April 8, 1905.] 
FOREST AND STREAM, 
277 
flats in the Town Cove, and was unable to get into deep 
enough water to escape. This was undoubtedly the 
fish mentioned by Professor Goode, but why did he 
give only 112 pounds? At the date of writing this was 
doubtless the largest known striped bass. Since then 
specimens weighing up to 125 pounds have been taken 
in the seines in Albemarle Sound. This last weight, I 
think, we may assume to be the maximum. 
Mr. Smith, the postmaster of Orleans, also sent me 
notes of a striped bass weighing 104 pounds, which was 
taken on the back side of Cape Cod, in 1876. He did 
not state the manner of its capture. 
Many very large striped bass have been taken with 
a hand-line, and larger fish have been caught in that 
manner than with a rod and reel. 
De Voe, in his "Market Assistant," New York, 1867, 
speaks of "An enormous striped bass which was caught 
with a hand-line at Cuttyhonk (sic), near New Bed- 
ford, in the year i860, which weighed 104 pounds." 
Probably the largest striped bass ever taken on rod 
and reel, was the one taken by Mr. W. M. Hughes, of 
South Portsmouth, R. I., on July 11, 1882, at Sachuest 
Point, R. I. Mr. Hughes cleaned his fish on the rocks 
and brought it into Newport, to be weighed in that 
condition. It weighed then 67^ pounds. Its original 
weight undoubtedly was over 75 pounds, but it has to 
stand as a 67 or 68 pound fish. 
The record fish weighed 70 pounds, and was taken 
by the late Mr. William Post, of New York, on July 
5, 1873, at Graves Point, Newport, R. I. 
Mr. Post himself, in speaking of this fish, often told 
me "he was the poorest, thinnest bass he had ever 
seen (the photograph I inclose clearly shows this) ; if 
he had been in good condition he would have gone con- 
On Aug 29, 1880, he caught twelve bass, weighing 
50, 50, 47, 46, 45, 43, 41, 33. 32, 31, 30, 15 pounds; total 
weight, 463 pounds; average, 38J/2 pounds. 
The largest bass ever taken at the West Island Club 
weighed 64 pounds, and was caught in 1877. The Cut- 
tyhunk Club record fish weighed the same, and was 
caught in 1882. 
Pasque Island Club record was 62 pounds, caught in 
1869. 
The Beaver Tail Club, on Conanticut Island, has a 
record bass weighing 68 pounds, caught in 1895. 
The Newport Fishing Club's largest fish weighed 63 
pounds, and was caught in 1880. 
A bass weighing 68 pounds, taken in 1881, is the 
record fish of the Graves Point Club. 
Many large fish were taken off Mr. Winan's stands at 
Brenton Reef Point, Newport, by him and his family 
and friends, but no record of them seems to have been 
kept. I have seen a photograph of a 64-pound fish 
taken by Mr. Winans. 
I am quite sure that in the early days, when there was 
a hotel on West Island, before the club was started, the 
days that Genio C. Scott loved to write about to 
Wilkes' and Porter's Spirit of the Times, striped bass of 
a greater weight than any mentioned, were taken. 
I have been unable to ascertain any facts in regard to 
the catches made at the Squibnocket Club on Martha's 
Vineyard. I would be greatly obliged if any reader 
would put me in possession of any facts regarding the 
records of that club. Daniel B. Fearing. 
Federal Control of Fi^h* 
Editor Forest and Stream: 
On two previous occasions I have felt called upon to 
answer certain objections made by Judge Beaman to the 
bill for the Federal protection of migratory game birds, 
and in to-day's issue of your paper I note Mr. J. B. 
Thompson's analysis of the game and fish bills, and his 
opposition to the vital parts of the same. 
Insomuch as it may be my duty to meet fair and 
well-meant criticism, and any failure to do so might be 
construed as an admission of the soundness of such ob- 
jections, I feel disposed to review Mr. Thompson's 
rather sweeping denial of the plenary power of the 
Government to preserve from destruction the migra- 
tory game and migratory fish of the country, with the 
hope that whatever may be said hereafter by any critic, 
my position will have been made plain to those who 
care to keep in mind what I have said heretofore and 
in this, I trust, final letter. 
While Mr. Thompson says, "Personally I would be 
glad to see the entire matter of protection placed with 
the Federal Government, if laws to that end could be 
effectively administered," he nevertheless proceeds to 
dilate upon the utter inability of our Government to en- 
force such legislation because "the expense of success- 
fully executing such plans as outlined in the bills intro- 
duced by Mr. Shiras for the protection of game and 
fish would be impossible from a merely economic stand- 
point;" and in addition to this, he says the State author- 
ity would grow lax and "the whole subject would re- 
ceive a setback which years of effort would scarcely 
remedy." This is a very gloomy picture, and rather dis- 
couraging to one whose whole desire is to strengthen 
and not demolish the legal barriers between man and 
his prey. 
, the total weight of which exceeds twenty-five pounds, 
is guilty of a misdemeanor." 
The penalty is $20 fine for violation of any of the pro- 
■isions mentioned, or imprisonment in the county jail in 
he county in which the conviction is had for not less 
: tnan ten days. 
The amendment fails to say if the trout of "one pound 
I in weight for sale" shall be dressed or undressed. While 
! the amendment is not all it might have been, yet it is a 
long step in the right direction. 
In my next I shall attempt to note all changes in the 
fish and game laws of the State. The California Anglers' 
Association, whose name betokens its mission, now has 
a membership of nearly fifty, and recently enjoyed a 
pleasant house warming at its new home in the Callaghan 
building, San Francisco. J. D. C. 
In New England, 
Boston, April i. — Editor Forest and Stream: Mr. I. 
0. Converse, the well-known Fitchburg sportsman, writes 
that the Rifle and Gun Club of that city has voted to 
make its president, Dr. Wilbur, a member of the State 
organization. The plan of making the presiding officer 
of the club a member of the Massachusetts Fish and 
Game Protective Association was adopted several years 
ago, at the time Mr. H. A. Estabrook was its president, 
and has been continued. 
As the result of observations made on an extended 
trip north, Mr. Converse says he found the snow so deep 
that no fences were visible, and there are "lots of par- 
tridges all through southern New Hampshire and Ver- 
mont, and deer everywhere." Two woodcock, he says, 
were seen near the city on March 12. From another 
source I hear that near Pownal, Vt., a herd of 32 deer 
has been seen by several persons. 
A party of Massachusetts sportsmen has recently re- 
turned from a trip which combined pickerel fishing and 
rabbit hunting in southern New Hampshire. They were 
entertained by Mr. C. M. Merrill, of Boston, at his lum- 
ber camp at Highland Lake. The lake is ten miles long 
and is 1,700 feet above sea level. Many stockholders in 
the company have cottages on the lake, and they are look- 
ing forward to the opening of the deer season for two 
weeks next fall, as they will be exempt from the license 
tax, although non-residents, by reason of owning prop- 
erty to the value of $500 or more within the State. Hav- 
ing for several years been protected in the counties where 
the lumber' preserve is located, deer have multiplied 
rapidly, and on the northwest side of the lake 27 have 
been yarded all winter, and their paths cross many acres 
of the company's land. On the opposite side of the lake 
six were seen together one day by the rabbit hunters. 
The party secured plenty of pickerel and several rabbits. 
Two members of the party were Mr. Newell D. Atwood, 
of Boston, and Mr. J. C. Todd, of Newburyport. The 
region is a good partridge country, and during the flight 
season there is good woodcock shooting. 
Several Boston trout fishermen departed on Friday for 
their favorite streams on or toward the Cape. J. R. Reed, 
Esq., took the train for Sandwich, and there is hardly a 
doubt that he had trout for his evening meal to-day. The 
season on the Cape is several days earlier than . in the 
suburbs of Boston, and some weeks earlier than in towns 
on our northern border and in the western counties of the 
State. Unfortunately there are now very few of the Cape 
streams open to the public. Several individual lessees 
and owners and some of the clubs that have fishing 
privileges manifest an unselfish disposition and frequently 
extend invitations to the dwellers in the towns as well as 
to their personal friends to fish their brooks. 
The earliest of the Maine lakes where landlocked sal- 
mon are to be had is Sebago, and it is reported that 
while the ice is about two feet thick there now, it is 
quite "spongy," and is liable to be out within a few days. 
It is said that the hatching and planting: of fish in 
Maine waters carried on by the U. S. Commission will be 
on a larger scale this year than ever before, especially in 
the output of sea salmon for the Penobscot River, investi- 
gation having shown that no spawning salmon worth 
mentioning are now found in the headwaters of that 
stream. ' i 
Much interest is taken by sportsmen, hotel proprietors, 
and in. fact by the people generally, in the proposal to 
allow the taking and sale of lobsters between 9 and il 
inches loiig, on which action is expected in the Senate 
next Tuesday. The dealers predict, if such a law is 
passed, that it will prove very destructive to the lobster 
industry. They say there are no ii-inch lobsters left to 
save now and none to speak of ioj4 inches long. Be- 
lieving the present limited supply and consequent high 
prices are due wholly to over-fishing, many of the dealers 
and the State Association are endeavoring to prevent 
any change of the law in the direction proposed. 
Central. 
How Large Do Striped Bass Grow? 
Newport, R. I., March 21. — Editor Forest and Stream: 
In collecting data for a monograph on the striped bass, 
I have endeavored to ascertain correctly the facts in 
answer to the above question. 
Prof. G. Brown Goode, in his "American Fishes," 
copyrighted in 1S87, states explicitly, "The largest on 
record was one weighing 112 pounds, taken at Orleans, 
Mass., in the Town Cove." Writing to the United 
States Fish Commission to ascertain Professor Goode's 
authority for this assertion, I was told in reply, "The 
! Commission can give no additional information in re- 
gard.. to the large fish mentioned by Professor Goode, 
but •thinks that his statement may be accepted without 
question." 
I ■• then wrote for further information to the post- 
master and town clerk of Orleans. They both of them 
replied that after diligent inquiry they had been unable 
to find. any one in Orleans who had ever heard of a 
striped bass "weighing 112 pounds being taken in the' 
Town -.Cove." They both of them, however, sent me 
conclusive proofs of the capture by Mr. George T. 
Smith, of Eastham. Mass., in the Town Cove, some 
forty, years ago (their notes were written in 1903), of 
a striped bass weighing 120 pounds. _ • 
This lish was caught napping by the ebb tide on the 
t , 
STRIPED BASS WEIGHING 10 POUNDS. 
Caught by Mr. Wm. Post, at Graves Pond, R. I., July 5,_ 1873. 
The record bass taken on rod and reel. 
siderably over lOO pounds." This fish, like Mr. Hughes' 
capture, in all probability weighed, when taken from 
the water, some pounds more than the recorded weight. 
Mrs. Post, writing me in regard to her husband's big 
bass, says, 'T remember that it was too large to be 
weighed at Graves Point, and had to be tak?n to town 
for the purpose. The verdict then was that it 'lost 
weight,' as it was also photographed before being 
weighed. After that lapse of time it weighed 70 pounds. 
It was caught about 6 A. M." 
The original photograph was taken by the "Original 
Williams," so-called, of Newport. His gallery has not 
been in existence for many years, but I was informed 
by Mrs. Sharp, who was his assistant, that she remem- 
bered the occurrence perfectl.y, and that the photograph 
was taken about 12 o'clock. 
A fish lying on the rocks for some four or five hours 
on a July morning, and then being carried some three 
miles into town, would surely lose some weight. The 
question is, how much? This bass, as far as I have 
l)een able to ascertain, is the record striped bass taken 
on a rod and reel. There have been several celebrated 
catches of striped bass made in these waters. 
Mr. Seth B. French, of Newport, fishing with the 
late Mr. John Whipple, of New York, at Graves Point, 
on Aug. 27, 1881, took ten fish between 6 and 11 A. M., 
fishing in a heavy sea on a rising tide. The fish weighed 
58, 56, 54, 53, 51, 50, 49, 46, 42, 36 pounds respectively, 
Total weight, 495 pounds; average weight, 491^ pounds. 
This is the best fishing I can find any record of. For a 
single rod I do not think the record of Mr. Isaac Town- 
send, of New York, has ever been excelled. Fishing 
at the Newport Fishing Club, Southwest Point, in 1880, 
he made the following scores. 
Oh Aug. 5, 1880, he took seven before breakfast, 
weighing 51, 49/47, 46, 39, 38, 37 pounds; total weight, 
307 pounds; average, 43 6-7 pounds. 
Cost and Efficieccy of National Game Pfotection. 
Where is there the slightest proof of the_ unbearable 
expense, and where does Mr. Thompson cite any tan- . 
gible reason for the "setback" that would follow the 
Federal prohibition of spring shooting of wildfowl, or 
restrictions placed upon the merciless destruction of 
salmon and shad entering our coastal waters for the 
purpose of reproduction? Now I can well understand 
how a good lawyer, like Mr. Thompson, not in sym- 
pathy perhaps with the recent growth of centralized 
power in our National Government, may cite many 
cases and put up an apparently strong argument against 
governmental control of migratory game and fish ; but 
I am surprised at the above statements, indicating, as 
they do, a lack of confidence both in the efficiency of 
our Government and in the liberality of Congress in 
the proper enforcement of its own statutes. However, 
not a dollar need be spent to enforce these laws if Mr. . 
Thompson thinks we are too poor to spend money for 
such a purpose, for the simple reason that we have 
already a most efficient and well organized National 
Bureau of Biology, created for the protection and prop- 
agation of game, which, with a supplemental act simi- 
lar to the one passed for Alaska authorizing "all U. S. 
marshals, deputy marshals, collectors and deputy col- 
lectors of customs and all officers o£ the revenue cut- 
ters to assist in the enforcement of the act," would 
give us a most elaborate and capable body of game 
protectors; and if to these were added Government 
forest rangers, superintendents of life-saving stations, 
lighthouse keepers and inspectors, Audubon Society 
wardens, backed (if we can be permitted to spend a 
little money) by an energetic, salaried National warden 
appointed for each State, the system of Federal super- 
vision would be fairly complete, without entailing very 
much of an expenditure, considering the attendant 
benefits. In the protection of migratory fish alone 
millions of dollars would be gained anually, so _the 
question of expense from an "economic standpoint" 
can, it seems to me, be dismissed. 
As to the efficiency of such legislation, the fact is 
that it would almost enforce itself, so ready is the aver- 
age individual to respect a national penal statute. 
Counterfeiting, smuggling, illicit distilling, unlicensed 
sales of tobacco and intoxicants, although offering 
great inducements for easy acquisition of wealth, are 
kept at a minimum by a very limited force of secret 
service men. The daily, hourly, infraction of State , 
liquor laws in large municipalities are comparable to 
the lax enforcement of the local game laws in many 
of our States. Local politics, local selfishness and 
local ignorance of real conditions are the great ele- • 
ments in the destruction of valuable (money-producing) 
game and fish.^ Last year I visited Core and Pamlico 
sounds, and was dumbfounded at the flagrant killing of . 
wildfowl, especially that accomplished by the night 
