March 14, 1903,] 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
213 
wool or crewel, though the former soaks up much 
water. 
If you can get the old-fashioned crewel, made. I have 
been told, from the fine hair of some kind of goat, it 
will be found very useful. It is the same color, wet or 
dry, and has been dj^ed a fast color. Chenille, if made 
of silk, is good for making large files and for Uncle 
Rube's favorite fly, the Ruben Wood. The muskrat, 
mink, weasel, field mouse, rabbit and many other ani- 
mals afford an excellent fur. No one but a fly-maker 
can realize the difficulty in getting hackles fit for trout 
flies. Not one cock in twenty is worth examining. 
Many years ago this was not so much the case; more 
game fowls were bred and the birds found in a farm- 
yard were smaller, rounder and more hke game birds 
in appearance. The introduction of large coarse fowls 
has not only injured the fly tier, but has given us a 
poor bird for the table, coarse fleshed and stringy, with 
a prominent breast bone, very unlike the partridge-likc 
form of the old-time chicken. 
In this State (New York), we have now had an ex- 
perience of about ten years with the European trout 
(Salmo fario), and I am inclined to believe that there 
is less prejudice against the fish than there was a few 
years ago. That it displaces the native trout (fonti- 
nalis), seems to be true, but it can endure a higher 
temperature, grows much faster and is a free riser 
to the fly, at least up to the weight of about three 
pounds. Fifteen years ago, in many of our best trout 
streams, a pound specimen was a big fish. In all my 
experiences of waters easily accessible from New 
York, I took but one fish of sixteen inches. Since the 
introduction of the brown trout, all this is changed. 
The average size of trout taken has much increased, 
and many fish of two pounds are caught every season 
with fly. Not only is this the case, but not a year 
passes that a number of immense fish are not (at 
least) hooked by flj^-fishermen. I mean fish weighing 
from four to six pounds. These usually escape, owing 
to the light tackle used, but they afford a man a sen- 
sation that he is in no danger of forgetting to the last 
day of his life. Theodore Gordon. 
The Sportsmen's Show Casting 
Tournament. 
This tournament, which opened the night of Satur- 
day, Feb. 21, and came to an end the night of Satur- 
day, March 7, in Madison Square Garden, this city, 
and was part of the Ninth Annual Sportsmen's Show, 
was a success, both in number of entries, and as an at- 
traction to visitors who take more or less interest in 
contests of this sort, who fish whenever they have the 
opportunity; who like to see what the expert anglers 
and fly-casters use, in the way of tackle, and who look 
to these tournaments for instruction in casting. The 
entries in tournaments of this kind would be far larger 
if it were not for the fact that anglers who possess 
only a moderate degree of skill are too modest to dis- 
play what they consider their awkwardness in a public 
competition, and to whom such names as Leonard, 
Hawes and Levison are a sort of bugaboo. But these 
persons — men and women — took a deep interest in the 
game, and lined up alongside the big tank, crowding 
as near its edge as possible, and watched all the fea- 
tures of each event with enthusiastic attention. The 
casting was from a bridge over one arm of the pool, 
and the flies and baits fell within a few feet of the spec- 
tators, so that they could see every stage of the con- 
tests and admire the skillful work of the men. But 
there was one thing that had an important bearing 
on the scores that the average visitor did not under- 
stand, and that was why the contests for distance in 
the latter part of the tournament were won on such low 
scores. The contestants were all on the island, and 
had to keep their disappointments to themselves during 
a match, so that it was only the friends of contestants, 
who talked with the men afterward, who learned of the 
sticky water and its effect on tackle. 
There was more or less dissatisfaction among the 
contestants because of the glue-Hke substance that 
floated on the .surface of the water, and at times men 
would not enter certain events because of the poor 
showing they were making; but the fact remained that 
while the water was far from clear and pure, the con- 
ditions were as fair for one as for another. The rea- 
son for this state of things was this: The great tank 
was lined inside with heavy duck, and this duck was 
water-proofed with a preparation containing some 
sticky substance. The paddling and the tflting contests 
served to stir up the water every afternoon and even- 
ing, and the oily substance came to the surface and re- 
mained there, il^ines and flies became coated with it 
and carried it to the guides and reels. After a con- 
test the rod-tips were covered with a coating which 
gave them the appearance of having been carelessly 
daubed with heavy varnish, then used before the coating 
had had time to dry. The effects of the stuff were to 
a certain extent counteracted by the liberal use of 
vaseline on lines and guides, and the flj^-casters did all 
they could under the circumstances, and made their 
best efforts in a sportsmanlike manner. Some of them 
thought the pool should have been drained to rid it of 
the objectionable coating on the water, but while this 
could have been done, of course, those who claimed 
to know about such things argued that the oil would 
not go out with the water, but would remain in the 
bottom of the tank, and rise to the surface of any fresh 
water that might be turned in. To drain and refill the 
great tank would have taken no little time, and would 
have shouldered the management with an additional ex- 
pense of no small proportions. Summing up all the 
arguments, then, it seems there was no practical help 
for the existing condition of the water. 
The highest score made in any of the bait-casting 
contests was that of R. C. Leonard, who landed a half- 
ounce rubber frog 128 feet inches from the casting 
platform on the last day of the tournament. His friend, 
H. W. Hawes, made the longest cast of any person in 
a single-handed trout fly-casting event, when he scored 
97 feet on the afternoon the tournament closed. 
A veteran angler and enthusiastic fly-caster, who di4 
not attend this tournament, and whose presence was 
missed hy the large circle of friends, is William Mills, 
who has been quite ill recently, but is now convalescing. 
Mr. Mills barely escaped typhoid fever. 
The scores made in events held previous to March 
.3 have already been printed in these colunms. The 
results of the events held that day and afterward are 
given in detail below: 
Tuesday Afternoon, March 3. 
The event held this afternoon was Class P, dry fly- 
casting for accuracy, with flies furnished by the com- 
mittee, and open to all, the only restriction being that 
loose line in hand or on the platform was not per- 
mitted. Five casts were made at a buoy moored 35 
feet from the bridge, and five at a second buoy at 45 
feet, thirty seconds being allowed to extend line, after 
which time every cast was scored save in the event of 
a fly being whipped off, when time was_ allowed to re- 
place it, and thirty seconds to extend line again. The 
method of scoring was as follows: If a fly fell within 
a foot of the buoy cast at, the accuracy wa.s. considered 
perfect, while for each foot or fraction of a foot in ex- 
cess of one foot from the buoy, a demerit of one was 
counted, and the sum total of such demerits divided by 
ten was scored the demerit per cent.; the demerit per 
cent, deducted from 100 was the accuracy per cent. ; 
to the accuracy per cent, was added the average num- 
ber of seconds the fly floated at each cast, and the 
total was the score. D. Brandreth, of Ossining, N. Y., 
won the gold medal; Dr. J. G. Knowlton, of this city, 
took the silver medal; third place was tied for by R. C. 
Leonard, of Central Valley, N. Y., and H. G. Hender- 
son, Sr., of this city, and in the cast-off Mr. Leonard 
won. The score: 
Casts: 12345 133 4 5 Total. Av. 
D Brandreth 0 3 1 1 2- - Y 2 0 1 1 0— 4 11 90.4 
Dr. J. G. Knowlton 3112 2— S 0312 1—7 ]5 99.0 
R. C. Leonard 2 0 1 0 3— 6 4 3 1 2 1—11 17 
H. G. Henderson, Sr. . . . 3 1 2 2 0— 8 1 2 2 3 1— 9 17 
Cast-off: 
Leonard 10000—1 
Henderson 0 1 0 2 0—3 
Scores of the non-winners : 
C. G. Levison 3 1 0 1 2— 7 2 3 2 4 3—14 21 98. 5 
D. T. Abercrombie 4 0 4 4 4—16 3 3 3 3 3—15 31 98.0 
J. D. Foote 1 4 2 4 0—11 3 3 4 3 1—14 25 98.0 
Tuesday Night, March 3. 
Another open-to-all event was Class Q, for four- 
ounce trout rods, with the usual allowance for rods 
with solid reel seats, and no restrictions on length of 
leaders. There were four entries, but the low man 
withdrew because of the condition of the water. The 
prizes were the same as in other events, and the judges 
were L. Taylor and W. D. Cloyes, while J. H. Cruik- 
shank was referee. The scores are in feet, as this event 
was' for distance only: 
R. C. Leonard 94 
H. W. Hawes 87 
E. J. Mills ; 76 
Wednesday Afternoon, Maich 4. 
The featin-e of to-day's casting was the high score 
made by R. C. Leonard, of Central Valley, N. Y., 
who stretched his line to the 96-foot mark and car- 
ried away the gold medal, while his fellow townsman, 
PI. W. Hawes, took the silver medal, and W. D. Cloyes 
was third. The contest was open to all-comers, dis- 
tance alone to count, and fly-rods limited to uve o-/.nces, 
except those having solid reel seats, v.diich were allowed 
three-fourths of an ounce. The score, in feet: 
R. C. Leonard 96 
H. W. Hawes 86 
W. D. Cloyes SI 
E. J. Mills cast 76 feet, J. D. Foote 66 and Dr. J. G. 
Ktiowlton 63 feet. 
"Wednesday Night, M rch 4 
There was no dearth of fly-casters in the Garden to- 
night, but few cared to enter the contest, as the glue- 
like coating on the water rendered good work very 
difficult, and men with high records disliked to attempt 
to do satisfactory casting with gummy lines and 
clogged line-guides. The event was for single-handed 
bait-casting for distance and accuracy, open to all, 
half-ounce rubber frogs being used, and no restric- 
tions were placed on rods or lines, but free running 
reels were required. For distance, five casts were made 
at a buoy 60 feet distant, and five at a buoy at 80 
feet; a demerit of one being counted for each foot or 
fraction the frog fell from the buoy cast at, and the 
sum total of these demerits, divided by 10. was counted 
as the demerit per cent.; the demerit per cent, de- 
ducted from 100, was the accuracy per cent. Five casts 
were made for distance, and the average, added to the 
percentage of accuracy, constituted the score, high 
man to win. Two practice casts for distance and one 
at each buoy for accuracy, were permitted. The judges 
were H. L. Leonard and F. T. Pratt. W. F. ICimber 
was referee. D. T. Abercrombie won the gold medal 
and W. D. Cloyes the silver medal, while the third 
man withdrew and did not cast. The score: 
D. T. Abercrombie. 
^. 1 2 3 4 5 Average. Total. 
Distance 58 73 70 61 58 64 
1. 2 3 4 5 
Accuracy 3 19 8 6 22 5 4-5 94 1-5 
S> S 9 10 Average. Total. 
Accuracy lij.5 5.5 4 7 6 3 4-5 96 1-5 
\V. D. Cloyes. 
1 2 3 4 5 Average. Total. 
Distance 5S 20 45 59 82 48.6 
1 2 3 4 5 
Accuracy 17 60 46 12 2 13 8-10 86 3-10 
6 7 8 9 10 Average. Total. 
Accuracy 9 10 1 4 30 5 2-5 94 3-5 
M. Calhane, withdrew. 
Thursday Afternoon, March 5, 
Although the conditions of this contest were sinailar 
to those of several that had gone before, interest in 
it reached a high pitch when the high men tied again 
and again, and finally decided to let the matter go over 
until the evening contest for a final decision as to who 
should claim the gold medal offered for the afternoon 
event. The conditions called for trout fly-rods of any 
sort, any length of leader, distance only to count, and 
open to all whQ ti^d never east f«rther than 90 fe?t 
in any similar club or tournament contest. The prize 
medals were similar to those given in other, events. 
The judges were H. G. LTenderson and E. J. Mills, 
with J. H. Cruikshank as referee. The score, in feet 
and inches, as decided in the final ca.st-off: 
W. D. Cloyes 80 6 
V. R. Grimwood 80 6 
W. R. Pryor.... ...80 0 
Scores of the non-winners: 
B. Brandreth 78 0 
C. G. Levison 72 0 
J. D. Foote., ..,...,,. 72 0 i- . 
Cast-off for first aiid second prizes: 
V. R. Grimwood. . ......... ...... ;riiiii;u 80 6 
W. D. Cloyes -iWiiii- 80 6 
Second tie cast-off: 
'V. R. Grimwood. 
W. D. Cloyes... 
.79 0 
.79 0 
Thursday Night, March 5. 
To-night's contest Avas single-handed troUt fly-cas.t- 
ing, for distance only. There were no restrictions on 
weight of rod or length of leader, and any person 
could enter who had never cast more than 100 feet ,in 
a similar contest. The prizes were similar to those 
previously mentioned. R. C. Leonard and Milton H. 
Smith were the judges, while L. S. Darling refereed. 
W. D. Cloyes won by six inches over V. R. Grim- 
wood, and as this event was also to decide who should 
win the final tie in the afternoon's contest, Mr. Cloyes 
was declared the winner of both. A large number of 
fly-casters and angling visitors witnessed this match 
between the two gentlemen who showed such equal 
skill, despite the unfavorable condition of the water, 
Avhich grew steadiljf worse as the days passed. The 
score : 
W. D. Cloyes 80 fi 
V. R. Grimwood SO 0 
Nathaniel .S. Smith 68 0 
Friday Afternoon, March 6. 
The feature of to-day's casting was the score of R. 
C. Leonard, who cast a quarter-ounce rubber frog 
from a free running reel a distance of 113 feet, and 
captured first place _and the gold medal. C. G. Levison 
won the silver medal with 96 feet 6 inches, and H. W. 
Hawes had to be satisfied with third place. This was 
a single-hand bait-casting affair, the best effort in five 
to count, distance only. It was open to all comers, and 
the only restrictions were that quarter-ounce rubber 
frogs and free-running reels should be used, and that 
the casting should be overhead. Three trial casts were 
allowed before scoring. The results, in feet and inches: 
R. C. Leonard 113 0 
Chauncey G. Levison 96 6 
H. W. Hawes S7 6 
The other contestants were E. J. Mills, who scored 
69 feet, and D. T. Abercrombie, who landed at the 52- 
foot mark. 
Friday Night, March 6. 
Class W was open to all-comers, distance alone to 
count. It was for black bass flies, which could be used 
on hooks No. 4 or larger, and any weight rod or length 
of leader could be used. Three prize medals, gold, 
silver and bronze. The score, in feet and inches: 
H. W. Hawes 94 4 
Dr. L G. Knowlton f 62 0 
D. T. Abercrombie 59 0 
Saturday Afternoon, March 7. 
Class X was a single-hand bait-casting contest, for 
distance only, and open to all-comers. Each contestant 
was allowed three trial casts with half-ounce rubber 
frog, after which the longest cast in five counted as 
th^ score. There were no restrictions on rods or lead- 
ers, but the use of free running reels was required. R. 
C. Leonard won the gold medal with a cast of 128 feet 
inches, and broke last year's record of 125 feet, 
made by C. G. Levison; Mr. Levison was second with 
97 feet, and H. W. Flawes took the bronze medal. 
The score, in feet and inches: 
R. C. Leonard 128 71/3 
C. G. Levison 97 0 
TL W. Hawes 87 Q 
The Closing Event, Saturday Night, March 7. 
Six men entered Class Y, single-hand trout fly-cast- 
ing for distance only, and open to all comers, without 
restrictions on rods or leaders; prizes similar to those 
heretofore mentioned. H, W. Hawes won the gold 
medal. The score, in feet: 
H. W. Hawes 97 
VV. R. Pryor 80 
V. R. Grimwood 77 
The other contestants were N. S. Smith and R. B. 
Lawrence, who tied with 74 feet each, and Dr. Knowl- 
ton, who scored 70 feet. 
The Summary of Winoings. 
Below is given a summary of the standing of the 
contestants who won places during the entire tourna- 
ment. Thirty-one contestants entered during the tour- 
nament, and out of this number twenty-one won places. 
R. C. Leonard won the greatest number of first prizes, 
while H. W. Hawes was second and W. D. Cloyes was 
third. Mr. Cloyes was tied for number of first prizes 
with J. H. Cruikshank, each capturing three, but Mr. 
Cloyes had two second prizes, whereas Mr. Cruikshank 
had no seconds. The summary follows : 
Times No. of 1st No. of 2d No. of 3d 
entered, prizes won. prizes won. prizes won. 
R. C. Leonard 7 5 0 2 
H. W. Hawes 7 3 3 2 
W. D. Cloyes 7 3 2. 1 
J. H. Cruikshank 4 3 0 0 
E. J. Mills 9 2 2 2 
V. R. Grimwood 6 12 2 
A. B. Douglass 4 12 0 
C. G. Levison 7 13 0 
H. G. Henderson 7 10 3 
D, T. Abercrombie... 7 10 3 
P. T. Tormey 3 1 0 1 
Dr. T. G. Knowlton... 7 0 4 3 
W. H. Hammett.. 4 0 12 
R. F. Cruikshank 4 0 3 0 
D. Brandreth 4 1 0 0 
W. R. Pryor 3 0 11 
J. D. Foote 9 0 11 
Will. K. Park.... 3 0 10 
W. T. Morrison 10 0 1 
W. H. Cruikshank.... 1 0 0 1 
H, <3erard, 4 0 0 3 
