method has been accepted from us by 
the Bureau of Fisheries, verified by a 
letter just received by us from them. 
I have submitted our affidavits to the 
Bureau of Fisheries and they have been 
accepted. 
These comments are only in the way 
of reporting - an unusually large fish, 
the largest of its kind so far known, 
for even Jordan and Everman report 
that their largest known fish was near¬ 
ly five hundred pounds, while ours, ac¬ 
cording to calculations, weighed six 
hundred and ninety - three pounds. 
Method, square the girth in inches, mul¬ 
tiply the result by length in inches and 
divide total by eight hundred. 
I would state, in passing, that the 
fish was hoisted with block and tackle 
on the frame at Dixie Pier, and we had 
the fun of seeing a great many per¬ 
sons, men and women, climb the frame 
and pose with our fish. I would like to 
hear some of the statements of those 
who, armed with the photo of them¬ 
selves and fish, went back home and 
described how they had landed old Pro- 
microps Itaira. However, the pictures 
they took will give greater advertising 
to the wonderful fishing in the Florida 
waters. 
Dr. J. Lawn Thompson, 
Washington, D. C. 
OLD SPORTSMEN 
Dear Forest and Stream: 
^GE is no barrier to success with 
the rifle and shotgun in the woods. 
. Some of the most successful sportsmen 
that have entered the woods 
of northern New England 
and the maritime provinces 
have long since passed the 
Oslerizing stage. And yet 
they are able to emerge 
from the woods with tro¬ 
phies which many young 
men and men in the prime 
of life are unable to cap¬ 
ture. 
At eighty-seven, the late 
Isaac Stephenson, of Mari¬ 
nette, Wis., lumberman, 
banker, merchant and erst¬ 
while member of the Wis¬ 
consin Legislature, and tor 
one term a member of the 
United States Senate, killed 
a moose and a deer in the 
New Brunswick woods, but a few miles 
from his birthplace. The late “Uncle 
Ike,” who became famous as the patri¬ 
arch of the United States Senate and 
the donor of a presidential cow, was 
very fond of the New Brunswick woods. 
He made a visit to the East each year 
for the sole purpose of revisiting the 
scenes of his boyhood, and once again 
Page G33 
seeking the moose and deer for which 
the territory is widely known. 
One of the oldest men to make 
annual pilgrimages to the Maine and 
New Brunswick woods is Cyrus Davis, 
of Belleville, Ill., president of a bank 
in Belleville and another in Chicago. 
Mr. Davis makes the long trip yearly 
and never fails to return to Illinois 
with a bull moose and a buck deer. Mr. 
Davis is now nearing his ninetieth 
year, but age has not dimmed his skill 
with the rifle, nor has it marred his 
skill with a shotgun. He is known as 
an excellent marksman when in quest 
of wild ducks, wild geese and par¬ 
tridge. He has left camp early in the 
morning and in less than an hour has 
returned, carrying as many birds as 
he can stagger under. He has kept the 
camp on bird meat for weeks, when big 
game was scarce. 
One of the oldest hunters to visit the 
territory in Maine along the Atlantic 
coast between Penobscot Bay and the 
St. Croix River, is William R. Allen, 
broker, of New York City. Mr. Allen 
is now eighty-two years old. Each year 
for the past thirty-five years he has 
made the two trips into Maine and 
eastern Canada. For the past ten years 
he has confined his attention to Wash¬ 
ington County and Hancock County in 
Maine. In all his hunting expeditions 
he has not failed to capture a bull 
moose and a buck deer. Some of his 
trophies have been recognized as among 
the biggest ever killed in the north 
woods, regardless of state or province. 
For instance, his largest moose weighed 
eleven hundred pounds and had a 
spread from tip to tip of antler across 
the pan of seventy-one inches. 
This gigantic moose w r as brought to 
earth and killed by the venerable Mr. 
Allen in three shots. He .still-tracked 
the moose without aid for seven miles 
through the dense woods and open 
spaces in the thicket. The first shot was 
accurate, striking the moose right over 
the heart. The animal was so power¬ 
ful, the bullet brought him only to his 
knees. Equipped with superhuman 
strength, the big bull staggered througn 
the woods for another half mile before 
Mr. Allan could get within shooting 
radius. The moose, weakening rapidly, 
glared at the aged hunter, and made a 
determined effort to attack the man. 
But two bullets from Mr. Allan’s rifle 
went unerringly into the big animal’s 
body. There was a shiver that shook 
the earth for yards, a swaying of the 
huge form, and a crash to the earth. 
The moose made a final attempt to 
shake off the death weakness but 
eventually collapsed, inert and lifeless. 
Mr. Allan has also a very creditable 
record in bird shooting. In fact bird 
shooting is more in his favor than hunt¬ 
ing the big game such as the bull moose 
and the buck deer. He has waited for 
hours in the early dawn, with the rain 
falling, and exhibited no ill effects fol¬ 
lowing a change of apparel, and the 
warmth of the camp fire, plus a drink 
of hot lemonade. 
If all huntsmen were like Mr. Allan, 
there would be no complaints of hunt¬ 
ing parties starting fires in the woods 
from pipes, cigars and cigarettes. Al¬ 
though an inveterate smoker, he never 
smokes outside of camp when in the 
forests. He has established this prac¬ 
tice after seeing damaging forest fires 
originating in the butt of a cigar, the 
remains of a cigarette and tobacco 
ashes from a pipe. Abstaining from 
his beloved cigars is self-denial, but 
Mr. Allan says his conscience is clear, 
and this is ample recompense for ab¬ 
stention from tobacco for 
about two weeks. 
Donald J. Smith, of Cleve¬ 
land, merchant, has not 
missed a visit to the north 
woods annually, for the 
past ten years. In Mr. 
Smith’s case, he did not be¬ 
come a huntsman until ten 
years ago at the age of 
seventy. For some un¬ 
known reason, he had de¬ 
tested hunting until some¬ 
body recommended hunting 
moose, deer, wild geese, 
wild ducks, partridges and 
other denizens of the woods, 
as a remedy for insomnia. 
He had been a persistent 
sufferer from sleeplessness 
for fifteen years. 
He journeyed to the maritime prov¬ 
inces and after outfitting himself 
joined a hunting party in central New 
Brunswick along the Miramichi River. 
On his first night in the woods he slept 
soundly, for the first night in many 
years. Since the three weeks he spent 
in the woods he has had but minor 
