Oct. 29, 1910.] 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
701 
An emblem different in design from the above 
is given for high score awards in each of the 
several distance bait and fly events. 
The degree buttons will likely be presented at 
the first dinner, in December. 
A. D. Whitby, Sec’y. 
The Effect of Fly-Fishing. 
Saginaw, Mich., Oct. 19. — Editor Forest and 
Stream: The North Branch of the Au Sable 
River is probably one of the greatest trout 
streams in the country as far as fish food is 
concerned. Four years ago we succeeded in hav¬ 
ing a law passed prohibiting fishing on that 
stream except with the artificial fly, and all fish 
under eight inches were to be returned to the 
stream. The bag limit is the same as on other 
Michigan streams—fifty fish per day. Not more 
than fifty fish are to be taken away from the 
stream fcv any one person. However, there is 
nothing in the law that prevents a fisherman 
from shipping home his fish, so that many of 
them when they get fifty send them home by ex¬ 
press and continue the fishing. 
1 have kept a record of the catch for the last 
two years to see whether the stream would stand 
the extraordinary hard fishing that it was re¬ 
ceiving of late. The figures for this year have 
just been completed and are of interest. Of 
course there is more or less guess work, but the 
accounting is not so difficu't as it would be on 
many trout streams. For instance, in Otsego 
county from Crapo Creek up, most of the land 
is owned by Boutell & Robertson, of Saginaw. 
They have a fishing lodge at the old Lombard 
place. They prevent camping on their property, 
but everyone has been welcome to fish any part 
of the stream, provided the State law was 
obeyed. Next is a small stretch of non-resident 
property. Then comes what is known as The 
Ranch, then the Au Sable Forest Farm has 2,200 
acres along the banks of the stream and extend¬ 
ing for nearly seven miles on each side. The 
ownership of this farm rests in three other men 
besides myself. An attempt has been made to 
reforest this land, and a nursery containing from 
two to three million seed ings is regularly main¬ 
tained. Over 650,000 were set out this year in 
permanent settings. Running across the holdings 
of the Au Sable Forest Farm is the right of way 
of the Michigan Central Railway and the little 
town of Lovells which, however, takes up less 
than a half mile of the stream and from thence 
on to Dam 4 the ownership continues. Various 
small spring brooks put into the river and are 
largely used for the planting of fry in the spring. 
At Dam 4 is situated the Au Sab’e Trout and 
Game Club with a fine club house, but from 
there on down to the mouth of the river, twelve 
or fourteen miles of stream, a number of in¬ 
dividuals have erected summer homes or fish¬ 
ing lodges, and one or two clubs have club 
houses. To each of these were furnished blanks 
for the keeping of the season's records. There 
are scarcely any farmers on the stream, and the 
only resident population that does much fishing 
is that of the employes of the small mill at 
Lovells. , 
The record of 1908, the year after the law was 
passed limiting the fishing to the artificial fly 
only, I have no record of the catch, but I am 
certain that the catch was not only less, but not 
as many anglers came there as in 1909. During 
the latter year 18,181 fish were taken; for the 
season 1910, 30,316. Of course the stream is 
fished harder, but it also shows that the fishing 
with the fly has not killed the number of small 
fish that were formerly killed by the bait fisher¬ 
men. With an eight-inch limit I have found 
that it is quite'general to take one hundred fish 
under eight inches to thirty that are eight inches. 
These one hundred that must be returned to the 
stream if taken with the bait hook, a large per¬ 
centage of them would be killed, whereas if taken 
with a fly, very few of them die. I know this 
to be a fact, for in former years when bait¬ 
fishing was permitted, I used to see any number 
of dead fish floating past me, and in my fishing 
last year a dead fish was rare. 
The anglers on the stream have voluntarily 
raised a fund for the employment of the game 
warden. He is on the stream all of the time. 
We have a good man and dynamiting, spearing, 
netting and fishing out of season are things of 
the past. The eight-inch trout now' are as plen¬ 
tiful as the seven-inch used to be when the limit 
was seven inches and bait-fishing was allowed. 
The lower stretches of the river contain rainbow 
trout and very few fontinalis. 
The daily bag limit of fifty is too large. It 
should be fixed at say thirty, and I believe then 
we would have an ideal law for the protection 
of this stream, and that there would be fishing 
for everyone just so long as it is liberally stocked 
each year. I think the stocking has not been 
as liberally done as 1 believe it should be, only 
about 150.000 fry being planted each year. 
W. B. Mershon. 
Salpidae Visit Nova Scotia Waters. 
Consul-General James W. Ragsdale, of Hali¬ 
fax, reports that a species of sea organism, some¬ 
what similar to jelly fish, strange to Halifax 
Harbor until recently, has become plentiful, the 
harbor teeming with them. Each group of these 
bodies is eel-shaped, transparent and glasslike, re¬ 
sembling somewhat a string of beads, which can 
be broken off one by one. This string is some¬ 
what fragile, but no matter how many pieces it 
is broken into, each piece, made up of single or 
several individual, will swim off on its own ac¬ 
cord. The bodies are from a few inches to two 
feet in length. They are called “salpidae,” and 
are usually found only in the waters of tropical 
climates. They belong to the ascidian order and 
have doubtless been driven to these shores by 
storms and currents radiating from the vicinity 
of Bermuda. It is thought the cold water will 
kill them. It is also be’ieved that their presence 
will do no harm, but on the contrary will pro¬ 
vide food for fishes. 
Surf Casting at Newark. 
Newark, N. J.. Oct. 18.— Editor Forest and 
Stream: On Oct. 29, the,Newark Bait- and Fly- 
Casting Club will hold an exclusive surf-casting 
tournament at Weequahic Lake, consisting of 
the following events: 
First Event—Open to all, rods restricted to 9 
feet; lines, linen; weights, 3 or 4 ounces. 
Second Event—Rods and lines unrestricted, 
except line must lift 12 pounds; weights, 2 l / 2 
ounces. 
Prizes will consist of gold, silver and bronze 
medals. Tournament Committee. 
Garfish Increasing. 
New Orleans, La., Oct. 21. — Editor Forest 
and Stream: Prof. George E. Beyer, biologist 
of Tulane University, after a thorough investi¬ 
gation and study, has written to the game com¬ 
mission that the alligator garfish are destroying 
the green trout [black bass] and various other 
game fish which are considered delicacies for 
the table. He says that this garfish is unfit for 
anything either commercially or otherwise, and 
they live on the best fish in the waters of the 
State. Prof. Beyer states that it would be well 
to offer a bounty for every alligator garfish 
killed, but he says it is doubtful whether the 
game commission or the State has funds suffi¬ 
cient to pay even a small price for each gar. 
I he gars might be used for fertilizing purposes, 
yet the price the hunters or trappers would ob¬ 
tain for these fish would hardly warrant them 
to give their time to this pursuit. He says fur¬ 
ther that alligators are an enemy to the alligator 
garfish, but unfortunately the alligators are al¬ 
most extinct in many localities on account of 
the value of their skins, and as a consequence 
the garfish have increased enormously. The 
problem is a difficult one to solve and will re¬ 
quire much study. The hunters and professional 
fishermen wou’d soon diminish the streams and 
bayous of these alligator garfish if the commis¬ 
sion were in a position financially to offer a 
substantial reward for every fish of this char¬ 
acter caught. The commission is giving much 
thought to the proper solution of the problem, 
and it is thought some way 'will be found to 
destroy these pernicious fish. 
Judge Dossmann and Commissioner Miller 
have issued a statement to the effect that there 
need be no fear of the Louisiana oysters being 
contaminated with the typhoid germ. They as¬ 
sert that the oyster beds and reefs of this State 
aie in most instances several hundred miles from 
any sewerage or drainage from New Orleans 
or other cities, and it would be impossible for 
these oysters to contain any deleterious germs. 
bishing continues good at the various resorts 
on the coast and in inland streams. Quite a 
number of fishermen from this city go over on 
Sundays to the clubs at Lake Catherine, the 
Rigolets, Northshore, the Bartaria section, Wave- 
land, Pass Christian, Bay St. Louis and other 
places to enjoy the sport. Fishing has been re¬ 
markably good and large catches of striped bass, 
green trout, sheepshead, speckled trout and other 
species are reported. The long summer has been 
unusual, and it is thought that the fishermen can 
attribute their luck to this cause. Usually at 
this season fishing is not particularly good and 
lovers of this sport are very active. F. G. G. 
A Monster Bass. 
New York City, Oct. 24. — Editor Forest and 
Stream: On Friday, Oct. 21, while a guest of 
Simeon J. Drake, at the Wyandanch Club on 
Long Island, I had the good fortune to catch a 
75^-pound large-mouth black bass; length, 23 
inches; girth, 19 inches. 
This bass was caught on a hand-made split 
bamboo rod which weighs just five ounces, with 
fine silk line and live bait. 
Our guide, Uncle Billy Nelson, who is eighty- 
two years old and seems to know about every 
good fish that has been caught, claims that this 
is the record fish for a five-ounce rod. Can you 
beat it? Murray W. Ferris. 
