476 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
[June 17, 1905. 
Fish Chat. 
aii^jiiij 
BY EDWARD A. SAMUELS. 
Changes and InnovatioLS in the Fishefiest 
I WONDER how many of the good people of Massachu- 
setts reaHze what a valuable publication the Report of 
the Commissioners on Fisheries and Game really is. 
It seems to me that, turning page after page, and not- 
ing the remarkable array of facts which are presented, 
that, as a public document, its rank is very high, and as 
a work of reference and statistical facts it is among the 
foremost , of its class. 
Unfortunately the edition is limited and will soon be 
exhausted; but if arrangements could be made with some 
enterprising publisher by which an edition gotten up in 
good style with cloth bindings, and put on sale I believe 
the enterprise would prove remunerative. 
Among the most interesting facts that I particularly 
note are those concerning the changes in habits of some 
of the fishes, and the methods of their capture. 
The Wandering Squeteague. 
First among these I consider the extension of habitat 
of the squeteague is very remarkable. Who among us 
anglers would five years ago have looked for one of these 
gamy fishes north of Cape Cod Bay, and as for the 
northern part of the Massachusetts coast, why, bless us, 
we would have laughed at the idea of a squeteague being 
taken in those waters. 
I have a pretty good pile of the Massachusetts fisheries 
reports, not so complete as I wish it were, but it does 
not lack many numbers of being complete, and in going 
through these in search of records of the capture of these 
fish in Essex county I do not find any having been re- 
ported except a few scattering ones until 1901, when the 
total catch was 491 pounds. In 1902 the take was but 15 
pounds, which shows that the fish had not made those 
waters a permanent habitat ; but in 1903 they returned m 
such great numbers that the catch in _ Essex county 
waters aggregated 15,967 pounds, and in 1904 it was 
18,738 pounds, which was something remarkable, consid- 
ering that in former years the squeteague was rarely seen 
so far' north. 
The Commissioners, in commenting on this movement 
of the squeteague in their late report, say that: "The 
continued abundance of the weakfish or squeteague on 
the northern coast of this State is one of those unex- 
plainable phenomena of which the migratory species of 
fishes furnish so many examples. How long it may re- 
main plentiful can only be conjectured, and its sudden 
departure, in whole or in part, is one of those events 
which may occur at any time." 
If the squeteague is to remain permanently_ m those 
northern waters the anglers of Boston and vicinity may 
well be congratulated; the possibility of being able to 
take what many consider a glorious game fish at their 
own doors as it were, for Cape Ann is within very easy 
access from the "Hub," ought to gladden their hearts. 
Hitherto their salt water fishing has been rather cur- 
tailed, but with squeteague along the north shore and 
bluefish, which came into Quincy Bay last year, and are 
likely to this year in considerable numbers, the prospect 
of good sport before them seems a bright one. 
In my earlier years bluefish were fairly abundant m 
all the small bays in the nighborhood of Boston; they 
finally disappeared and for many years not one was to 
be found; that they should now return seems almost as 
great a vagary as is this northward ranging of the weak- 
fish. 
Innovations in Methods of Fishing. 
Among the more important of the innovations noted 
in the above-named report is the substitution of motors 
for oars and sails in fishing craft by seiners, trawlers 
and even deep-sea fishermen. 
In treating of this change the Commissioners say, in 
speaking of power-driven dories : "The number of these 
has increased, naphtha dories being substituted for sail- 
boats ; and in this way the fleet of small craft is gradu- 
ally being changed, so that greater effectiveness, larger 
catches and consequently larger earnings are becoming 
more general than formerly. Probably the changes in 
this direction are less in evidence at Cape Cod than else- 
where. At Cape Ann, for instance, Gloucester, Rock- 
port and adjacent coast towns— there is a general adop- 
tion of the power-driven boat for various kinds of fish- 
ing, and a consequent decrease in sailboats. Large power 
dories are peculiarly adapted to the herring fishery which 
is prosecuted extensively on autumn nights by torching. 
Such boats can make immensely ^larger catches than the 
old-fashioned oar-propelled craft." 
Pollock as a Game Fish. 
A year or more ago I had the pleasure of laying before 
my brother anglers in the columns of Forest and Stream 
an account of the pollock, with whose valuable qualities 
as a game fish I had first become acquainted at Eastport, 
Me. These fish were, at that time, very abundant in that 
harlDor and along the "rock-bound coast" for many miles 
south of that town, where they came in pursuit of the 
herrings which were then very abundant there: on these 
the pollock preyed, following them up to the very rocks 
and to the wharf at Eastport. They were also very 
numerous around Grand Manan. 
Elegant, great fish they were, ten, twelve and fifteen 
pounds in weight. I saw a number of them leap from 
the water as I was standing on the wharf, and noting 
their salmon-like contour I imagined that if I could take 
one or more they would prove gamy antagonists to strug- 
gle with. And so with salmon tackle I went out on tjae 
bay and the sport I b^d I ?h^n never forget. 
The story was told in all its details in Forest and 
Stream for Jan. 9, 1904, and I will not attempt to repeat 
it here. That account of the capture of a large pollock 
with rod and reel was, if not the first that had been put 
on record, the earliest I had ever seen. Be it remem- 
bered the incident occurred many years ago, and none 
of us knew as much about fishes as we do now, and I 
felt no little pride in furnishing salt water anglers a 
pointer on possibilities that lay before them to take a 
really grand game fish with salmon tackle, both with the 
fly and bait, and by trolling from a sailboat, which I 
found on that occasion quite exciting sport, the locality 
being the "riffs" just of Grand Manan. 
The world has moved since then, and according to the 
Massachusetts report, pollock fishing in the waters of the 
old Bay State now furnishes anglers most exhilarating 
and enjoyable sport. 
In. treating of it the following is a portion of the ac- 
i- count given: "Last spring, he (ex-Rep. Robert E. Con- 
well, of Provincetown) said, it was interesting to watch 
the fishermen sailing back and forth through the tide 
rips of the race in their power boats and pulling in big 
sea pollock on their troll lines as fast as they could. Sail- 
boats were also used in this fishing to some extent, but 
they were not so well adapted to it as the naphtha dories, 
which, could work back and forth very handily through 
the rips so that no time was lost. A little beyond 
the Race Point lighthouse the rips are reached and 
there are the favorite feeding grounds of the pollock in 
spring. Then the lines are put out, and back and forth 
the boat sails, an effort being made to keep where the 
fish are most plentiful. As is well known, the pollock is 
active and gamy, and when it is biting freely the capture 
of it in this manner necessitates lively work, for it is 
haul and heave as rapidly as possible. To pull in hun- 
dreds of fish as big and active as large salmon 
gives an amount of sport not easily equalled elsewhere. 
It is, perhaps, unnecessary to invite attention to the 
amount of sport to be derived by the angler from fishing 
for pollock with rod and reel, when they are playing in 
the rips in spring. It is gratifying at least to know that 
such an excellent opportunity for satisfactory sport in 
fishing is available on our coast, and within easy reach 
of the many anglers who are resident in large cities." 
Unfortunately for the pollock its value as a commer- 
cial fish is becoming every year more apparent, and the 
pursuit of it is being pressed more and more keenly, and 
abundant though it is its numbers will from now on les- 
sen very rapidly in consequence of the engines of destruc- 
tion which are being brought against it. 
If it were not the habit of this fish to travel in schools 
its chances for escape from some of the methods pur- 
sued in its capture would be vastly greater than they now 
are. 
Innovations. 
Of course no matter whether it travels singly or in 
schools it would be captured by the pounds, seines, etc., 
if it ventured near the shore, but it is now followed out 
to the deep water, and when a school is discovered im- 
mense seines are run out after the manner in which 
mackerel seining is done, and so effectually is the school 
surrounded hardly a fish escapes. 
I understand there are several of the Massachusetts 
fleet now being fitted out for seining pollock, and a large 
and well equipped schooner is now ready at Lockport, 
N. S.; to carry on operations on that line. 
It is much to be regretted that just as we have found 
what proves to be an important addition to our game 
fishes there is a likelihood of its numbers being very 
greatly diminished in the near future. Some idea of the 
increased destruction of the pollock may be found by 
comparing the takes of 1904 with those of preceding 
years. 
In 1901 the total catch of these fishes in Massachu- 
setts was 1,092,222 pounds; in 1902 it was 1,149,416 
pounds, and in 1904 it r^eached the great total of 2,238,900 
pounds, and as the numbers taken in the waters of that 
State were but a small portion of the immense aggregate 
that was taken during the year from the latitude of New 
York to the Gulf of St. Lawrence, it will be seen that the 
inroads made upon its ranks all along the northern coast 
are very great. 
I have not by me the record of the 1904 catch of pol- 
lock in the waters of the maritime province of Canada, 
but in 1903 it reached the immense total of 9,940,000 
pounds. The procreative powers of this fish are very 
great, and they needs must be to stand the enormous 
drain that is annually made. • 
Sale of the Horse Mackerel for Food. 
Among the other interesting . facts mentioned in the re- 
port is that relating to -the sale of the flesh of the horse 
mackerel for food. In speaking of this the Commis- 
sioners said : 
"In view of the fact that it is not so long ago that the 
horse mackerel was looked upon as unfit for food, it is 
somewhat gratifying to be informed that two medium- 
sized fish of this species which were taken on June 25, 
1903, in the Cape Cod weirs and shipped to New York 
were sold for $43.50 — an indication of the position which 
this species now occupies in the food-fish market." 
That this scourge of the seas can be turned to account 
as food is something to offset the injuries it inflicts on 
other valuable species. _ 
Last season it was tinusually abundant ; its rapacity is 
enormous, the numbers of other fish it destroys is beyond 
computation. As is well . known, "this huge fish is a 
lightning swimmer and -witli its enormous capacity and 
voracious appetite is never satisfied and v(ill clean up a 
good part of p, tne^i^m-sized school of piaclierel at ^ 
feeding," 
Salmon Taken in Trawls. 
A fine salmon weighing from 20 to 25 pounds wa'i 
taken on a trawl on the Western Banks early in the pfeSj 
ent month (May). This is the third instance of the cap^ ; 
ture of one of these fish by this means that has come t\ 
my knowledge; this incident shows what a great wans 
derer the salmon really is. The fish was exhibited as i; 
curiosity in Halifax, none of the deep-sea fishermen 0; 
Nova Scotia ever having heard of a similar occurrence. 
Salmon in the East River, N. S, 
In a recent Communication in Forest and Sweam 
stated that neither parr nor smolt are ever found in tfe 
East River. I have within a few days been informed b;; 
a gentleman who is thoroughly familiar with the uppe;' 
waters of the river that smolt are often taken in thos'i 
distant pools on light trout tackle, they coming eagerly te 
the artificial fly. If there are smolt there must, of course 
be parr. I write this to correct an error which maif 
prove misleading in the future. 
Singularly enough, however, although there are smolj 
in considerable numbers, they do not seem to descend U 
salt water, for a grilse, so far as I can learn, is neve! 
seen in that stream. This is true also of the Liverpod 
River in the upper waters of which smolt are very abuh 
dant, but a grilse nor salmon has ever been taken in 
above the Indian Gardens on Lake Rosignol. 
The Idettity of the Grilse. 
And right here I wish to reply to an inquiry latelj 
printed in Forest and Stream concerning the identity 0! 
rather characteristics of the grilse, and in doing so 
hope I may be pardoned if I make a short extract frotii 
"With Fly-Rod and Camera" : "Grilse are young salmor 
but just how old I am in doubt. Probably a 4-poun( 
grilse is three years of age, but authorities differ on thi; 
point. The smolt descends to the sea, probably when i 
is from eighteen months to two years old, but nothini 
further of its movements seems to be known, until i^ 
return to the river as a grilse. They do not pass thi 
interval in the estuaries and bays, for I have made spe 
cial inquiry and could never learn of one having beei 
taken in any of the numerous smelt nets during the win 
ter; they seem to retire to deep water, probably far fron 
the coast. When they are about 3>4 pounds in weigh 
they return to the rivers, and they are then universall; 
known as grilse. The most curious fact is they are al 
male fish. Thousands have been taken in our rivers, bu 
there is no record of a female. The males probably ma 
ture earlier than the females, for they all contain sperm.: 
I have for many years given this matter considerab^ 
thought, and after consulting with many anglers an 
ichthyologists I have come to the conclusion that th 
female does not return to the stream from whence sh 
came until she reaches maturity ; she does not come bad 
until her ripening ova prompt her to seek a prope| 
spawning locality. 
Fish and Fishing. 
Canadian Trout Fishing. 
It was thought that trout fishing in the country norfl 
of Quebec must have been at its best more than a weell 
ago, but from all accounts it has been steadily improyinj 
ever since, and each returning party of anglers bring 
better reports than the one before it. 
Since my last communication appeared in F.orest ani 
Stream Messrs. Palmer, G. M. Fairchild, Jr., and other 
have enjoyed splendid sport oh the limits of the TourilI| 
Fish and Game Club, where the Count and Countess o 
Minto did so well last autumn. Mr. J. C. McLimont ha 
been very successful on Lake St. Joseph, while Lake Ed 
ward is more than maintaining its old-tirne record for bij 
fish, several over 5 pounds in weight having been alread; 
reported this year. 
Speckled trout weighing from 3 to 4 pounds each wer 
taken during the last few days of May, on the fly, in botl 
the lakes of the Stadacona and the Laurentides clubs, an( 
also in the Ouiatchouan River. Dr. Porter, of Bridgepor 
has been enjoying himself upon his new club waters, an; 
Mr. A. W. Hooper, of Boston, is at the club house of th 
Nonamtun Fish and Game Club at Lac des Commissures 
preparatory to his salmon fishing, which he will again d(| 
in company with Mr. Walter M. Brackett, of Boston, 01 
the Ste. Marguerite. 
Some extraordinary fishing has already been had by th. 
members of the Metabetchouan Fish and Game Club, 
Kiskisink. The trout are rising there as freely as a 
other localities reached by way of the Quebec and Lakis 
St. John country, and in addition to their trout fishing; 
some of the members of the club have been very success'; 
ful in fishing for the. dore or pike-perch this spring 
some of the finest specimens of their skill havinjl 
weighed from 10 to. 12 pounds each, which is about th« 
record in weight for these waters, though I have had then} 
rise to my flies in Lac des Aigles very nearly as large. 
Netting in Lake St. John. 
Great indignation has been caused among anglers b;! 
the discovery that the netting of ouananiche has been re- 
sorted to by some of the fishermen who have licenses foi 
taking coarse fish out of Lake St. John. A large seizuri 
of these fish has recently been made here by an officer o; 
the Sportsmen's Fish and Game Protective Association; 
and there is reason to hope that the offending parties ma; 
lose their license altogether. 
In the rheantime it has been found that the pike-perc 
taken in these people's nets were being shipped to the Nev- 
York market. Some of the authorities of the State havi 
been notified of this is^^t, and no doqbt th^t future ship; 
