December, 1917 
FOREST 
AND STREAM 
599 
MR. LANSING IN FISHING TOGS 
IN COMMON WITH MANY OTHER NOTED MEN, 
HE ENJOYS THE GENTLE ART OF ANGLING 
windrows of Menhaden lying on the beach 
where they had been driven by the vicious 
onslaught of the Bluefish. 
M UCH has been said and written of 
the enormous slaughter daily of 
other fish by these brigands; while 
it must always remain largely conjecture, 
could the exact facts be known it would be 
appalling. Careful observers claim that 
each Bluefish will consume more than its 
own .weight in fish each day. Compute the 
hordes that are in our waters and then 
multiply by one hundred and twenty, the 
average number of days they are with us, 
and the destruction to fish life may be ap¬ 
proximated. As a convincing proof of 
their rapacity it is a well attested fact that 
they do not permit the ordinary processes 
of digestion to complete their course; but 
having extracted from their fare the prin¬ 
ciple which they desire, they eject from 
their stomachs the bulk, and at once enter 
upon another crusade of slaughter. This 
fact is so well attested by responsible ob¬ 
servers as to no longer admit of question. 
While they do at times reach well into 
estuary waters when in pursuit of food, 
they never ascend to fresh waters, and as 
a rule the mature fish are but short time 
visitors away from the open sea. 
As a food they have no superior. It has 
been remarked of them that when eating 
Bluefish the flavor of all fish is combined, 
as they are such indiscriminate feeders; 
and truly, once tasted, the flavor is never 
forgotten, as there is no other just the 
same. They always command a good price 
in the market and a ready sale. 
The growth of the Bluefish is most re¬ 
markable and hardly believable by one 
who has never given it study. They ap¬ 
proach our shore in August as fry of the 
season’s hatching of perhaps two ounces 
in weight; they pass out and away in 
October of from a quarter to one-half 
pound in weight. A few years since dur¬ 
ing a severe August storm one of our 
rivers had a sand bar thrown across the 
mouth, completely closing it so no tide 
could ebb or flow. These fingerling Blue¬ 
fish were in the river and were so confined 
until late in November before the sand bar 
was cut away, thus giving them egress to 
the sea. Between August and November 
these same fish grew from small fry to 
fish of more than one pound in weight, 
hundreds of them being taken. This may 
seem a strong statement but is a well con¬ 
firmed fact. According to the U. S. Fish 
Commissioner’s report, the fish which ar¬ 
rive along our coast from southern waters 
in June of from two to three pounds return 
in October weighing six to eight pounds. 
This is seemingly due to the tremendous 
amount of food consumed during their 
summer sojourn with us. 
To the angler the Bluefish is ever an 
object of keen chase, as nothing of scale 
and fin can exceed its fighting abilities. Dr. 
Henshall has through his writings made 
the Black Bass famous as a warrior, and 
there is justice in every word he has ever 
written; but the claim that pound for pound 
the Bass is superior to all others in fight¬ 
ing ability will be challenged by thousands 
who will go on record as testifying to the 
superority of the Bluefish. My personal 
experience has been that while the Black 
Bass is a gloriously game fish, it has no 
claim to being the equal of the Bluefish 
in point of pugnacity. I once was a wit¬ 
ness to a test made by a man of finished 
ability in Black Bass and Mascallonge fish¬ 
ing who was skeptical as to the impossibil¬ 
ity of taking the Bluefish on fresh water 
tackle. He was fortunate enough on the 
first day of his trial to locate a school of 
fish of from three to five pounds in weight. 
The first strike the fish unhooked. The 
second snapped the line, tackle lost—the 
third, being well hooked, smashed his steel 
bait rod before he could get command of 
the situation then parted the line like so 
much pack thread and was gone. In won¬ 
der the man who had conquered the hard 
fighting Mascallonge on the same rod, re¬ 
viewed the situation and in conclusion gave 
his opinion that no man could land one of 
five pounds weight on such tackle. 
T WO methods are successfully em¬ 
ployed by the angler in taking the 
Bluefish; one is by what is known as 
chumming for them in the estuaries of 
rivers and bays as well as out at sea. This 
consists of grinding Menhaden in fine bits 
and casting the same broadcast on the 
water until the oily particles create what 
is termed a slick on the water, which at¬ 
tracts the fish, then using a larger portion 
on the hook cast away from the boat until 
taken by the fish. This is truly good sport 
and well worthy any one’s endeavor. 
Trolling the squid from a boat while in mo¬ 
tion is frequently employed, which often 
gives good results; but the acme of sport 
is to be had by using the rod and reel same 
as is used for Striped Bass. The hook, 
however, should be an S-o Limerick of the 
T HERE is no question these days but 
that war is all that Sherman briefly 
but most pointedly described it, yet 
Robert Lansing, Secretary of State, man¬ 
aged to squeeze in a few days bass fishing 
and incidentally a much needed rest a few 
weeks ago. For many years Mr. Lansing, 
who hails from Watertown, N. Y., has been 
a member of the Fortnightly Club of that 
city, a rather unique organization which 
gets together for two weeks each year and 
spends that period on the Galloup Islands, a 
dozen miles out in Lake Ontario. 
The club numbers about a dozen of 
Watertown’s best known men, fellows who 
enjoy the open and especially when that 
word signifies bass fishing. For a while 
this summer it looked as though Secretary 
Lansing would miss the club’s outing for 
the first time in many a year. But there 
came a momentary let up in the world tan¬ 
gle and without unduly advertising the fact, 
Mr. Lansing quietly slipped out of Wash¬ 
ington and two days later when the snap¬ 
shot was taken on the pebbly shore of the 
Galloups, Mr. Lansing was in his fishing 
togs ready for the first strike. 
Just because a wonderful ending is ex¬ 
pected, it is not amiss to say that Mr. 
Lansing returned with the limit on more 
than one occasion, upholding his enviable 
reputation as an angler, even though the 
fishing in Lake Ontario has been the poor¬ 
est this season in many a year. 
highest quality and ringed, and instead of 
the gut leader a section of piano wire is 
in order as the knife-like jaws of the 
Bluefish can instantly sever the gut. 
The bait should be pieces of Menhaden 
or the small surf Mullet. In using the 
latter the hook should be passed in at the 
mouth, then out at the gill opening, down 
the length of the fish, then passed through 
the body about one inch from the tail. As 
the Bluefish almost invariably strikes at 
the tail of his victim this arrangement 
gives the fisherman a very strong chance 
of hooking his fish. When the strike is 
had, it is of the most pronounced type, and 
in the concluding struggle no play can or¬ 
dinarily be given such as promotes the 
great pleasure of playing the Striped Bass 
and other varieties. A continued and de¬ 
termined action with the reel to regain line 
must be given, and a vigorous snubbing 
with the rod to thwart the antics which 
this fish sets up as soon as hooked, which 
consists of continued thrashing and pound- 
ing together with the most grotesque sum¬ 
mersaults both in the air and water. There 
is but little of cunning displayed in his bat¬ 
tle for liberty, as he depends rather on his 
strength to accomplish that end. 
In the early Autumn months when 
schools break close in shore in pursuit of 
the surf Mullet, resort is frequently had 
to the polished block-tin squid, casting the 
same from the rod. This is most exhil¬ 
arating sport and it requires a set of well 
trained muscles to continue it for any con¬ 
siderable period. Much longer casts can be 
(continued on page 630) 
