June 27, 1908.] 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
i0f9 
National Association of Scientific 
Angling Clubs. 
Chicago, Ill., June 18 . —Editor Forest and 
Stream: It has been fully appreciated that the 
work of the N. A. S. A. C. unquestionably 
covers very much more than simply regulating 
tournament casting and promoting interest in 
scientific angling. 
The aims and objects outlined in the consti¬ 
tution of the N. A. S- A. C. show a field of 
effort calculated to greatly benefit the angling 
fraternity and cover conditions long desired by 
the fraternity. As a means to some of these 
ends it has seemed very advisable that a national 
committee on protection and propagation of 
game fishes and legislation in relation to same 
should be established, and my best efforts have 
been directed toward bringing this about. After 
more delays than would seem possible and over 
which I had no control, the organization of such 
a committee has been finally perfected, and it 
consists of the following named gentlemen: E. 
P. Sperry, 1207 Monadnock Block, Chicago, Ill., 
Chairman; Harold G. Henderson, New York 
city; Fred J. Wells, Aurora, Ill.; M. W. Pinck¬ 
ney, Chicago; M. E. Dunckley, Kalamazoo, 
Mich.; Hon. Harry Wamsley, Kansas City; 
Hon. E. B. Belden, Racine, Wis.; T. C. Kierulff, 
San Francisco; Hon. Clark Shipp, Springfield, 
Ill.; John Waddell, Grand Rapids, Mich.; H. C. 
Mullen, Milwaukee, Wis.; Col. J. Girard, Cin¬ 
cinnati, Ohio; Chas. Champion, Newark, N. J.; 
H. Wheeler Perce (ex-officio), Chicago; H. E. 
Rice (ex-officio), Chicago. 
The members of this committee have been 
selected solely with a view to their fitness for 
the work in hand, and it is believed that such 
a strong and efficient body cannot fail to in time 
accomplish much good. They represent the 
varied interests and geographical locations em¬ 
braced in the jurisdiction of the N. A. S. A. C., 
and a careful and concerted effort on the part 
of the members will certainly bring about a 
clearer understanding of conditions and a develop¬ 
ment of methods calculated to improve same. 
The subjects covered by this committee have 
received my very best thought and investiga¬ 
tion. Of necessity this committee will have to 
move slowly and in a conservative manner, gain¬ 
ing points inch by inch as time goes on. It will 
be confronted at all times by conflicting interests 
of commercial and other natures. The efforts 
on the part of these opposing interests must be 
met with diplomatic and carefully considered 
moves. Immediate results of any great magni¬ 
tude cannot be hoped for, but a continuous 
“pegging away” on the part of so able a com¬ 
mittee backed by an organization as strong as 
the N. A. S. A. C. now is cannot fail to pro¬ 
duce from time to time very valuable results. 
Let me suggest that this committee submit a re¬ 
port to the annual business meeting of the N. 
A. S. A. C. in August next that will show it 
is working toward these desired ends. Such 
a report is sure to be of such interest to the 
angling fraternity that all journals devoted to 
sports will be glad to give it wide publicity anil 
thereby establish the fact that this committee 
is of such importance that its deliberations and 
decisions will receive careful consideration from 
all quarters. 
Let me earnestly request and urge that the 
members do not leave the burden of this work 
on the shoulders of the chairman, but that each 
one contribute of his very best abilities toward 
the work. This is expected of you by your 
brother anglers throughout the country who are 
already expecting and almost demanding from 
this National Association that it accomplish 
things along these lines. I will not in this 
notice outline any specific line of action or name 
any particular reforms to be accomplished. Such 
suggestions I may have in this way I will sub¬ 
mit to the chairman in my capacity as a mem¬ 
ber (ex-officio) of the committee. With a cam¬ 
paign of education being made on the part of 
the standard of sportsmanship committee and 
an earnest effort on the part of this protection, 
propagation and legislation committee to pro¬ 
duce actual results in this line, it is sincerely 
hoped and believed that the conditions confront¬ 
ing the angling interests of the United States 
may be very greatly bettered and continue to 
be improved as time goes on. 
H. Wheeler Perce, President. 
Anglers’ Club of New York. 
The first club contest in the series arranged 
for the season was held June 17, after a delay 
of several weeks, due to the fact that a permit 
to rebuild the club’s casting platform, on The 
Pool, in Central Park near the West One 
Hundredth street gate, could not be obtained 
promptly. The new platform is an improve¬ 
ment on the old one, as it is larger, and stands 
just eighteen inches above the normal water 
level instead of the eight or ten inches “free¬ 
board” of the old platform. Contests will be 
held on the second and fourth Wednesdays in 
each month hereafter, until the close of the cast¬ 
ing season in November. The contests will be 
equally divided, fly and bait, distance and ac¬ 
curacy, two events each contest day, commenc¬ 
ing at 3 o’clock sharp. 
The first contest was for single-hand fly-rods, 
handicaps, scratch man giving the others two- 
thirds of the difference, in feet, between his 
record and theirs; the prize a cup: 
This method of handicapping, in order to 
equalize the standing of all members, is severe, 
but it has a good effect. It not only compels 
scratch men to work hard to win over heavy 
odds, but it encourages beginners to practice and 
to improve their casting; for they know that 
while scratch man has to do his best work to 
gain another foot, they may increase several 
feet at any time. 
In the case of Mr. Brotherton, however, the 
penalty is prohibitory. He was formerly one of 
the active members of the San hrancisco Fly- 
Casting Club, and in one of its contests scored 
137 feet. The best he ever did elsewhere was 
120 feet at Chicago. He cast 109 feet in the 
Angler’s Club tournament last year and only 
75 feet at one of its club events. His 120-foot 
score was honestly earned, but all of the big 
scores at San Francisco have been made in the 
steady, strong trade winds that blow there every 
afternoon in summer, and it is safe to say that 
they can never be duplicated anywhere else, 
even in a gale. This is an unfortunate fact. 
Mr. Brotherton’s style of casting is similar 
to that followed by many Western tournament 
casters, but it is neither graceful nor adapted to 
Eastern conditions. In this method the caster 
stands with his right foot at right angles to the 
course and the left foot forward. In retriev¬ 
ing the line the body is turned to the right, the 
right arm is extended as far back as possible, 
and the head is turned to watch the back cast. 
At the proper moment the arm is brought for¬ 
ward with tremendous force, the rod and line 
whistle through the air and a vigorous driving 
snap finishes the cast. Often the contestant is 
seen, poised on one leg, like a crane, with out¬ 
stretched limbs, to prevent falling overboard. 
This is not overhead casting, for at no time is 
the right hand carried as high as the head. It 
is a modification of the ugly English method of 
watching the back cast; in fact, a wind cast. 
Perry D. Frazer 
J. L. Kirk. 
Best 
Allow- 
Total 
Record. 
Cast. 
ance. 
Ft. 1 n. 
.. 104 
101 
101 0 
...88 
85 
io 8 
95 8 
...75 
75 
19 4 
94 4 
...79 
74 
16 8 
90 8 
...92 
80 
8 0 
SS 0 
R. J. Held . 
The salmon event, scheduled for the same 
day, was postponed. 
The records of members, on which handicaps 
are based, are as follows: 
Rainbow Trout in England. 
Two years ago Sir Julius C. Wernher had the 
lake at Luton Hoo Park netted for coarse fish 
and the bed cleaned, says London Daily Mail. 
Eleven thousand rainbow trout were then placed 
in the pool. The lake was again netted recently 
when 1,800 pike, one of which weighed 17 
pounds, were caught. Only nine trout, the sole 
survivors of the 11,000 introduced to the water 
two years before, remained. 
Distance—fly. 
Distance—bait. 
a 
rods. 
T. W. Brotherton. 137 
C. A. Bryan. 
Edward Cave .. „ 
W. J. Ehrich . 92 3 
Perry D. Frazer. 194 
Harry Friedman . 
W. G. Geety....... 
W. R. Grimwood. 90 
R. J. Held. 92 
C. A. Heller.. 
H. G. Henderson. ‘5 
D. T. Kennedy.. 
J. L. Kirk. 
George La Branche. 31 
R. B. Lawrence. 
C. G. Levison... - 
Walter McGuckin. 
Gonzalo Poey .. 
E. B. Rice. 94 
J. D. Smith. -U 
King Smith. ‘J;- 
M. H. Smith... - 
N. S. Smith. o 
Charles Stepath . °1 ° 
E. F. Todd. 
T. D. Whistler- 
W. B. Young. 
Single-hand 5-ounce 15-foot 
G4 7 
60 
rods. 
79 
68 
80 
SO 
88 
84 
‘ii 
71 
84 
87 
79 6 
83 
72 
62 
79 
- 93 6 
*82 
70 
Salmon. 
18-foot 
Salmon. ^6-ounce. ^4-ounce. 2^-ounce. 
108 
116 
101 
91 
10 
11 
8 
89 
116 6 
108 
99 
107 
ioi 
100 
105 
144 
200 2 
171 
171 
124 
123 
205 
104 
120 
165 
162 
173 
124 
i20 6 
175 
78 
166 
200 
140 
74 
104 
88 
128 
109 
83 
161 
92 
104 
96 
142 
97 
150 
145 
190 
198 
1S9 
100 
200 
92 
98 8 
