78 
FOREST AND STREAM 
July 20, 1912 
now being enjoyed, trout, striped bass and black 
bass being in evidence there. Bass fishing there 
is reported to be much better than it is in most 
of the fishing grounds on the lower Sacramento 
River. A heavy run of striped bass occurred 
recently on the Russian River, and the sloughs 
near San Francisco have not been receiving much 
attention of late. 
A movement is on foot in the lower part of 
the San Joaquin Valley to organize the San 
Joaquin Valley Game Protective Association, and 
A. D. Ferguson, of Fresno, Deputy Game War¬ 
den in charge in that section, has promised his 
co-operation in making the organization a suc¬ 
cess. It is planned to map all the mountain 
trout streams and to keep on hand data as to 
their condition as well as to plan a system 
through which they may be kept replenished 
with fry. 
Deputy J. L. Bundock, of the California Fish 
and Game Commission, recently arrested A 1 Mc¬ 
Cormick and Frank Peterson, near Giant, for 
fishing for bass with a net of illegal sized mesh. 
Golden Gate. 
Landlocked Salmon in Lake George. 
Albany, N. Y., July 9.— Editor Forest and 
Stream: Doubtless genuine anglers will be in¬ 
terested to know that the experiment of placing 
the landlocked salmon in Lake George is a suc¬ 
cess. Large specimens are being caught yearly 
by those trolling deep for lake trout, and it 
now remains for experts who know how to fish 
for the ouananiche to go to this beautiful body 
of water properly equipped and get what they 
fish for. 
The late A. N. Cheney, when State fish- 
culturist, planted landlocked salmon in Lake 
George a dozen or more years ago, and while 
secretary of the Forest, Fish and Game Com¬ 
mission, I had the work continued. Dr. Bean 
has since kept it up. The distribution of ouan¬ 
aniche was begun by the old commission in 
1903, but the first regular plant was made in 
Lake George in 1907, when 1,200 fingerlings 
were put into the water. Since then the record 
is as follows: 1908, fingerlings, 18.886; 1909. 
fingerlings, 28,000; 1910, fingerlings, 23,000; and 
I have just been assured that a plant of about 
10,000 fingerlings was made there during the 
present week. There does not seem to have 
been any plant made in 1911. The eggs from 
which these fingerlings are hatched are furn¬ 
ished by the United States Commission, and 
the fish are reared by the State at its Old Forge 
hatchery. 
Unfortunately, it does not seem possible to 
secure records of the landlocked salmon that 
are caught, although frequently an angler is 
found who tells his story for the benefit of 
others. Such an one is Dr. D. F. McGillicuddy, 
of Glens Falls, whose 8H-pound catch is shown 
in the picture inclosed. It was caught the latter 
part of May, and this is what the doctor says 
about his experience: “I hooked my fish on 
May 25, at about 5:30 p. m., about a mile south 
of Dome Island, on the north side of fixed 
Pine Point Shoal, where the water is about 80 
feet deep. Had on a small brook sucker for 
bait and about 150 feet of line out without lead. 
The lake was quite rough and a strong wind 
was blowing. When first hooked the fish 
jumped about six feet out of water and it took 
me fully twenty minutes’ hard work to land him. 
At two different times when brought near the 
boat within reach of the net he jumped several 
feet out of water.” Dr. McGillicuddy wanted 
very much to know just what the fish was feed¬ 
ing on, but says that the taxidermist to whom 
he sent it to be mounted told him he “found the 
stomach entirely empty,” but that he found “a 
liberal quantity of spawn.” 
With one exception, this is the only ac¬ 
count we have of the way in which the ouan¬ 
aniche have been caught in Lake George or 
their manner of acting when hooked. The 
other was given to me in 1907 by S. PI. Harris, 
one of the best known fishermen at the lake, 
who- had just caught a 12^-pound specimen, a 
photograph of which was shown in the commis¬ 
sion’s report of that year. Harris said: “I 
DR. D. F. M’GILUCUDDY AND HIS Sj/pPOUND SALMON. 
caught my landlocked salmon near Victoria 
Lodge on a hand line. I was running about 
250 feet of line with a frost fish for bait on a 
gang. The fish struck hard and then made a 
rush that took about 100 feet more line. When 
I stopped him finally, I thought I had lost him 
and reeled in about seventy-five feet of line be¬ 
fore I felt him again. Pie acted like that for 
fully three-quarters of an hour before I man¬ 
aged to get him near enough to the boat to see 
him. I had about a pound sinker on and was 
doing bottom fishing when he struck. When he 
came to the surface he jumped from four to 
six feet in the air several times before I got 
him close enough to gaff him.” 
These are stories to stir the blood of any 
angler, and I hope to see them repeated, as I am 
certain they can be if only still-fishermen will try 
for the ouananiche in Lake George at the right 
time, properly equipped, and will then send 
pictures of their catch to Forest and Stream 
with an account of the battle, so that all fisher¬ 
men may enjoy it. John D. Whish. 
THE TOP RAIL. 
C. T. Wallace is the champion fisherman 
of the West, but he never uses a seine or hook. 
He catches the fish in his bare hands while be¬ 
low the surface of the water. His home is in 
Macon county, Illinois, and he supports himself 
by this unique method of fishing. Long practice 
has made him expert in locating a fish in hiding 
in the protection of a log, brush or other retreat, 
and once his fingers are locked in the gills, there 
is no escape for his prey. He is always an 
attraction at fish frys, being engaged to make 
a public exhibition of his work, the fish he 
catches being later cooked for the assembled 
company. His record catch was 200 pounds in 
forty minutes. The largest fish he caught with 
his bare hands was a Mississippi catfish that 
weighed thirty-six pounds. This fish was cap¬ 
tured in Salt Creek, a small stream of Central 
Illinois. Wallace has carried on his unique occu¬ 
pation for twenty years and is almost as much 
at home in the water as the fish themselves. 
He seldofn goes deeper than eight feet. He has 
become so expert that he can detect the presence 
of a fish by a slight discoloration or movement 
of the water, and has the knack of approaching 
the fish without alarming it. He is also success¬ 
ful in catching turtles and snakes. Efforts are 
being made to perpetuate his work by means of 
moving picture films. 
* * ❖ 
Frank L. Mathis, a thirteen-year-old boy 
of Morton, while fishing off Kelly's beach on the 
Illinois River this week, landed a black bass 
after a desperate struggle lasting a half hour. 
The contest between the boy and fish attracted 
a large, crowd of campers. The fish weighed 
141-2 pounds, the record catch of the season with 
a hook and line. Fishermen say that this is a 
banner year for black bass fishing in the Illinois, 
but it is extremely rare to land one as large as 
the prize catch of young Mathis. The black bass 
season is on at the lake of the Decatur Fishing 
Club, and some fine strings are being caught. 
Phillip Mueller landed one this week which 
weighed four pounds, the largest taken so far 
this season. 
j-c >{c 
Plymouth, Mass., farmers are complaining 
of extensive damage by deer. So tame have the 
animals become from being protected from gun 
and dog that they suffer anybody to come with¬ 
in a few feet of them while feeding. 
Grizzly King. 
All the fish laws of the United States and 
Canada, revised to date and now in force, are 
given in the Game Laws in Brief. See adv. 
