13, iQOS-l 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
377 
id them perfectly and believe in them, but it v/ould 
lir for me to "trench upon his manor" by writing 
Early Runs of Salmon. 
lis third question I replied that the salmon begin 
le into the rivers on the eastern coast of Nova 
on or before the first of February every year, the 
and Port Medway being the earliest of all, fish 
taken with the fly on Feb. i, which marks the 
ing of the open season for anglers. Why these 
me into the streams which are at the season I 
amed, sealed with ice and the water is very cold, 
ly be conjectured, but by many it is believed that 
If Stream, whose western edge sweeps up outside 
last, has an influence on the movements of the 
As I have already written for Forest and 
I an account of this departure from the usual 
of the fish. I will not devote much time to it here, 
habit is newly acquired and is to remain perma- 
consider that it will prove fortunate for the fish, 
presence of ice prevents the use of nets, weirs, 
id as the streams are then "bank full" there is 
f to prevent the ascent of the salmon to the lakes 
:h they make their summer homes, and in their; 
e secure from poachers, for they will take neither 
r fly, and spearing or netting them would be al- 
npossible. 
e things I wrote to my friend and his reply was 
)ws : "Do these early fish ascend the rivers under 
and if so, for what purpose? It it can be proved 
y number of these early fish pass up stream under 
then I agree with you -that it is a good thing they 
le early and escape the nets, which cannot be set 
le ice has gone out. " The more I learn of the 
's of the salmon the more I am impressed with 
lorance of their life history. But you do not an- 
my question whether j^ou still believe that 
enter Nova Scotia rivers in February and re- 
ntil they spawn in October without ea.ting, from 
> nine months. Because we have not yet discov- 
hat they eat in fresh water, is it not unscientific 
ihat they do not eat at all ? An English writer, Mr. 
m, who is by no means convinced that salmon 
iring their -sojourn in fresh water, thinks they 
e minnow for a wounded fish and dash at it, owing 
impulse which makes most animals attack a 
Do Sea Salmon Feed in Fresh Water? 
e we never find any food in salmon which have 
the river, a considerable length of time, it does 
)ve that they fast continuously*'during their so- 
there, for even if their maws were well packed 
jinnows they might, probably would, be ejected 
he fish was on the line. I have repeatedly exam- 
e stomachs of these fish but never discovered any 
them, nothing being present but a yellowish bile- 
id. But that they do break their long fasts occa- 
? I have proved. 
ne occasion, as I was playing a fish that had been 
river a long time, I noticed that it dropped from 
Jth, as it was struggling at my line, a small fish, 
on being secured proved to be a "parr" that the 
had pouched. This was the only instance of 
character that ever passed under my notice. 
^ ffatic Salmon " 
lost of the rivv.rs the salmon, after the spawning 
is passed, descend to the salt water in which they 
recuperate during the winter months, an abun- 
of their favorite food being always obtainable 
but in some streams they remain in the large deep 
and in the lakes from which they rise, and do not 
1 to the sea until late in the spring; these "kelts" 
t a scanty subsistence by feeding on such small 
smelts, etc., as they can obtain; this is notably the 
East River, which empties into a small bay mid- 
tween the Clyde and Port Medway rivers, 
lat stream trout anglers often capture these kelts 
lit, and this as late even as the close of April and 
ing of May. 
"slinks" are voraciously hungry and come fear- 
to the line, but they give no play whatever and 
bily landed with ordinary stout trout tackle. Of 
they are absolutely unfit for food, and considerate 
return them to the water without injury; but in 
>ne pool and at the same time the kelts are abid- 
re, fresh-run salmon come in and ascend the river 
lake from which it rises. I believe that none of 
celts remain in fresh water later than the middle 
y, and it would seem that, since they return to 
ian at the time when the others are leaving it to 
to their summer homes they do not return for 
■pose of spawning the following autumn, and con- 
:ly the function of procreation with them occurs 
lly only. 
e is no doubt about these peculiarities of East 
ialmcn, and such a thing as a fresh-run fish being 
it later than the end of May is unknown. 
What Becomes of the Fry? 
, since there are bright salmon ascending the 
1 the spring, and black salmon or kelts descending 
e must be ridds on the stream somewhere, and 
must have been cast ; but nowhere in the whole 
of the stream can salmon fry, parr or smelts be 
We cannot for a moment believe that year after 
le fish have not mated and the spawn cast has not 
ertilized, but what has destroyed the young fish 
jatter of very great doubt. The East River is a 
i trout stream, the spotted beauties being found 
hout its whole length, and it is more than possible 
•e young salmon in all stages of their existence fall 
5 to the rapacity of the trout, 
river has no other varieties of fish than trout and 
; a few eels being occasionally found in the 
pools, and during the early spring the smelts as- 
he river for the purpose of spawning, but they do 
nain long after the spawn is cast, and it is reason- 
> suppose that the trout in the absence of other 
upplies prey upon their young cousins. 
: the destruction of young salmon in this river is 
te is evidenced by the fact that a smelt is never, 
t its waters and a grilse is equally unknown, 
This condition of things is quite different from those 
which obtain in other rivers; in the Port Medway, for 
example, the smelts are exceedingly numerous, and hun- 
dreds of them are caught by the Indians for food. Of 
course this is a most wasteful method, but the Indians 
have for years been permitted to catch these young fish 
and no one seems to have sufficient courage to take 
measures which will abrogate this privilege. In the 
Liverpool River, also, there are many smolts, and grilse 
are so abundant that thirteen were taken with a single 
rod last June. ^ 
The Little Alaskan Blackfish. 
A RETURNED huutcr from Alaska was telling a remark- 
a.ble story the other day in my presence regarding the 
little Alaskan blackfish and its habits. What particularly 
arrested my attention was his reference to the fact that 
it was no uncommon thing at all for numbers of this fish 
which had become frozen into a solid mass, to thaw out 
to life again. He gave me so detailed an account of the 
fish that I was easily able to recognize it as the Dallia 
pcctoralis of Bean, which ichthyologically stands alone, 
somewhere near the pike-like fishes, especially the mud- 
minnows, and represents a very primitive type. 
The hunter to whom I have referred, described the 
Alaskan blackfish as the most abundant of all the fishes 
in the fresh and brackish waters of the northern part of 
Alaska, where it is known to the white settlers as "black- 
fish," and forms one of the most important food re- 
sources of the coast region. It is about eight inches long, 
when fully grown, and in color is dusky brown, with 
whitish niottlings. Thanks to its sluggish disposition and 
habit of living in shallow waters in great numbers, it is 
the chief and constant food supply of thousands of per- 
sons. It is found in all the small streams of the low 
grounds, and even in the wet morasses, where at times 
there does not seem to be sufficient water to more than 
moisten the skin of the fish. Here there are generally 
thousands of the little fish. They are to be measured by 
the yard, the mass being as deep as the nature of their 
retreat will permit. A pond only partially thawed out 
by the short Arctic summer will be filled by them. Nearly 
every family has a trap for catching them, and during 
the greater part of the year tons and tons of them are 
captured daily. When taken from the traps the fish are 
immediately put into grass baskets, in which they soon 
freeze into a solid mass, so that when required for food 
or to be given to the dogs for their subsistence, they 
have to be chopped out with an axe or beaten with a 
club to divide them into pieces. Yet it is claimed that 
these fish have such surprising vitality that after remain- 
ing frozen in the baskets for weeks, when brought into 
the house and thawed out, they will become as lively as 
ever. When bolted by the dogs in frozen chunks, it is 
claimed that the warmth of the canine stomach occa- 
sionally wakes up the fish, their movements causing the 
animal great discomfort, and sometimes producing 
vomiting. L. M. Turner is quoted by Jordan and Ever- 
mann as noting one instance in which some of these fish 
were vomited alive by a dog under these conditions. 
E. T. D. Chambers. 
- Pennsylvania Pickerel Propagation* 
Ever since the organization of the Department of 
Fisheries there has been a strong demand for the propa- 
gation of pickerel to replenish numerous mountain lakes 
of northeastern and western Pennsylvania. 
The superintendent of the Wayne county hatchery, 
Nathan _R. Buller, has reported to the Department entire 
success in the venture. There are 15,000,000 eggs at this 
hatchery at the present time hatching and several mil- 
lions of little fish have already emerged from the shell. 
Simultaneously the superintendent of the Corry hatchery, 
William Buller, reports success in hatching grass pike. 
For several years the New York State Fish Commission 
has been propagating maskinonge for planting in Lake 
Chautauqua, but according to the United States Bureau 
of Fisheries, the work of Pennsylvania in propagating 
pickerel and grass pike is the first ever undertaken. While 
all the brook trout fry have not been distributed from the 
trout hatcheries in Pennsylvania, it is certain that the out- 
put this year will reach verj' nearly 8,000,000 of four 
months' old trout. From present indications all records 
made by the Pennsylvania Fish Commission and the 
Pennsylvania Department of Fisheries will be broken 
this year and the outnut is likely to reach an enormous 
proportion. 
During the month of April Pennsylvania wardens made 
fifty-six arrests and secured fifty-two convictions. The 
fines imposed aggregated $1,140, making a record break- 
ing month in the number of arrests. The principal 
offenses were, selling fish out of season, short trout, and 
illegal nets. The arrests were made by fifteen wardens. 
One warden made eighteen arrests. In addition to the 
fifty-six arrests there were nearly a dozen arrests which 
were not decided by the magistrates until after May i. 
Lake Sttnapee Fishing. 
Springfield, Mass., May 3. — Editor Forest and 
Stream: The salmon fishing at Lake Sunapee, N. H., 
has started off well this year. The ice went out of the 
main part of the lake April 25. I went up to the lake 
Friday, April 28, with three friends and on Saturday, 
the 29th, we caught five salmon, one 12 pounds, one 10 
pounds, two 6 pounds each, and one 3 pounds. The 
salmon were all taken with live smelt, fishing from the 
dock, and four were taken on the dock at Blodgett's 
Landing. 
Plenty of smelt bait can be obtained from Mr. Hun- 
toon as long as the weather holds cold, and they can be 
kept in the tank, but as soon as the warm weather comes 
they die in the tank and the fisherman must catch his 
own bait. The steamboats began to run this week and 
will take parties to any part of the lake at reasonable 
prices; the hotel at Blodgett's Landing is open, and sev- 
eral fishermen are already there. I write this for the 
benefit of any of your readers who may wish to do a 
little early fishing at a place that is not far away and 
not too expensive. Many large native square-tail trout 
are being taken by trolling, and the favorite bait is the 
"silver soldier," although they ^re using the phanforn 
minnow and spoon bait§. Geo. H. Graham. 
Bomb Fishing in Brazil. 
In a report on the importation of explosives into 
Brazil, Mr. H. W. Furniss, United States Consul at 
Bahia, writes of the bomb fishing. It appears that the 
dynamiter is as active in Brazil as in many parts of our 
own country: 
"High explosives, detonators and fuses are all imported. 
The sale of high explosives is very limited. Its use, 
which is confined almost entirely to fishing, nearly trebled 
in 1903 as compared with 1902, due chiefly to the reduc- 
tion in price. A case of high explosives containing 500 
cartridges, weighing fifty pounds net, is purchased by the 
retail merchant for $36, fuse at 72 cents for 24 feet, and 
detonators $2.88 per 100 for No. 6 and $1.68 for No. 3. 
Fishing bombs, containing a stick of explosive and a 
detonator, to which is attached from three to five inches - 
of fuse, are prepared from this stock. Such bombs are 
sold at twenty-four cents each, which gives a large profit 
to the retailer. The fishing bombs are used all along the 
coast and even in this harbor. There is a law against 
their use, but violators are seldom apprehended. The 
method consists in lighting the fuse and pitching the 
cartridge into water thought to contain fish, so timing the 
throwing that the bomb will explode when only a couple 
of feet below the surface, where the inquisitive fish will 
have rushed just in time to receive the concussion. I 
have seen great numbers of fish killed at one time by this 
method. _ Accidents through the careless use of high ex- 
plosives in fishing are quite common." 
Grilse. 
Buffalo, N. Y., May i.— Editor Forest and Stream: 
I see in the foot note under "How to Tell a Grilse," April 
29, the following statement: "The male grilse may be 
sexually mature but not the female." 
Dean Sage, in the book "Salmon and Trout," quotes: 
"Proven Facts in the PI istory of the Salmon,'-' from Chol- 
mondeley Pennell, in which he concurs. Following is the 
statement : "The eggs deposited by the female will not 
hatch under any circumstances unless vivified after ex- 
clusion by the milt of the male and, at least up to the 
period of migration, there is no difference whatever in 
fry bred between salmon only, between grilse only, be- 
tween salmon and parr, or between grilse and parr. The 
female parr cannot spawn, but the male parr possesses 
and constantly exercises the power of vivifying salmon 
and grilse eggs." 
Dean Uiige also says that on the Godbout female grilse 
are freqi:ently taken with as well developed spawn as 
salmon at the same time. Dixmont. 
Tarpon at Tampico. 
Kansas City, Mo., May i.~Editor Forest and Stream: 
A letter from my friend, Mr. ' David Bretzfelder, oi 
Tampico, Mexico, informs me that a new English consul 
a that place, Mr. H. W. Wilson, broke the Tampico 
record for large tarpon the first time he went out fishing. 
The fish measured seven feet two inches long, and 
weighed 200 pounds and some ounces. Tampico is be- 
coming quite a famous place. Since I left there quite 
a few celebrities have been trying the sport. Among 
others the Duke and Duchess of Manchester, Lord 
Charles Beresford, Bourke Cockran, the Guinnesses and 
Mr. Charles Gates. J. A. L. Waddell. 
An Odd Catch. 
Ossining, N. Y. — Editor Forest and Stream: While 
a small boy was fishing at Croton-on-Hudson he acci- 
dentally dropped his hook, baited with a worm, between 
the large stones used for protecting the roadbed of the 
New York Central & Hudson River Railroad. The worm 
was immediately seized by an enormous rat, which was 
caught and killed. We cannot hope to equal the exploits 
of our brethren on the Gunnison, who catch bull-bats on 
flies, but we are doing as well as circumstances permit. 
E. F. B. 
Ringed Flies. 
Shell, Big Horn Co., Wyoming.— On April i you pub- 
lished an article entitled "Ringed Flies," which, I sup- 
pose, meant Pennell turned down eye hooks, in which the 
writer says it is only in the last two years the American 
dealers have had them, which is quite a mistake on his 
part. Charles Plath, of New York, filled an order for 
me of about four dozen in 1901, and at the present time 
all the first-class dealers have them. Why they are not 
used more extensively by anglers I cannot understand, as 
they are away ahead of the old-fashioned snelled fly, as 
anyone who has used them can tell you. CP. 
Fish in the Erie Canal. 
The Erie Canal is well stocked in places with fish. 
There were taken from it last autumn (when the waters 
were drawn off) and distributed to nearby waters 3,200 
black bass, 500 white bass, 500 pike and pike perch, zoo 
yellow perch, and 100 miscellaneous fish, or 4,450 in all. 
New York Commissioner. 
Mr. James S. Whipple, of Salamanca, Cattaraugus 
county, has been appointed Commissioner of Forest, Fish 
and Game, in place of Dewitt C. Middleton, whose term 
of office had expired. Mr. Whipple was at the time of 
his appointment clerk of the Senate. 
Quick "Work. 
In Forest and Stream of March 18 appeared for the first time 
the advertisement of the National Waterproof Boot Co. The 
paper was printed March 15, and mailed the 16th. On the 17th 
was written the letter given below, which sufficiently explains 
itself, and should be a strong hint to all advertisers as to the 
advantage to be gained by a description of their goods in 
Forest and Stream: 
"Jamestown, N. Y., March 17, 1905. ' 
"Forest and Stream, New York, N. Y. : 
"Dear Sins — Yesterday at 4 P. M. I received your paper with 
our adv. in, and at the same time got an, inquiry for a catalogue 
from New York City. To-day we have received fifteen letters 
asking for catalogues. Now, we think that remarkably good. We 
of course know that all comes through your paper. Later on when 
our ad. -appears in other papers we will be unable to tell where they 
saw it, as only one letter states that they saw it in Forest and 
Stream. Why would it not be well to add to the advertisement, 
'Please mention Forest and Stream"? Then we would know 
which paper to give credit to. 
"We. will receive our catalogues to-morrow, and will mail yoti 
some.' Besp. yoxtrs, 
"The National Waterproof Boot Cq." 
