940 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
[Dec. 12 , 1908. 
Southern California Anglers. 
Los Angeles, Cal., Dec. 1 .—Editor Forest and 
Stream: Notwithstanding the threatening as¬ 
pect of the weather, which in the afternoon cul¬ 
minated in misting rain, and interfered sorely 
with the sporting features of the programme, the 
Southern California Rod and Reel Club on Nov. 
22 brought off its final barbecue and casting tour¬ 
nament for the season. Anaheim Landing, an 
inlet at the mouth of Bolsa Bay, was chosen for 
the function, and the dinner was served in the 
large ball room of the pavilion. 
Thomas McD. Potter and myself, both mem¬ 
bers of the Canvasback Duck Club, whose 
grounds are situated about four miles inland 
from Anaheim Landing, had planned a surprise 
for the anglers and confided our secret only to 
Secretary Ed. Abbott and Treasurer Henry W. 
Coomber, but like good things generally do, 
the fact that roast ducks were in prospect leaked 
out. Whether this advance information alone 
of the remarkably high standard set by the club 
in its previous affairs of the sort was respon¬ 
sible for the unexpectedly large turnout, is food 
for conjecture, but to the satisfaction of all 
concerned enough braved the prospect of rain 
to completely finish the eatables, which proved 
just enough to a portion. 
Originally planned as a clambake and cockle 
feast to supplement the regular lunches of the 
fishermen, the excellent shooting that has been 
enjoyed by the Canvasback members this fall 
suggested the duck scheme, and as the week¬ 
end shooting day is Saturday and the feast oc¬ 
curred Sunday, Messrs. Potter, Hedderly and 
Becker, after making arrangements with the 
officers mentioned, went to their club Friday 
afternoon, and next morning began working for 
the good cause. By dinner time enough birds 
had fallen to assure feeding one hundred hun¬ 
gry men. The first of the northern sprigs and 
spoonbills were in evidence, and in prime, fat 
condition. Fifty prime sprigs and spoonies were 
selected, dressed, split in two, and Sunday morn¬ 
ing roasted in the big oven of the gun club’s 
range by “Chef” Potter and his aides to a 
golden brown. The birds were stood on their 
tails and sandwiched in as close together as 
possible in two big dripping pans, cut up onions, 
garlic, Chili peppers, apples, etc., put on top, 
the whole seasoned and a bit of water put in the 
bottom to start the cooking. One hour and 
three-quarters sufficed to roast them, and it was 
the opinion of the chef that birds thus cooked 
in numbers acquire a flavor and a tender juici¬ 
ness that cannot be attained where a few are 
roasted together. Carefully wrapped in cloth, 
paper, gunnysacks and boxed to retain the heat, 
the birds were loaded into the club's big station 
wagon and hurried over to the beach where they 
were passed to Chief Cook Ed. Winfield. By 
this time Abbott and the others had the cockles 
ready and the following menu was served: 
Steamed Cockles, Melted Butter Sauce, a la Abbott 
Assorted Sandwiches. 
Fried Smelts in Olive Oil, a la Winfield. 
Roast Sprig, a la Potter. 
Spoonbill on the Plalf Shell, a la Hedderly. 
Raspberry Preserve. 
Pumpkin, Apple and Mince Pie. 
Assorted Cake. 
Coffee. Beer. 
Dinner was served about 12130. Late comers 
were served and it was 3 o’clock before the cast¬ 
ing features of the programme were taken up. 
So engrossed were all in the gastronomic part 
of the programme that the coming up of a mist¬ 
ing rain had been unnoticed until word to re¬ 
pair to the casting course was passed. It would 
have been as well had this part been postponed, 
but there was a split bamboo rod up, and a 
line for trophies. The course was covered with 
finely drifted sand, the lines promptly became 
soaked and picked up this sand after the first 
cast, paying out poorly. The only record broken 
was that for backlashes and bobbles. Never 
have I seen such a comedy of error at a bait¬ 
casting tournament. After Recorder Morse had 
wrestled with his statistics, he finally announced 
that Sherman Baker had proved himself the 
least bad in average, while Lafayette Streeter, 
in the special longest cast for the line, had put 
in one throw of near fifty yards. Usually it 
takes better than a 200 foot average to get any¬ 
thing in the single-handed 2j^-ounce competi¬ 
tion, but not last time. 
Owing to the lateness of the season few 
fished, but those who did succeeded in landing 
fair messes of fish. The affair was so success¬ 
ful that another of the same sort has been 
broached for some time in January, possibly 
at the same place. Edwin L. Hedderly. 
New York State Fish Hatcheries. 
In his annual report to the Forest, Fish and 
Game Commissioner for 1907, Deputy Commis¬ 
sioner J. D. Lawrence says in part: 
To the many improvements, made possible by 
the increased appropriations secured on your 
recommendation, must be laid the marked and 
continued increase in the efficiency of the State 
fish hatcheries. Such improvements have been 
made necessary by the continuous and steady 
growth in our population, and they should be 
kept up until the State’s property, devoted to 
the propagation of fish, has been advanced to 
its highest efficiency. The effective work done 
by the many incorporated clubs for the protec¬ 
tion of fish, undoubtedly has aided materially 
in the result which we have secured. It is, how¬ 
ever, apparent that the hatcheries must produce 
the fish necessary to stock the lakes and streams 
of the State, in order to meet the demands made 
upon them which are yearly increasing. Much 
desirable work remains to be done in and about 
the hatcheries, and this work will be done if the 
necessary funds are forthcoming. I am satisfied 
that if committees of the Legislature would visit 
the State hatcheries, as I recommended a year 
ago, they would easily see that the work done 
annually far exceeds the cost incurred, and that 
the money appropriated for this purpose is spent 
to the best possible advantage. 
It seems to me that, from a business stand¬ 
point, there can be no better investment made 
than that which provides funds for the purpose 
of supplying and keeping up the supply of fish 
in our inland waters. Your own estimates of 
the value of the fish supplied by these waters 
to the people for food is sufficiently convincing 
to anyone who studies this subject. In addition 
to the money value of the food product, there 
is to be considered, when figuring on the returns 
from the investment made, the money spent by 
sportsmen who yearly seek the scenes of their 
favorite pastime and whose liberal disbursements 
for travel, hotels, guides and equipment amounts 
to large sums annually. 
In accordance with the plan adopted, improve¬ 
ments have been made to each of the hatcheries 
with a view to enlarging iheir productive capa¬ 
city. The question of increased water supply 
has been considered and the necessary water has 
been furnished. 
As a rule, highly satisfactory reports were 
received by the commission from every section 
of the State where commercial or game fisher¬ 
men operated. All the larger lakes appear to 
have furnished increased supplies of food and 
game fish, and the smaller lakes and streams 
were no less satisfactory. The usual complaint 
was, however, received from Chautauqua Lake 
where, in spite of the careful attention given to 
maskalonge propagation and planting by the 
commission, the fishing for this species of fish 
seems to be less productive each year. The fish 
caught seem to be running smaller than usual, and 
much less than the usual number is taken annually. 
It is to be regretted that the fishermen do not 
take sufficient interest in their favorite sport to 
advise the commission each year as to the con¬ 
ditions which prevail in the various inland 
waters. If this were done we should have much 
more reliable statistics on which to do work 
when preparing our statements as to the condi¬ 
tions prevalent in different parts of the State. 
The United States Commission has continued 
its stocking of waters in this State with various 
varieties of fish on the request of citizens in¬ 
terested in stocking our inland waters. If we 
could receive a reasonably correct report from 
the hook and line fishermen, as well as from the 
net fishermen, much better work could be done, 
because we would have reasonably accurate in¬ 
formation on which to predicate our operations. 
The limited funds at the command of the com¬ 
mission will not permit of any special effort to 
collect such statistics. If the fishermen them¬ 
selves would furnish the commission with the 
information that is desired, it would be possible 
in many cases to give much more prompt atten¬ 
tion to waters that need it. 
During the past season we have been able to 
fill satisfactorily many more applications for fish 
than usual, and for an increased number of 
fish to each application. We received 2,798* ap¬ 
plications and rejected but fourteen, chiefly be¬ 
cause they called for fish which we could not 
furnish. We filled a total of 2,784 for all kinds 
of fish. In 1906 we received 2,591 applications 
and filled 2,424. In 1895 we received 2,216 appli¬ 
cations and filled 2,021. The steady increase in 
the demand for the products of the State hatch¬ 
eries speaks for itself, and there is not likely 
to be any falling off in the demand. On the 
contrary, it is bound to increase, and in order 
to meet it we must continue to push the hatch¬ 
eries to their utmost capacity and to enlarge 
that capacity wherever occasion requires. Our 
hatcheries give the people an actual and readily 
apparent return for the money invested, and it 
is my belief that no taxpayer conversant with 
the facts will ever object to the cost of main¬ 
taining them and increasing their productiveness. 
The trout supply for our brooks is never likely 
to be neglected, and we have made marked in¬ 
creases in the propagation of the larger food 
fish for our more extensive bodies of water. 
The smaller ponds now seem to require their 
share of our attention. 
