May i6, 1903.] 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
889 
have noted that all waves in rapids are stationary as the 
water races; while on lakes the waves advance, and the 
water only rises and falls in undulation. Also that on 
lakes the waves break forward, but that in rapids they 
break backward. 
And what does the angler heat? 
Blended water-notes, made under different physical con- 
ditions, that form the general voice of the stream. But 
from the greatest plunge, and where the current is most 
swift and strong, comes, at intervals, a bass, throbbing 
note capable of making the candle-flame inside your tent 
dance and flicker, and, at favorable moments, will even 
Cause the flames of your camp-fire to sway in unison with 
its vibrations. 
When deflected from a bank In mass, the water purls 
and gurgles as if laughing at its own siniloUs change. 
Over rocks it dashes in an uproar made up of tiny sounds 
a?, numerous as its own drops, and goes on in gurgles and 
chuckles. Hundreds of stony points break its motion, and 
each will have its separate bevy of water-notes. This all 
varies with width of stream— its volume, depth, obstruc- 
tion, character of the bed, the incline and height of banks, 
and kind, density and amount of foliage, with correspond- 
ing changes of resonance and echo. Density, humidity 
or aridness of air also influences the sounds of the 
stream. We can tell when a storm is brewing, for the 
voice of the Delaware increases in volume and distinct- 
ness. Over its shallows and among small rocks, it has a 
slow, droning, slumberous sound, like that of a steady 
wind moving slowly through a forest, or water flowing 
over the even edge of a wide dam. Unobstructed in wide 
reaches, and shallow, it has the inimitable purl, so ex- 
quisite that even in music, the sweetest sounds are called 
liquid. Yet these purling notes have a whole calendar of 
their own special chords, with their own multiform and 
blended vibrations. If you have the will to place a few 
foeks in such shallow water, you can, by changing the 
character of the obstruction, alter the whole genetal voice 
of the stream, through waking new notes. 
Thus flows the Delaware for hundreds of miles, a broad 
line of harmonies, thrilling through its own forests, with 
whose music it forever blends. It is a harvest of the eye, 
and a delight to the ear: 
"With its lithe and merry motion o'er the algae where the gfeeil, 
Waves beside the rocks of yellow, and beneath the water's sheen. 
With a low, mysterious music in the elm trees overhead, 
Till the oriole translates it, and you know just what they said." 
The day has wearied us with its fullness of sight and 
sound along the river. We eat a ten o'clock supper, and 
the night hours pass unheeded: As we push back 
the tent-flap and look out, the cool grays of morning have 
changed the moods of river, hills and forests ; nature thus 
appearing in dress after dress, each seeming to be lovelier 
than the one which preceded it. L F. Brown. 
New England Fishing. 
Boston, April g— Editor Forest and Stream: The re- 
cent lecture of Dr. Field, of the Institute of Technology, 
to which I alluded in a former letter, contained much 
valuable information concerning the lobster. The annual 
expenditure for the crustacean, he declared, to be about 
$10 000,000. While it is distributed to some extent from 
the Straits of Belle Isle on the north to the Capes ot. Dela- 
ware, on the south, the greatest number are caught In the 
waters of Nbva Scotia and Maine, and the Chief markets 
are the cities of Boston and New York. The high price 
at which thev are sold, being in reality about 90 cents a 
pound for the food, and the diminished size of those 
offered are conclusive proofs of A decrease in the supply. 
Reference was made to the statistics in Capt. Collins re- 
ports — the average catch, as there shown, per pot in 1901 
in Massachusetts being 84, and in 1902 but 33. 
The female carries the eggs from nine to eleven months, 
according to the temperature of the water, their develop- 
ment being retarded by a cold temperature. The hatching 
season he affirms to be the m.onths of May, June and July. 
The infant mortality is enormous, the young, on coming 
to the surface of the water, being devoured by fishes, so 
that only a few survive out of a maximum brood of 
100,000 eggs. He claimed that "if from every 10,000 eggs 
two lobsters survived and could be raised to maturity the 
total number of lobsters would remain the same if none 
were caught." It is well known that the lobster is of slow 
growth, requiring five years or more to reach maturity. 
Two years elapse between the different broods. The 
chief obstacle to artificial propagation has been the difii- 
culty of finding suitable food, this being as yet an un- 
solved problem. While it is generally known that the 
efforts of the United States Fish Commission have been 
continued for several years in an endeavor to propagate 
lobsters for restocking at Woods Holl,_Mass., the attempt 
has not as yet been as successful as its promoters have 
desired, 
As a means of increasing the supply, the professor 
suggests the taking of the young for food and saving 
the mature lobsters as breeders. He declares a close 
season impracticable. If the writer has not been misin- 
formed, the plan of a close season of several years has 
been tried successfully in the case of the lobster fisheries 
of Norway. In this connection the friends of the lobster 
industry will be glad to learn that a resolution providing 
for the issue of a call by the Massachusetts Commission- 
ers for a convention for the purpose of conferring on this 
subject and others by Commissioners of all the New Eng- 
land States and representatives of the New York market, 
the Maritime Provinces of Quebec, Nova Scotia and New 
Brunswick, has been passed by the House of Representa- 
tives and is now in the Committee of Ways and Means of 
the Senate. A favorable report of that committee is con- 
fidently expected. It is not unlikely that the combined 
experience of those who will be called together will be 
productive of much good, and it will be a cause of much 
satisfaction if some plan shall be devised by which this 
decadent industry may be saved from utter annihilation. 
Capt. Collins is having constructed a naphtha launch 
^^2ft. loin. long with a breadth of beam of 7ft., de- 
signed by himself, for use on the coast in enforcing the 
jubster and bird laws. The captain has recently returned 
from a trip of two weeks on the United States steamer 
Grampus. This has given him a much needed rest and at 
fjje sai?{ie time has afforded the opportunity of investigat- 
ing the condition of the lobster fisheries of Maine. He 
went as far as Rocldand, putting in at various points on 
the coast. He reports that the lobsters have been caught 
down to the limit of length (10^ inches). The Grampus 
is in command of Capt. E. E. Hahn, and the work in 
which it is engaged is that of collecting egg-bearing lob- 
sters, and is to be continued till June. She was fitted 
out at Gloucester, starting from that port on April 23. In 
spite of the ioi/2-inch law, the lobster fishermen have for 
years been taking everything, small and large, from the 
tip of Cape Cod southward, and the result is well known. 
This is true not only in the waters of southeastern Massa- 
chusetts but in those of Rhode Island and Connecticut 
as well. 
If the same plan is pursued in the waters from Boston 
to Halifax there is no need of invoking prophecy to fore- 
tell the result. 
Twice within a few years the Governor of Massachu- 
setts has prevented the passage of a nine-inch law by in- 
terposing a veto, and if all lobster fishermen would strictly 
observe the present law it is possible that the decadence 
which has been noted the past few years would cease. 
The proceedings of the proposed conference will be 
watched wiUi great interest by all lovers of the succulent 
crustacean. 
The Clearwater Club has returned to Boston from 
Grand Lake, having captured in all 124 salmon, of which 
Mr. C. C. Butler took 23. The trip was made in a private 
car to Princeton, thence by steamer across Big Lake. The 
members made their headquarters at the Rose Camps. 
Mr. A. W. Burke, of Boston, was the fortunate captor of 
the first fish, and Mr. J. C. Rowe, of Hartford, the largest 
one. 
From Berkshire county reports of fine trout fishing con- 
tinue to come in. The Pittsfield Sun of April 30 states 
that William P. Taylor took 14 trout on Tuesday, April 
28, which weighed 1314 pounds; Wallace Jones 12 trout 
weighing 10 pounds 11 ounces; C. H. Sage and C. M. 
Gibbs 25 trout that weighed 17^/2 pounds, and on another 
day they caught 20, among them several large ones. 
Fred Crawford, of North Adams, by report of May i 
in the Evening Transcript, caught his second two-pound 
trout, beating the record of local sportsmen so far. Berk- 
shire fishing is coming to the front wonderfully this 
spring;. 
Illegal Fishing and Hunting. 
Deputy Shea, of Ware, has put one culprit into court 
recently for fishing in closed waters ; another who pleaded 
guilty of Sunday hunting and of using a ferret ; a third 
v,ho will come up for sentence May 9 for fishing in a 
closed brook. Deputy Luman, of Palmer, has made an 
arrest for fishing in a closed pond; sentence reserved in 
this case. There are no doubt other cases which do not 
come to the knowledge of the public except in the imme- 
diate neighborhood. 
Capt; Collins has accomplished much in organizing an 
efficient Wafden Service, and he is still working on that 
line. 
Under the law prohibiting the sale of all trout except 
those artificially reared, commonly known as domestic 
trout, none can be sold less than nine inches in length, 
which was the legal length prescribed for domestic trout 
before the legislation of the present year. The law ex- 
tendinp- for five_ years the close season on deer contains a 
pfovlgioll allowing "the owner or occupant of cultivated 
land" to drive deer away, but not with dogs, nor must 
the deer be wounded." 
A law has been signed prohibiting the killing of heron 
or bittern, but "the owner or keeper of a trout hatchery 
or pond may kill one in the act of destroying fish." 
Maine Fishing Resorts, 
News comes from Bemis that there were twenty-five 
guests in the camps May i. and before breakfast Mr. Wal- 
lace Stevens, of Rumford Falls, landed two five-pound 
salmon, and Mr. and Mrs. W. L. Thatcher a three-pound 
trout and a four-pound salmon. The high wind and cold 
weather of the next two days made fishing difficult, but 
Mrs. G. H. Drake took a 4V2-pound trout. Parties from 
Lewiston, Lisbon Palls and Brunswick, Me., have had 
good success, and those who have returned took ample 
evidence of their skill along with them. 
Mr. C. P. Stevens and Mr. W. W. Lee, of Maiden, 
Mass., have gone to camp "Vive Vale" for a few days. 
I\Iessrs._H. C. Kennedy and W. R. Kissam, of Brooklyn, 
are having good sport at the Birches. 
Among the guests at the Mountain View House are Mr. 
E. O. Noyes and others from Brockton, Mass. ; J. H, 
Flynt, of Boston, and D. S. Prentiss, of Worcester. 
In a cottage nearby is a party from Fitchburg, Mass., 
composed of M. B. Damon, F. J. Nichols, Thomas Shel- 
don, D. W. Clifford, and W. W. Sargent. They have 
made good catches, but are not going to say much about 
them till ready to break camp. 
Bald Mountain camps are not neglected, having ar- 
ranged to care for such well known sportsmen as Ward N. 
Boylston and H. D. Daniels, of Boston ; Walter Hinds, 
of Portland ; Clement R. Hopes and party, of Philadel- 
phia, and Mayor F. E. Boothby. of Portland, who on 
Wednesdaj', May 6, took four salmon weighing 6, 5, 5, 
3 pounds, respectively. D. D. Clark, of North Attleboro, 
got a 4!>2-pound salmon. Mr. Hinds's largest salmon 
weighed 4V< pounds. At Haines Landing tlon. Seth 
Larabee, of Portland, is high line with a 7><-pound sal- 
mon. Mr. Hamilton, of Boston, has taken two 4-pound 
salmon. Smaller ones have been taken by Mr. and Mrs. 
Arthur Connor and F. A. Nichols, of Boston. Dr. C. W. 
Hutchins, of Boston, has beaten his last year's record, 
having taken a salmon weighing 8 pounds, and is con- 
templating building a camp for occupancy next year. At 
Bemis not many large fish have been taken, but Mrs. 
Chester Bisbee, of Rumford Falls, in less than an hour 
took five salmon and one trout, the largest weighing 5 
pounds. Messrs. C. E. Guild and D. E. Adams, of Bos- 
ton, are getting a good number, but not very large fish. 
Fish are beginning to take the hook at the Upper Dam, 
and a few anglers have arrived. Catches at Middle Dam 
are reported as running from 2^/2 to 5^/2 pounds. 
From Kineo it is reported that large trout have been 
unusually prominent in the catches that have been made. 
Among well known anglers that have arrived is Mr. A. 
D. Foster, of Boston, a member of the State Association, 
He is accompanied by Mr, Reginald Foster and Mr. J. 
G. Wildman, of Boston, and Dr. and Mrs. Burnside Fos- 
ter, of St. Paul, Minn. Mr. Henry Lord, of New York, 
has taken possession of his cottage, having recently re- 
turned from a winter trip to Africa and Italy. 
At this resort the fishing will be at its height in about 
two weeks. Belgrade Lakes are reported to have yielded 
lihenomenal fishing for trout this season, both in point of 
numbers and size. Dr. Gallagher, of New York, recently 
returned, taking six trout averaging over 4 pounds, the 
largest weighing 6j4 pounds. Mr. Harry J. Boyd and 
wife, of New York, are also making good catches. The 
Hotel Belgrade is open to guests with a recent addition of 
twenty-five rooms, a new dining room and other im- 
provements. 
At Lake Webb, Weld, Maine, Mr. F. H. Whitin, of 
Whitinsville, Mass., has taken a 6-pound salmon, and 
Hon. A. D. Russell, of Augusta, one weighing 4 pounds, 
and several others have caught large fish. Varnum Pond 
has furnished much sport to several Farmington anglers 
as well as to some Massachusetts sportsmen, among 
whom may be named the Hon. George Fred Williams, of 
Dedham and Boston, who recently returned, bringing six 
large fish taken by himself and party. 
The secretary of the Springvale Fish and Game Club, 
Mr. F. H. Wood, reports to Chairman Carleton that fine 
fishing has been obtained in Mousam Lake of his town, 
salmon weighing 8}4, 9 and is'^/z pounds each, and square- 
tail trout of 4 to S pounds' weight. The lake has had the 
benefit of restocking yearly for a long time. This should 
be an eye-opener for niggardly politicians who begrudge 
every farthing appropriated for protection and propaga- 
tion made in the interest of sport. There is cheering 
news from New Hampshire, but details must be deferred 
till later. 
Dynamiters Punished. 
From Rutland, Vt., we learn that the State Fish and 
Game League has made a successful crusade against a 
gang that has been engaged extensively in taking trout 
by the use of explosives. Several arrests have been made, 
and it is expected others will follow. To such an extent 
has this dastardly work been carried on that many good 
trout streams have been divested of fish. 
Prof. R. L. Garner appeared before a select and fairly 
good sized audience on Thursday evening in Steinert 
Hall, where he exhibited the cage in which he lived in 
African jungles. Your readers have so recently read the 
report of his address before the Massachusetts Fish and 
Game Protective Association on the occasion of the an- 
nual dinner, published in Forest and Stream, that it is 
unnecessary to repeat it. Central. 
In Maine Waters. 
Bangor, Maine, May 9. — Editor Forest and Stream: 
The past week has been one of anticipation largely among 
Maine anglers, at least in the eastern and northern sec- 
tions of the State, for the expectations of warmer weather 
were hardly realized until the latter part of the week. 
Moosehead, as predicted in the letter of a week ago, did 
not furnish any great sport during this, its second week 
of open season, partly because the rush had not com- 
menced, and more because the very cold water and cor- 
responding dull weather during the first part of the week 
prevented any good catches, except in rare instances. 
Monday was a cold rainy day, most disagreeable and 
lacking in results, and while Tuesday opened the same 
v/ay, mid-forenoon found the sun poking through the 
clouds, and before noon it was, as a day, all that the lover 
of a clear and comfortable day could desire. Consequently 
that day saw some good catches by those who were out 
on the lake, and others who were at nearby ponds trying 
for the smaller trout to be found therein. 
Probably the most successful party at the big lake was 
the Greeley party from Bangor and Gloucester, Mass., 
who went to the lake a week before, or as soon as the ice 
was thoroughly cleared from Moosehead. In the party 
were Geo. H. Greelev, Dr. Isaac Strickland, Frank Noyes 
and F. G. Moon, of tliis city; Dr. J. E. Garland, C. W. 
Luce and Frank S. Greeley, of Gloucester, Mass.; Mr. 
Doscher, of Jersey City, N. J., and Mr. Brooks, of 
Augusta, this State. They had a great time, chartering 
Capt. Flenry Sawyer's new steamer for their entire stay, 
and making their headquarters at Seboomook. Their 
best and only real good fishing was in Big Duck Cove, 
and the largest trout (they say they caught no lakers) 
wei.ghed three pounds, being taken by Mr. Luce. 
The Crow's Nest at Sandy Bay has not opened for 
spring fishermen, but there are still some big squaretails 
left in this famous fishing locality, judging by the expe- 
rience of two workmen who are building camps and fixing 
up those already built. They pushed out from shore in a 
canoe the other evening, and in a few minutes had landed 
a very handsome siring, not only enough for their own 
use, but three of which they took to Greenville the fol- 
lowing day and gave to friends, the three weighing 10 J/^ 
pounds, 
Amo Bacon and Ralph Emerson, of this city, spent 
several days during the week at the East Outlet of the 
lake, fishing two days along the shore by Sand Bar, the 
Lamb farm and around Sand Bar Island. They had splen- 
did success, catching all the fish the law would permit 
them to bring home, some weighing as heavy as 4% 
pounds, and the majority squaretails. Mr. Emerson 
hooked and played for a longtime a big laker, but the fish 
fought well, the leader had already seen rather hard service, 
and finally the fish succeeded in carrying off the troll and 
half the leader. Some fish were taken during the same 
time at the dam at the outlet, but lively sport has not 
yet begun there, although it is looked for every day. One 
day the party went to Indian Pond, five miles down the 
river from the Outlet, and enjoyed some splendid fishing, 
catching a very nice string of trout, which were taking 
both flies and worms. The raising of the gates above to 
permit the sluicing and driving of the logs raised the 
water in Indian Pond, where, because of low water, it had 
been poor for several days. 
Another successful trip was that made by Abel Hunt, 
of this city, who went to Jackman and had some fairly 
good fishing there in the Moose River near Big Wood 
Pond, and then returned to Moosehead, spending the rest 
of his outing alongshore* from the Outlet to hia old 
