140 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
[Jan. 22, 1910. 
Fox Hunting on the Snow. 
Newfound, W. Va., Jan. 10. — Editor Forest 
and Stream: I will give you an account of a 
very cunning animal, the fox. In company with 
D. M. Halsey, Thos. Buchanan, F. L. and Walter 
Halsey, on the morning of Dec. 25 we proceeded 
to what is called the Byrd Mountain, two miles 
east of Pineville, the county seat of Wyoming 
county. We had a mongrel pack containing 
seven hounds, among which were some very ex¬ 
cellent runners. A trail was soon struck, and 
in a few minutes a gray fox was jumped which 
soon whipped through a stand occupied by D. 
M. Halsey, who got an tmsuccessful shot that 
caused the fox to change locality and took us 
on a good tramp to' the Byrd farm. After a 
chase of about one hour, Thos. Buchanan got a 
shot at long range which was ineffective, and a 
minute later the fox came in view of Walter 
Halsey and myself. I, being in the lead, got 
the two first shots which were well aimed, Mr. 
Halsey following with two shots before the fox 
fell. So ended our first day. 
On the morning of the 24th we went to the 
same place and immediately started another gray 
fox, which was dispatched after a chase of ten 
minutes by Walter Halsey. After considerable 
effort a second trail was struck and a second fox 
jumped, and after a few ineffective shots this 
fox was bagged late in the evening by a success¬ 
ful shot fired by F. L. Halsey. 
The next day being Christmas, no race was 
run. Snow fell all day on the 25th and 26th, 
and on the morning of the 27th the snow was 
about ten inches deep, and we started to the Lee 
Goode place on the north side of Guyandott 
River, about three mi'es distant. We had pre¬ 
viously arranged to divide our forces and also 
our packs, so as to be more apt to strike a trail. 
F. L. Halsey and myself being together, we 
struck a trail at the Booker Short farm. The 
dogs following the trail about one hundred 
yards, a red fox was jumped, and it pushed 
with all dispatch along the road and the top of 
the mountain to and through the Goode place 
and went to hole in the bluffs of the river. The 
snow being deep, progress was slow, hence the 
dogs had left the hole before anyone was up, 
but while we were trying to locate the place a 
second trail was struck, and in -a few minutes 
the fox was jumped, and after a chase of about 
five minutes, was holed. After considerable 
effort and with the use of smoke this last fox 
was driven out and shot. It proved to be a 
very fine red one. 
The next day we returned to the same place 
and struck a trail which was followed a con¬ 
siderable distance and was found to have crossed 
Guyandott River on the ice. The trail, there¬ 
fore, was abandoned. 
The next day we went to Byrd Mountain and 
after quite a tramp we struck a trail which led 
to a hole. We had to abandon him finally, as 
we were unable to drive him out with smoke. 
The weather was bitterly cold the next day 
and we did not go out, but on the following day 
the weather moderating, we went again to Byrd 
Mountain, struck a trail, and the fox was jumped. 
A very exciting chase followed, lasting about 
half an hour, when the fox went to hole, having 
been wounded by Walter Halsey. After some 
effort the dogs got close enough to drive him 
from the hole and five minutes later he was 
brought down by Billy Tilley. 
On our last day the snow was considerably 
crusted on top, a trail was struck and followed 
for a considerable distance, but was finally 
abandoned on account of melting snow. So 
ended our hunt with a bag of five. 
Geo. W. Goode. 
A Fishing Trip in Upper Burma. 
By fishing in India one generally means fish¬ 
ing for mahseer. There are quantities of other 
fish, but I think mahseer are generally looked 
upon as giving most sport, and in addition are 
generally caught in mountain streams amid fine 
scenery. The tackle used is as a rule a sixteen- 
foot salmon rod, a casting reel holding about 
200 yards of line, wire traces and such bait as 
one finds by experience is most satisfactory on 
any particular river. The baits used are various, 
but I should say that the spoon is in most 
use, especially for large fish. The usual prac¬ 
tice is to cast the spoon about thirty or forty 
yards from the shore or boat into the stream 
and let it come round with the current, wind¬ 
ing up gradually. By repeating the procedure 
one tries to fish every bit of likely water one 
can get at. Trolling, although dull work, is also 
practiced a great deal and gives good results, 
but about thirty or forty yards of line should be 
out, and one can troll up and down stream. 
The mahseer, or to give it its proper name, 
Barbus tor, is supposed to run up to over 150 
pounds in weight and 5V2 feet in length, but my 
experience is that such fish want a deal of look¬ 
ing for. One I remember was taken in the Hutty 
River. It weighed 104 pounds, length 5 feet 6 
inches and girth 3 feet 1 inch. The very large 
scales on the body are a distinctive feature as 
are a large head and large mouth, with thick 
coarse lips. The teeth which are in the throat 
are formidable looking things, and they will with 
some scales form interesting mementoes. At the 
corners of the mouth are two thick barbels and 
two smaller ones at the snout, making four in 
all. The color of the fish varies considerably, 
some specimens being a beautiful gold red color 
when caught and others silver. I think the first 
kind give the best sport. The fish is met with 
in nearly all the rivers in Northern India, Assam, 
Upper Burma, also in some of the rivers of 
Madras. 
Being in Burma I made arrangements to fish 
in the district of Myitkyina on the Irrawaddy, 
which when low is 500 yards wide, with a gravel 
bed. About thirty miles to the east is the 
Chinese boundary marked by a line of hills with 
peaks as high as 11,000 feet. Very few supplies 
are to be had here, so that all one’s tinned pro¬ 
visions, tents, etc., must be taken with one. 
Boats are a necessity, so I hired a large country 
boat for the purpose of carrying supplies, and 
also a dugout from which to fish. These boats 
are called “loung” and “peingall'’ respectively, and 
the cost of their hire is twelve and eight annas 
per day (about twelve and eight cents). The 
boatmen, of whom I had five, get one rupee 
(about fifteen cents) a day when propelling the 
boat and eight annas a day when halted, but the 
contract rates stipulate that you must not pay 
them at halted rates for more than three days, 
and if discharged away from their place of hire 
their return journey must be paid for. 
I sent the boats direct to the confluence while 
I proceeded by road with tents and provisions 
for fourteen days with the idea of camping at 
the confluence for a week and then fishing down 
stream to Myitkyina. The road to the con¬ 
fluence was only a track through dense bamboo 
jungle, after the first six or seven miles, but 
the seven mules that were taking us went along 
well enough, and the first night I stayed at 
Watugyi, about twenty miles from the start. The 
next day, as the boats had not passed, I tried 
for a mahseer, but although the water and con¬ 
ditions seemed favorable I did not get an offer. 
The boats turned up that afternoon, and the men 
wanted a rope to pull the “loung” round some 
corners where the waters were very swift at a 
place called Lepe. Here the Burma gold dredg¬ 
ing company have dredges at work, so I was 
able to borrow a rope for my purpose, and the 
boats passed on to the confluence, while I went 
the twelve miles by road. On my arrival I 
found the boats waiting. I put my kit on board, 
crossed the river and encamped in a nice place 
on sand close under the shade of bamboos. The 
position of this camp was chosen as it was in 
British territory, and the Kachins over the 
border were none too quiet. 
The next morning I started at 7 a. m. to try 
my luck. Seated on a box in the center of the 
dugout with three Shan Burman boatmen to 
paddle me, I made for an upstanding rock and 
held on there. After about ten minutes’ casting 
I moved on to another rock, and before long 
rose a fish. I had on a 3l4-inch brass spoon with 
a flying mount of two stout treble hooks and a 
single strand of wire for trace about five feet 
long mounted with a swivel at each end and one 
in the center. The fish ran about eighty yards, 
and after a little while I felt sure I could not 
get him near the boat, as he had all the advan- 
