty 
street, New York. 
The Forest and Stream is put to press each week oti Tuesday. 
Correspondence intended for publication should reach us ft t|]f' 
Isitegj; by Monday and as much earlier as practjcajjle, 
