580 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
[April 15, 1911. 
Indian runner until he reached Panther Gap, a 
narrow defile in the lulls through wh.ch turbu¬ 
lent Kenhuragara Creek winds and falls on its 
way to the valley. 
Behind a thin line of hemlock scrub crown¬ 
ing the chasm’s rim 300 feet above the stream 
the remnants of a once great forest spread over 
the mountain tops. Throughout all that region 
there is no more difficult stream to fish than 
Kenhuragara Creek where it passes through 
Panther Gap, and few' of those who fished the 
Kenhuragara year in and year out attempted to 
penetrate this labyrinth of pitfalls. To Polk its 
obstacles were a flaunting challenge to his skill. 
He adjusted his tackle and making a few r pre¬ 
liminary casts wormed his way through the 
bushes, and wading thigh deep beneath over¬ 
hanging bushes he cast with consummate skill. 
Pot holes and swift currents alternately forced 
him to fish many of the very best pools from 
shore, yet no matter wffiether he crouched be¬ 
hind bouiders or lay prone upon the ground, each 
cast was accurately planned and executed. 1 o 
him it was an art, and he found as much pleas¬ 
ure in forcing the rod to drop the flies in exactls 
the position he judged to be the most advan¬ 
tageous as most fishermen do in the quick dash, 
the swirling water and the sharp struggle that 
sets the blood pounding through the veins. 
A noisy rift yielded two ten-inch trout. Six 
others darted from beneath overhanging banks 
and rested side by side in Polk’s creel. A two- 
pounder, lying alert beneath a mass of drift, 
snatched a dusty miller before it fairly touched 
the water. The fish had every advantage, and 
for fifteen minutes the contest taxed the 
veteran’s ingenuity before he could use the land¬ 
ing net. 
Only one more pool remained to complete the 
chain through the gorge, a wide backwater bay 
formed by the channel cutting close to the rock 
face, and then Panther Gap spreads out into a 
fertile, timbered valley and the Kenhuragara 
again rolls in and out among sunny, cultivated 
fields and fragrant woodlands. 
Well pleased with his day’s sport, Polk w'as 
inclined to fish this last pool and hurry home 
over the mountains, but his muscular body 
clamored for rest and a bit of green sward sur¬ 
rounded by skunk cabbage and violets offered an 
exceptional couch, and loading his pipe afresh 
he stretched out full length and was lulled to 
sleep by the murmuring w r ater. Two house slip¬ 
ped by before he stirred, gazed about and jumped 
to his feet. 
The setting sun reflected its prismatic colors 
in the poo 1 , and Polk, cautiously parting the 
bushes, gazed down at the colors. To him nature 
was supreme proof of God s existence, and from 
her manifold works he sought and found literal 
truths for his spiritual and moral guidance. 
Preoccupied with his study he failed to detect 
a shadowy form glide swiftly up from the depths 
until a trout noisily left the water. For an in¬ 
stant its beautiful body seemed poised in the 
air, then disappeared with a swish of its tail. 
Polk rubbed his eyes as though loath to believe 
his sight. Never had a trout of such propor¬ 
tions been captured in the waters about Rich- 
mondville. Even Old Adam Weller and Deacorf 
“Hi” Pepper, who seldom lost an opportunity 
to boast of certain miraculous catches made in 
the days of long ago when the country was new 
and big trout swarmed in every stream and rill, 
would have hesitated to credit a native trout 
with the proportions of this monster. 
Polk feared that his opportunity had passed, 
and it was only by an effort that he curbed his 
feverish anxiety to cast. He stripped off his 
coat and rolled up his sleeves in anticipation of 
a struggle, then bent on a new leader and flies 
of a larger and lighter pattern in accordance 
with a theory of his own, and from an incon¬ 
spicuous opening sent the flies leaping over the 
water, but the trout obstinately refused to look 
at them. 
fie tried various combinations in which the 
colors of the cowdung and black gnat predomi¬ 
nated and dropped them delicately over the fish 
to no purpose. Then he abanadoned all theories 
and went straight through his book, whipping 
the pool until a dull pain from shoulder blades 
to finger tips forced him to stop. As he stood 
swinging his arm backward and forward to ease 
the cramped muscles, a grasshopper dropped at 
his feet like a good omen. It was not one of 
those gourmandizing, red-legged weaklings that 
swarm over hillside pastures and meadow stub¬ 
bles, but a lusty sun worshipper—one of those 
gaunt, thin-shanked gray-backs with black, 
lemon-bordered wings that spring from) dusty 
roads and blistering rock piles like jack rabbits 
and fly away with the speed of a bird. 
Here was a lure that kindled anew the dimin¬ 
ishing spark of hope in Polk’s breast, and he 
slapped at the grasshopper frantically with his 
hat. It avoided the hat and settled on a twig 
beyond reach, but Polk finally caught it, spread 
its wings and let the bait float gently down 
stream with the current. 
The unexpected temptation proved too strong, 
and the trout rose with a rush and whirled away. 
With only a few yards of line and handicapped 
by the bushes, Polk’s position was not secure. 
By a single move the big trout had gained an 
enormous advantage and was swinging down 
the pool. If the fish had gained the current at 
the outlet, the cast must have snapped had not 
Polk slipped into the pool and crept forward 
until the water was over his shoulders. He 
swept the rod to the right and felt the fish yield 
slowly to the steady pressure. 
Polk met rush after rush, cooly applying every 
atom of drag that the line would stand. He 
forced the trout back and the fight settled down 
to a gruelling contest of endurance. Skimming 
close to the gravel bottom, darting to the right, 
plunging to the left, breaking the surface with 
mighty leaps, whirling and jigging, the fish re¬ 
mained master of the situation. 
Polk’s arms ached under the strain. For half 
an hour the big trout clung desperately to the 
current and deep water, then suddenly bolted into 
a shallow stretch. Polk followed, retrieving a 
little line. The big fish moved slowly to the far 
end of the pool and plowed its nose in the 
gravel. A sharp lift of the rod put a stop to 
this and he raced down stream in a series of 
sidelong skittering leaps, then turned on his side 
and Polk’s hand closed over him. 
Carl Schurz Shafer. 
Illinois Casting Club. 
Chicago, Ill., March 29. —Editor Forest and 
Stream: The April dinner will be held at 
Kuntz-Remmler’s, 303 Wabash avenue, 7 p. m. 
sharp on Saturday, April 22. The question con¬ 
sidered at the meeting held Jan. 16 that a suit¬ 
able token be given to the member who stood 
high in each event, as well as a token for the 
member making the highest average in all of 
the events, requiring an amendment to the con¬ 
stitution, will be taken up for final action at this 
meeting. 
The following suggested amendment to Rule 
S has been given consideration by the executive 
committee and will also be presented for con¬ 
sideration : “To any member making a perfect 
score in any of the bait or fly events, other than 
distance events in this club’s contests in amateur 
team contests, in amateur tournaments of the 
N. A. S. A. C., or in any amateur contests when¬ 
ever the score is credited to this club, will be 
awarded a suitable trophy, the cost of which 
sha.l not exceed $20. The trophy shall be known 
as the ‘perfect score trophy of the Illinois Cast¬ 
ing Club.’ ’’ 
In accordance with authority vested in the 
executive committee at. the January meeting in 
the matter of awarding another degree and em¬ 
blem in bait-casting in scores between 98 and 
99 per cent., and the question of giving mem¬ 
bers who could not attend events on Saturday 
the privilege of casting their score on the day 
(Sunday) following, it is agreed to amend the 
rules covering the subjects as follows: “Amend 
Rule 4, Clause (d) after the words reading ‘98 
per cent, master bait-caster’ by inserting the words 
‘g8}/2 per cent, (senior master) bait-caster.’ ” 
Clause (d) as amended to read: “To each mem¬ 
ber who shall in one season make a general 
average of 95 per cent, or higher in quarter- 
ounce accuracy bait and half-ounce accuracy bait 
shall be awarded one of the following degrees 
and a token emblematic of that degree. Ninety- 
five per cent., proficiency bait-caster; 97 per cent., 
expert bait-caster; 98 per cent., master bait- 
caster ; 98(4 per cent., senior master bait-caster; 
99 per cent., artist bait-caster.” 
Note.—The selection of “senior master” was 
agreed upon after giving the matter thorough 
consideration and deemed the proper designa¬ 
tion for the new degree. 
Amend Rule 8 by the addition of the follow¬ 
ing: 
“A—A re-entry shall be made previous to the 
entry in the regular event. 
“B—No more than two scores in any one 
event shall be cast in one day. 
“C—By notifying the captain before April 15, 
members who are unable to attend contests on 
account of business may cast off their scores, 
conditions permitting, on the days following 
regular contest days.” 
H. D. Willis, Sec’y. 
Catfishes. 
Philadelphia, Pa., March 30 .—Editor Forest 
and Stream: How heavy do catfish get, or what 
is the weight of the largest caught in the United 
States? Thomas Kee. 
[The Mississippi catfish, common to all large 
bodies of water from the Great Lakes to Florida 
and Texas, and one of the largest of the cat- 
fishes, attains a weight of 150 pounds or more. 
These fish are abundant in the Mississippi and 
its largest feeders, and catfish weighing fifty to 
seventy-five pounds are frequently taken, while 
specimens weighing one hundred pounds or more 
are captured occasionally. We have no data as 
to record catfish, but think 200 pounds would be 
a fair estimate.— Editor.] 
