FOREST AND STREAM. 
[Jan. 30, 1904. 
York; S. T. Bastedo, Toronto, Canada; F. L. Fish, 
Vergcnnes, Vt; H. ]\r. Wallace, Halifax, N. S. 
It was voted to hold the next annual convention at 
St. John, N. B., the last week in Januaryj 1905. 
E. T. D. Chambers. 
Trout Killers. 
BY EDWARD A. SAMUELS. : 
It is essential that owners of trout preserves shall be 
ever on their guard against the numerous enemies that 
are constantly pressing upon the treasures which have 
cosi them much labor and sometimes the expenditure of 
cniisiderable money. 
A number of instances of the extirpation of trout in 
waters that were supposed to be well protected have come 
to my knowledge, and the foes when discovered were 
proved to have been enemies whose presence had never 
been looked for. 
In all periods of their existence there is always some- 
thing ready to prey upon them, and it has always seemed 
to me a piece of strange good luck that the troutlets reach 
and pass the fingerling stage. 
_ When the fry leaves the egg it is a delicate,: helpless 
little creature; indeed, it is then incapable of moving 
quickly to escape its enemies, and consequently it ialls an 
easy victim to their rapacity. 
The spawn of the parent trout is usually cast in brooks, 
streams, and other running water, although there are, 
of course, exceptions to this rule, a notable one being the 
famous spawning beds of large trout in Lake Moose- 
luckmaguntic one of the Rangeleys series, but whether 
in the more or less shallow water of the streams, or the 
deeper water of the lakes, the predaceous insects which 
are ever on the alert to seize the helpless fry are almost 
numberless; among these the larva; of 'the dragon fly, the 
horned corydalis or helgramite, dytiscus beetle, or water 
tiger, are most destructive; these are all active at the 
season of the year when the fry emerges from the egg. 
If by good fortune these enemies are escaped from and 
the fry attains the length of an inch, it is generally able 
to elude these insect foes, but it now is obliged to face 
dangers from another source. 
Living in the same waters as those in which the fry 
are hatched are the young of the predaceous yellow perch, 
which is an active and relentless enemy, the pond fish 
(pomofis), and different species of minnows, which, act- 
ing on the principle that "turn about is fair play," devour 
great numbers of the fry, and in their turn fall victims 
later to trout of a larger size. 
If all these enemies are avoided and a still larger 
growth is attained, the troutlings are pursued relentlessly 
by older and larger relatives, for the trout, about whom 
so many lines of romance have been written, is a most 
incorrigible cannibal, and if the fingerling stage is reached, 
other foes such as sheldrake, kingfishers, frogs, turtles, 
eels, and various rapacious fish, are ever on the qui vive 
to capture these delicate tidbits. 
I have found that horned pout, whose homes are often 
made in waters inhabited by the trout, capture troutlings 
of an inch to two inches in length. I first became ac- 
quainted with this fact a number of years ago while fish- 
ing in the Liverpool River, Nova Scotia. Our canoe was 
anchored near the mouth of a large brook which emptied 
into the river, and while I was engaged in casting the 
fly my guide was busy with a short rod and line, using 
for a lure a common angleworm ; he succeeded in pulling 
up one or two trout, and finally threw into the boat a 
good sized hornpout. The abdomen of this fish was so 
distended that it attracted our notice, and later, on open- 
ing it, we found that it contained a small yellow perch, 
two or three snails, and a young trout about three inches 
in length. 
I had until then believed that the pout was a slow mov- 
ing bottom grubbing fish, and feeding mostly at night, 
but that such is not its nature I then became convinced. 
Since that time I have proved this fish to be quite active 
and predatory in its habits. 
On one occasion I was fishing for black bass in a pond 
in Plymouth county, Mass. ; we were using minnows, 
helgramite, and young frogs, and we found that all these 
baits were seized by the pouts, no matter how rapidly 
tbey were drawn through the water. In fact, it was next 
to impossible to get one of these baits down to the basv, 
they were seized so quickly by the horned marauders. 
1 tried the experiment of skittering, or rather quickly 
dragging just below the surface of the water one of these 
baits, and it was invariably seized by the pouts, who 
darted for it as quickly as would a good sized trout. 
The numbers of young trout that are captured by shel- 
drake, mergansers, and other fishing ducks, are by no 
means small, and if the owner of a trout preserve sees 
any of these birds in his water it will be well for him to 
shoot the intruders at the earliest possible moment. 
I once knocked over a sheldrake that incautiously per- 
mitted me to approach within gun shot of it, whose 
stomach when examined was found to contain over forty 
young salmon. 
The kingfisher is also very destructive, and, together 
with the various herons, are a constant menace to the 
preserves. After the, fingerling stage is past, ;the young 
trout having become experienced in avoiding the foes, 
that surround them are able to take care of themselves 
fairly well, although a large proportion of them fall vie-, 
tims to other depredators ; among these the mink, another 
wholesale destroyer, is much more common than most 
people are aware, even in pretty thickly settled sections 
of the country. It destroys more fish than it can possibly 
eat, and seems to kill simply for the sake of killing; this 
may be readily seen when I state that on one occasion I 
saw a mink capture in less than an hour's time five trout, 
each of which was nearly a foot in length. 
Eels are also among the most destructive foes to trout 
preserves ; for, although they are ordinarily bottom 
feeders, they can, when in pursuit of other fish, move 
with the greatest rapidity; I have, on several occasions, 
seen them dart into a school of smelts, and they were 
almost always successful in seizing one. Living, as they 
often do, in trout waters, they have every opportunity for 
capturing the spotted beauties. 
I once killed an eel in a lake in Nova Scotia— the head- 
waters of Indian River; this eel was a monster in size, 
lie^iig ^ttltt three feet in fepgth, and at least three inche-s ' 
in diameter at the middle of the body. On examining 
the contiats of its stomach I found they consisted of 
several small salmon, a frog, and two small trout. I 
have also'; at various • times examined the stomachs of 
other eels, and found them to contain, among other food, 
shiners, perch, and other small fishes, and in waters 
which contained trout, these were often proved to have 
fallen victims to the destroyers. 
From these facts it will be seen that owners of trout 
waters should spare no effort to place these slimy depre- 
dators under subjection, and this may best be accom- 
plished by keeping a number of eel pots, or traps, in con- 
stant operation. 
The otter is also an irrepressible trout killer, and if one 
succeeds in attaining access to a preserve, he quickly de- 
populates it ; for, like the mink, he often kills more than 
he can possibly eat. I once had a good opportunity for 
observing the otter's rapacity. 
A number of gentlemen who had formed a fishing club 
owned a series of small trout ponds which, at the begin- 
ning of their occupancy, were well stocked with good 
sized fish; these waters were not at any time over-fished, 
but in some manner they became less and less fruitful, 
the large fish disappearing with unaccountable rapidity. 
Eflorts \yere made to capture the poachers, at whose 
doors the mischief had been laid; but the attempts to de- 
; tect therq failed, and it was only when the tracks of an 
btter were discovered in a light fall of snow that the 
robber was located. The animal had undoubtedly traveled 
a considerable distance to reach these ponds, and finding 
them well stocked, he took up his residence in a thick 
covert near them, and until he was trailed and shot "he 
lived in clover." 
That the great snapping turtle destroys trout I have 
proved conclusively. While the trout is ordinarily a quick 
moving figh and usually an active one, it has its periods 
of indolence in which it remains almost motionless on 
or near the bottom of the river or pond, sometimes for 
hours at a stretch; on such occasions it often falls a vic- 
tim to this reptile. Every angler has at times taken trout 
with large deep gashes in their bodies which were un- 
doubtedly made by the turtle. 
_ Trout also often fall victims to the lamprey eels, par- 
ticularly in rivers which empty into the ocean. I have 
taken several of these fish with lampreys attached to 
them ; one of them, which ought to have been a good two- 
pound fish, having been so reduced in flesh that it was 
hardly more than a moving skeleton; the lamprey was 
fastened to the trout near the gills, and had sucked out 
the life blood of the unfortunate fish. 
In treating of the habits of the lamprey, George Brown 
Goode says: "They cling to the side of the fish beneath 
the pectoral, and suck its blood until the flesh becomes 
as white as paper. There can be little doubt that to the 
lampreys may be credited an immense destruction of the 
various food fishes which enter estuaries and rivers. It 
is by no means uncommon for fishermen to find them at- 
tached to halibut and other large species caught at sea. 
Lampreys are found far inland, ascending most of tha 
creeks and rivers of central Europe and of temperate 
North America far toward their sources." 
The structure of the mouth of the lamprey as described 
by Blanchard and quoted by Prof. Goode is as follows : 
"This is completely circular and forms a great sucker 
enormously capacious, surrounded by a fleshy lip studded- 
with tentacles and supported within by a cartilaginous 
framework. This mouth is covered over its entire in- 
terior surface with strong teeth arranged in concentric 
circles, some single, others double, the larger occupying 
the central portion, and the smaller forming the exterior 
rows. A large double tooth, situated above the aperture 
of the mouth, indicates the situation of the upper jaw; a 
large cartilage, supporting seven or eight teeth, represents 
the lower jaw. The tongue also carries three large teeth 
. deeply serrated upon their edges." 
Mr. Chambers, in a recent number of Forest and 
Stream, in describing the perils by which the ouananiche 
is surrounded, mentions among its destroyers the fresh 
water cusk, often called the burbot, eel-pout, etc. While 
these fish are not, as a rule, numerous enough in waters 
inhabited by the trout to be a serious menace to those 
fish, that it preys upon them if opportunity offers I have 
proved. 
A number of years ago while stopping at the little 
village of Gilead, Me., I went out several evenings "cusk- 
ing" with one of the natives in the Androscoggin River 
near by. We caught several of the uncanny looking fish, 
and on examining their stomachs I found they contained 
with other food several small chubs, and one or two 
trout four or five inches in length. 
What those small trout were doing in the river, which 
at that time contained many pickerel, can only be con- 
jectured; but as the Wild River empties into the Andros- 
coggin near that place they may have come down from 
that stream. 
I suppose that a trout in that neighborhood would now- 
adays be a rarity, particularly in the Androscoggin, for 
Bethel, the summer home of many from the great cities, 
is but a few miles distant, and every inch of the water 
in the river is fished most industriously every season ; in 
fact, so strenuously is it ransacked that pickerel which 
formerly were very abundant are now scarce anywhere 
near the town; as to the cusk or burbot, I have no means 
of knowing how abundant it is there at the present time, 
but imagine it is now quite scarce. 
On the Florida East Coast. 
Melbourne Beach, Fla., Jan. 16. — Editor Forest and 
Stream: Major Graves has lent me "Uncle Lisha's 
Shop" to read, and I want you to mail a copy of it to the 
inclosed address. Sea trout have been rising freely on 
to our 70o-f6ot dock two weeks past till day before yes- 
terday, when a norther sent them " to deep water, where 
they still remain with their feet in the mud, hatlds in 
their pockets, and mittens oh their ears. We expect 
them back at sunrise this morning; for the thermometer 
says 48 and rising at quarter past five, the moment of 
this writjjng. Lots of fun here for boys of 72:. and there- 
abouts. We troll casting phantom minnows of! the dork. 
I got one Monday morning that weighed exactly 7 
ppunds. Led him to this, beach, walking the ends of the 
planks, and landed him oh the diy sand. We find plenty 
of oysters here in mr front yQ,'!;4^y Q, Q, 
Amefican Fishefies Society, 
Appleton, Wis., Jan. 19. — Editor Forest and Stream: 
At the meeting of the American Fisheries Society at 
Woods Hole, Mass., July 21, 22, and 23, a special commit- 
tee on location of next meeting was named, consisting of 
the president, Frank N. Clark, of Northville, Mich., vice- 
president. Dr. Tarleton H. Beam, of New York, and 
secretary, Geo. F. Peahody, of Appleton, Wis. 
This committee met at the Auditorium Hotel, Chicago, 
on Friday, January 15, and selected Atlantic City as the 
next meeting place. Date of meeting July 26, 27, and 28. 
Geo. F. Peabody. 
Megfantic Club. 
The seventeenth annual banquet of the Megantic Fish 
and Game Club, of Maine, will be given at Delmonico's 
on Saturday evening, January 30, and a very large at- 
tendance of members and their friends is assured. Some 
of the trophies of some of the members of the club will 
be exhibited. 
he Mmnet 
St. Augustine's Bloodhottnds. 
From the Si. Aug-ustine, F/a., Record. 
Sullen and disconcerted, with two ferocious blood- 
hounds close to his heels, a white prisoner who escaped 
from the work gang yesterday morning shinned up a 
pine tree and waited the arrival of the sherifT and his 
deputies. 
The man gave his name as Shine when arraigned in 
the court some time ago, charged with trespass. He, 
with nine other prisoners, was sent to work on the road 
near the Catholic cemetery yesterday morning, but 
evidently did not take kindly to the employment as- 
signed to him, and when officer Taylor, who was in 
charge of the gang, was engaged down the road a little 
way, the prisoner slipped into the bushes and quietly 
sneaked away. 
Shortly afterwards the officer missed the man and 
searched the woods in the vicinity without finding trace 
of him. He immediately rushed to New Augustine 
and telephoned the sheriff, and the latter notified his 
deputies. The bloodhounds, one owned by Mr. Jos. 
T. Pacetti, and the other by the county, were leashed 
and taken to the scene of the incident. When the trail 
was discovered. Deputy Snowden t®ok charge of the 
dogs, following them on foot, while Sheriff Perry, and 
Deputy Sabate drove along the road in a wagon. The 
trail led into the woods, through scrub and forest, 
marsh and creeks. The dogs warmed to the work 
and followed without the slightest difficulty the scent 
of the fleeing prisoner. Again and again the trail left 
the woods and led down the high road. The man, 
with great cunning, kept to the middle of the road in 
the horse path, presumably for the purpose of confus- 
ing dogs by having his trail obliterated by passing 
teams, but the dogs were not fooled, and were close 
behind him when his track led accross the road near 
the Reyes place at Moultrie. On striking into the 
woods again the dogs headed for a creek near Fort 
Payton, and the officers arrived just in time, for the 
man's further progress was blockaded by the creek,' 
and the dogs were almost upon him. He sped for the 
nearest tree, and up he went, while the loud baying 
of the dogs notified the officers that their quarry was 
run to the earth. When the prisoner saw the officers 
he was unable to hide his chagrin, and submitted in 
sullen silence. 
Deputy Snowden has not yet recovered his breath 
after his strenuous ten mile sprint, and the muscles of 
his legs are afflicted with that tired feeling. He be- 
lieves the prisoner is an old hand at the game of hide 
and seek with a pack of bloodhounds, from the skillful 
attempts he made to elude his pursuers. The prisoner 
on his way back told the officers that he had hoped to 
spend his Christmas in the woods, but would not make 
another attempt, as the race for liberty called for too 
much exercise. 
Shine is out with other prisoners to-day working on 
the Moultrie road. 
Sheriff Perry, in conversation with a Record repre- 
sentative relative to the training of bloodhounds, said 
the dogs forgot allegiance and friendship when on the 
trail, and the fugitive had better take refuge in a tree 
or some other secure place. In training the dogs he 
sends some one off on a sprint and when sufficient 
time has elapsed to insure their safety, the dogs are 
turned loose and guided in their work. In remarkably 
short time the sagacious brutes learn what is required 
of them, and will follow the scent without encourage- 
ment. 
On one occasion the negro cook at the jail made a 
wager that the hounds, which he fed every day would 
not molest him if placed on his trail. The wager was 
taken, and the test made. The trail was warm and 
easily followed, and a large bloodhound galloped over 
it at full speed, catching sight of the fugitive as he was 
jumping the jail fence after a long circuit. Instead of 
following the trail further, the dog took a short cut 
through a gate and attempted to cut the man off. The 
darkey sprinted as he never had before, and fled by the 
sheriff, who came to the rescue, escaping the dog by a 
few- feet. With difficulty the brute was beaten under 
control;- he wanted that nigger, and wanted him bad, 
and would have- got him but for the timely arrival 
of the. sheriff. That night when the cook went to the 
yard for wood, the dog made a dash for him, and the 
pificers were^^ compelled -to tie it up before the terrified 
cook dare' ventiare inld the yard. ' ' 
The cook had always fed the dog,' and had every 
reason to believe he was immune from its ferocious 
instincts, but he does not tiiake an.y more vv'agefs to 
'that ©fifept tiow-' ■ " '"' ^ " 
