June, 24, 190S I 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
499 
the rail, and in attempting to hurl something at the 
shark, missed his footing, and he, too, plunged head 
first into those terrible open jaws, and the shark quietly 
swam along about ten feet from the ship, turning his 
eye up as though asking for more. We baited a long 
sharp hook with about ten pounds of pork, and suc- 
ceeded in tolling him into a running bowline, and, with 
the aid of a tackle, soon had him on deck and dis- 
patched, and at once began to cut him open to recover 
the remains, when, imagine our surprise when we found 
both father and son alive. The man had only been in 
a trance; the plunge into the cold water revived him, 
and he was struggling to free himself when his son 
joined him. The boy had a jack-knife in' his pocket, 
and soon had his father at liberty, and when we got to 
them they had righted the grindstone, and were sharp- 
ening a large knife to assist in cutting their way out. 
We reported the facts to the reporter of the New York 
Herald on our arrival, but he told us to tell it to the 
marines, and so it did not get into the papers, although 
we showed him the grindstone to prove it. The ship 
was lost with all hands about a year afterward, commg 
out of San Francisco, and of course her log book was 
lost with her, so I cannot substantiate the truth of this 
story, as I would like to. 
Lake Trout Fishing in Ontario. 
Fishing for the landlocked salmon in the inland waters 
of Ontario is interesting sport. The methods used 
are novel and require skill owing to the depth of water- 
So to 100 feet— in which these fish, ranging from four to 
twenty pounds, abound. The difficulty is overcome by 
the use of copper wire in lieu of silk lines. The copper 
wire is cold drawn and winds easily on the reel. A rod 
with medium stifif dip, about seven feet long, strung pre- 
ferably with agate guides, will be necessary. A punter is 
required, as in playing and landing a fish help is needed 
to keep the boat in proper position. A silk line can be 
used but requires a weight of at least a pound which de- 
tracts from the sport. Owing to the pull of the spoon 
and boat the line must be sufficiently long to reach the 
varying bottom, and a ratio of three to one for every foot 
of depth is usual. Hence, in ninety feet depth 270 feet of 
wire must be out. It is well to provide 500 feet (24 
gauge) in one piece, all of which will wind on a 150-yard 
reel. The wire requires care and the loss of twenty or 
thirty feet is not uncommon from kinking or weight of 
fish, so that a provision such as mentioned is wise; 
whereas, having too short a line would mean changing 
to a new line after such a loss. 
Copper spoons (Hendry 4), Archer spinners strung 
with sisco (herring) or small perch are the usual bait. 
I have caught four or five of these game fish m Sharbot 
Lake in a day, the largest weighing 14^2 pounds. Catches 
in one boat by two men will sometimes fill the box that 
punters have under the middle seat of the boat. This 
box is made of zinc shaped to the boat with wood-formed 
sides. The seat makes the cover under which this box 
will slide, so protecting the fish from sun and keeping 
them till return in the evening. The seats are wide 
enough to carry a comfortable cane-backed chair, so the 
boat, being of fair beam to prevent under tipping, an idea 
can be gained of the size of the box, which is about three 
feet by twenty inches. 
The wire being paid out and near the bottom, strict at- 
tention must be given to a firm grip on the pole and reel. 
A strike is unmistakable, as is also a touch on the rocky 
bottom. If the latter, wire must be let go and the boat 
backed over the spot, the angler meanwhile reeling in. 
With a strike, however, firm hold must be kept till the 
first struggle is over. The fish will come then, according 
to weight, stopping and returning to the bottom to be 
again wound up, this time nearer the surface. Again a 
second struggle, and, if the fish is still hooked, it may be 
seen some feet below the surface. The higher tempera- 
ture and change of pressure now affecting them, they re- 
sist little until right on the surface, when they roll and 
fight viciously. The gaff is now brought into play and we 
3,11 tS-lcc 3. rest 
The usual luck of the beginner is a sudden shock, an 
exclamation, "What was that?" or a minute later, as he 
tries to struggle to his feet, "He is off." 
These fish apparently dash into a shoal of sisco, then- 
natural food, smashing with their tails. This will ac- 
count for the bait we obtain on the surface still ahve and 
sometimes able to evade the punter's watchful eyes In 
the same way the spoon would be struck, making what i 
called "flesh strikes" perceptibly different to the hooking 
in the mouth. One fish, which weighed I2>^ pounds, was 
hooked in the belly. The fight under these circumstances 
was royal from start to finish. He thought it was a bougli 
or broken wire line which moved on the bottom. It 
yielded and came offering great resistance, carrying the 
line over an area of many feet in a transverse direction. 
When brought to the surface it roller many times on the 
line and finally broke the line so that we gave up hope, 
expecting the usual dash for liberty. Instead of this it 
rested, eyeing us about fifteen feet from the boat. I 
yelled to the punter, who pushed the boat nearer \yith two 
or three side strokes of one oar, and after many ineffect- 
ual plunges with the gaff, during which the fish beat the 
water savagely and rolled over and over, I gaffed it m the 
flesh near the tail and dragged it into the boat. The wire, 
some ten feet, which had remained till then around the 
gills, had held it captive, it could not use its gills. As 
illustrating their want of reasoning I will tell another 
episode. ,• • 
I had a smaller fish nearly gaffed when the split ring 
holding the hooks broke and the fish escaped. Our only 
consolation was an estimate of its weight (about 5% 
pounds). The next day a member of our party of four m 
the other boat caught the fish with my hook and half 
split ring. It weighed sH pounds, but insult was added 
to injury when my friend appropriated hook as well as 
"a very fine little gentleman who was at the lake had 
an exciting experience with a deer skull that he_ hooked 
in the eye socket, which gave him many sensations till 
brought to view. The season is not short, good catches 
have been made this' year in July, August, and, I believe, 
in September, for the spawning season is not yet on. 
Bass fishing in and around Sharbot Lake was good, the 
largest I saw caught being 4^ pounds. This is by troll- 
ing with a live shiner on hook and leader without any 
sinker. The fish must have time before striking and must 
not feel the line. They are very gamy, some of the little 
fellows around i to ij^ pounds putting up a great fight, 
breaking as often as three times, springing clear away 
from the water. 
The mid-day meal was prepared by the punters on the 
beautiful islands with which the lake abounds. Fireplaces 
of big stones— and some of these stones have traces of 
gold in them by the way— have been made in different 
spots, and with the fire lit and kettles boiling we were 
soon enjoying better food than we "ever eat in our lives.' 
The Ontario game law is doing good work. No sale 
of these fish being allowed, while tourists can take only 
a two davs' catch away with them on paying a license of 
$5; eight bass and four lake trout constitutes the limit 
per man per day. 
While known as landlocked salmon this fish is not the 
ouananiche of Maine and St. Johns, it is propferly the 
Salvelinus namaycush, the gray or lake trout. 
The Michigan Fish Commission has been planting these 
fish in some of our lakes, but I have not yet been able to 
catch one, and after separate attempts I am wondering if 
their work has been a success. 
The Log of a Sea Angler. 
XI.— The Trip?ctail as a Rod Fish— Experiences with Tar- 
pon— Haming the Seine— Tea Pounder— Hog Fish- 
Lady Fish— Black Grouper, etc. 
BY CHARLES FREDERICK HOLDER, AUTHOR OF "bIG GAME 
Every visitor to Florida who has the curiosity to 
go out to the deep-water fishing grounds, has taken 
the hogfish with a hand-line, and knows but little of the 
gallant courage and fighting qualities of this really fine 
game fish when taken with rod and reel. More than 
once a hogfish so disturbed my equilibrium that I fell 
from the coral head upon which I was standing and 
casting, forcing me to swim and wade ashore. 
It was not far from a spot of this kind that I hooked 
a black grouper, also known as the jewfish, but not 
the typical beast of that name, but a clean cut, gamy 
fish, living mainly in the open, not taking to mud 
holes, at least in my experience — a trick much to the 
liking of the ordinary jewfish of the Gulf. 
I had been casting for hogfish with a large bait, when 
something took the hook and made a straightaway 
rush that took two hundred feet of line in less time 
than it takes to tell it. I could not stop the fish, so 
hailed Chief, who ran the dinghy out just in time for 
me to jump in and save my Hne, as he sculled me after 
the game which he supposed to be a shark. For some 
reason I did not accept the shark theory and refused 
to cut away, as I had caught a glimpse of a ponderous 
black form at the time of the strike. The game took 
us two hundred yards out into the channel, then swept 
around and charged the reef, and upon reaching shal- 
low water, swam down the barrier reef, where I played 
it for nearly an hour in and out, always being towed 
by the powerful fish. At last I won, and it came slowly 
into view, circling the dinghy, a colossus in black. It 
was too large to take aboard, so Chief gaffed it and 
beached it on the reef, from which we later towed it 
in that I might take its measure and obtain some 
black grouper steaks, which Bob said were fit for the 
Gods; but I did not rise to the occasion. To my mind 
big black grouper is dry and tough, though small 
fishes, boiled, are excellent. 
As we rowed home one afternoon after one of these 
fishing days on the edge of the reef, we entered a blue 
cul de sac in the channel, whose blue was so beautiful 
that I never wearied gazing down into it. I have 
crossed many seas, but never remember water 
so blue as this, so intense, so absolutely blue 
and beautiful. I was looking at it when I caught 
sight of a long, rakish fish following the dinghy. 
Long John pronounced it a Bahamian barra- 
cuda, and said that he would show how big a fool it 
was. Seizing the oar, he began to scull while I 
looked over his shoulder, a feat I accomplished^ by 
standing on the seat. He took the grains in his right 
hand, holding the pole across the stern, sculling with 
his left. The fish, at least six feet in length, was 
evidently fascinated, and came within fifteen feet of the 
stern, shooting ahead now and then, first to one side, 
then to the other, all the time coming on with fitful 
dashes, showing its big black eyes, its savage lower 
jaw and powerful body. It was attracted by the pecu- 
liar motion of the oar, and later I succeeded in pro- 
ducing the same result with a v/hite rag on a five-foot 
line. The fish now came within ten feet of the boat, 
then would turn broadside on, showing its entire 
length, its silvery belly and sharp, rakish fins. Long 
John stood like a statue, more like a jurymast than 
ever, sculling slowly, bringing to play mind, hand and 
glance to "conjure" the fish and lead it on and on. 
Suddenly the barracuda dashed ahead to within seven 
or eight feet of the boat, then Long John stopped, 
dropped the oar, and as the game shot along, display- 
ing its entire length, he sent the grains quivering 
into it. The barracr.da half sprang into the air, hurl- 
ing the pole backward, and dashed away with a force 
which soon exhausted the line, towing the dinghy up 
the channel stern first, then out over the reef, where it 
fought fiercely for its life, and only came in after a 
hard struggle on the part of my giant boatman. 
All these men were clever with the 'grains, and it was 
an art to coax a big fish within reaching distance and 
take it in the manner described. I have seen Long 
John take a large barracuda in this way by tossing the 
grains into the air, where it would turn and drop on the 
game, a missile coming out of a clear sky. 
They took turtles in this way, tossing the peg in 
the grain pole high in air, where it would turn at just 
the right angle and drop upon the broad back of the 
animal fifteen feet away. 
The entire movement was a picture of grace. The 
pole was held vertically, the barb upward, the lower 
end, or butt, resting on the two fore fingers, and with 
a motion seemingly entirely inadequate to the flight of 
the grains, the spegj-sman tossed it into the (iir, Up it 
would rise, then turn like an arrow and drop with 
marvelous precision upon the game. 
There was a peculiar fascination about graining_ bar- ■ 
racudas in the channel that claimed me as a willing 
victim, and to scull along trying to delude the big 
game or coax it nearer and nearer, to watch its hesi- 
tation, its cleverness, its evident struggle between bold- 
ness and alarm, were so interesting that I passed much 
time in the strange turquoise blue channels which led 
to no man's land, and which appeared to be the favor- 
ite haunt of . these big fishes. 
The large Bahamian barracuda has an evil reputation 
on the reef, and I met the man who was called "Bar- 
racuda" because he had been maimed by one of these 
fishes. 
I often sculled my dinghy before a big barracuda, 
merely to see how near I could induce it to come, and 
the vision of these long^ slender fishes darting out of 
the gloom is one to be remembered. 
On my last day on this portion of the reef we sailed 
over to Northwest Key, an island by courtesy of the 
wind and current. It was unseen until we almost ran 
on to it, a mere atom of sand several miles north of 
Sand Key. I went ashore in the dinghy and found the 
key so small that I could almost jump across in any 
direction, yet some grasses grew here, and in the 
center was a single egg of a tern that probably had 
just time to hatch before the island was swept away 
by the first norther of the season. 
The sun is high and hot, and "cats' paws"_run and 
glide over the surface of the gulf. They rapidly fuse, 
the wind freshens, and slacking off the sheet, we bear 
away to the east and watch the outer reef sink into 
the deep bank of vermilion clouds over the edge of the 
world. 
Newfoundland Fishing. 
Editor Forest and Stream: 
Salmon and sea trout fishing have commenced on 
the West Coast. Some visitors have already arrived, 
and more are expected. Among others fishing at pres- 
ent are J. C. Price, Kent, Eng.; Mr. and Mrs. Wadner 
and Miss Rankin, Boston; Sir Bryan and Lady Leigh- 
ton; Messrs. Wilson, Woodward and Huntress, Eng- 
land.; Donald Keith and Son, Halifax; John C. Dal- 
lum. Dr. Norris, Philadelphia; R. Edwards, F. Vinburg, 
Baltimore. Many more are expected during the next 
few weeks. The fishing is good, and there is room 
enough for all, as the rivers and lakes are innumerable. 
The first reports from the rivers have just come to 
hand,, and I send you a copy of one that came in yester- 
day. The weather is pleasant, though the rivers are 
not yet at their best. There is a goodly number of 
visitors enjoying the sport on the various rivers, and 
all appear to be enjoying themselves. 
Sir Bryan and Lady Leighton are reported as having 
had some magnificent fishing during the last few days. 
Mr. Newman caught and sent a 25-pound salmon to 
a friend in this city. It was photographed by Mr. J. 
Vey, at whose studio I saw copies of the picture. It 
was a grand fish. 
One or two of the annexed items would seem to 
argue that some of our sportsmen were "fish hogs." 
It must always be remembered for our people that our 
outlook is very different from that of most other people. 
We are accustomed to see, talk and live in an atmos- 
phere of fish— as we do not reckon them by the pair, 
but by the million, or the hundred quintals. Thus ten 
or twenty dozens of trout to men who have been ac- 
customed to handle fish by the hundred quintals, seem 
a mere bagatelle. Besides, those trouters get off only 
for a day or two for the season, and bring back enough 
then to supply all their neighbors for a day or two. 
Incidentally it will illustrate how plentiful the trout are, 
when these large catches will be equaled and exceeded 
by hundreds of sportsmen during the season. 
W. J. C. 
The reports sent by our correspondent read: 
South Branch. — Three salmon taken yesterday. 
Little River. — Sportsmen camped at Grand River 
caught one salmon yesterday, weighing 36 pounds, and 
another over 30 pounds. 
Topsail. — Trout reported plentiful in all ponds. 
Crabs. — Two salmon caught in Crabbs River yester- 
day. 
Port-aux-Basques. — Fifteen dozen trout caught here 
yesterday by ten persons, from ^ to i pound in weight. 
Gambo. — Reported that Mr. Archibald and another 
man caught couple dozen fine trout in the course of one 
and a half hours, averaging from i to 2 pounds. Also 
party of young ladies and gentlemen secured several 
dozen about same size, up Gambo River. 
Holyrood. — Trout reported plentiful in all ponds; no 
report of salmon. 
Kelligrews.— Plenty of trout in ponds around here; 
few salmon caught in nets at Kelley's Island. 
Mr. Cobb sent a 271/2-pound . salmon, caught at 
Codroy, by yesterday's train, to Mr. H. C. Crawford. 
Messrs. Crawley, Veitch and Dunphy yesterday re- 
turned from a fishing trip at Murphy's Gullies, near 
Holyrood, having secured thirty-four dozen trout, aver- 
aging from 3 to 5 pounds each. 
Messrs. W. Coady, J. Ryan and J. Clarke arrived from 
Beaver Pond, at the head of Big Pond, last evening 
with fifty-one dozen excellent trout taken there for one 
day's fishing. They filled their baskets in three hours — 
the fish were so numerous. 
A Salmon in a Tank. 
An historic fish kept for nine years in captivity by 
Capt. Cooper, of New Westminster, B. C, has recently 
died. It was a sockeye salmon, and was taken from the 
Bon Accord hatchery in 1895, soon after it was hatched. 
It was then placed in a large tank of water in the rear 
of Capt. Cooper's residence, the tank being supplied 
with a natural flow of spring water. No food was ever 
given the fish, and though it apparently got plenty to 
live on, its. growth was stunted. While a perfect sock- 
eye in every respect, it only reached a length of ten 
inches, but was as brisk and lively as any salmon. The 
experiment amply demonsti'atea that fry can be raised 
to any stage in fresh water and may be liberated when 
[)est £^ble to take care of themselves. — Pacific Fisherman, 
