448 
FOREST AND STREAM 
[June 6, 1903. 
during their stay of two weeks. Mr. E. S. Farmer and 
party, including his niece, Miss Locke, of Arlington; E. 
F. Perkins, J. E. Thompson, and F. X. Fitzpatrick, of 
Boston, have made daily catches of from 40 to 60 trout 
and togue. Mr. C. M. Harriman, of Boston, and party, 
including A. C. Wharton, H. A. Blackmer and others, of 
the Whale Club, New Bedford, have left camp after a 
■week of good luck. Mr. R. Provost, of Philadelphia, is 
entertaining several friends at the cottage he has just 
erected at Cathance Lake. 
Reports of fine fishing at Cold Stream Lake, Enfield, 
are at hand. Among anglers there have been Gov. Hill 
and Hon. William T. Haines, of Augusta, and. Eugene 
M. Hersey, of Bangor, former president of the Maine 
Sportsmen's Association. Commissioner Carleton, return- 
ing from a recent trip, reports that he never saw any- 
thing like the fishing which was had one day while he 
was at the lake. He caught that day the full allowance 
and the fish were taking the bait just as freely when he 
quit fishing as at any time during the day, "Every angler 
on the lake that day had the same good luck, and there 
were no favored sportsmen at all ; * * * there was no 
difference whether water was shallow or deep." He says 
he will go there again soon. Mr. J. Franklin Wight, of 
Wellesley, A. F. Brett and W. R. Thain, of Boston, have 
also had good luck there. 
Fly-fishing is on at Belgrade Lakes, and it is said that 
it has not been as good at any time in the last five years. 
Among those enjoying it are Charles C. Hoge, of New 
York; R. B. M. Cook, of Port Chester; A. H. Soden, of 
Boston, and the Wells party, including Mr. and Mrs. C. 
M. Wells, Mr. and Mrs. A. B. Wells, of Southbridge, 
Mass., and Mr. and Mrs. H. E. Gale, of Haverhill, Mass. 
There is a long list of new arrivals from New York, 
Brooklyn, Boston, and elsewhere. Big catches of 80 and 
100 bass a day are reported of common occurrence now 
with promise of still greater ones as the water becomes 
warmer._ The Anna Held party have gone to Paris, Me., 
to remain a couple of months, returning to Belgrade for 
September. 
Mrs. E. J. Jennings, of Farmington, has to her credit a 
12-pound salmon taken recently at Clearwater, and H. L 
Spinney captured two togue, 9 and 10 pounders. But Mr. 
J. M. S. Hunter, of the Farmington Chronicle, is the 
happiest man in town, having brought to gaff a loj^- 
pound salmon. This is what he says : "I have fished for 
twenty years and that is the first fish that I ever caught 
that ever gave me full satisfaction." The struggle lasted 
tjvo hours, and after it was landed in the boat it was 
found to have a hook, leader and several feet of line 
attached to it, the hook being ^rmly imbedded in the jaw 
of the fish. The moral to be drawn is, use strong tackle 
if you want to save your fish in Clearwater. 
An Albino Trout. 
Mr. Roy Stuart, of Farmington, captured a 2-pound 
albino trout, said to be the first one of the kind ever 
taken from the lake. Mr. and Mrs. A. B. Bergen have 
taken possession of their camp. Messrs. W. S. Ames 
and E. J. Tucker, of Boston, and several others, have 
been stopping at Unity Camp a few days. At Haines' 
Landing the Mooselookmeguntic House and cottages 
have been taxed to their utmost capacity to accom- 
modate the host of sportsmen from different parts of 
the country. There seems to be no limit to the fine 
catches the anglers have been getting. Mr. and Mrs. 
A. W. Bliss and Mr. and Mrs. A. W. Tedcastle, of 
Boston, had exceptional success — the ladies (as usual) 
taking the largest fish, and 7 pounds. Charles N. 
Wood, Frank Ridlon, L. Pfingst, of Boston; Fred 
S. Kinner, of Milton ; W. H. Coe and J. R. Marble, of 
Worcester, are a few of the Massachusetts fishermen 
guests at the hotel. 
From Rangeley it is reported that several wealthy 
Massachusetts gentlemen are making plans for a large 
game preserve, to extend over fifteen square miles, 
which is pleasing to the citizens, and the project will 
receive their aid. Dr. F. W. Palfrey, Alexander Jack- 
son, Julius Matthews, A. J. Maybury, E. G. Reynolds, 
F. L. Roberts and F. C. Brown, of Boston, and C. A. 
Taft, of Whitinsville, have had good sport. Every- 
thing is lovely at the Bald Mountain camps, F. A. 
Kidder and C. C. Badger, of Boston, and Mr. Clark, 
of North Attleboro, doing their full share in keeping 
up the fishing record. ' 
The writer met Mr. James Brown, of the Railroad 
News Company, since his return from Bald Mountain 
camps, and he reported the finest fishing in all his ex- 
perience, and he is a veteran angler. He said they 
threw back all less than 2 pounds, and there were 
usually twenty boats out, and the most of them would 
come in with not less than 15 fish, averaging from 3 to 
5 pounds in weight. He says, "This is straight." 
Guests at Mountain View are not grumbling. H. 
W. Clark, for twenty years or more a member of the 
Mass. F. and G. P. A., has had his usual good luck, 
as have also N. P. Damon, C. C. Sheldon and F. L 
Nichols, of Fitchburg, J. H. Flynn, of Boston; F. J. 
Pierce, of Gardner and many others. 
1 
|A J2j^-Po«nd Salmon. 
At Upper Dam, Mr. Llewellyn M. Bickford, of 
Brooklyn, has taken the record fish for this season, and 
it tipped the scales at 123/2 pounds. 
At Bemis, among the lucky ones, are Mr. and Mrs. 
J. F. Thompson, of Lowell; C. K. and L. A. Miller, 
Mr. and Mrs. McKeown, of Boston, and E. H. Rich- 
ards, of Woburn. At the Birches is quite a party from 
Lynn. Mr. and Mrs. W. D. Nelson,' Dr. and Mrs. F. 
L. Judkins, Mr. and Mrs. W. B. Littlefield, Dr. T, M. 
Smith, Thos. Welsh, James Manning, C. H. Baker and 
E. A. Greaton. At Allerton Lodge, where the late 
president of the State Association, Col. Rockwell, used 
to go often, is a Boston party of eight, among them 
Mr. E. B. Haskell and H. A. Priest. Mr. E. V. R. 
Thayer and party have gone to Mr. Thayer's cottage 
on Richardson Lake. Mr. and Mrs. N. N. Thayer, of 
Boston, are occupying one of the new cabins at the 
Barker. Senator Frye has with him at his camp Gen. 
Sewall, with Wm. Huntoon and wife as guide and 
housekeeper. 
At the I^diges, a party consisting of Jud^e R. S. 
Ransom, Mrs. Ransom, son and daughter, also Mr. 
and Mrs. R. A. Dennis, with J. Mathieson, C. R. Hill 
and D. E. Heywood as guides, have had phenomenal 
fishing. These camps are owned by a company of 
eight, five of whom live in New York. Two new camps 
have been added to the group this spring, making five 
in all. 
At Newfound Lake, N. H., Congressman Frank D. 
Currier and O. B. Sargent, of Canaan, N. H., took 
12 trout that weighed upward of 60 pounds— this in one 
day in a single boat, and establishes a new record. 
Messrs. E. H. Weaver and David H. Clark, of New 
Haven, have also had good luck on this lake. 
Central. 
At the New York Aquarium. 
Second Paper, 
"That," said the aquarium attendant, pointing to the 
most beautiful specimen of all in the great collection, "is 
the angel fish, and that other," pointing to the loathsome 
clawed dragon lying in the bottom of the tank, "is a 
hellbender." 
The women gasped. They didn't know for a moment 
whether the aquarium man was becoming profane when 
he said "hellbender." Then one of the visitors shuddered 
and said the fish with the awful name was the ugliest 
thing she ever saw. 
"Well, I don't think so," said the caretaker. "It de- 
pends on the way you look at it. I don't find him ugly." 
The women were listening attentively, and a quizzical look 
came into the man's eyes as he continued: "Beauty is only 
skin deep, anyhow, and what this fellow lacks in good looks 
he makes up in good behavior. You may think, now, 
that the angel fish is charming, but it is about the mean- 
est of the lot. One of those brought from Bermuda five 
years ago killed every other angel fish put in with it. 
And the lady fish over there," he went on, looking point- 
edly at his listeners, "gets along all right enough when 
there's only one in a tank. More than one results in a 
fight." 
The peaceful stillness that reigns in the old aquarium 
is striking. Visitors who make the trip to the Battery 
and pass through the thick casement walls, leave the roar 
of the elevated and the noises of the street behind, almost 
as though they had stepped into an underground vault. 
Inside the light is subdued, and one hears nothing but 
the fall of water, and here and there a splash, as some 
speckled beauty jumps into air. Sightseers move around 
the circle of tanks talking in undertones, and giving vent 
to their interest in suppressed cries of delight. The at- 
mosphere of the place is indeed impressive. Imagine, 
then, the surprise of those in the place one day last week 
when from the gallery came a child's shrill voice calling 
to his mother on the other side of the main floor : 
"Oh, Muzzie, have they got any mermaids here?" 
The sea anemone is the last animal on sea or land 
that one would pick as a fighter; but a certain little rock 
crab in the collection knows that he is. A battle between 
the fighting anemone and a thieving crab was described 
by L. B. Spencer, who -has charge of the aquarium labora- 
tory : 
"I was feeding the anemone, a fair sized brown speci- 
men," said Mr. Spencer, "with bits of chopped clam from 
a long stick. The crab, not content with his own share, 
darted at the anemone and attempted to steal the choice 
morsel from it. 
"Then a funny thing happened. Fully thirty small 
thread-like coils shot out from near the anemone's mouth, 
striking the crab on all sides. These threads are said to 
having stinging powers equal to a nettle. 
"Instantly the crab doubled up in apparent pain and 
started round that glass tank like one possessed. After 
numerous turns he approached again, and this time the 
anemone stung him hard, for after a turn or two he 
turned over on his back and wagged his flippers feebly. 
"It was some time before he recovered. I tell you 
that crab has not been within hailing distance of the 
brown anemone since." 
Installed in one of the big pools there is now a happy 
family comprising a large nupiber of small turtles, alli- 
gators, crocodiles and bullfrogs. The pool is 28 feet long 
and 12 feet wide, and with plenty of water, and at one 
end there is a corrugated platform. The creatures could 
scarcely have quarters more comfortable or better adapted 
to their wants. Up the inclined plane as up the bank of a 
stream the animals climb at will. 
About the middle of the pool is an old stump, upon 
whose top there is pretty likely to be found some turtle 
resting; and turtles love to creep under the stump for 
shelter or seclusion. Floating about in the pool's waters 
are a number of irregular-shaped slabs of cork, islands 
upon which the animals like to climb, and there are likely 
to be from one to three creatures on any one of these 
floating islands. And finally, among so many creatures, 
there is likely to be something going on all the time. For 
instance : 
Around in front of a big bullfrog that was sitting 
on the inclined plane, drifted one of these floating islands. 
The bullfrog's eye caught it, and he thought he would 
like to take a sail on it. 
The island was a foot and a half or so away, but that 
v/as /a very easy jump for the bullfrog from his place on 
the bank. Landing on it, he gave the island a fresh start, 
under which it now sailed away with quicker move- 
ment. 
The bullfrog had landed on one end of this slab. He 
was sitting thus when something began to weigh down 
the other end of the island. Then the bullfrog saw an 
alligator climbing up out of the water, his great head 
with long and powerful and wide open jaws and massive 
shoulders already up and more alligator coming. The 
bullfrog took just one look and then turned again once 
more toward the shore. It was a good deal further off 
now than when he first struck the island, but he had 
a great incentive now, and great as the jump was he made 
the shore handily, and left the island to the alligator. 
There are things of this sort going on all the time. 
There's a turtle, maybe, on one end of an island and an 
alligator comes along and climbs up on the same end, 
submerging it ape} §0 floating the turtle off, the island 
supporting the 'gator, however, when called upon to bear 
his weight alone. 
Turtles prornenading on the bottom of the pool, in 
opposite directions, meeting, sometimes turn out readily 
and sometimes scrap for the right of way, but these fights 
don't amount to much, and on the whole the various crea- 
tures dwell together in peace and harmony. The different 
varieties in the tank include soft shelled, snapping, musk, 
sHder and spotted turtles, and wood and Blanding's and 
diamond backed terrapin. The person who endeavors to 
pick out the representatives of the different varieties will 
have a task similar to that recently set by a publication 
which printed a series of faces, and after telling what the 
faces were supposed to represent left it to the reader to 
designate them properly. In that case there was a prize 
of $500 offered for the nearest guess. There is no prize 
offered for a correct designation of the different turtles. 
There was no correct guess in the case of the faces. The 
turtles are nearly as difficult to pick out. 
In one division of the turtle pool there are two big 
loggerheads weighing 240 pounds apiece or more. One 
of them came in last winter and the other about a year 
ago. The one that came in last January has scarcely 
begun to eat ; but there is nothing astonishing about that, 
for such turtles may easily go months without eating. 
The other big turtle not only eats all that is put in for 
itself, but all that is put in for the other fellow, too. 
Commonly these big turtles are to be seen each with its 
head in its own corner of the pool ; and at feeding time 
the food for each is put down in a corner at its head. 
The older turtle, which, somehow, doubtless in some fight 
at sea, has lost half its starboard forward flipper, begins 
promptly on its portion and eats steadily until it takes it 
all in. It has a head as big as a cocoanut, and it is a 
big, clumsy creature generally ; but it goes about its feed- 
ing intelligently, and never misses a scrap. 
By the time it has finished it is likely to find itself in the 
middle of the pool, to which it may have washed some of 
its food by the swashing of its massive body, and then 
from there it makes straight for the other turtle's corner, 
where the untouched food is lying. 
The chances are that the other big turtle has backed! 
out of its place before this, but whether to give the other 
a chance or to avoid it would not be so easy to say. At 
any rate, the first turtle goes up into the other's corner 
with the grace of a scow, and proceeds to strip that 
corner clean, too. 
When a big turtle like this does find an appetite, it 
always seems to find a big one. 
[to be continued.] 
CHICAGO AND THE WEST, 
The Bass Fishers. 
Chicago, May 28. — The bass fishers are getting ready 
in numbers for their exodus to-morrow and the day 
after, and, fortunately, the promise is for decent fishing 
weather and decent-natured fish. For the first time 
in the season we have had a little touch of bass fish- 
ing, and the boys who went to the Fox Lake country 
last week brought back good catches. One of the best 
of these was taken by Messrs. Whitney and Salter, at 
Loon Lake, on last Monday, these two bringing home 
a basket of fifteen handsome big-mouth bass. The 
state of affairs at Loon Lake was typical of that exist- 
ing now pretty much over this Illinois chain. The 
bass were on the feed at the first of this week, and they 
ought to continue so for a week or ten days at least. 
Members of the Chicago Fly-Casting Club who will 
make the Lauderdale trip this week, are Messrs. A. C. 
and Frank Smith, F. N. Peet, Itha H. Bellows, E. W. 
Letterman, John Homan, with Messrs. Mason and 
Noyes. They ought to strike the Lauderdale country 
at just about the right time. This is a pretty and rest- 
ful region, and one might be worse employed than 
spending a few days there at this time. 
Nothing is doing in Indiana bass fishing, and thus 
far nothing startHng comes from the lower peninsula 
of Michigan. It is a good time for lower Wisconsin 
and upper Illinois, and that is the way I should counsel 
any one to head at this stage of the game. 
Trout Fishing. 
The trout fishing reports from the lower peninsula of 
Michigan thus far, have not been very rose colored, 
and I should rather think that Wisconsin had beaten 
the south peninsula so far, if one is to judge from re- 
ports of friends. The Pere Marquette has not been 
in good shape as yet, and the Chicago boys have not 
yet gone over there for their trip, but on June 11 
Messrs. Smith, Peet, Bellows, Letterman, Perce and 
Hascall, all of the Chicago Fly-Casting Chib, will 
make an expedition thither. They will be joined by 
John Waddell, Asa Stuart and Mr. Avery, of Grand 
Rapids. 
The three gentlemen last named were on the Pere 
Marquette May 7 to May 10, but they met a bad 
proposition. The water was covered with midges, 
the minute flies known as "curses" by some anglers, 
and the result was that the trout did not "come," noth- 
ing of very good size being taken. 
An odd incident occurred during this fishing trip. 
Mr. Waddell was sitting on a bank, adjusting some 
flies, when Mr. Stuart came wading down midstream 
and frightened toward him a good-sized trout which 
was lying out on the rocks. Mr. Waddell was sitting 
motionless at the time, and the trout did not discover 
him as an enemy. With a stealthy motion he reached 
his landing net, made a scoop, and actually caught the 
live trout in his landing net. I think this feat has not 
been duplicated by very many. "I will show you how 
to catch 'em," said he to his friend. 
These anglers above mentioned, and others, state 
that thus far the trout have been found out in mid- 
stream and in shallow water. This simply means that 
the hatch is on and that the trout are feeding either 
on the caddis grub or on the imago. 
Wisconsin Stream. 
I have heard lately of another good trout stream 
in \yisconsin, the Sturgeon River, which runs iqtg 
