662 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
[April 25, 1908. 
“do you call this fishing with a fly, sir?” 
All old picture from Punch, in tire collection of Russell \Y. Woodward. 
Hundreds of times have I fished for them, but 
it is a pleasure of the past. They are almost ex¬ 
tinct now, l aving been supplanted by the trout, 
which in mam' ways is a hardier fish, and as the 
habits of the grayling lead their young to live 
in open water, the trout soon devour them. 
I have nothing to say against the trout; I 
love to fish for them and usually find myself on 
the stream one or two weeks during the season. 
Rut it does seem too bad that those in charge 
should not have kept at least one stream in 
Michigan free from trout, and so have saved the 
grayling. .As it is, this excellent fish has almost 
ceased to exist in Michigan waters, and I know 
of no way to restore them. Nothing is left to 
those who knew the grayling but to talk of 
the pleasures of the past. It has not been my 
purpose to say more than a word, but I wish 
to remind old anglers of this fine fish of former 
days, and see if some of those who loved him 
may not be willing to write again, that the 
grayling may not be wholly forgotten. 
M. B. 
Fishing in the Northwest. 
Seattle, April 1.— Editor Forest and Stream: 
Little has been heard this spring from Squak 
Slough, which wiggles and twists about twenty- 
one miles to cover a distance of approximately 
fourteen, from Lake Samamish to Lake Wash¬ 
ington. 1 he mystery of what that section has 
in store for the fly-casters will be revealed in a 
few days. 
Near the end of March it looked as though 
the first day of the season would bring good 
water for fly- and bait-fishing. There was not 
enough warmth to melt the snow in the moun¬ 
tains, which would flood the streams and drive 
the trout back into the lakes. The wet weather, 
however, may have some effect on fly-fishing, 
but the salmon egg army should manage to get 
results just the same. 
1 he annual big fish catch on the first day of 
the season may not materialize this year, as 
W. S. Phillips is not in evidence. He always 
had a few whoppers staked out in a pool on 
some branch of the Skykomish, and would come 
home in the evening with his trophy sticking 
out of the door of a freight car. One year he 
landed a rainbow that weighed a trifle over six¬ 
teen pounds, and last year he was somewhat 
disgruntled to think that his big one did not 
weigh more than fourteen pounds. As near as 
can be learned the big trout were taken with a 
small spoon. Special rods are now made for 
this kind of fishing, and unless one is wedded 
to fly-casting it is well worth trying. A good 
many years ago I used to cast the small spoon 
for pickerel and muskellunge in Quebec, and it 
was great sport. Personally I had rather get 
into a squabble with a big ’lunge than the big 
trout. 
Of all the spoon fishermen in western Wash¬ 
ington, W. H. Finck, of Seattle, has developed 
the greatest skill. Anglers who thought they 
knew something about the game have come to 
the conclusion, after one day in his company, 
that he knows kinks they never thought of, and 
when told the secret cannot get the results. Mr. 
Finck has been diligently at work recently get¬ 
ting his tackle ready. He makes his own 
spoons. They vary in size and color. One of 
his best killers is made of dull brass, two single 
hooks being attached directly to the end of the 
spoon. Swivels between the end of the line and 
the spoon prevent the line from twisting. A 
silver spoon which revolves around the hook 
is also a good lure. Mr. Finck has had different 
degrees of success with shell spoons. He has 
just completed several of these and will ex¬ 
periment with them. If they prove as good as 
they look they will be a big addition to his kit. 
There are so many different kinds of trolling 
spoons on the market that it is useless to at¬ 
tempt to discuss their relative merits. Perhaps 
one may venture the suggestion without start¬ 
ing a controversy that a bright spoon goes well 
on a dull day and a dull spoon on a bright day. 
This theory is nothing more than an adapta¬ 
tion of that followed by fly-fishermen. 
As to whether or not it is better to bait the 
hooks of a spoon I shall venture no further re¬ 
mark than to say that my experience in New 
England, parts of Canada, Wisconsin and the 
Pacific Northwest leads me to prefer bait. I 
have also had success with naked hooks. 
It may sound strange, yet it is true that 
the most successful bass trolling I ever had I 
did not use a spoon. A minnow was bent in 
such a way that it whirled. Out of about 
twenty strikes not more than twice did the 
barbs fail to imbed firmly. I was at Terrace 
Park on the St. Lawrence River. Some fellow 
took me out on the river early one morning. 
He knew every inch of the ground. In fixing 
the lines he ran the hook through the mouth 
of the minnow and out of the gills. Then he 
passed the hook over the back, and bringing it 
around, hooked it through the body near the 
caudal fin. In this way the minnow itself be¬ 
came a spinner, and one of the deadliest baits 
I have ever used. In using such tackle it is 
always best to have two' swivels between the 
line and the leader. I had only one and the 
line was badly twisted. 
Portus Baxter. 
Florida Tarpon. 
St. Vincent’s Island, Fla., April n. — Editor 
Forest and Stream: Tarpon are now showing 
themselves in the passes about this island, it 
being considerably earlier than they usually put 
in an appearance, due, no doubt, to the weather 
having been quite warm throughout March. 
They abound in these northern Florida waters 
all summer and some day I predict this vicinity 
will vie with Aransas Pass as a famous re¬ 
sort for tarpon fishermen who now flock to the 
noted Texas pass during July and August in 
quest of the silver king. R. V. Pierce. 
A Correction of Names. 
In the note entitled, “Fishing in California,” 
published on page 597 of Forest and Stream, 
of April 11, an unfortunate typographical error 
made our correspondent call the president of 
the California Anglers’ Association out of his 
name. Mr. James Watt is president of that as¬ 
sociation, though the types said. “President 
Wells.” Mr. Watt is an enthusiastic lover of 
angling. 
Connecticut Trout. 
Milford, Conn., April 20.— Editor Forest and 
Stream: Frank Gillett, one of our Milford 
boys, now living in New Haven, fished one of 
our streams yesterday afternoon (Saturday, 
April 18), catching seven trout, the two largest 
one pound each; the seven would weigh five 
pounds. This is the best catch so far this sea¬ 
son. - F. S. D. 
The series of rodmaking articles printed in 
these columns recently will during the present 
month be published in book form by the Forest 
and Stream Publishing Company. This will be 
Pol. 7 . of Perry D. Frazer’s "The Angler’s 
Workshop,” and will deal with ‘‘Rodmaking for 
Beginners.” The book contains 180 pages and 
besides the working drawings, will be illustrated 
zvith several half-tone plates. Orders may be 
sent at any time, and the book will be sent post¬ 
paid for $1. 
