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Las diagrammes suivants lilustrent la m^thoda. 1 2 3 1 2 3 4 6 6 mmm wmmmfmi MP THE GAME FISH OP THE NORTHERN STATES AND BRITISH PROVINCES. Wmi AM AOCOUKT OF TUB SALMON AKD 8BA-TR0UT FISHING OF CANADA AND MKW BRUNSWICK, TOOKTHSB WITH 8I1IPLK DIBSCTI0M8 FOR TTINO ABTIFIOIAL FUES, ETC., STO. Br ROBERT B. ROOSEVELT, AOTBOB or "SVPIUOB riBHIMO," "TBI OAlll BIIOS Off TBI HOBTB," T.tO, '•^- M^ NEW YORK: Carleton,. Publisher, 413 Broadway. ■^^(y U DCCC LXIX. ^ f. h ■: ■ : ,1 '.- w. sT "'"'^v^ ^^*'^, Xptibbd according to Act of Congress, In the year 1861 br Q. W. OARLETON, I the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the United SUtes for the Soolham DMrlal of New York. .,)^ /•'■ /*■ j'f-' .*"'■•' * !** .:i.V!.-ji»«^' PAOI Allowance of provigions 804 Attihawmeg 147 '-■-m Bajaa, black 217 Otsego 161 rock 222 Baits for trout. 88 Black fly 289 Blue-flah 163 Boiestown 186 Camp life 289 stores 294 CentrarehuB ameus 222 faseiatus. 217 Cisco 149 Classification of fish 7, 821 Cooking 296-299 Coregontu tUbtu 147 OUego 161 Common carp 168 Crab bait 206 Curing fish 296 CypriniM earpio 168 Ephemera 284 Ssox estor 164 feuciatus '. 187 lueioidet 181 rctiei^atua 182 riaa Seote tredeeetn radiatiu 184 Expenses to New Brunswick. . . 821 P. Flies aid knots 265 for bass. 276 for salmon 268 for trout 16 French vocabulary 820 a Ghoat of Deadman*s Landing. . . .126 story of Abraham 129 Glass-eye 224 Green-fish 168 Orytttea nigricans 217 Horse mackerel 168 Insects 277 Knots 265 Iiobrax lineahu 202 Landing fish... 28 LttVal 61 lake 77 note to 820 INDEX. # Laws of flsberies Lueioperca cunmeana. FAAI .807 .224 MttMaUoYige 164 Ifascanonga 164 Marahpee 22 Miruniohi 120 MooM story 181 N. Ktmopttra .'...288 New UraiMwiok, trip to 116 note 821 NipLdqoit.. . ^ 140 Ohio salmon 226 Otsego bass 151 P. Ptrca lahrax 202 Jlaveseens 228 Perch, yeUow 228 Pickerel 168 common 182 Ereat northern 181 ong Island 187 Pickering. 224 Pike, federation 184 of the lakes 224 perch. ... 224 Propagation of fish 280 Phryganea 284 riai Salmon 88 fishing. 92, 102 habits of 98 rirers 167 rirers, how to reach them 111 time for catching. . . .94, 308 place for catching 94 rod for 91 Ohio 226 Baltno talar. 88 tmttta marina 41 Seietia lineata. 202 Scollops 207 Sea trout 41 time for catching 808 Shrimp bait 205 Skipjack 168 Smoking fish 297 Snap-hook 176 Snapping mackerel 167 Spearing.^ 209, 816 Spoons 174 Report of Mr. Whitcher 816 Roe of shad or salmon 204 Rock-fish 202 T. * Temnodon salMor 166 Tents 293, 803 Thousand Isles 189 Transportation of fish 249 Trimmers for pickerel 177 Trout, American speckled, or brook 12 fiies for 16 fly-fishing for 18 baits for 28 sea, white or silver 41 white, or Scoodic 146 fc,' W. White-fish U1 trout 146 _^^ .*u-*^' :'X •■:• ■«;{»« ■-."SP', ^^ GAME FISS -• • • ■ CHAPTER I. msTBuonoN. I HAVE always considered a preface or introduction a species of apology, and not intending that the following sketches shall need any apology, I shall write no intro- duction ; but an explanation of the scientific distinctions and divisions of fishes may not only be appropriate bnt highly instructive, if my readers be as ignorant as I think them. i ,- >: 4 h* s ^;; It has been a matter of serious reproach by the naturalists against the sportsmen, that the latter, instead of adopting a uniform nomenclature, call a bird or fish in one section of our country by a different name from that under which it is known in another ; that & Quail md Black Bass at the Korth become a Partridge and Irout at the South. The sportsmen, conscious of the justness of the reproach, have submitted quietly to the learned stones of reproof hurled at them, and scarcely dared to suggest that their persecutors lived in the most fragile of glass houses; that naturalists were liable to «♦ 6 INSTRUCTION. ■^./v l^i' tlie Bame accusation, and that there is hardly a fish, bird or beast that they have not called by several different names. Are not the contentions of Ortyx and Perdrix known to all) Is it quite certain, when we catch an Otsego Bass, whether we catch a Coregonus Otsego or a CoregonuB Albus, or even a Salmo Otsego ? Is it per- fectly ascertained from a scientific point of view that we catch anything ? Who does not know that a Tautog is a Blackfish, or would be materially instructed by hearing him called a Tautoga Americana? Scientific men vie with one another in creating new names, the most use- less things in Christendom ; while sportsmen are happy to take them, the game, as they find them. The first are guilty of faults of commission, the latter of omission. The language of each is Greek to the other. The writer of these sketches, knowing just sufficient Greek to be a sportsman, and yet able to translate with the help of a dictionary, offers, from the want of one more worthy, to conciliate all differences. His plan is to translate all terms that are translatable, and to omit altogether those that are not, trusting that they will never be missed. His intention at first was to write a noble work on natural history that would carry his name in letters of gold, as a public reformer and benefactor, to latest posterity ; but finding, on reviewing his stores of information, that he knew but little on the subject, he fwas compelled to relinquish the idea. Being therefore nothing but a gentle angler, instead of instructing the universe, he is content to amuse a small circle of lovers of sporting anecdotes, and, provided he receives it, will be content with their approval. As, however, one fool INSTRUCTION. 7 can always teach another eomething, the writer feels impelled to mingle a little instruction in doses to suit the weakest stomach, that those who have not skipped this chapter on account of its title, may at least receive something for their perseverance. They need not sup* pose for a moment that the writer pretends to insist upon what he shall write as infallible, but where his readers diiFer from him, is perfectly willing to admit that he is entirely mistaken ; the buyer of a book is always right, the author a taujourn tort. He supposes — let there be no misunderstandings when he accidentally uses a stronger word — that fishes are divided into two great orders, and are distinguished as having bony or cartilaginous skeletons; thus a quawl, provided he be a fish at all, would be a very cartilagi- nous one, and a catfish with his back fin erected, as the writer has often learned to his cost, is a bony fish. As the cartilaginous fish are of small account, the reader may forget all about them if he wishes, but he is requested to remember the useful division of those hav- ing bony skeletons into the great classes, easily distin- guished, of the soft finned and spiny finnied, called in foreign languages by thfe horrible terms malacopterygii and aocmthopterygii — terms unpronounceable except by a Dutchman or a philosopher. These classes are distin- guished, as the English words imply, by their having the rays of their fins soft and flexible or hard and spine-like. The investigator may determine their peculiarities by pressing strongly upon the points of the fin rays; if nature intimates that his organism is suiffering, the fish is a ac<m^A<?p, etc. ; if not, why not. ;^- ^~ W^f' ^m^^mmw 8 iNSTBUOTION. i?' „ ' k. ,•; '/.' 's *.*•»•'• The location of the fins of the fish mark the snbdiyi- sions of the families. The above diagram being supposed to represent a fish, and a Trout at that, o is the first back or dorsal fin, f the second — in the case of this species, mere rajless, fatty matter ; e is the tail fin or candal— the writer, as a married man, naturally avoiding the •jij"- IXSTBUOTION. id latter term on account of its Baggeativeness ; d is the anal fin, for which the writer can offer no English substitute ; are the two ventrals or belly fins ; b is the pectoral or shoulder fin, having a complemental one on the other side of the fish ; and a represents what in learned Ian* guage are called hranohioitegoua rays, a name that, being translated, means merely gill-rays. What is not in a name I h is the lateral line. Then bearing in mind the great divisions of soft and hard finned, the subdi- visions &i*e distinguished by the fish having the ventrals behind the pectorals and on the abdomen, giving them the name of abdominal fish, or before the pectorals, giving rise to the HBxne-Jtigular or throat finned, and below the pectorals, giving the name ihordcio or shoulder- finned fish. Philosophers pay little attention to the dorsal and anal fins, and fish, without losing their iden- tity, can have as many as they please. In caudals, unlike human Caudles, they are restricted to one. There are other fish, such as eels, denominated apodal or footless^ because the lower fins or feet are wholly wa^tting. Afker having examined the texture, number and loca- tion of the fins, and counted the number of the rays in each, the naturalist next turns his attention to the hard bony portion of the head, which covers the gills, and opens and shuts as the fish breathes, and which, with the excel- lent common sense for which naturalists are notorious, he calls the opercultmh. It is divided into the operculum, or gill-cover proper, No. 1 ; the jpreoperffulum, or fore gill-cover. No. 2; the inter-operoiUum, or middle gill- cover, No. 3 ; and the siib-opercttlum,' or. under gill-cover, No. 4. The head, in the foregoing diagram, is intended 1* 10 INSTBUCTION. to represeot the head of a trout, weighing a ponnd and a half, caught at Phillipse's Pond, near Smith Town, Long Island. The gill-rays are shown at No. 5. The divisions of the gill-coyer are faintlj marked in the real fish, and require some study. Lastly, the naturalist examines a fish as a jockey does a horse, hy looking at his teeth, and with about equally satisfactory results. They both are bitten, whether the term be used in a literal or metaphorical sense. The writer once, after catching a large fish, having heard that trout had teeth in their throats, proceeded to investigate. Moved thereto by the spirit of inquiry, he thrust one finger as far as possible down the trout's mouth, and was not a little surprised, as well as pained, to find that the throat was lined with teeth sharper t]»an a serpent's, and arranged in the same manner. They inclined back- ward, and once having penetrated a substance, would not and could not let go. The writer having suffered the agony that the pursuit oi science sometimes involves, after exliausting gentle means of escape, and knowing that he could no more wear a trout, than the old man in the "Decameron" could the protecting ring, with a wrench tore away his hand, a bleeding sacrifice to sci- ence. Any reader wishing to ascertain the same facts, may pursue a similar course. On the foregoing diagram, which represents the arrangement of teeth in the salmon tribe. No. 6 is the upper jaw, and No. 7 the lower ; ISo. 8, the outer teeth in the upper jaw, superior maxiUa/ry ; No. 9, the same in the lower jaw, inferior maxUlary / No. 10, the inner row of teeth of the upper jaw called learnedly the j^oZo* ^m INSTRUCTION. 11 tine ; No 11, the teeth on the tongue, and No. 12 those on the roof of the mouth, or vomerine. The trout the writer has examined had no visible teeth on the roof of the mouth ; they had either suffered from toothache in early life, and applying to a piscatorial dentist, had them drawn, or the teeth had clipped down and settled round their throats as the writer has already mentioned. The reader, therefore, if he wishes to ascertain the scientific designation of a fish, should in the first place determine the number and location of the fins, the num- her and quality, as soft or hard, of the rays, the number of gill-rays, the chafacteristics and position of the teei^, the formation of the gill-cover, and lastly, as every num- scuU, the drawing teachers assure us, who can write can draw, a drawing of the fish, or at least an outline, should be made. The latter can be done simply by laying the specimen on a sheet of paper, spreading out his fins and running a pencil round him. And then the would-be naturalist will ascertain whether or not he belongs to a class so very liberal as to include salmon and smelt in the same category. Ho must not forget that it is much more important to study the nature, habits and food of the denizens of the water than to store his memory with their names,^' for our philosophers hith- erto, instead of studying their nature, have been em- ployed in increasing their catalogues, and the reader, instead of observations or facts, is presented with a long list of names that disgust him with their barren super* fluity." ■' ■- y ^\'' --"",■ ■■-' ;■ •■■ f^' ^\ .:.■■ .'"■:• r.- '"-' .i", ' ,«. '"' ' ' -' ' ' ' ' ■ ■' '"''V^ ■iii 19 THE AMXBIOAN TROUT. < '•^i»;s. '■r^if^' if..; ^K.l^rir. ,-.>. •■•• »i*i, CHAPTER n. ■.l.^if THB AMBBIOAN TBOUT. ,'«i>."i-.»'jKVii'l.'f •;r^ Thb Brook Trout — The Neio York Charr — 8aHmo fontvMdM, — Salmon tribe; veutraU in abdomen, rays soft. '" Hie sliotilder and first back fins Lave each eleven rays ; the second back fin is mere fatty matter and rayk <is, the characteristic of the salmon tribe ; the ventral has eight, tLe anal fifteen, and the tail nineteen rays. The back is dusky green, mottled with yellow spots ; growing lighter on the sides, where the spots have irregularly a beau- tiful blue or carmine speck in the centre; the belly is silver white, with a roseate tinge as it fades into the darker colors of the sides ; the shoulder fins are yellowish at the base, the ventrals yellowish red, the anal reddish, and in all the rays are dusky. The gill-covers have no defined spots. ^- . v» The body is covered with delicate scales that will escape all but the strictest observation. The teeth are on the tongue and throat, but none on the roof of the mouth discernible to the naked eye; there is an outer row on the lower jaw, and an inner and outer row on the upper jaw. This fish is so well known to the public from its extensive distribution through the northern States, and so totally dissimilar from the Perch and Bass, mis- THE AMERICAN TROUT. 13 called Trout at the South, that a more particular descrip- tion does not seem necessary. Another iish taken at the North in the smaller lakes is called Bed Trout, and attains the weight of twenty-five pounds. It is rare, and would appear to be an unde- Bcribed species, differing from the trout of the brooks and lakes, and not generally known even to sportsmen. A fish of a somewhat similar character was on exhibition at an eating-house in this city, but appeared to have been scaled. It was three feet six inches long, and weighed eighteen pounds. The back was very dark, the sides being of a lighter neutral tint, without any si>ots. There were a number of vomerine i»eth, and the fin- rays, as far as could be ascertained by a cwaory examination, were — .-.,»; ..;..,,,.: ... Br. 12 ; D. 13 ; P. 11 -V. 8 ; A. 11 ; C. 19f . This fish was said to have been taken in Maine, and differed entirely from the ordinary brook and lake trout. The fin-rays of the brook trout as scientifically given by De Kay, are — D. 13-0 ; P. 12; V. 8; A. 10; 0. 19|. Trout are in season from the first of February to the first of September in the Long Island streams ; from April to September in those streams of the Kew England States that communicate with salt water ; and from May till September in the upland waters of the middle and east- ern States. There is but one mode of taking them— namely, with the fiy ; although it is said poachers and pot hunters capture them with worms, minnows, nets, and even with their own roe. These villanies are not at present punished with death nor even imprisonment 14 THE AMERICAN TROUT. for life ; but our legislature is looking into the matter, and there is no telling how soon such statutes may be passed. ^- ' ' How splendid is the sport, to deftly throw the long line and small fly with the pliant single-handed rod, and with eye and nerve on the strain, to watch the loveliest darling of the wave, the spotted naiad, dart from her mossy bed, leap high into the air, carrying the strange deception in her mouth, and turning in her flight, plunge back to her crystal home, with the cruel hook driven into her lips by a skillful turn of the angler's wrist ; to meet and foil her in her fierce and cunning efibrts to escape, paying out the line as she rushes away resistless, meeting her in emergencies firmly and steadily, till the tip crosses the but, when she insists upon, reaching the old stump or the weedy bottom ; to slack the line when she leaps into air, trying to strike it with her tail ; and above all, to watch the right moment, and keeping her head well up, to bring the beautiful prize quickly and steadily to the net I There may be others who have killed more and larger trout than myself, there may be others who can cast a longer line and lighter fly ; but there are none who will work more steadily or who can enjoy it more intensely. There are innumerable rules applicable to trout fishing and innumerable exceptions to each; neither man nor fish is infallible. A change of weather is always desir- able : if it has been clear, a rainy day is favorable ; if cold, a warm one ; if the wind has been north, a south- erly one is advantageous ; a zephyr if it has been blowing a tornado. Generally, in early spring, amid the fading THE AMERIOAiT TROUT. 15 Buowc and blasts of winter, a warm day is very desirable ; later, and in the heats of summer, a cold, windy day will insure success. Dead calm is dangerous, although many trout are taken in water as still, clear and transparent as the heavens above. The first rule is never to give up ; there is hardly a day but at some hour, if there be trout, they will rise, and steady, patient industry disci- plines the mind and invigorates the muscles. A south- erly, especially a southeasterly wind, has a singular tendency to darken the surface, and in clear, fine waters is particularly advantageous ; a southwester comes next in order ; a northeaster, in which, by the by, occasionally there is great success, is the next ; and a northwester is the worst and clearest of all. Give me wind on any terms, a southerly wind if I can have it ; but ^'ve me wind. It is not known what quality of the wind darkens the water, it may be a haziness produced in the atmos- phere, although with a cloudy sky the water is often too transparent; it may be the peculiar character of the waves, short and broken, as contradistinguislied from long and rolling ; but the fact is entitled to reliance. Slight changes will often affect the fish. On one day in June, in the writer's experience, after having no luck till eleven o'clock, the trout suddenly commenced rising, and kept on without cessation, scarcely giving time to cast, till two, when they as suddenly stopped. There was no observable change in the weather, except the advent of a slight haze, the wind remaining precisely the same. I was much disappointed, not having half fished the ground and being prevented, by the numbers that were taken, from casting over some of the largest fish that w Id THE AMERICAN TROUT. broke. As it was, I caught seventy trout in what if ordinarily considered the worst hours of the day. But in this particular, also, the same rules apply as to the warmth of the weather. In early spring it is useless to be up with the lark, even supposing such a bird exists ; no fish will break the water till the sun has warmed the air ; but in summer, the dawn should blush to find the sportsman napping. In fact, trout will not rise well unlv^sa the air is warmer than the water. They do ndt like to risk taking cold by exposing themselyes to a sudden draught. a. >.: - ; x '. • There is a very absurd impression, that trout will not take the fly early in the season ; this is entirely unfound- ed. As soon as the ice disappears they will be found gambolling in the salt water streams, and leaping readily at the fly. At such times, on lucky days, immense numbers are taken. In March they have run up the sluiceways and are in the lower ponds, lying sullenly in the deepest water ; then is the cow-dung, politely called the dark cinnamon, the most attractive fly. In April, May and June they are scattered, and entrapped by the hackles, professor, ibis, and all the medium sized flies. In July and August they have sought the headwaters of navigation, the cool spring brooks, and hide around the weeds and water-cresses, whence the midges alone can tempt them, .rvv; ^-^ , - - , . , Any flies will catch fish, cast in any manner, if the fish are plenty and in humor to be caught. A few fea- thers torn from the nearest and least suspicious chicken, and tied on an ordinary hook with a piece of thread, will constitute a fly in the imagination of a trout, pix>- THE AMEMGAN TROUT. 17 vided he follows, as he sometimes appears to do, the advice of the young folks, shuts his eyes and opens his mouth. I cannot recommend such tackle, being con- vinced the most skillfully made is the best ; but 1 do advise simplicity of color. One of the best of all flies is the female cow-dung, made of a dark cinnamon color, and after the pattern used in England ; there is a green- ish abomination unjustly foisted upon American inven- tion that is worthless. The hackles are in my opinion altogether inferior, except the black-winged hackle, which, of a bright iivarm day, is irresistible. The ibis and professor, dressed d V Americaine, with yellow floss body and red tail, are both excellent flies. The coach- man is the best evening fly, and will attract trout long after the angler can see to strike them, and when the sound of their plunge alone entices him to continue his eflbrts. The May and stone flies are good, and of late years a fly of mixed red and black, with wings, called by some, from his colors, the devil-fly, has come into vogue. The palmers are only to be despised and-avoided. In sum- mer, of the midges the yellow sally, the alder fly, the little cinnamon, the black gnat, the black arid red ants, and in fact all others, are attractive. The water is then covered with myriads of many-colored flies, and there is hardly any Artificial but will find its representative among the real life. These are but a few of the flies that can be pur- chased in the. shops, which yearly invent new varie- ties, regardless of truth to nature or the recommend- ations of experience. Many have no names whatever, ftnd in others the workman has given his fancy such play 18 THE AMERICAN TAOUT. that they are nnrecognizable. In these pages, when tlio name is given of any fly described in Bonald's " Fly- Fisher's Entomology," it is intended that it shall be dressed after the directions therein contained. A more full description of the various flies, both in use and to bd found in our waters, will be given hereafter with some directions for tying them ; but a great deal must be left to the practical experience of each fisherman, according to the range of waters he is in the habit of Ashing. Good luck,*that synonym for all the virtues, does not depend so much upon the kind of flies as the skill in casting, and a poor fly lightly cast into the right spot will do better execution than the best fly roughly cast into the wrong place. The lure must be put where the fish habit, often before their very noses, or they will not take it ; and when they lie, as they generally do in run- ning streams, in the deep holes under the banks, where the bushes are closest and cause the densest shade, it requires some skill to cast properly into the exact spot. Sacrifice everything to lightness in casting ; let the line go straight without a kink if you can, drop the fly into the right ripple if possible, but it must drop gently on the surface of the water. An ugly splash of a clear day in pure water, and the prey will dart in every direction, and the angler's hopes scatter with them. ? r : A beginner may practise a certain formula, such as lifting the line with a waive and a smart spring, swinging it backward in a half circle, and when it is directly behind him, casting straight forward ; but as soon as ho has overcome the rudimentary principles, he should cast in every manner, making the tip of his lod cut full oir- m- THE AMERICAN TROUT. 19 cles, figure eights, and all other fignres, behind him, according to the wind ; bearing io mind, however, ever to make his flj drop as gently as a feather. He should use his wrist mainly, and practise with each hand, and should never be otherwise thai ashamed of a bungling cast, though he be alone, and none but the fish there to despise him. If the line falls the first time with a heart- rending splash all in a tangle, it is useless to make the next cast properly. The fish have found out the trick, and know too much to risk their necks in any such a noose. A skillful fisherman can cast almost any length of line, but practically, fifty feet, counting from the reel, is all that can be used to advantage. Some English books say only the leader (gut links) should alight in the water ; but this is nonsense, for at least one half the line must fall into the water, unless the fisherman stand on a high bank. With a long line the difficulties of striking and landing the fish are greatly increased ; in striking, there is much slack line to be taken up ; in landing, it requires some time to get the fish under control, and he is apt to reach the weeds or a stump. ^ That most excellent fitiherman and learned scholar, Dr. Bethune, in his edition of Walton, Part EL., page 73, says that candid anglers must confess that nine out of ten trout hook themselves ; this may be so in streams teeming with fish, where a dozen start at once, frantically striving to be the first f but in clear, well-fished streams, not one fish in a thousand will hook himself; and on Long Island an angler would grow grey ere he filled his basket if he did not strike, and that quickly. Striking, to my mind, is by far the most important point, and hundreds of fish 20 THS AMBRIOAN TBOUT. have I seen escape {f^^ want of quickness. It mnst bo done quickly but Bt(^r Ijr, and not with a jerk, as the latter is apt, by the double action of the rod, to bend the tip forward and loosen instead of tightening the line. There are days when fish cannot be struck, although they are rising freely ; whether they are playing or over-cau- tious, I never could/ determine ; whether they are not hungry or the water is too clear, they put man's capacities at defiance. Their appearance must be signalled to the eye, by that reported to the brain, which then directs the nerves to command the muscles to move the wrist ; and ere this complicated performance is completed, the fish has blown from his mouth the feathery deception and has darted back to his haunts of safety. A fish will occasionally leap up, seize the fly, discover the cheat, and shaking his head, jump several feet along the surface of the water to rid his mouth of it, and do this so quickly as not to give a quick angler time to strike. How often fish are caught when they rise the second time, as then the angler is more on the alert, whereas on the first rise he was off his guard I How often fiph rise when the angler's head is turned away from hip. line, or when he is busy at something else, and how rarely are they caught 1 In my experience it is so gi^eat a rarity, that it might almost be said they never book themselves. In the lan- guage of youth, the only hooking they do is to hook off. Dr. Bethune, page 97, says the rod should not exceed one pound in weight. Indeed it should not, and if it does, it exemplifies the old maxim, so far as to ha\o a fool at one end. J£ we could fish by steam, a rod exceeding a pound and measuring over fourteen feet might answei THS AMERICAN TROUT. 21 well) but in these benighted days, while wrista are made of bone, muscles, cartilages and the like, the lighter the better. A rod, and if perfection is absolntoly indispens- able, a cedar rod of eleven or twolye feet, weighing nine or ten ounces, will catch trout. Cedar rods can only be obtained in America, and then only on compulsion, but this wood makes the most elastic rods in the world. Tliey spring instantly to every motion of the hand, and never warp. They are delicate ; the wood is, like woman, cross- grained, but invaluable if carefully treated. The reel shonld be a simple click, never a multiplier, but large barrelled, and fastened to the but with a leather strap. The line, silk covered with a preparation of oil, tapered if possible at each end, and thirty to forty yards long. The basket, positive, a fish-basket ; the angler, compara- tive, a fisher-man. Thus equipped, go" forth mildly approving where the writer's opinions coincide with yours, simply incredulous where they do not. Ere you begin, however, you may wish to know the size of the fish you can catch, a matter of no little intricacy, for though we all know the size of the fish we have ourselves caught, there is always some one else that has caught larger. My largest trout, at the time thic is written, was taken on the Marshpee River, on Cape Cod, and weighed three pounds and fourteen ounces. But it is said there were inland .brook trout exhibited at the New York Club by a mem- ber in the year 1867, the two largest of which weighed cleaned six pounds and a half each. *'I have my doubts." These fish should have weighed, when first taken, nearly eight pounds, double the size of any trout, 2S THE AMSRIOAN TROUT, other than sea trout, I have eyor seen or before that lieard of. In my opinion, they were lake trout, caught, perhaps, from a small pond, and bright colored. It wai claimed they were taken with the fly, which lake trout will not ordinarily touch; but, unfortunately, it was also said, that two weighing about five pounds each were caught and landed on one cast, and that this was done twice. Now confidence in our neighbors' truth is the framework of society, but there is a limit to human credulity, and catching two five pound trout at one cast, is at the very verge of that limit. No one, except by the most incredible good fortune, could kill two such fish on any ordinary fiy-tackle, with any ordi- nary fiy-rod. The hooks would almost certainly tear out, and no strain could possibly be kept on the lower fish, which, by slacking up his line and then darting away, would probably go free. But great luck alone could enable a person to land two such fish ; the lower one would never drown, being at perfect liberty — ^by the by, trout, never die in the water, they always save enough' life for one final rush — ^and when the upper fish was landed or gaffed, the lower would go off in a jiffy. When a person claims to do this twice in a day, he must De pronounced a lucky man indeed. "We caught our big trout in the Marshpee, and we will tell you how we did it, though the words make us blush as we write them. "We were young then, and it is to be hoped innocent ; and having gone to Sandwich, on Cape Cod, in search of untried fields, discovered a jolly, corpulent landlord, named Teaaedale, who, with bis friend, Johnny Trout, so named jocosely, wero the THE AMERICAN TROUT. fishermen of the neighborhood. That was before the stream was preserved for tlie benefit of the " Poor Indian," and poorer fishermen mulcted, as at present, in five dollars a day for th . ];^nvilege of fishing. We drove to the stream, almost six miles, Teasedale enlivening the early June moniing with snatches of hunting songs, and when there plunged recklessly in. Oh I but the water was cold — a dozen large springs poured in their freezing contents — and the blood fairly crept back to our hearts. The stream ran through a narrow defile, overhung witli the thickly tangled vine and creepers, rendering a cast of the line impossible, and had worked its way far under the steep banks, making dark watery caverns, where the great fish could lie in wait for their prey. "We removed the upper joint of our fly-rod, which was heavy and strong, and leaving the line through the last ring of the second joint, we put on a bait next co the fly in beauty and effect, the minnow. The water was freezing cold — the closely entwined boughs and leaves shut out the heav- ens above, and we were alone in the shadowy darkness I with the tenants of the deep. The herring frequented [the brook, and pursued by the large trout, darted in Bhoals between our feet. It is always a good sign when the herring are running, and we had excellent luck. There are several ways of putting on a minnow, and [if a person from ignorance or necessity must poach, let lira poach well. There is the gorge-hook loaded with lead, the snell passed by the baiting needle at the mouth )f the bait and out at the tail, bringing the hooks which re double at the mouth. It is highly recommended by >me English books and their American imitators, but iPiPPPUPW^PPIWW^IP^lWPP^iPWI 24 THE AMEftlOAN TSOUT. in my experience is more useful, unbaited, for catching snapping mackerel, young blue-fish, than for any other purpose. There are the gangs of hooks, consisting of two or more small hooks back to back, one of which is inserted in the side or back of the bait, with another small one further up on the line, which is inserted on the lip or nose. It answers well for some kinds of fishing, and for large bait, but does not work well with small fish. The bait is not bent sufficiently, and does not spin readily. ^^^ ■'•^*'''^ '*'-■■• -^^ ■ ' ■"*■' '=''* '''■' ''^ ^rim-^'>'^ '• '-^ Then there is the old-fashioned large single hook, thrust through the mouth, down the fleshy part of the back and out at the side, or out at the gills and back through the mouth into the side. The objection is that bait is apt to work down on the bend of the hook, or the trout is apt to take off the tail of the bait without being hooked. '. ' The other, and I think the best plan of baiting with dead bait, is the same as the last, with the addition of a small hook to thrust through the nose, that tends to retain the fish in its place, and allow the hook to be car- ried down further toward the tail, and still make the bait spin well. Minnow is never properly baited, unless it spins freely with every motion of the rod, and it must ever be kept moving. Of course the line must be armed with the swivel-trace, and in baiting with dead minnow a Limerick hook should be used, under any other circum- stances never. • - The dead minnow is preferable for rapid water. In ponds the minnow should be alive, in which case the hook is to be inserted in front of the dorsal ^, and the THE AMERICAN TBOUT. point may be left under the skin, or exposed, bb the poacher pleases; I prefer it covered. It should not penetrate the flesh. In the Marshpee I was using a single hook, keeping the bait well ahead of me, and creeping cautiously in the freezing water, watching the tiny float as it danced its merry course along, now borne swiftly over the rip- pling current, anon caught in an eddy and returning on its track, and then again resting motionless in some dark and quiet pool. It was scarcely visible beneath the dens^ shadows, and once in a while it would disappear from my straining sight ; then followed a sharp blow with my rod, a fierce tug, a short fight between fear, despair and cun- ning on the one side, and strength, energy and judgment on the other. Tlie prey once hooked, and skill there was Tiot ; it was a mere contention of two brute forces, in which the weaker went to the basket. An exhibition of skill or tenderness would have resulted in an entangle- ment round the nearest root, and the loss of fish, leader and hook. Still, there was excitement; the situation was romantic, the narrow gorge, the deep and rapid stream, the closely matted trees and vines, the ever- changing Eiirface of the current, which adds beauty to the tamest brook, all combined to lend enchantment to the scene. The fish were large and vigorous, fresh run from the sea, where they had, the Winter long, been a terror to the small fry, and early death to juicy and imsuspicious shell-fish. Tliey fought fiercely for life and liberty, their homes and their household gods, and, alas! too often successfully. The risk of their escape added to the interest of the occasion, and ililppn^^iinM>u>..i i"jj««w»!pi 'T^ — THE AMERICAN TROUT. the number of hening darting past gave continual promise of the presence of their arch enemy, the trout. I had half-filled my basket, and had met with wonder- ful escapes and terrible heart-rending losses, mingled with exhilarating successes. I had made about half the distance, as well as we judged, and felt proud and happy as no king upon his throne ever did or will. My rod, though a fly-rod, was whipped every few inches with silk, and thus strengthened had stood the unequal conflict admirably. Still hoping for better things — who will not hope for the impossible ? — I strode on. Below me the current made a sudden turn at a bend in the stream, and eddied swiftly under the overhanging bank. The brook almost disappeared in what was evidently a vast cavern deep in the bowels of that bank. In such watery palaces, amid the worn rocks, the tangled roots, the undulating moss and weeds, fierce eyed, monstrous trout delight to dwell. In such fortresses they await unwary travellers, and dark deeds are done in the congenial darkness — outrage, riots and murder stalk boldly about. The migratory herring, harmless and unsuspicious, peers in and starts affrighted back, then peers again, at last ventures forward, and then, compelled by instinct to ascend, tries to dart hastily by ; there is a sudden rush, a frantic struggle, a piteous look entreating mercy of pitiless hearts ; for an instant the water is dyed with blood and then flows on, washing all trace of the deed away. . ' I approach the den carefully, the feather-like float dancing merrily far ahead over the rippling tide, and as the line is paid out, swaying from side to side, close in THE AMERICAN TRdtTT. front of the roots that fringe the bank, still not a sign ; a step forward — the water carries it nnder the bank out of sight. I stand still, expectant ; nothing yet ; I creep cautiously to the very bank, and thrust my rod in the water, aye, under the bank its full length. What's that I Ah I what a tug I I have him, the monster, the Giant Despair of the wayfaring herring. How he pulls! I must have him out of his retreat ; it is a great risk but my only chance. I strain my rod, my line, almost my arms, to the utmost ; he comes, disdainful of surreptitious advantages, relying on his great strength ; he has not taken protection of weed or stump. Now, my boy, do your utmost; yes, leap from the water, dart down with the current ; I must give to you a little ; no line can stand that strain ; but you will never reach your lair again. Turn about, head up stream, that is what 1 want ; there is a sandy bank above us, can I but reach it and land you there. Ah I you perceive the danger or have changed your mind ; how you fly down stream with the slackened line hissing through the water behind you. Well, go, you will soon turn again. Already, beautiful, you have passed the bank ; now, rod, be true ; line, do your duty. The pliant ash bends, the upper [joint has passed below the but in a wide hoop. He I comes, his head is up ; if I can but keep it out of water I he dashes the foaming waves with his strong tail ; one [more effort ; bend rod, but do not break ; he is out of rater ; I have him. He is dancing on the yellow sand lis last dance in mortal form ; his changing hues glancing fn the mild light, his fierce mouth gasping, his bright udes befouled with sand and dust, his glittering scaler m 28 THE AMERICAN TROUT. torn off by the sharp etoiies. His efforts grow fainter, the flashing eye dims, a few convulsive throes and he is quiet ; the grim hand of death has pressed upon him. He is indeed the prince of monsters, tlie paragon of giants ; so thick, so deep, with so email a . head for so large a body ; such brilliant hues : the fins so red, the blue and carmine spots so numerous and delicate. I wash him off and stand gazing at him in my hand regardless of further sport. I have captured the king, and care not to follow his subalterns. I lay him gently in my basket ; he will not lie at full length. I cover him with moss, filling the little room left, and forcing my way through the overhanging bushes, and, reaching the broad light of day, proudly await the arrival of my companion. Then the moss is carefully removed, and the beauties of my darling are unveiled, and flash and gleam in the sunlight. * .' ' ^ * '»'. There are several ways of landing a trout, Vnt not all equally sportsmanlike. Large trout may be gaffed, small ones landed in a net, and where neither of these means is at hand, they must be dragged out of water, or flirted up among the bushes, according to the taste of the angler and the strength of his tackle. A tyro was once fishing on the same boat with me, using bait, when he struck his first trout. One can imagine how entirely misspent had been his previous existence, when it is said he had never taken a trout, no, nor any other fish before. It was not a large fish ; such luck rarely falls to the share of the beginner, and in spite of what elderly gentlemen may say to the con- traiy, an ignorant countryman, with his sapling rod THE AMERICAN TROUT. 29 and coarse tackle, never takes the largest lish nor the greatest in quantity. Were it otherwise, sportsmen had better turn louts, and tackle makers take to cutting straight saplings in the woods. My compauion, never- theless, was not a little surprised at the vigorous rushes the trout made to escape, but his line being strong and rod stiff, he steadily reeled him in. Great was the excitement ; his whole mind was devoted to shortening the line, regardless of what was to be done next. We had a darkey named Joe with us to row the boat and land the Ush, and our luck having been bad during the morning, he was delighted at this turn of affairs, and ready, net in hand, to do his duty. The fish was being reeled up, till but a few feet of the line remained below the top, when, with a shout of " land, Joe, land him," my companion suddenly lifted up his rod, carrying the , trout far above our heads. There it dangled, swaying to and fro, bouncing and jumping, while the agonized fisherman besought the darkey to land him, and the latter, reaching up as far as he could with the net, his eyes starting out of his head with wonder at this novel mode of proceeding, came far short of his object. Never was seen such a sight ; the hopeless despair of my friend, the eagerness of the darkey, who fairly strove to climb the rod as the fish danced about far out of reach. What was to done ? The line would not render, the rod was so long we could not reach the tip in the boat ; and the only horrible alternative appeared to be my friend's losing his first fish. The latter, however, by this remark- able course of treatment, had grown peaceable, and when he was dropped back into the water, made but 80 THB AMERIOAN TJ'.OUT. feeble efforts, while my companion, as quietly as he could, worked out his line till he could land him like a Christian. Great were the rejoicings .wlven the prize earned with so much anxiety was secured. That is the way not to land a trout. One afternoon of a very boisterous day, I struck a large fish at the deep hole in the centre of Phillipse's Pond, on Long Island. He came out fiercely, and taking my fly as he went down, darted at once for the bottom, which is absolutely covered with long, thick weeds. Tlie moment he found he was struck, he took refuge among them, and tangled himself up so effectually that I could not feel him, and supposed he had escaped. By carefully exert- ing sufiicieut force, however, the weeds were loosened from the bottom, and the electric thrill of his renewed motion was again perceptible. He was allowed to draw the line through the weeds and play below them, as by 80 doing tliey would give a little, while if confined in them he would have a leverage against them, and could, with one vigorous twist, tear out the hook. When he was somewhat exhausted, the question as to the better mode of landing him arose. The wind was blowing so hard as to raise quite a sea, which washed the weeds before it in spite of any strain that could be exerted by the rod, and drifted the boat as well, rendering the latter almost unmanageable, while the fish was still so vigorous as to threaten at every moment to escape. I besought the boatman, who was an old hand and thoroughly up to his business, to drop the boat down to the weeds and let me try and land my fish with one hand while holding the rod with the otlier. He knew the dangers of such a rHB AMERICAN TROUT. m course, and insisted upon rowing slowly and carefully for shore at a shallow place sheltered from the wind, although I greatly feared the hook would tear out or the rod snap under the strain of towing both weeds and fitjh ; once near shore, he deliberately forced an oar into the mud and made the boat fast to it, and then taking up the net, watched for a favorable chance. He waited for some time, carefully putting the weeds aside, until a gleaming line of silver glanced for a moment beneath the water, when darting the net down, he as suddenly brought it up, revealing within its folds the glorious colors of a splendid trout. That was the way to land a trout under difficulties, although I still think I could have done it successfully by myselfl ,: - w; ^. j^ .' Generally, the utmost deh'cacy should be shown in killing a fish, but there are times when force must be exerted. If the fish is making for a stump, or even weeds, he must be stopped at any reasonable risk of the rod's breaking or the fly's tearing out. A stump is the most dangerous ; one turn round that, and he is ofi', leav- ing your flies fast probably in a most inconvenient place and many feet below the surface of the water. Bui remember the oft-repeated maxim of a friend of the writer's, who has been with him many a joyous fishing- day, that " One trout hooked is worth a dozen not hooked." Small trout are more apt to escape than large ones, because the skin round the mouth of the latter is tougher. With either, however, there is risk enough , the hook is small, and often takes but a slight hold ; the gut is delicate, and frequently half worn through by continual casting. /'■ SSI THB AMERICAN TRODT. "Fibtk are, in a majority of inetances, hooked in the comer of the npper jaw, where there is but a thin skin to hold them ; by long-continned strnggle, the hole wears larger, and finally, to the agony of the fisherman, the hook slips ont. There are occasions when force must be exerted, and then good tackle and a well-made rod will repay the cost. At dnsk one night I cautiously approached the edge of a newly-made pond that was as full of stumps as of fish, both being about the extreme limit, and casting into the clear water, struck a fine fish of three-quarters of a pound. Not one minute's grace did he receive, but I lugged and he fought, and after a general turmoil I suc- ceeded in bringing him to land, in spite of weeds and stumps and twigs, which he did his best to reach. The same was done with seven fish after a loss of only three flies, and with a rod that weighed but eight ounces. A rod is not so apt to break from a fair strain as from a short twist ; of course, if you strike i large fish as you raise to cast, or catch in the bushes behind you when your line is extended, any rod may break. This, how- ever, rarely happens, and you are as likely to break tlie tip by trying to pull the line through the rings with your hand, or by lifting a small trout out of water and swinging it in past you, as in any other way. In drawing a fish to shore when you have no landing net, step back and bring the strain evenly on your rod, and it will rarely give way. If you find the fish takes down the current and you are unable to hold him, follow him if you can, and if not, point your rod toward him and bring the strain on the line. The hook may tear out, or the gut may break, THE AMERICIN TROUT. 33 or even the line may be lost, but you will save your rod, wliile otherwise you would probably lose both. In laudhig a fish, wait till he is pretty well exhausted, bring his mouth above water and keep it there till he is drawn into the net, and warn vour assistant to remove tite net at once if he gets his head down. Vy diving after hini with the net/ the assistant would certainly not catch tlie fish and might tangle one of your other flies. The fish should be led into the net, and the latter kept as still as possible ; he knows as wel) ag you do what it is for, and if his attention is drawn to it, will dart ofi* as madly as ever. Th<^re are occasions and situations where a fly cannot be used, and a minnow — called down East, from the Indian name mummychog, a mummy — cannot be obtained. In such cases it becomes necessary to fall back upon first principles. A grasshopper, twitched along the surface of the water in a way called skittering, is an eflective bait, although an imitation grasshopper, as well as an imita- tion minnow, does not answer and will not deceive trout. Salmon and trout roe are used, and it is said, contrary to the writer's experience, with great success. Gentles, which are grubs hatched in meat that has been fiy- blown, are a favorite bait in Europe ; but, in spite of their beautiful name, are horrible objects and not in vogue with us. Caddies, or the larvae of the Phry- ganid<B in their cases, are also in use there, but not here. We must, therefore, have recourse to the angle- worm. The finest worms are to be found in tanyards ; they should be placed oa the top of damp moss, left for a 2* m M Tin AHEBIOAN TROUT. night or two to work themselves clean, and then placed in other moss sprinkled with milk. They become strong, light colored and lively, and should be threaded on a tine hook by passing the point in at tlie head of the worm and out half-way down the side ; then in, half up the Bide of another, and forced nearly to the head. Worms, if cast as in fly-fisl^ing, are very attractive, -and will fre- quently kill an immense number of fish. There is much skill in casting so as not to tear off the bait, and yet to cover an extent of water In rapid streams, whether with bait or fly, always fish down stream ; there is less noise, the line is kept taught, the fly looks more natural, and unless the wind is strong against you, it will be much easier and pleasanter fish- ing. Move the bait continually; keep it in motion under all circumstances ; this is the great secret of bait- fishing. I have also heard of shrimp preserved in whisky being used, and think they might answer for fish that have just run from the salt water; but as frequent experiment with the live shrimp has proved their inferi- ority to minnow, I have little faith in them. The trout is admitted to be the most beautiful of all our fish ; not so large nor powerful as the salmon, he is much more numerous, abounding in all the brooks and rivulets of our northern States. He lives -at our veiy doors ; in the stream that meanders across yon meadow, where the haymakers are now busy with their scythes, we have taken him in our early days ; down yonder in that wood, there is a brook filled with bright, lively little fellows; and away over there we know of pools where there are THB AMBRIOAN TROUT 86 splendid ones. Who has not said or thought such words as he stood in the bright summer's day under the grate- ful shade of the piazza running round the old country' house where he played, a boy ? * . He does not make the nerves thrill and tingle like the salmon, he does not leap so madly into the air nor make such fierce, resolute rushes, he has not the silver sides nor the great strength ; but he is beautiful as the sunset sky, brave as bravery itself, and is our own home dar- ling. How he flashes upon the sight as he grasps the spurious insect, and turns down with a quick little slap of the tail I How he darts hither and thither when he finds he is hooked ! How persistently he struggles till enveloped in the net I And then with what heart-rend- ing sighs he breathes away his life ! Who does not love the lovely trout? With eye as deep and melting, skin as rich and soft, and ways as wildly willful as angelic woman — who loves not one loves not the other. Who would not win the one cares not to win the other. Strange that man should " kill the thing he loves ;" but if to possess them kills them, he must kill. If women, like the Epheraerm^ died as they often do in their love, we should still love them. Such is man; do not think I praise him. No one kills fish for the pleasure of killing ; but they cannot live out of water, nor we in it, therefore one of us must die. We would willingly save them ; we have tried to bring them home alive, but it is not pos- sible. They are too delicate. With wliat a feeling of aft'ection we look upon a beautiful fish as he lies upon the moss, the sunlight sparkling from his colors fading in death! with how deep a sadness we see his strength T3B AMSfUOAN TROUT. ebbing away, his breath growing Bhortor, his struggles fainter 1 And when he has grown stiff in death, how proudly sad we feel over a noble career cut short too soon I ■■ " The man who kills to kill, who is not satisfied with reasonable sport, who slays unfairly or out of season, who adds one wanton pang, that man receives the con- tempt of all good sportsmen and deserves the felon's doom. Of such thera are but few. We seek this, our favorite fish, in early Spring, when the ice has just melted, and the cold winds remind one forcibly of bleak December, and when we find him in the salt water streams, eepocially of Long Island and Cape God ; but we love most to follow him in the early Summer, along the merry streams of old Orange, or the mountain brooks of Sullivan County. Where the air is full of gladness, and the trees are heavy with foliage — where the birds are singing upon every bough, and the 'grass is redolent of violets and early flowers. There we wade the cold brooks, the leafy branches bowing us a welcome as we pass — ^the water rippling over the hidden rocks, and telling us, in its wayward way, of the fine fish it carries in its bosom. With creel upon our shoulder and rod in hand, we reck not of the hours, and only when the sinking sun warns of the approaching darkness, do we seek, with sharpened appetite, the hospitable country inn, and the comfortable supper that our prey will fur- nish forth. The brooks of Long Island, especially on the south- ern shore, abound with trout. But they are few in com- parison with the hordes that once swarmed in the THR AMERICAN TROUT. ^l Btreams of Snllivan and Orange counties, and in fact all the lower tier of connties in this State, before the Erie Railroad was built, and opened the land to the crowd of market men. I am proud to say I have travelled that country when it took the stage coach twelve hours to go twenty-four miles, and when, if we were in a hurry, we walked, and sent our baggage by the coach. Now you are jerked along high above our favorite meadows, directly through our wildest hills, and often under our best streams, at the rate of forty miles an hour, and yet people call that an improvement. As well might you lug a man out of bed at niglit, drag him, a dozen times round his room, and fling him back into bed, and say he was improved by the operation. No one wants to be lugged out of bed, precisely as no one wanted to travel beyond Sullivan County ; the best shooting and fishing in the world was to be found there. ' When the railroad was first opened, the country was literally overrun, and Bashe's Kill, Pine Kill, the Sand- berg, the Mon Gaup and Callicoon, and even Beaver Kill, which we thought were inexhaustible, were fisncd out. For many years trout had almost ceased from out of the waters, but the horrible public, having their attention drawn to the Adirondacks, gave it a little rest, and now the fishing is good. ■%: If you go there, stop at George Durrance's, in Wurts- borough, and if he boasts of fishing, as he will, ask him whether he remembers going to the Sandberg one day, many years ago, to show a Yorker how to catch trout. It was a bright sunshiny day, and as we drove up to the edge of the bank, above a clear, rapid, sparkling stream, I PP!PPPPWW^''"WW THE AMERICAN TROUT. Baw a large trout leap hcaviij out of water, where the cnr- rent swept with a swirl past a high rock. Aj I rigged up my flies, George borrowed my knife to cut a pole, as he did not have much faith in " them things," and while he was gone, I crept cautiously up behind the rock, and cast over the further projecting point. I could not see my flies alight, but heard a splash, and striking felt I had a splendid fish. He fought bravely, but by keeping him in the upper part of the pool, the loWer end by the rock, was not disturbed. After some trouble, I landed him, having no net. Then approaching the rock with the same caution, the performance was repeated, only this time my rod was broken in endeavoring to land the fish, and it was necessary to find George and obtain my knife. I discovered him under the bushes on the bank, in a miserable state — it was oppressively hot — his rod was a long sapling, and naturally heavy — the sky and water were clear, and the .fish would not touch the worm, which we could see from where he sat. He had only taken two miserable little fish. He did no better all day, arid while T rose and killed fish after fish, he did not take another one. When afternoon came, £».nd he impatiently urged me away, my basket was so full it broke down, and he had his two fish. On i ^aching his house, the boys spread our respective takes out on a board, and to George's deep chagrin exhibited them to the entire village. He has not taught a " Yorker" how to catch trout since. -■•■- ^ - - So much for your countryman, with his bed-cord for line and stick for pole, and yet George was admitted to THE AMER)[CAN TROUT. 39 be the best fisherman in that neighborhood. A person residing near a stream, and having fished it from infancy, and acquainted with its every pool, has an immense advantage over a stranger ; but there was only one coun- tryman ever beat me trout-fishing, and he, after taking nie to the stream, slipped off and waded it down ahead All the streams that, taking their risie in or near this State, flow into the Delaware or Susquehanna, are filled with trout; the Tobyhauna, the Bushkill, Broadhead's Creek and a thousand others, that the Erie and Lacka- wanna railroads now make easy of access. While Hamil- ton County, Essex, the region of the Adirondacks, Clinton County with its Chateaugay and Chazy Lakes, and the " Saranac River, and Franklin County with its innumera- ble ponds, offer all the sport that the heart of man can desire. AH the streams of New England, especially in the neighborhood of the White Mountains, are filled with small trout ; while the State of Maine, in Moose- head Lake, the Kennebec, and its other fine rivers and lakes, affords the finest brook trout-fishing in the world. The angler may, therefore, seek his darling close to his own summer-house, or may drop in at any of the many w^ell kept taverns on the south side of Long Island, where he will find every comfort and most of the luxuries of the day, will meet other enthusiastic fishermen, who will relate varied and interesting cwpe- riences, and exchange views and fancies with him, and will prove themselves, if real fishermen, the most obliging and unselfish gentlemen in tlic world ; or ho may seek the lonely hotel at Lake Pleasant or Moose- wpwmpp "WPPW 40 THE AMERICAN TROUT. head Lake, where he will still find comfort in a rougher way, and wonderful good sport ; or he may boldly strike out into the ti^ackless woods, commit himself to his birch canoe and trusty guide, and then, if he be made of the right stuff, I promise him such happiness as he will never forget — merry innocent days and dreamless nights, health in every limb, and contentment in his mind. Tliere is no iish more difficult to catch, nor that gives the true angler more genuine sport than the trout. His capture requires the nicest, tackle, the greatest skill, t*;e most complete self-command, the highest qualities of mind and body. The arm must be strong that wields the rod ; the eye true that sees the rise ; the wrist quick that strikes at the instant; the judgment good, that selects the best spot, the most suitable fly, and knows just how to kill the fish. A fine temper is required to bear up against the loss of a noble fish, and patient perseverance to conquer ill luck. ^. ^sS? > >jt . Hence it is that the fisherman is so proud of his basket of a dozen half-pound trout, he feels that any one more awkward or less resolute could not have done so well. Jle feels conscious that he does not owe his success to mere luck, but has deserved the glory. He feeU that he has elevated himself by the very effort. Do not sup- pose 1 mean that there is no skill in other fishing; there is in all, even in catching a minnow for bait, but nost of all in trout-fishing. ' ■ .-^vV ■=c>^^i ■''■i<^.lv ;. . - -,./--'iS-'l - v-•<^-'■■- r t~----^ «_ ■ ^-i .r^:■'^~■ ■ >« *" i'i.''' l-':-^% v•■;» .^*- '. •>,.. ■^■:^','i■i,^.■.^i J^--' \ *«fiX>..l'?^ '#v. ■*>■• %■ V-,fif, '*•■•/'** f '0. *<• 'f ?• 8BA TROxrr. . m -^^^.-••> :>: A .::.'■■ :---^,;. ^.^ •^\'lf--\i vuj/,,=,^ V ^" -^' "' J '■"',■ ■■' ;/ rV'^ ■ ^ ' '■ ,■ ?4,: ^ 'I'v >»«.•>>■ y:'.^ . -• .«V,. - .i^ - „ ,. - ■ ,; . ■■-« .V . ,,. •■.,:. _'■■»' '' -■ ■ v- ■).,-», CHAPTER 111. ■.:.,•>-, .u? -■ I ^.^:- 1 • 8EA TEOUT. ,.. , .,v,, _ Salmo Trutta Marmor—Sdlrnon Troutr— White Trout, This fish corresponds precisely with the description given by Dr. De Kaj of the Speckled Trout, Salmo JFon- tinalisy except in the following particulars : I can find no teeth in the vomer or central part of the roof of the mouth any more. than I can find them on the common brook trout, and I have examined great numbers of the latter for the purpose. The pectorals are nearly a transparent white, slightly tinged with red at the origin of the rays, except that the second ray is darkish. The first ray of the ventrals is yellow, the second dark, the third and the others orange fading into white ; the origin of the ventrals is directlv under that of the first dorsal. Hie first ray of the anal fin is orange, the second and others dark green, growing lighter toward the tail, the origin of the second and third rays being yellowish. Tlie scales are very small, imbedded in the skin, and there are neither scales nor defined spots on the gill- covers. The fin-rays are as follows: ^ Br. 12 ; D. 13 ; P. 13 ; V. 8 ; A. 10 ; C. 19^. '♦ The branchial rays seem to difler sometimes, the same fish having eleven on one side and twelve on the othei, and the highest one is a half ray or small plate. The mm 42 SKA TRQUT. anal, properly speaking, has eleven rays, but the first is 80 delicate and so lost in the fleshy part of the fin, that it is hardly distinguishable. The coloring of these fish differs greatly from that of the common trout, but it is universally conceded that color is no test or distinction of species. When fresh run from the sea, and when still inhabiting the salt water, they are gloriously brilliant ; their backs a liquid bluish green, the under part flashing like molten silver. The spots and scarlet specks on their sparkling sides are of a purer tone, and the lower fins more slender <»nd delicate. Tliey are found in the bays of Prince Edward's Island, in the harbors of Kew Brunswick, and in all the gulf and river of St. Lawrence and its lower tiibutaries. In Frank Forrester's " Fish and Fishing," a letter from Mr. Perley, the British Commissioner of Fisheries, is quoted, page 123, in which he says these fish do not ascend into purely fresh water. In this I am reluctantly, out of respect to his great experience as a fisherman and high standing in scientific attainments, compelled to difi'er from him. I have unquestionably taken these fish far above tide water, and have the best authority for saying that usually, if not invariably, the larger trout at leaet ascend to the head-waters of the mountain streams to spawn. I venture to say that no large sea trout are taken in the tide water after the last, and rarely after the first of August. It is probable that he has been misled by the fact that there are trout in the same streams that never descend to the sea, and there is a marked difference in color between them and theii W'^- "T:; Tff^nK' . '*"**W.'*7ir' - SEA TROUT. 43 aymg i least M ms to it ore after been same » is a theif 1 M biethren, although I believe they are the same fish. For the correctness of these views, reference can be made to the experience of many authorities that would be satis* factory to one that I esteem and respect as much as I do my excellent friend aud brother of the angle, Mr. Perley. While mentioning his name, it will not be amiss to tender him, in the name of the -fishermen of the United States, our thanks and grateful acknowledgments for the invariable kindness, courtesy and good humor with which he has answered the numerous questions entailed upon him by his mention in Frank Forrester's " Fish and Fishing," and the valuable aid and advice he has furnished the wanderers from the States in their search for piscatorial happiness. Combining as he does the heartiness of an Fnglishman with the sociability of our own country, wc are proud to claim him, while he remains in our vicinity, as half an American. But let me, at the same time, suggest to my countrymen, that there is a limit even to tlie best of tempers, and that, although each one may only put a few questions and take up a little valuable time, the total combined may be annoying, inconvenient, and even excessively burdensome. In addition to the positive fact of taking sea trout above tide water, it is to be remarked as a habit of all trout to ascend in summer to the cool sources of the springy brooks, and our common trout will invariably be found, after the warm weather i& at its height, either in the rivulets that feed the ponds where they dwell in winter, or at the head- waters of tho ponds. The sun's rays are so powerful that they afiect any sheet of open ippiplil mm qppppmiiip 44 SEA TROUT. vater, especially the harbors and bays of the ocean, and the fish will not live there, but withdraw to cooler regions. A remarkable case of this kind fell under the writer's observation at Masapequa Pond, which is uni- versally admitted to be the best preserve on Long Island. It is rather small, and quite shallow except in the chan- nel, and being entirely unsheltered, is liable to become heated in hot weather. The spring had been remark- ably mild, and in the middle of May, after a number of days that reminded one of June, I viei'^ed Masapequa, and, although the weather was favorable and a lively ripple darkened the water, only two trout were killed in the entire morning. I was much discouraged and surprised, until happening to get my flies caught, I put my hand into the water and found ic milk-waraa. The explanation was simple, and I at once told the proprietor, who had been more astounded than myself, that the fish had run out of the pond into the brook ; and there, sure enough, we shortly discovered them lying in the deep pools in shoals. If they cannot retire to cool, fresh, aerated water, they will perish, as happened one dry, warm season in a pond at Oyster Bay, which, although well filled with trout, had no extensive head-waters. The fish crowded round the flume, hardly disturbed by being touched with a stick, remaining motionless, and evidently suflerlng. They died and were picked up by scores. If sea trout do not ascend the fresh streams, whore do they spawn ? From the habits of all the salmon tribe, w, know they must have a current of pure and cool water to vivify the eggs, and they certainly cannot fiiid dEA TROUT. *? this along the shores and Days. Their eggs must be deposited on a gravelly bed and not on sand, and as the bottom of the salt water, which is purely sand, even if appropriate spawrang ground, is peopled with all sorts, shapes and sites of creeping, crawling and burrowing things, from sand-worms to sea-eggs, the spawn would be utterly destroyed long bei'ore it could come to ma- turity. If, in spite of all thei^e difficulties, tlie eggs should hatch, the young fry being entii'ely helpless for thirty days, and little able to take care of themselves afterward, would be annihilated by their elder brethren or the first sea fish that came along. Young trout, in their appropriate localities, hide carefully in little spring rills and close along shore for months after they are hatched, and not till well grown and active do they trust themselves in the deeper places among the larger fish. Nature has taught them that the latter have an excessive fondness for them. ', ' .,, Whether sea trout spawn earlier than brook trout, 1 do not know, but very possibly they may, as in cooler countries fish usually spawn earlier than in warmer ones. However, in August the roe is not developed to any great extent ; no more so, apparently^ than with us, and, although the Canadian Winter sets in earlier tlian ours, trout do not fear the cold. The regions they inhabit being extremely difficult of access in the freezing season, this question may remain some time unsolved. Whether sea trout should be ranked as a distinct species, or whether there are any different species of trout in America, has been a serious question. It is a great misfortune that every naturalist, in his eager iffiplililipi mmmmim ■MP 40 SEA TROUT. endeavor to discover new species and originate new names, has caught at the slightest distinctions in appear- ance, which are often only due to food or water, and has immediately dubbed the fish a knight and endowed him with a new name — frequently some horrible Latin per- version of his own. Real distinctions are those perma- nent ones that no change of food and water can affect, nor the chance influence of a few shell-fish or a muddy bottom. There are distinctions between these trout and brook trout, of color, comparative size of different parts of the body, formation of the head and fins ; but not more so than one often meets with in fishing any of the streams of Long Island that communicate with the sea, or even in the different streams of the wild woods. The sea trout of Canada certainly do far excel the ordinary trout in size, being taken, with the fly, weighing nine pounds, and the ordinary average being from three to four; but otherwise they seem to have no permanent peculiarity that should distinguish them from the com- mon brook trout. All other distinctions fade after the trout have been for somo time in fresh water, and a late run of sea trout diffei*8 far more from those which have ascended the streams a month earlier than the latter from the brook trout. Indeed, some sea trout have become domesticated in the fresh water, and never returning to the sea, have settled down, although often f great size, into the ordinary trout. ' In Stump Pond, on Long Island, and the adjacent waters, are four different varieties of trout: the old- fashioned Stump Pond Trout, with a black mouth, a long, thin body, a big head, and a wolflsh, hungry SEA TROUT. 47 look ; the Salt "Water Trout, with a small, sleepy head, a deep body, and a rich coloring, small fins and red flesh ; the Brook Trout, long, narrow, brightly marked, gracefully shaped and lively; and a trout which has appeared in a new pond, scarcely yet completed, with a dark, strong coloring, very black on the back, a thick, stout body, and a well proportioned head. Any one can distinguish these fish at a glance, but must they each have a different name, and a Latin one at that ? The fresh run sea trout of the North have beautiful silver sides, almost as bright as a salmon's, and in this particular, at least, differ from the salt water loving trout of Long Island and Cape Cod. Their heads are small, delicate, and exquisitely shaped, and their lower fins are small and almost transparent. The heads of the males are larger, and the lower jaw more hooked than those of the female, and these differences increase as the spawning season advances. The head of the female bears a comparison to that of a modest, refined lady, while that of the male resembles the big head and ugly jaw of the struggling, quarrelling, but protecting man. A.t times their flesh is a bright red, often a dull yellow, and rarely whitish. The shape of their bodies is grace- ful and broad across the back, to a greater degree in both particulars than the sea run trout of Long Island and Massachusetts. But as they ascend the rivers, and after they have been some time in their new abode, these peculiarities diminish, the color of their backs turns from a beautiful green to a dull black, the splendor of their silvery sides fades, and the heavy spots and roseate tinge appear ; their translucent fins grow opaque and strong SEA TROUT. from greater use in the awift current ; their shape even seems to alter, and they are altogether unlovely by com- parison with their former selves. Are they, therefore, " like Cerberus, three gentlemen at once," and entitled to three distinct appellations, or are they simply our dearly loved old friends, the Speckled Trout f The change in appearance of these iiah cannot be refuted by the suggestion that the ordinary brook trout ascend the rivers and mingle with those of the sea, be- cause the latter are to be caught in every stage, from the brilliancy of the fresh river fish to the dull colors of the oldest inhabitant. And it will be noticed that at the heads of the rivers a bright-colored fish is rarely met with, although they must be, with few exceptions, all sea trout. The best trout rivet's of Canada are troublesome to reach, difficult to ascend, and seldom attempted by any but the salmon fisher. To the latter, the trout, attractive as he seems to us, is a trial and a nuisance. Abundant and vora- cious, he often rushes in advance of the lordly salmon, seizes the fly, and then discovering his mistake, by his struggles disturbs the pool, ruffles the fisherman's temper, and frightens the larger game from its equanimity. He is therefore little noticed by the frequenters of the head- waters, except to be denounced, and his delicate peculi- arities seldom considered and less esteemed. He is princi- pally sought in the tide water along the shores, or from boats in the open bays, but rarely followed to his summer home. The statements, therefore, of Canadian fishermen with regard to him must be cautiously received and care- fully weighed ; their experience may not have been suf- ciently extended. , '^m D'0'i:i; > -;*«;« SEA TRO(/T. 49 Whatever be his name, he is a beauty, the fairest of the children of the sea. There are others of more varie- gated colors, of gaudier hues, of more slender shape, but the trout is lord of all. He is the pet of the true fisher^ man, whether taken by the name of Salmo trutta in the bays of Canada, weighing fifteen pounds, or as Salmo fontinaUsj in the mountain streams of Vermont, reach- ing not one quarter as many ounces. In Canada, sportsmen — and none others seem to fish — ^tak'e the sea trout solely with the fly. In June, and earlier, they are found in the tide waters, and there prefer gaudy flies. Tlie scarlet ibis, or curry-curry of South America, dressed as it is ordinarily done, or diversified by a little gold or silver tinsel wound round the body, or indeed the entire hook wound with tinsel alone, is by many preferred to all other flies ; but the red hackle, the golden pheasant, the professor, the grey drake, and in fact any gay fly, will meet with approval. A much admired fly is made of a red body and yellow wings ; but the more sober colors must not be forgotten nor neglected, they are often more successful than their gaudy relations. As the season advances, and the fish ascend the clear, cool rivers, especially if the water be low and the weather dry, the sober flies are preferable. Then the cow-dung, the alder-fly, the turkey-brown, the winged black ha \lc, and in fact all the ordinary flies, are in demand ; a fly invented by myself, of a blackbird's wing and a claret body and legs, and called the early fly, has often proved itself imcommonly killing ; and indeed all the flies usu- ally employed in other waters are appropriate for the sea ^out in Canada. 8 mmmmm ^ mmnmmmm mmmmmmmm 50 sejl trout. Neither does tbe size of liook differ fi-om that ordi narily in use ; it should averaj^e ahout a number nine, with a few somewliat larger for rough water. It is rarely desirable, on account of the enormous size of the fish, to use more than one fly at a time, and generally the trout will soon remove the difficulty by reducing them to that number ; but at times, when fish are shy, they seem to be attracted by seeing several. In order to kill the largest possible quantity, without any regard to humanity or sportsmanship, a heavy fly-rod is desirable, as much time is lost in landing them with a delicate rod. For many hundred miles below Quebec, the majestic St. Lawrence rolls its transparent waters in a f 1y surge toward the ocean. Forward and backward L,^,os the mighty tide, piling up the waters eighteen and twenty feet ; but the steady current keeps on its course toward the gulf. Into this wonderful stream, that can only be likened to an arm of the sea, at every few miles debouches from the granite hills a river, more or . less extensive and more or less rocky and turbulent. These rivers rise on the mountain tops, cold and clear, and thunder down over falls and rapids, through chasms and gorges split in the eternal rock, till they leap, tumble or crawl into that outlet of a thousand lakes, the highway of the Canadas. • These streams the salmon and trout ascend, there to disport themselves, there to make love, prepare their nests, and perpetuate their species. The water is cool, running from the frigid regions of the north or supplied by icy springs, and the bottom offers every variety of BEA TROUT. spawning beds. There is the stony pool for the salmon, the pebbly one for the trout, and never do the two spawn, and rarely even liye, in tlie same. The pool where the salmon lie is deep and rapid, with a bottom composed of dark limestones averaging about the size of a bantam's egg. While the trout hide in a sluggish pool, and often one worn away by the water and hollowed from a clay bank. It is a tradition, but one by no means well substantiated, that trout never eat young salmon, nor salmon young trout. As trout are more fond of their own species than almost any other delicacy, it is not probable they would be fastidious about swallowing a nice, juicy little salmon. The country through which these streams run is very peculiar : rough hills of granite rise almost perpendicu- larly from the edge of the water, many hundred and sometimes many thousand feet. Their sides ace bare and bleak, and if adorned at all with verdure, it is with a stunted pine and spruce, that only half hides the white rock beneath. The streams wind in tortuous course among the crags, and slowly gain a high elevation. These bare, unprofitable hills extend back from the north shore of the St Lawrence as far as the foot of man has penetrated, and only at long intervals by the shore of some of the larger rivers, where forty centuries of storms have worn away and washed the detritus from the moun- tain into some little bay, have half civilized beings been enabled to build rough cabins and glean a scanty sub- sistence. Thus are these waters, the home and nursery of the trout and salmon, protected forever by nature against the pervading destmctiveness of man. JudiciouB ^'^H?^«P^^fipBPf^^*^*^'^ 'fSSMF TROfJT. Viws have been passed and will be enforced by the Cana* dian government, and the American fisherman may find in neighboring waters what he will never again see in his own, these noble fish dwelling in abnndance, and protected from* worthless, wanton and unreasonable destruction. It is a burning shame, a foul blot on the character of Americans, and tarnish on their reputation lor far-sighted economy, that their only idea of the treatment of the wild game of the woods and waters seems to be total annihilation. " After me a desert," is their motto ; and they never rest till, by planting snares and liming streams, they have caught the last partridge and poi- soned the last fish. Thus have they already destroyed one of the most valuable resources of the country ; the Hudson, the Connecticut, the Penobscot, and even the Kennebec, yield no more salmon, and we yearly pay to Canada enormous sums for what we once had, and might still have, in plenty on our own shores. Kot many years ago a person buying shad on the Connecticut River was required to take such a proportion of salmon. Now that the head-waters are covered with tanneries and eaw-mills, and are crossed by dams without the simple expedient of a flume that the fish could ascend, and now that early salmon are worth a dollar a pound in New York market, where are the former denizens of the Con- necticut ? All the timber cut on the streams would not pay for the damage done to the fisheries. In Canada the people have discovered, fortunately for them not too late, the importance of stringent protective laws. The nets can 'jK^i^cjl^RV--- 8EA I'ROUT. only be set within a certain distance, and cannot extend across the entire stream. In Lower Canada the net fish- ing terminates on the first day of August, and the rod fishing on the fifteenth of September, and spearing, the most cruel, unprofitable and injurious mode of destruc- tion, is forbidden altogether. About one hundred and twenty miles below Quebec the wondrous Sagnenay pours its dark waters and fierce current into the placid bosom of the St. Lawrence. It is one of the natural wonders of our still new and scarcely explored country. Hills rise a thousand feet sheer up, and its waters descend a thousand feet deep at their base. The St. Lawrence^ at its mouth, is only some thirty feet deep, but the bottom suddenly descends at the entrance to the Saguenay, and becomes from five hundred to a thousand feet in depth. The breadth of the Saguenay is so great that the grandeur of the mountains is lost to the eye, and the scenery is remarkable more for ruggedness than beauty. At the mouth of this river was the first station of the Hudson Bay Company, a little village called Tadousac, which is pronounced with the emphasis on the last syllable, and in that village stands the mission church of the Jesuits, the oldest in the country Close to Tadousac, and almost adjoining at the back, is a still smaller village called L'Anse 4 PEau, and although great ships no longer lie at Tadousac, and the houses are fast falling to decay, and the good men of the olden days have long gone their last journey, and the trap- pers are never more seen around the famous station, and the glory of the Hudson Bay Company has departed, Plpppilp«^ 54 8BA TROUT. the trout and salmon coast along the rocks and visit the inlets as they did when priests promenaded the natui'al terraces of Tadousac, and when the shortest road to the Northwest was up the Saguenay River. The trout care not though the iron horse has sprung two great leaps across the water that they live in, and know not that a woman, the only Catholic that can read, officiates as high priest in the sanctum of the woman-haters, the mission church of the Jesuits. ' The St. Lawrence abounds with most delicious food for troui; ; there are acres of small fish ; the sand eels crowd the bays yards deep, the sardines, the mullet, the capelin, the tommy cods, push and jostle their way along, while shellfish innumerable cover the sandy bot- tom. Flies swarm on the water, and the deep rivers in Winter and the cool streams in Summer constitute the ^SLeaSBe of the soUmanidcB. Along the shores of the tide water, early in Spring the trout and salmon make their appearance, and wandering about pass the merry days of May, June and July in feasting and junketing, in visiting new scenes and tast- ing every variety of food, till instinct warns them the waters are £dling, and tliey must hasten to their syl- van bowers and eiyoy the pleasures of love and paternity. Then slowly, the largest first, they leave the tide waters and swarm up all th^ practicable streams, running the rapids and steadily advunciug to their pebbly spawning beds, which kind nature appears to have prepared in the heart of these impassable mountains for their especial protection. Through all tliis season, June, July and Au- gu#t, the fishing is magnificent; they are in great SEA TROUT. 5$ numbers, and of immenge size ; but after they baye once left the salt water, the angler must accompany them in their ascent if he would continue his sport, and by day struggle in his canoe against the rapids, up which lie hears them darting at night. While the iish are still in tide water, and the fishei^ man is fishing from the rocks, the head of some bay into which flows a stream of fresh water, and the time of the lower half of the tide, are both desirable. Tlie former as furnishing a variety of food, and the latter as contracting the fishing ground. The eddies of a swift current, and the hollows of a rocky bottom are both affected by the fish ; although they are often found along a smooth sandy shore, chasing the miimows, and now and then dashing at a fly or sand-hopper thrown off the land. It is nothing unusual to capture a liun> di^ed^fish in' as few hours as it will require to land them, and often the only limit to the number will be the sportsman's humanity. They are a difficult f sh to pre- serve ; it se^iis sacrilegious to salt them ; they are not good pickled in brine, and smoking is both injurious and troublesome. The fisherman, if he would not have them rot before his eyes, must put a bridle on his eager* ness. They run very largo, sometimes above a dozen pounds, are often taken of five and six, and frequently a whole day's catch will average three pounds. Tlioy are found at tlie mouth and along the sliore of every river that empties into the lower part of the St. Lawrence. They ascend the Sagnenay, and arc taken at and near its mouth in great numbers, and in fact everywhere in tb« t^' C6 SEA TROUT. m lower St. Lawrence and all its tributaries they abound. It would be more difficult to tell where not to find them than where to find them. But the best trout-fishing sea Bon is later, when they have followed the salmon and retired to the upper waters of the mountain streams, where they lie together in shoals, in the deep p' Is. Then they may be traced by the wake their motion leaves in the water ; then may the fisherman, casting a l(mg line and careful fly, pick the finest and go on fish- ing till heart and soul are satisfied. There, amid the wild scenery, at the foot of the granite hills, by the shade of the stunted spruce, he may take his stand upon some point of rocks, near to a black pool, and deftly wielding the slender rod, may bring to the net one after another of the mighty denizens of the water. But even then, if he would take the mightiest he must prove him- self a sportsman by keeping out of sight and casting far and straight. And when his sport is terminated by the declining day, or his ample satisfaction, and he meets his companions round the camp-fire, over a well cooked supper improved by a vigorous appetite, he will exchange experiences of the habits of fish or the arcana of the angler's art. K, however, he loves the " wet sheet and the fiowing sea,'* a nautical anomaly, by the way, he may pursue his prey in the open bays, and with a smart breeze and long line, and gaudy fly dancing from wave to wave, have great sport. Under these circumstances the fish are almost uncontrollable and must be often followed with the boat for a long way before they can be killed. It is gloriously exciting, the bright waters sparkling with SEA. TROUT. 57 foam, the light boat leaping over the billows, the sky magnificent in its depth of bine, iT e fresh breeze cool and strong ; and the fish just hooked, furions, vigorous and conrageoas, rushing hither and thither, plunging to the bottom or springing high out of water. Then the exciting chase as he takes off fortunately down wind, and exhausts all but the few last turns of line on the reel till it becomes a question of speed between hirn and the boat, and at last his final surrender and capture. Truly is it magnificent. Eiyi^re du Loup, a little Canadian village situated on the St. Lawrence, opposite the mouth of the Sague- nay, is now connected with Quebec by railroad, and is only a day and a . alf distant from New York, It affords good accommodations, but there is no place any- where on the Saguenay or at ltd mouth where the trav- eller can stop. The Canadians, although generally will- ing to offer such accommodation as they possess, are too dirty in their habits, and often too much beloved of creeping things to suit American taste. So that as there is little or no trout fishing at Kivi^re du Loup, the angler must make his arrangements for a camp-life, and would do well to descend the St. Lawrence in a pilot boat, which he can hire with a man and boy for two dollars a day, and stop at the mouths of all the streams that debouche into it. The river is over twenty miles wide, and he must look out for storms, as these boats are open and by no means good sea boats. At night he can go ashore, build a fire, put up his tent, and call into requisition the numerous luxuries this mode of travelling will enable him to carry. ^ ^ au^ * r^. ^^ / .i^v 8* iiiR^i mmm 58 SEA TROUT. A steamboat ascends the Sagnenay twice a week, and he can either take it at Quebec or join it at Biyidre da Loup, and by this means enjoy a trip through the bold scenery of that celebrated river, and can either return to Bivi^re du Loup, or take a pilot boat at L'Anse k PEau. l^re is a generous-hearted Englishman living at L'Anse & I'Eau, but he has been compelled to refuse admission to all strangers, as any infraction of that rule would have led to his being ov^run. Many of the streams of Lower Canada are leased to private individuals, and there are few good accessible salmon streams open to the public, but the sea trout fish- ing along the St. Lawrence and at tlie mouths of most of the streams is free to all. In Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, and at Prince Edward^s Island, there is as yet no restriction, and both salmon and trout are the property of him who can catch them. Nowhere, how- ever, can any salmon iishing or good trout fishing be had except by camping out. Canadian canoemen can be obtained, if not required to furnish canoes, for sixty, cents a day, although the Indians, who are far superior, command over a dollar, and where the angler is unac- quainted with the water he is to fish, he had better take the latter. They are, however, willful and exacting, and sometimes stubborn and troublesome, while the former are the best-natured fellows in the world, full of fun, song and frolic, but often too fond of the liquor case. The best river of Lower Canada is the Mingan, but if it is not already leased it soon will be. It can be reached by steamer that leaves Quebec semi-weekly, stopping at SKA TROUT. t» Gaapi, at Bathurst on the Bay de OLaleurs, whidi is near Nipifiiqnit, the best river of New Bninswick, at several placea along the route, and finally at Shediac, whence tliere is a communication with St. John or Halifax. The steamer running at the time this is written is the Arabian, and leaves Quebec every alternate Monday. Tlie Nipisiquit is within a few miles of Bathurst, where there is good accommodation, and boatmen can be obtained without difficulty, or the fisherman may. con- tinue his travels to Dalhoueie, at the mouth of the Besti- gouche, and try either that or the Matapcdiac. Another mode of reaching the fishing grounds, is to go to St. John, and thence by steamboat to Fredericton, a^.i cross over by land to the Miramichi, at Boiestown, where there is excellent trout and fair salmon fishing. A list of the distances from Quebec, together with further instructions, is given under the head of salmon fishing, as the rivers we have mentioned are properly salmon rivers. ■:,..:'■:,: ^ ■■_:■,..;-:::, ■• . ^ %,:>;■,',, .;,., ■'-^...;.'^-, -.:;:,.;-,;/ The sea trout fishing is so fine, that many persons prefer it to taking the larger salmon, and can be indulged in almost anywhere along the shores of New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward's Island, Newfoundland and Lower Canada ; and w^ere it not for the heavy fogs, the Bay of St. Lawrence would be a favorite resort of our adventurous yachtsmen. The Galway line of ocean steamers now touches at Newfoundland, whose waters abound with the finest fish. The sea trout ascend to the head-waters of the Mira- michi quite early, so that there are none of large size to be caught in the lower section by the middle of 60 yi^nq|IMqpippii^RpqfpiHiii|iiM i,iiiiii|iii|iwu. .iwninf SEA TBOUT. .}} ^m^iKv«vMmffmii^f^fi^m», lu mii July. In that river they average from two to five pounds' weight. But the Tabaeintac, a stream half-way between Chatham and Bathurst, is* the most famouii sea trout river of Kew Brunswick. I do not know of any sea trout along the southern shore of Kew Bruns- wick. 'i < .. f I » i»i»^, ?< ^ . Jf.i -Hi- 1 fi-f ■V*' '?<> "V, ^' <,^ . ■ ,1. ^^K ^ ^,pj^^ ' i:- A TRIP to THE JJ. YAL. 61 .■:*k^^rr#.' •f-SU. -tV:-'- CHAPTER IV. '^;i%■>!:y■][^ A TRIP TO THE LA YAL. A beauhful breeze was blowing down between the grand old hills of the majestic Saguenay on that first day of August when Walton and myself started from L'Anse 4 1'Eau in one of the oddly-shaped pilot-boats of the St. Lawrence, for a visit to the Bon Homme la Yal. The Bon Homme la Yal, a beautiful and roman- tic stream that falls into the St. Lawrence about sixty miles below the Saguenay, tradition asserts was named by the pious Canadians in the early days of the country after a beloved father confessor. But time and the English, equally utilitarian, have contracted it into sim- ply La Yal, and the origin of the name, together with the piety that suggested it, is almost forgotten by the present generation. The sun was shining brilliantly, and the strong northwest wind curled the waves of the ancient river, and crested them with foam; the dark waters surged in their falling tide; the stunted trees shivered in the blast; while the granite hills were as immovable as they had been mid storm and calm for many thousand years ; but the pretty little village was all astir with our departure. It is a fanciful place, with the white houses perched in a nook between the whiter rocks, while the .1 fr^- mfm^w 62 "iT'wwp'^WIPi'WIBP A TRIP TO THE LA YAL. ^ graceful roofs and whitewashed walls shiuing in the sunlight, produces a picturesque effect. The few English families residing there, and their many friends on visit to them, made an agreeable society, drawn closer together by its seclusion from the world at large ; and bright eyes looked brighter when there were none othei'S by. The world of L'Anse a I'Eau was collected on the wharf to witness our departure — the Canadians because they had no better employment, the English that they might bid us adieu. Our pilot-boat, called by the Cana- dians chaloupe, an open boat some five-and-twenty foet long by seven wide, was crammed full of onr numerous traps, plunder or baggage, as it would be variously styled in different parts of our land of freedom. The fishing rods, and one gun, devoted to the destruction of bears for lack of smaller game, were carefhlly stowed ; small barrels, at present filled with meat, but destined to return filled with fisli, lay side by side with baskets full of more delicate provender ; tents, bedding and innumer- able other articles occupied every inch of room. We were experienced in woodsman life, and had no idea of suffering the want of luxuries that could be easily car- ried with us, and would never trouble us on our return, unless they did it in spite of our teeth. There were preserved soups, meats and fruits, sauces of many kinds,, tea and coffee, the latter ground and in bottles of essence ; there were brown, white and maple sugars, concentrated milk, flour, Indian and oatmeal, barley, rice and potatoes ; liquors of many kinds, and other things too numerous to mention. For our protection from the weather, we had two tents and waterproof cloth sufil- ■J* iiM< III. 1 inwiium itniPi«pr"^qpnpiviP|I mmm A TRIP Td THB LA VAL. ea dent for a make-ahifb, two indian-rubber blankets apiece, one coated on the side the other in the middle, water- proof suits,' plenty of blankets, flannels, and warm clothes; and such other things as a gentleman ordinarily carries on a journey. As a defence against the mosqui- toes, black flies, sand flies, and other like torments of Satan's invention, these were veils, the oil of tar, and a mixture of glycerine, turpentine and spearmint. Above our treasures were carefully stowed our two canoes, bottom upmost. In a heavy sea they cannot be towed, as they are apt to fill and tear to pieces. Few persons know how beautiful and delicate a canoe is. It is manufactured only by the Indian; in that the white man has never equalled him. The best is made from a piece of white birch bark, stripped from the tree in springtime, damped, and after being cut away to the requisite extent, molded into the proper shape. The inside is covered with gum, and a thinner piece of bark fitted upon it, so that though the outer bark be torn, it still does not leak. Over this are passed thin strips of red cedar, lengthwise of the canoe, and crossing them at every inch are ribs of the same wood. The gunwale is formed of a stout stick of hickory or ash, laced to the sides, and four strong but slender thwarts bind the whole firmly together, and serve for seats or supports. Inferior articles are made of but one thickness and of poorer bark. The shape differs according as they are manufac- tured by the Mountaineers or Micmacs, the two tribes of this region, the former building a long, narrow and graceful boat, easily capsized even for a canoe, and well suited for travel in smooth water ; while the latter build IP 64 ▲ TBIP TO THE LA YAL. a broader and flatter boat, drawing little water and bet ter suited for ehoals and rapids. They are mostly manufactured on the south side of the St. Lawrence, birch< trees of the requisite size having almost disappeared from the north shore. The bark is composed of innu- merable layers, and is the only known substance that would stand the rough contact with rocks that canoeo experience. A volume could be written on the wondrous qualities of birch bark, the woodsman's invaluable trea- sure ; to him it is a boat, a tent, a table, a plate, a cup, a basket, a pail, a basin, a frying-pan, a tea-kettle, a candle, a flambeau, a cooking oven, writing paper, kindling wood, and almost all the other conveniences or necessa- ries of life. The chaloupe being loaded, a long farewell sliouted loudly that our spirits might n-"* *ail, and we turned our backs on I/Anse h, l'£au, ibe pretty bay at the water- side. The jib was set, and tbe ijra/de voiUy or foresail, together with the tapecu, or jigger, while the mainsail, called by the Oanadians mizzin — ^for we were a three- masted schooner — was brailed up, not only to give us more room, but because the open boat was then under all the sail she could stagger to. The French are a won- derful people; Btrange and incomprehensible are the sailing vessels they have produced ; but in Canada, aided by the antiquated notions of the English, the; sur^)r.8s themselves and manage to combine in their pilot-boats all the defects of which either system is capable. While tiie rest '>f the world has discovered that tie more sails a small boat carries the slower she will go, they have care- fully cut up what should have been one sail into four; Mpp ^''^^m^'mm''mimmmmmili'^lltmm ▲ TBIP TO THE LA YAi; Mid whereas a pilot-boat is mainly wanted in rough weather, and should be capable of living in any sea, tliey have built them open, and any heavy wave breaking aboard would swamp them in an instant. But of all wonderful productions of the human mind the jigger excels; a mast is stepped alongside tho stern-post, with a little spritsail lioisted on it ; a sta- tionary boom, or out-rigged, is fastened in the stern and projects aft into the water ; in the end of this boom an augur hole is bored, through which is rove the sheet to ^^^ figS^h *"^ the sail trimmed down or eased off. By this ingenious arrangement all possible disadvantages are combined without one conceivable advantage. How- ever, not to condemn unreasonably, there are conve- niences in this singular rig. The bowsprit can be taken out and used to shove off from rocks or a lee shore, and as these vessels are never known to go to windward, that is important; the sprit of the jigger can be used to boom out the mainsail when going wing and wing; any passenger, finding a sail incommodes him, can reach up and wrap it round the mast, out of his way ; and in fact, if he were to pull it down and put it*in his pocket, no one would miss it ; and finally, a Kentuckian might find the mainmast useful, with a little whittling, as a tooth- pick. It is also rather perplexing that the Canadians should call the foresail the grcmde voile, which is the proper name for the mainsail, and. then call the mainsail the mizzin, in pronouncing which they endeavor to cheat the last syllable of its vowel ; Avhereas, the jigger, if any, is entitled to be called the mizzen. Instead of having a cabin, like Christians, they have amidships, for it is a SPiW^' "." ■'"■ wjp^^jp;* J it«^i«' w,«i<iwi"»^!*»(>»«««») iiiwj«ii|ip;i»i!iJii.' ufflwpppspiWif'" '' ■*-»' ■ Iff Wf ». iPii et A TRIP TO THE LA VAL. keel boat, what they call a hoite; and sure enough it is a box, as long as the width of the boat, some seven teet, about two and a half feet deep at the lowest part, and rounding to the shape of the bottom, and three and a half feet wide. Into that they crawl, and two men and a boy have been known to sleep comfortably. Such was the vessel that was destined to bear us sixty miles down the broad St. Lawrence, and was soon tear- ing along under the fierce wind that crested every wave with foam. Fortunately, our course lay along the wea- ther shore, for our open cookle-rshell would not have lived a minute exposed to the full sweep of the blast and the sea it must have raised on the other side of the river, or even a few miles from shore. Once in a while, a little dash of spray would come hissing on board, or fling itself into our faces ; but as the wind was free, we could carry ou sail as long as sue could keep above the waves, or until she carried the masts out of her. Even that ungainly vessel, driving on in the seething waters, car- rying the canoes on her deck, and with her sails straining in the blast, must have been more than picturesque. On we tore, skirting the dreary, inhospitable coast past the village of Tadousac, paat the Moulinbaud, the Esco- main, a river once famous for its salmon, but no longer so ; past the Patte de Lievre, a rock of the shape of the hare's foot, where many years ago the sea gave up its dead, and a cross now stands to mark the grave of the lost nameless one; and the last puffs of the wearied blast urged us quietly into the outlet of Sault de Cochoii. At the mouth of this river there is a steep fall, down Wl4<^ ^??*^®„* ^^& hastily descended much against her wmmmmmiKi^ A TRIF TO THS LA f AL. 6T yjx- the its the hen. )vvn will ; in her death covering herself with immortality giving her name to the torrent that destroyed her. Hastily launching one of the canoes, and rigging up our rods, my companion and myself, eager for the fray, com- menced tempting the -innocent inhabitants of the deep with delusive baits. Evidently Mr. Red Hackle was not one of their intimate acquaintances, and they took to him amazingly. The god of day was already declining behind the western hills, and casting long shadows over the now placid water, but the fish leaped at the fly Jn innumerable numbers, giving us such sport as we at least never enjoyed before. At almost every cast a trout, varying in size from a quarter of a pound to two pounds and a half, plunging out of water, seized the fly fear- lessly in his mouth, while often two or three were on the line at once. Large or small, they were most vigorous, making fierce struggles and mad rushes to escax)e, their silver sides glancing tlirough the water, and their tails lashing it into a foam. No dull, heavy, logy fish were they, but active and lively, and excellent was the Bpoi*t they gave ; so that when our men, having improvised a kitchen on the rocks, called to us that supper was ready, we were loath to leave our sport. It was then eight o'clock; we had been fishing about three hours, and over one hundred and twenty fish, averaging about half a pound, were the net reward of our skill. The scene, as we took our supper upon the end of an old tumble-down dock, was peculiar. The light of the fires, making the surrounding darkness the deepe?, served alone to illumine with lurid brightness the faces and fan- tastic dresses of our n\en, while the roar of the cataract ^mmm''-" ''wipi «• 98 A TRIP TO THE LA YAL. sliut out all other sounds. The chaloupe lay below us, its outline just defined upon the dark water, while we, seated upon a log, drank our tea and feasted right roy- ally upon fresh trout and other comforts that ciyilization had provided us. Truly incomprehensible are the Canadian people. One of the few inhabitants being without any eatable thing in the house, having scraped the flour barrel till he had scraped olF splinters of wood, and, except for our arrival, without the prospect of a meal for the morrow, had soothed his sorrows by inviting his neighbors to a ball. Of course there was no supper ; but the music of one fiddle, and the merry spirits of the Canadian girls made up for the deficiency, and when we joined them, after our tea, they all seemed as happy as though stomachs never grew hungry or limbs tired. Being politely offered the belles, we joined the festivities, our potables adding to the merriment of the party, till, with the prospect of a hard day's work on the morrow, we thought best to retire to the dressing-room . and camp upon the floor for the night. Although the bed was hard, and our rest somewhat disturbed by visions of beautiful creatures arranging their hair and dresses by the light of a tallow candle, before the looking-glass in our room, and at last donning their hats for a final departure, we slept toler- ably, and the early dawn saw us on our feet, preparing for our departure. While the men were carrying out our directions, in anticipation of a long absence from civilization, the attractions of the finny tribe were too seductive, and we, yielding to their enticements, again cast our lines in plea- A TBIP TO THE LA TAL. 09 ^B, ID the tant places, and again, in about three hoars, ca})tiired over eighty of the speckled silver-sides. The largest weighed two pounds and a half, and was the best fish taken, thns far. The barrels were arranged, the salt was purchased and stowed, the canoes made fast, the sails set, and, blessed by a still more favorable southwest wind, we got under way for La Val. Its mouth was only about one mile distant, biit we intended to ascend it as far as possible with the chaloupc, on the rising tide, and were thankful for the favoring wind. At its outlet lies an island of the same name with the river, behind which' stretches a broad, rocky, shallow bay. We escaped by grazing several rocks, and entered a sluggish, canal-like, dirty river, as unlike the La VaJ of a few miles above as any- thing can be conceived, and ploughed our way through crowding shoals of sardines, that rose so thick as to tempt us to try to catch them with a scap net. But where the rocks began to be visible as the water became clearer, we drew the chai.upe to the shore, and anchor- ing her stem and stem, loaded our canoes for the ascent of the river. We took with us the essentials of our camp life, intending to send back for the superfluities after we had establisbed a permanent camp ; the river being too low, our canoes would not carry a heavy load. Armed with iron-shod poles to shove up the rapids, and paddles for the deeper pools, our Canadians took their places and we commenced our ascent. My com- panion was an expert canoeman, but for myself it was my first real lesson in the unsteady little shells, and seated upon the bottom I awaited every moment a 70 A TRIP TO THB LA YAL. sudden bath. Here the water was comparatirely smooth, an^ little was I prepared for the falls and rapids that were ere long to steady my nerves for anything, and prove what a canoe can do when it is well handled. While our head guide, with the musical taste that is inherent in the French nature, rang forth — « jUmei-moi Nicolas,'* nn- the paddles were being plied vigorously, and we shot into the narrow cleft that forms the bed of the La Val. Straight up from the water's edge sprung the hills on each side, their grey rocks scarcely half covered with stunted spruce, pine and hemlock, and rM*ely leaving margin enough for underwood to grow upon the bank. The water, now limpid as crystal, poured down in an ever increasing current, fmd here and there boiled over a hidden rock. On we forced our way, a bald eagle the only contestant for our sole occupancy of the river, past tlie grey cliffs, the sombre trees, through dark pools, up rapid currents, by banks of clay greyer than the granite hills themselves. On, on, with steady exer- tions, at every moment ascending toward the source of the wild stream. The water became shoaler, the cur- rents stronger, and the rapids more rocky as we ad- vanced. Poling up the rapids was strange indeed. Imagine a torrent pouring, hissing and boiling down over rocks, where the foam glistened and the spray danced into the air. Sweeping through narrow channels and leaping up and curling over in crested waves ; imagine a light, fra- W*!p^pip?i?|ii»,M •."i»i»^w,wn]P'"J''W5W!ppp«i!WUiii iiji! i|g,P,,iji»n| A TRIP TO THE LA TAL 71 giio boat, that a man could lift with one hand, forced against snch a current, between or even over the rocks, Bwayed about, swept hither and thither, and once in a while caught broadside on, and, unless quickly righted, carried to instant destruction. Imagine the excited efforts, the quick directions of the steersman, or forward boatman, whose care it is to head the canoe straight, to choose at a glance the deepest channel, and to keep her clear as possible from the rocks. ^^Arritef avanoe/ pou89e ! d droite I d gauche /" with a thousand others, come streaming forth as she touches, swings round, or tries to take her own head. At times she stops entirely, and by main force alone is she pushed over ; the rock being distinctly felt as it bends the thin bark, that by its elasticity gives to the pressure and springs to its place the next instant. The men stand erect, exerting all their strength, and handle their poles like a Paddy his shille- lah, first on one side, then on the other, then in front and then behind, the iron taking a firm hold of the slip- pery rocks. Such was our ascent, and deeply interesting it proved to me, although at first it seemed inevitable that the foaming water must ingulf us all, and, destroy- ing our provisions, leave us, if we escaped at all, ship- wrecked mariners upon a desolate coast. I was glad, therefore, at every opportunity to quit the canoe, and clambering as fast as I could over the slip- pery rocks, post myself ahead upon the point of some hatture or ledge of rocks, and cast the fly till the canoe came toiling painfully along. Great was my success, beautiful the dark pools, ever varying the limpid water. The treacherous banks of clay, so slippery that it was 72 A TBIP TO THE LA Yil^. scarce possible to stand on them ; the dark pines casting a gloomy shadow npon the water, the sombre depths where the current had worn away a cavern for the naiads of the watery realm, made together a pictare never to be forgotten. While the innumerable trout were enough to gladden the heart of any true sportsman. The day was pacsed and yet our journey not half done ; we halted for the night as ^* The shades of eve camt) slowly down," and Walton joined me with his rod w^jile the tent was being pitched and the fire lighted. Glorious was our sport; many a brave fish rose and sunk, and rose to sink no more ; either in that region tlie parent trout had not learned the infant song that in civilized localities they are accustomed to teach their children, or else the mothers did not know the latter were out ; for certainly they were not aware of the con- cealment of the cruel hook under the seeming insect;. They showed no fear and we no pity, till the call of *< supper " found us with over a hundred fish, averaging a pound and a half. In conscious innocence and happiness we .retired; the fire was bright, the night was warm, the woods were still, the sand was soft, but oh t the sand fiies. They came down upon us more innumerable than the locusts in Egypt, and if Pharaoh had only been tormented with them, he would have given up in one night. I tossed and turned and rolled about, hid my head under tlie blanket, and covered it up with my handkerchief. All to no use ; they would still find some means of entrance, the little, invisible things; and they bit till my face seemed on fire. Their bite does not itch like a mosqui* # A TBIP TO THE LA VAL. 1h lU to's, but bnrns, and I never again shall despise a Lbing becanse it is small. Compelled to surrender all hope of sleep, I gathered the dying embers of the fire, and add- ing fuel, drove away the pests, while, at the same time, with infinite relish, I scorched onr men, who, to my pre- vious disgust, had been sleeping during my sufferings as though they were in paradise. By the earliest dawn I had waded into the river and made the discovery that fish, unlike the proverbial birds, will not take the fly too early. Just before the sunlight tinged the mountain-tops, they, thinking to provide their own breakfasts, provided me with mine, so that, when the time came to leave off, I had taken twenty fish weighing over forty pounds. Immediately after the meal was over, we continued our ascent as rapidly as possible, dreading another expe- rience such as we had endured the previous night, and hurried on to reach our regular camping-ground and pitch a proper tent. On the way, I only had time to catch fifteen, weighing thirty-seven pounds, the largest being of three pounds and a half, and late in the after- noon hailed with pleasure the information that at last we had reached the spot that was to be to us for some time our home. It was a beautiful location ; the stream, by a sudden bend, forming a low, long point of land, nearly level, which had been, by previous camping par- ties, entirely denuded of underbrush and partly of trees. In front, midway ip the river, was a large flat rock, beyond which, extending to the further shore, and just fairly within casting distance, lay a deep, black pool. A dead tree leaned over this rock from our side of the 4 ippllpilnpiniliplpil wmm r:: 74 A TRIP TO THE LA YAL. river, forming a .perilous swinging bridge by wLicli one could reach it dry shod. Directly across a cool spring brook entered the La Yal at a place where the shore was a mass of overhanging underbrush. A pathway had been cut through the woods by some previous salmon fishers to the pools above and below ; and with the polea, benches, boards and other insignificant but useful articles left by our predecessors, our camping-ground combined every requisite with many luxuries. At five o'clock the tent was pitched, our necessary part of the arrange- ments, the head-work done, and "Walton and myself com- menced fishing. We stood side by side upon the rock already mentioned, and before dark had taken fifty-three trout, weighing one hundred and twenty pounds. They were most vigorous fish, and many a time did their con- tinued runs almost exhaust our lines. We had fished at Sault de Cochon with three flies ; on asoending the river had diminished them to two, and now the fish themselves coolly reduced them to one. Almost invariably, if we struck two fish at a time, lio matter what pains we took, one broke away with the hook. After a short time, wo did not pretend to use more than one, and then had to take great pains in removing it from the mouth to avoid its being destroyed, so tough were the lips and strong the teeth of these noble fish. Indeed, it was soon effectually proved that any fiy with the hackle wound from the shoulder to the bend was worthless, the first fish biting away the hackle, which should have been only wound close to the head. Heretofore the destruction of my fly had been a minor consideration, but now I found that I xniwt look to myself, or, although provided with over ■^•. A TBIP TO THS LA YAL. 7b ting lund fly latl )ver thirty dozen, there might be danger of my falling short As it was, the fish destroyed in the course of my trip at least ten dozen. A delicious night's rest was the reward of our efforts at arranging a proper camp, and in fact, henceforth there was no trouble from flies, mosquitoes, or any insect, except to a slight degree during the day-time ; an annoy- ance that a segar would effectually dispel. From a quarter before seven to a quarter past eight next morning I alone took twelve fish averaging over two pounds, and during the day, while ascending the river for a short distance to investigate what now became to us a serious question, the depth of water, Walton and myself together caught twelve, and in the afternoon twenty-eight more. In the course of this day we established a rule to throw back all fish weighing under two pounds, a rule we adhered to till our last day in the river. The water proved to be very low, and although at night we occasionally heard the rush of a large fish up the rapids, the salmon had passed above and were probably on their spawning grounds, whither it now began to be very doubtful whether we could follow them. It was late in the sea- son, as we knew, for salmon, although we had come pre- pared for them, and wished to catch at least a few. We had picked up at Sault de Gochon, as a super- numerary, a boy of about eighteen, who was one of the most re'narkable beings the sun ever shone upon. He would sit for hours with his mouth open and his hands before him, and, unless told, would hardly ha^e sense to eat enough to keep himself from starvation. After dark, oar men, with a hook and line and the entrails of a trout mmmm n A TRIP TO THB LA YAL. for bait, caught some eels, and ho, emulous of theii suo cess, took the line after they had finished, and concluded he would try his luck. Although he had been watching their proceedings for an hour with the deepest interest, he had no idea what they used for bait, and was forced to inquire. They, with peals of laughter, suggested alternately *' a cup of tea, a bit of biscuit, a little ale, a lump of sugar," and such other anomalous baits. Although he at last succeeded in ascertaining from them what they used, it was not to be supposed that he would catch anything; in fact, it is highly probable he fell asleep over his rod and slept ti, morning. The next day we prepa/ed for a portage of five miles to the Lake la Val, a pond of some two miles in length by one in breadth, formed by the river's spreading out and filling a valley in the hills. Walton donned a heavy basket, Joe, our chief canoeman, took the canoe, while Frangois, the lazy boy, carried a bundle of bedding. We crossed the river, and striking directly into the woods, followed an Indian trail that had probably been there before this continent Was discovered by Columbus. The mode of carrying the canoe was truly original ; it was reversed and mounted on Joe's shoulders, and his head being entirely concealed, he steadied it by holding to one of the cross pieces, and, at a distance, looked like some strange animal with a huge trunk, supported by two little legs. It was surprising how he managed it through the trees and among the underbrush, and even ascended places where we were compelled to give our legs the aid of our hands, not, however, without strenu- ous exertion, and the perspiration streamed from him A TRIP TO THE LA YAL. 77 when, after accor plishing abont a mile, he leaned \t upon a fallen log and slipped from beneath. Then the warning my friend had so often given me never to wet the bottom of the canoe, because it augmented its weight BO terribly, came forcibly to mind. Fortunately Franco i a waked up, and having volunteered to carry the canoe over the next stretch, and it being ascertained, to every one's astonishment, that he knew how, proved himself for the first time of any value, and shortened our jour- ney considerably. During the portage we saw our first game, a spruce grouse so tame that no efforts we made could induce him to fly. He escaped death, primarily because we had no gun, and secondarily because it was out of season. At lust, after a trying journey for our men, we passed a deserted lumbermen's shanty, and found ourselves upon the sandy shore of the lovely Lake la Val. This beautiful sheet of water, lying amid high sterile hills far from the abodes of man, has remained, and will continue for centuries, unvisited except by the native Indian or the adventurous sportsman. Romantic in its location and appearance, it is remarkable for the num- ber and apparently irreconcilable character of the fisb that inhabit its waters. While the voracious northern pickerel and giant mascallonge inhabit the upper part, and the fierce, greedy and powerful salmon have appro- priated the outlet, shad or mullet and lake trout, both comparatively inoffensive, dwell in the centre, and doubtless prove an easy prey and grateful food to their natural enemies on either hand. Along the upper mar- gin, weeds grow, and the bottom is in places soft and n ▲ TRIP TO THB LA TAL. mnddj, while the retidne of the shore and bottom is firm white sand. The lake looked, in its broad expanse with the sun dancing on its rippled snrface, lovelj to a\9 whose eyes had for a time been confined to a narrow gorge or the blue sky above. Hastily launching the canoe, we descended the outlet, where the water poured over huge bowlders covered with a long, weedy grass, the seeds of which had been washed from the lake. Walton was standing in the bow of the canoe, and shonted with delight, and waved his paddle enthusiastically in air as salmon after salmon flashed up through the water, and shot by, rapid as light. Tlie sight made our nerves tingle, but it was useless to try for them ; the water was too clear, and they were dark and long run from the sea. At one point he frantically shouted to stop, and hastily explained that he had seen five salmon and numerous large trout in one deep hole. In vain, however, did we cast our flies, they had been frightened, and probably rushed down the stream, for we could not stir a fin. Descending a short distance fur- ther, we halted for dinner, after which, taking advantage of a resting spell, I waded back to the same spot. The pool lay close beside a little island covered with alders, and by crawling cautiously I kept out of sight, and reaching the head of the island, cast carefully and lightly round it into the pool. The line went out straight the full length, the fly fell like a snow-flake on the water, there was an angry rush, a mighty splash, a quick taughtening of the line, and an enormous fish was fastened to my frail tackle. In his astonishment he fortunately darted up stream, and by skillful manage- A TRIP TO THE LA TAL in' ment was led round into the otlier channel, whore, after many a struggle and desperate eflfort to escape, baffled only by prudence and care exerted through a long but excitinaf half hour, I landed him by walking into the water waist deep, and slipping the net under him. As for leading him to shore, my rod, already bent double would not bear the strain. He was a dark-backed, yellow-sided river fiah, and weighed four pounds and a quarter. Ho was our champion prize, and remained so to the end. Tlie water not having been disturbed, I made another cast, and was rewarded by another fish that weighed four pounds. A brace of beauties, fit to set before a king. The second one, however, so fought and flounced, and kicked and slapped about in the pool, in spite of all my persuasive efforts to induce him to leave it, that the rest grew suspicious, and refused the most seductive baits. My friend looked the least little bit envious when I rejoined him, and mentioned his having previously taken a sea trout at the Mingan that weighed nine pounds. I smiled, of course respectfully. We returned to the lake, having taken in all fifteen fish averaging three pounds, and leaving the canoe on the beach, wended our way through the woods back to our sylvan home, where Pierre received us with a redoubtable supper. Insatiable, however, I that evening took eight, and next morning three, from our preserve, as we called the pool in front of the tent. , As we intended to return to the lake, and might per« haps spear a pickerel, Joe made an egog, which appears to be the Indian name for fish-spear, the Canadians having not only adopted the word, but coined from it a '.*■.." pp mmm mm rjppnnpifi 'iMim^ji,i|iM wppifrpiwsiw *80 A TRIP TO THE LA VAL. m I ; French verb, egogger^ to spear. Armed with it, and provided with make-thift tenting materials, we has- tened to the lake, and launching our canoe, tried its virtues upon the pickerel. The latter, however, were so scarce, that we rigged up the more effectual spinning tackle, v'd took a pickerel and a mascallonge of about twelve pounds each, and struck another of the latter very large, weighing, as well as could be guessed, from })is passing close to the boat, about forty pounds. That night, provided with flambeaux, we went out for the purpose of again trying to spear pickerel ; but, passing by the outlet of the pond, were so attracted by the numerous salmon, we could get no further. It was a romantic sight ; the canoe, lit up by the blazing flam oeau, that was fastened, high above our heads, to a pole fixed in the bow, and by its glare made the surrounding darkness the more impenetrable ; the silence of the night was unbroken, excepts by the dip of the paddle; and calmness of the water unruflled, througli which the bewildered salmon lazily floated, following us about, coming so close that we could touch them with our hands, and occasionally jumping frantically into the air, utterly out of their wits and at the mercy of any poacher. Walton was excited, myself enthusiastic, but Joe was frantic; '^ Egoggez done! egoggez doncP'' he shouted, wildly pushing at the fish with his paddle, and almcat ready to jump out of the boat. My friend held the spear in hand — he was a splendid spearsman, and could have filed the boat with salmon ; but it was ille- gal as well as dishonorable to catch them in that maimer — he wavered but a moment, and then with a sigh lay A TRIP TO THE LA VAL. 81 Jown the spear and took up his paddle, the greatest example of self-command and honest sportsmanship I ever knew. General Washington, when he refused to bo king, was no greater. My friend was not rewarded if he did not sleep happier for it that night in the old cabin on the shore of Lake la Yal ; and if the falling pipe of the rotting stove that nearly crushed his head had killed him, he would have died virtuouSj respected and without reproach. ' Oh, that I had the pen of Julius Ceesar, Homer, Shakspeare, or even Byron, that I might write an ode to sapin, the balsam fir-tree ! Tree of the weary woods- man, tree of the luxurious sportsman, tree of all men whom the drowsy god catches in the woods and compels to his embraces I A bed of thy leaves is softer than one of eider-down, and far more comfortable. A prince might sleep on thee and dream he was in paradise. Thou preservest us from colds, from rheumatism, and the many ills that flow from the evil humors of the cold ground. Tlty leaves, growing in one directive from the stem, will lie flat, and may be piled to any depth — a foot of luxury, as in our permanent camp— and make a couch that combines the softness of the feather-bed with the flrmness of the mattress, and an elasticity purely thy own. To thee, and to thy mate the hemlock, and thy associate the white birch, I now, far from thee, waft, in a cloud of tobacco-smoke, my love. Go on, increase and wax great ; may often the one support me on the land, the other on the water 1 • When the next morning's sun had once more brought round my birthday, the thirty-first that had ever dawned. m PiHRipPilllliqpplMPPMPI^^P 83 A TRIP TO THE LA VAL. k'v we commemorated the fact by iindertaking to descend the La Yal from the outlet to onr home ; a roundabout journey of some fifteen mileb, in lieu of the portage of five. It was to be a final test of the depth of the water, as the course lay over bad rapids and falls, and we entered upon the journey with great uncertainty. Pack- ing our temporary bedding in a water-proof blanket, our party embarked and sped gaily along for the first mile or two, but soon found the bed of the stream one mass of huge rocks, over which the canoe had to be driven with sheer force, and which tore and strained the fragile bark till it leaked terribly. During this day our progress was necessarily slow and laborious, and to relieve ourselves we fished continu- ally. Tlie trout rose beautifully — iA fact, in one pool they were so thick, sweeping round in shoals, that we grew surfeited, and left it for a spot where they were less plenty. Still it required a long line and light fly to cull the largest — -which were the ones we sought — and skill and patience to land them. We might have taken hundreds had the time permitted, or our canoe been in condition to carry them ; but every strain had increased the leak till we could no longer keep it down by bailing, and had to land from time to time to turn the water out. In fact, it was a wet time altogether • there was a driz- zling rain, the canoe was three inches deep with water, we had both been wading part of the day, and had so arranged our water-proof blanket that it projected be- yond the temporary tent, and catching all the water that drained off, would not permit it to soak through, but collected a miniature La^e la Yal in the middle of our ™!7TT!T-. ' ■<K—^~'."^T'Jf^'- A TRIP TO THE LA VAL. 83 bed. I being the heaviest, had the most of it ; but by the aid of a blazing fire, I slept warm and comfortable till the morning air struck me, when the time came to rise, and sent a shiver to my very bones, giving me at first horrible visions of consumption, night-sweats and early death. Our tally of fish taken during the day amounted to fifty-three, weighing nearly two hundred pounds, and I had captured the greatest weight as yet taken at one cast, landing two fish, one of which weighed two and the other three pounds and a half. A handsome present the river gods made me for my birthday 1 The next day, after an hour had been spent in vainly trying to attract the salmon, our journey was continued to the camp, the river as we descended proving worse, the rocks higher, the rapids fiercer, the water lower, our canoe frailer, till it came almost to dragging the latter over the bed of a current instead of floating com- fortably along its surface. All hope of ascending to the head-waters was extinct, the rapids above the lake we knew must be worse than those below, and the latter were totally impassable for a loaded canoe. In our despair, we fished steadily at every breathing spell, and might have taken unlimited numbers, for they rose gloriously. While walking unconsciously along, separated from my companions, I was fairly startled at observing what at first glance seemed to be a female figure seated on the opposite side of the stream beneath the bank. The impression was only dissipated by a close inspection. Tlie rains had scooped out of the bank a dark niche, the edges of which were ornamented with vines and mofls, W,^|P|ipiH,l.ii|... ■l|!l»,W!l^!li|i|«»!B^PIW^"IF« ijji)i.>i,|l iKiiiii^qfii ^ A TEIP TO THE LA VAL. and in it was seated a figure of clay, worn to an aston- ishing likeness of a woman with a gipsy bonnet on her head. She appeared to be seated, and her bonnet, its strings and her dress, were accurately imitated by the curling white birch bark. The color of her face seemed dark brunette, set off by the birch bonnet, that was brought out in strong relief by the heavy shadow of the background. Altogether, it was a startling apparition, and conjured up to my eyes the wondrous sights of the times of elfin power, when my spectre would have made a most perfect wood nymph. "Whether my elf gave me good luck or not, it is impos- sible to say, buf, we caught thirty-seven magnificent fish, and after a hard day's work, during which we had toiled at the canoe and waded most of the way, the camp was no unwelcome sight. It required Pierre's best culinary efforts to restore our spirits, and soothe our disappoint- ment at being unable to effect a further ascent, in which our worst forebodings were confirmed by Jermain, an additional guide who had followed us, and who reported from his Indian friends that the upper stream was impass- able, the water being a foot lower than was ever known before. With sad hearts, therefore, the council of war determined that advance was hopeless, and retreat ine- vitable ; even our splendid sport could not console us. It had been drizzling all day, and the next morning we devoted to a general drying oif wet articles— the camp looked like a grand clothes washing establishment, with lines btretclied from tree to tree round a big fire, and hung with (Jotiic-s. I tool: some seven trcu dinner, but otherwise the fish had a rest until ihv. I or rjior- ^^^^'mmimmi'''''''^i9mimmiimmmmmmmKlimm A TRIP TO THE LA ViL. 85 row, which was to be onr last on the river, when we cap- tured twenty-eight, a few of which, however, did not exceed a pound and a half in weight. The next day came, and good bye to the beautiful La Val. Slowly and sorrowfully we struck our tent, sadly we collected together, and stowed the many little arti- cles that the occasion had hallowed to our hearts. "With feelings of deep regret we embarked, and looking our last look at the camping-ground that had been our home, commenced a descent to our chaloupe. As there were three canoes, and only five canoemen, including my friend, I was gladly compelled to take the bow of one and act as steersman. Of course my experience was limited, for, with the exception of having once upset Walton to his intense disgust, I bad taken little active part in canoe management, and having for my stern-oar, Joe, whose only idea was to push ahead under all cir- cumstances, we performed manoeuvres that astonished more than they delighted our associates. Ours was the leaky canoe that had been patched up with gum and a piece of a shirt for the occasion, and being utterly reck- less of it, we shot down rapids and leaped over rocks like a runaway race-horse. Wonderful were our hair breadth escapes ; the rapid water, Joe with his ^^Ava7ice2 toiijours^^ gave me no time to see and less to avoid the half-hidden dangers, even if my skill had been equal to the task, and we darted along amid the foaming current, or plunged headlong down cataracts, at a rate and in a manner that would have surprised a locomotive off the track. We succeeded, however, in keeping straiglit with the current, and although once or twice our destruction wmmmmmm S6 A TRIP TO THE LA VAL. BCcuied inevitable, we finally arrived safe, though in a leaky and dilapidated condition, at the place where we had anchored our chaloupe. Tlie latter, left to herself, had been trying what she could do on the rocks, arid had succeeded, with the aid of u falling tide, in upsetting twice, and so frightening the boy in charge of her that he had fled for refuge to a shanty, which providentially was near at hand. ^ • : .r ^^ ;. ^ Joe had taken the opportunity during our last day's fishing, on hearing of the misfortunes of his boat, to remove her to the Sault de Cochon, so that we had to paddle about two miles in the open St. Lawrence. Tlie river was over twenty miles broad, and, under the influence of a southwesterly wind, was so rough that our un- steady bark danced, tossed and rolled about uncommonly. 1 could no longer stand up, as I had been forced to do hitherto, and was brought to my knees at once, while even Joe found it safer to sit down on the thwart. No one who has not tried it can imagine what a canoe is in the slightest sea-way ; it appears to bob from under you, and rolls and dances so quickly as to render staying in it almost impossible, even if it should not carry on t its evident design to turn bottom up. Once at Sault de Cochon and I again tried the fish, having takeri, on the descent of the La Val, twelve, and was rewarded as I deserved, by total failure. The wind had died out, the water lay a perfect mirror, and, crowding down into the narrow cock-pit, we slept till two o'clock in the morning, when a favoring tide helped us slowly along toward our destination. The night passed, and the next day, and we drifted by place A TKIP TO THE LA VAL. 87 after place that we passed before with such rapidity, and sunset again found us only thirty-thi*ee miles on our way. We ran into a little bay at the mouth of the Escomain, where, having built a huge fire and eaten a hearty sup- per, we slept, on a bed of the softest pebble stones, soundly and sweetly till the first grey light of daybreak, when we continued our jouirney along a coast so poor thaf'the best fed hogs are, as we were credibly informed, light and weak enough to be blown over by a strong wind, and mill-stones, to say nothing of the miller, starve for want of grain. Again the hills of the Saguenay rise to our view, Tadousac rests calmly in its nook, and the sun shines on the white houses of L'Anse k PEau as when we left. Our trip is done. The La Yal will live in our memory as long as we can cast a fiy — aye, and when gout or age shall have laid us on the shelf. To you, my friend, the genial companion of my trip, I give my thanks ; may we meet again, and once more stand side by side upon some projecting rock, as fish after fish rises to our fly. May you long live to enjoy the sport at which you so excel, and may you leave childi*en that can cast a iiy as well. To the stately St. Lawrence, to the magniticenfc Sague« nay, to the beautiful La Yal, a long farewell. f 8S THE SALMON. CHAPTER V. THE SALMON. . 1 Salmo Salar. — ^This celebrated fish is totally dilFerent in appearance from the trout, having decidedly brilliant scales, colored bluish black down to the lateral line, and beautiful and white as glistening silver below. It has on the gill-covers and upper part of the sides occasion- ally dark irregular spots. The tail is more forked, and proportionally more expanded than that of the trout, while the fish is of a more slim and elegant shape. The branchial rays are twelve, and the fin-rays are as follf>ws : D. 13.0 ; P. 15 ; V. 9 ; A. 9 . 0. 19f . These splendid and valuable fish, whether regarded as an object of the sportsman's skill or the epicurean's taste, though once abundant in our State, are so no more. Ilendrick Hudson, on ascending the river he discovered, was particularly struck with their immense numbers, and continually mentions the " great stores of salmon." The last unhappy fish that was seen in the Hudson had his adventurous career terminated by the net, near Troy, in the year 1840. The rivers flowing into Lake Ontario abounded with them even until a recent period, but the persistent efforts at their extinction have at last prevailed, and except a few stragglers they have ceased THE SALMO^T. S9 from out our waters. The willful, stupid obstinacy in building dams without fisliways, in crowding the riveis with nets, and neglecting all measures fur tlieir protec- tion, have annihilated the noblest of game fish. They are now only to be found in Maine, and to the uortli- ward of it. The rivers of Maine are no longer worth the angler's attention, and if he would have good sport he must proceed to the wilds of New Bi-unswick or Lower Canada. In the wild woods of those famed regions they abound, and there, amid the solitude of nature, in its pri meval grandeur, the writer has cast the fly over thou- sands, has lured hundreds from their hidden depths, and seen myriads moving about in their romantic pools, oi darting away when disturbed ; has waited, casting patiently, for their appearance ; has felt the vigor of their first rush ; has seen them leap, maddened, high out of water; Las experienced all the variations of hope, the exultation of success, and, alas ! the agony of fail- ure. He has known them to dart away resistlessly down some impassable rapid, and leap for joy as they broke his frail tackle, and he has seen them panting with the gaff in their sides and the dark blood streaming over their resplendent scales, as his quick-eyed assistant had secured them at the moment the hook was tearing out. Aye, he once had the good luck of having one that was thrown out of water by the blow, the hook tearing out at the same time, caught on the gaff ere he fell back into the watery grave of hope. The glorious sport I Ye delvers after the ore of gold, hidden as it seems to be in boxes of silk or bales of cot- 90 THE SALMON. fr ton, in bits of paper or leaves of ledgers; ye weary crawlers through the streets of mammon, who think the world is bounded by the four walls of your ambition ; ye who have been brought up to work, as though work were the aim of life instead of the means of its improve- ment ; ye who have laid up a few hundred for some pet dissipation, a visit to Saratoga or Newport, or a fight with the tiger— that man-eater — and ye who must watch every day over your accumulated millions, lest a penny slip into a cranny and be lost, go to the woods, where you will be surrounded by the sombre trees, where the rocks will be your companions and the wind whisper and the stream prattle to you. There you will leani how little it takes to render man comfortable and happy, how but for his reckless passions and extravagant desires all might be satisfied and plenty crown the human race. There, wliere nature speaks to you in her beauty, in her grandeur, and occasionally in her stupendous power ; where the wonders of the universe by day and night are ever present, like old friends ; where there is naught but the thin air between the Maker and his beings, you may learn what will be more valuable some day than any treasure of gold or silver. Breathe the pure air, shake off every ill that flesh is heir to ; add to your life, if you love it so well, a week for each day, and that a day of never wearying enjoyment. Take rod and gun, aspire to cast the line far and straight and light, feel the strug- gle of patience, perseverance, skill, resolution, with brute strength and cunning ; know the pleasurable anxiety of the chase, the alternate hope and fear, and the final glory of success. Learn the woodsman's art, the " gentle '"J^JI" THE- SALMON. «raft cf venerie," and wonder at the resources , of the wilderness, and on your return thank me not, if you can. But that you may do it well, read the following prosy instructions carefully, for if they be not entertaining they be useful. The rod for salmon fishing should be from sixteen to twenty feet long ; one of sixteen, or even fifteen, if well made and elastic, will answer. It must be strong and stiff, but not too heavy, and the further it will cast the greater will be the success. Salmon are more wary than trout ; if they see a horrible, ill-shapen being, like man, lashing at them with a long whip, they lie close to tlio bottom, and it is only by keeping well out of sight, and never disturbing or approaching the pool, that they can be tempted. A short rod, though it may be capable of casting the requisite distance, will not give sufficient command nor enable the angler to lift the fly with facility. The fly must be cast straight, light, and as far as pos- sible ; it must be put exactly upon the right ripj^le, and must fall like a snow-flake ; it should, if the water is still, be allowed to sink a few inches and then drawn up to and along the surface a foot or so, again allowed to sink, and so on till it is raised for another cast. It is not moved as rapidly, nor with precisely the same tremulous motion as in trout fishing. Often a long time passes before a fish, no matter how plenty they may be, v ill rise; and when he does come, it is as often to play ^vitii and slap at the fly as to take it. Nothing is more pro- vokingly exciting than to have a magnificent fish rush again and again at your fly, leap over and around it, :& Ji-. ■■>;,' w %. V^,w: IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) ^ ^^^ 1.0 I.I 1.25 I^IZS |2.5 III 2.2 U£ 2.0 ill U 11.6 " » : VI ^ '^^ Photographic Sciences Corporation 33 WEST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, N.Y. 14580 (716) 872-4503 X^ A *% «' ..iiia <i fe 1 \ ■liiilWili Sflil«p THE SALMON. break near it or strike at it with his tail, without, how ever, showing the slightest desire to take it in his month. A fish hooked foul, though he gives a great deal of trouble, and often breaks the tackle,, does not afford half tlie legitimate sport of one that has the hook in the mouth. • ■• ' ^ ^ ' '• When fish are playing thus, and it is fully determined that they will not take the allurement presented them, no matter how attractive, it becomes necessary to substi- tute another, and continue so doing till their dftinty pal- ates are satisfied. -^ > . - - When they finally take hold, have a care for their first rush ; the pain, if pain they feel, or astonishment, drives them wild, and they dash and fling themselves about, ' leap out of water, and carry on generally in a manner to surprise weak nerves. Finding their efforts to escape vain, they will dart down the nearest rapids, and here they must be followed if the water is too shallow for the canoe, by the angler, with the agility of the antelope. He must have feet, hands, and eyes for everything. The fish must be guided through the safest current, the line kept clear of rocks, while the angler must pursue his course through pools and over ledges and bowlders, slip- pery with the water, and requiring the surencss of foot of the chamois. On, on he must go, regardless of falls or bruises, his reel making sweet mutic to the uncoiling line, keeping within sight of his prey till the latter reaches the next pool or resting-place. After an hour's struggle in this, he may take down another rapid in the same vigorous style. In these descents the angler will find his gaff, if shod with iron, a great convenience in I THE SALM027. w jcape here r the lope. The line his slip- foot alls ling tter Jur's the rill in i steadying his steps, and heavy shoes w'ih will in a measure prevent his slipping and will stono bruises, although they are apt to iron nails obriate break the delicate knees of the canoe, and should be removed before getting into one, and moccasins or slippers sub- stituted. There is a well authenticated story of one fish that was struck at six o'clock in the evening, followed down through three rapids, and finally lost at half-past ten o'clock that evening. v - - r ^ .. i : >. . r^r, Salmon will sulk, remaining motionless at the bottom for a long time after they are wearied with an unsuc- cessful struggle, and must be aroused with pebbles, bear- ing on the line, or in some other way. Many of the pools in the Canadian waters have been worn out of clay banks, and their sides under water are ofbn perpendicu- lar or overhanging. When the fish sulks in one of these, the line cuts into the edge of this bank, and is of course broken to pieces by the first rush. Gentleness will do much with fish, as with other rea* Bonable beings, and a friend of mine saved a number in a pool above an impassable rapid, where other anglers had pronounced fishing impracticable, by striking and handling the fish with extreme delicacy till they were led to the head of the pool away from the dangerous neighborhood. There is no superlative salmon line made; the best, probably, plaited silk, tapered and covered with a prepa- ration to exclude the water; but that in general use is of hair and silk plaited or twisted — a combination that, as we elsewhere remark, is by no means advantageous ; a plain hair line is preferred by careful anglers, and ehn* «* THE SALMON. pie silk will answer. The leader should be of single gut, if round and strong, and may be colored in tea. Double gut will break the rod but not save the fish. The flies, contrary to the received opinion in Europe, should be dark, especially clarets and browns, above all the impal- pable *' fiery brown," and of rath^ a small size, with a few larger for rough water. The reel should be large enough to carry two hundred yards of line, although with activity and a hundred an angler may make out. As for the number of fish, even in the best streams, those who read Lanmann must receive his statements with, to use a moderate term, some allowance. Ten or twelve fish in the course of a day is excellent luck, and will keep the angler sufficiently occupied and (excited, but the average good fishing through the season is not half that number, and there are many blank days. The upper shore of the St. Lawrence furnishes the largest fish, but Kew Brunswick the most abundant. The rivers in the former are mostly leased to individuals by the government, and of course closed to the public except by the consent of the lessees. That famous association called the Hudson's Bay Company, a kingdom within a kingdom, until a few years ago, were sole proprietors of fishing rights, but having tak^^n pains worthy of our emulation to destroy the fish, the government curtailed their privileges, and passed stringent laws and regula- tions, which are set out in the appendix, for the preserva* tion of the fish. The rivers of Kew Brunswick are still free. The fly-fishing in Canada lasts till the first day of Sep- temb^, and in I^ew Bruoawick till the fifteenth ; but ^m^ THE SALMON. liled le but the net fishing termin&tes earlier, and in Canada all spearing or fishing by torchlight is stringently forbidden. Tliese laws are, strange as it may seem to us, enforced \vith comniendable energy in Canada, though in New Brunswick our mode of letting the people override the laws prevails. The best river in Kew Brunswick beyond all com- parison, is the Kipisiquit, emptying in the Bay of Cha- leurs, and near it are several almost as prolific. In Lower Canada the Mingan, the Moisie, the Busamito stand preeminent, but have many rivals. Directions foi reaching them have been given under the head of sea trout fishing, but instead of taking a sail-boat, as there suggested, from any port on the river St. Lawrence, the same might be done either from Bathurst or Frinco Edward's Island, both of which are nearer the lower streams. There are many excellent rivers on the coast of Labra- dor as far as the Straits of Belle Isle, or even farther, and they would be well worth a visit, either in one of our clipper yachts or in a i'ast schooner. Many are entirely beyond the real'^^is of civilization, and a pleasant party night have a glorious time and abundant sport. It would be necessary to take canoemen and canoes, or what is strongly recommended, small, light flat-boats that can be rowed or poled by one man, and which can be purchased for five dollar^ apiece at most of the gulf seaports. Arm yourself, then, with two good salmon rods ; they may be so made us to constitute a trou» rod as well, not by any means one of those detestable nondescripts called wmmmm mmmmmm 96 THE SALMOir. a general rod, but two rods distinct with joints fitting to each other. Take with you two good lines, pleiity of flieSj extra gut and hooks, leaders and feathers, and a strong hook gaff, but not that dangerous, unwieldy instrument called a spring gaff. Thus equipped, go forth conquering and to conquer, and may good luck attend you. Seek any of the rivers we shall name, ascend them in your fragile canoe, station yourself early in the morning or at the approach of evefting, choose your best fly, keep well out of view, cast far and light, and may you many and many a time be rewarded with the fierce rush of the mighty salmon, his struggle and final con- quest, and may your sleep be sound and your heart at rest amid nature's primeval hyis. May the black flies and mosquitoes spare you, may the sand-fly not find you out, may the heat be tempered to you by day and the cold by night, may you not lose your footing too often, nor fall too hard, and may your fish be the largest, strongest and bravest that ever were taken. May you receive that mercy which you show, never drawing one drop of useless blood, nor causing one unnecessary pang. The aid of all good men and true is needed both by precept and example, to save the tenants of the water from final extermination. By putting restraint upon ourselves, never being guilty of wanton slaughter, by steadily urging measures for the preservation of the game, and by invariably obeying and compelling others to obey such laws as should be passed, we may be able to leave to our children a heritage of pleasure tliat bountiful nature has abundantly provided for ourselves. No fish are more defenceless and more readily destroyed than i THE SALMON. 97 by the [lers leto liful Ifish trout and salmon ; there are certain prerequisites tu the continuanoe of the .^ecies tliat must be complied With. The fish must ascend ^.o the fresh water to spawn, and if prevented by an improperly constructed dam, will quit the locality never to return. It should be known that, contrary to the usually received opinion, salmon cannot surmount a fall of much over ten feet ; this, probably, is the full extent of their powers. And in effecting this, much depends upon the depth of water at its foot ; the deeper it is the higher they can leap. They do not take their tails in their mouths, according to the ancient theory, to enable them to spring higher, but rush with their utmost velocity from the bottom, and are carried by their momentum a considerable distance out of water. Such a leap or a struggle against strong rapids weakens them, and they must soon rest to recover strength for another ascent. They thus congregate below each fall, and often make many efforts before they overcome it. They usually move at night or early in the morning. A dam of fif- teen or twenty feet will effectually exclude them from any stream, but may be rendered innocuous at small expense by placing below the wasteway boxes of heavy wood, with a fall of not over five feet from one to the other. A salmon leaps from the river to the first, from that to the next, and so on till he has overcome the barrier. A broad sluiceway leading at a moderate angle to the pool below, will probably answer as well. The fish, as they enter the rivers, may be deterred from entering, or all captured in nets spread entirelj' across iiie mouth, and when those that do pass have 5 n THE SALMON. ,i"' reached the spawning beds, they are peculiarly exposed to the cruel spear. At night, by this instrument, with the aid of flambeaux, hundreds may be killed and many more wounded and left to perisii miserably. If they are to continue in reasonable numbers, nets must not be set close together, the spawning beds must be undisturbed, and the murderous spear utterly prohibited. With these precautions and a regulation concerning the sized mesh that is used, this valuable source of pleasure, health and profit may not only be retained but - indefinitely augmented; without such care the day is not far off when " the places that knew them will know them no more," when their bright sides will no longer gleam beneath the waves or glisten as they gambol in the sun- light, when the nets will cease to yield a return, when the fishermen, longing regretfully for tlieir most valuable prize, will find their occupation gone, and honest and dishonest, fair fisherman and sneaking poacher, alike be overw^helmed in one common ruin. Surely we have too much good sense, too much public spirit, too much energy and determination to submit to such a calamity ; let us unite, then, in repressing unseasonable and unlaw- ful fishing, in preserving and protecting the fish, and in restoring rivers that h: ve been exhausted. In the salt water, salmon never take the fly, and rarely bait of any kind, although they feed on sand eels and small fish in addition to shell-fish ; but as they advance into brackish or fresh water, they either miss their natu- ral food and become hungry, or get accustomed <o feed- ing on grasshoppers and insects, and are deceived ^y the artificial fly, and will at times take the bait. .- , x, - 4 arely and ranee »atu- Ifoed- thc i THl BALMOK. 99 Wheu thoy leaye the salt water, the sea-lioe that have fastened to them fall off, frequently to be replaced bj fresh-water parasites, and this is sometimes given as the reason for their leaving the sea so earlj in the year, although thej do not spawn till the Fall. While spawn- ing they are unfit to eat, and after the operation are utterly eichausted. In this condition, wheu returning to the sea, they are termed kelts, the male being distin- guished as a kipper and the female as a baggit. As the spawning ' season approaches, a curious cartilaginoupi hook grows from the lower jaw, which is supposed to be a provision of nature to prevent an unfortunate termina- tion to the many desperate contests between the males at that period. The habits of salmon are by no means determined ; in fact, little is known positively about them. It has been even suggested that grilse are a distinct species, although it is hardly doubted with us but they are young salmon. Their times of visiting the fresh water are subject to peculiar individual exceptions ; in fact, it may be said there are two opinions among fishermen, and persons who have watched salmon for twenty and thirty years assert that some are ascending while others are descending. Izaak Walton says that salmon spawn in August, which is directly contrary to the views of other English writers, and certainly not in accordance with the practice of our fish. Others ag-^in say they return to the salt water in September, and reascend the rivers later in the Fall. The young in all stages have been disputed over, and called by divers names, such as pinks, Bmolts, parr, brandling, samlet, peal, grilse, until ono mm 'nif^mim ipi«i«iPMMilliiipiliiPi^ PfBHP^ 100 TBI 8ALM0N. hardly knows what sort of fish he reallj has captured. Every writer has his theory, and the following is mine ; it may be true or not, bnt the statements of fact are. Salmon are never found in our rivers except in three stages : First, a little fish mnch like a trout, but with a larger eye and richer colors ; they have no blue spots, but have darker bands on their sides ; they weigh from half an ounce to half a pound. Second, the grilse, which is precisely like a salmon, except that it w3ighB from two and a half to six pounds. Third, the salmon, which weighs from eight to eighty pounds. Salmon first appear in the fresh water about the 10th of June, and grilse a month later. The main run of the former is from June 15th to August 1 5th in Kew Brunswick, and from June 10th to July 20th in Canada. The explanation of this difference is simple: the Canadian fish are much the largest, averaging double the size of their more southern brethren, and as the waters fall during the hot months of Summer, they must ascend earlier than smaller fish, and before the spring freshets have entirely subsided, or they would never reach the high waters at all. Strag- gling fish, however, are running up at all seasons, early and late, and a few probably remain in the fresh water the entire year, or descend only when they are sickened by a lengthened residence in an unchanged element. Salmon do not spawn in Summer, but in Winter, com- mencing not earlier, and often later, than October ; the fish that ascend last probably spawn last. Then they return to the sea ; but not at once, some remaining under the ice through the Winter, others going immediately. My theory, therefore, is that the young fidi, whether you TBI SALM<nr. 101 eall them fiy, or pinlcs, or smelts, or peal, go to the sea nsuallj a year after their birth, I. > with no inyariable regularity, and will then average six onn^es in weight, many undoubtedly waiting till the Fall, or eighteen months after birth; that they return the succeeding July grilse ; that the grilse spawn the following Novem- ber, and after yisiting the sea, reappear next Spring as salmon. The young fish are taken with the fly through the Summer in all the salmon rivers, and require a second glance to distinguish them from young trout, although they are very different, one decisive peculiarity being that their backs are arched or bogged, and anotherj as I have mentioned, that their eyes are large. The fry of trout — and recollect grown trout are not banded — ^liave light sides, and are found usually in more quiet water. It would be well if sportsmen should call the fish in questioli respectively salmon fry, grilse, and salmon, and eschew all other fanciful names, as leading only to con- fusion. Salmon are never taken in fresh water with any food in their stomachs; they are reported not to eat their young, and do not apparently feed on flies. The fry feed almost entirely on flies, and I have seen them pick off one after another as skillfully as a trout ; but I have never distinctly seen a salmon take a natural fly. When they spring out of water, it is in play, and at such times, contrary to the rule with trout, casting over them will be in vain, they will not rise. Moreover* our flies do not in the least resemble the natural flies of the rivers, which are of a dull greien, and the salmon rivers afford very few flies at best. Observe me, I do not refer to mosqui- 102 THB SALHOir. toes or black gnats, at neither of which would gentlo* manly fish deign to look. My theory, therefore, is, that salmon do not feed during the spawning season, but are supported by the animalculse in the water, and have poor commons at that, as their miserable condition soon testi- fies. Many varieties of fish live without apparent food, often with the additional disadvantage of infrequent change of water, as goldfish in a globe. When salmon first arrive in the harbors, they coast along the shore, and are then taken in nets, which are required by law to have a mesh too large to capture grilse ; later, they leave the warm shallows, and follow the cooler channel beyond the nets, which are only per- mitted to extend a certain distance. The tide-water fishing is therefore practically over by the 1st of August. Ket fishing above the salt watei' is forbidden, or at least subject to the same restrictions, which, if they were enforced, would almost put an end to it ; but, discredit- able as it may seem, and short-sighted as such conduct unquestionably is, this l&w is totally disregarded in many rivers, where of course the fish are rapidly diminishing. They spawn over gravelly flats and pools, covering up the ova after impregnation, and then descend slowly, greatly emaciated, ugly and woe-begone, to the sea. At finch times, although they will still take the fly, they are unfit to eat, and while tliey notwithstanding frequently fall a victim to the cruel spear of the murderous savage, no true angler nor honest man will harm them. Casting the fly gracefully and effectively is a peculiar art, hard to acquire, and picturesque to witness ; it it altogether different from slashing the water, and almost fHB SALMON. 103 At 48 difficult of mastery as the corresponding science of tront fishing. The rod, being long and compara* tively heavy, must be held in both hands, which are changed occasionally so as to alternate that at the but, and teach the angler to cast over either shoulder. The line is lengthened to the proper distance, is raised with a springing jerk, swung out straight behind, and then again cast forward with the same springy motion. The work has to be done with the tip, which, e^^ept in cast- ing against the wind, must be kept'as elevated as possi- ble. The stiffer the rod the more command the angler has over his line in avoiding the rocks and making the best of awkward places ; .but this is counterbalanced by the disadvantages of excessive weight and a stiffness in striking that frequently breaks the casting line. A rod will cast four times its length beyond the tip ; one of sixteen feet, therefore, will cast sixty- four feet of line, ordinarily abundant ; and although one of twenty feet will cover sixteen more feet, unless it is made of cedu it is uncomfortably heavy. A cedar rod would be perfec- tion, but it is not to be trusted in the hands of a bungler. ■'■ ^ • ' When there is any current, and it is rare to take salmon elsewhere, the fly is cast across the stream and allowed to swing over the fish, which invariably lie with their heads up-stream. When a salmon intends to rise, he generally separates himself from his companions and waits till the fly approaches to the precise distance that pleases him. Then ^^ ^^i: ■ - " • ^ ^^f ■ v; f ■^i^?'*-'*". " Strike for yoar altars and your homea,**. !^-*M'^ iPRPipnriP! ^nnipinipWPIIIIiiflWUIl IWIUHW HI . W?" w:;< 104 THE SALMON. cot too hard, but as quick as the lightning £1*001 tne Bky, and this although contrary to the English books, on the ground that a salmon, if he rides once and fails to touch the fly, will always coine again. If, however, he has tasted the unappetizing morsel, and has not been hooked, for he is quick to spit it out, you will see him no more. If you fail to hook a fish on the first rise, it is well; if you can keep youi impatience under control, to rest him by casting elsewhere a few times, and if you fail to strike him on the third rise, change your fly. Salmon are extremely particular and dainty in their tastes, and it is never advisable to fish too long with one fly unless they take it well. The great rules are — ^keep out of sight, change yoitl* flies an^ rest the pools. The best time of a clear day is early and late, and in the midday heat not a boat nor a line should disturb the water; in fact, a pool that a canoe has crossed is ruined for the day, and when there is no rising, there is little good in castiiig. A pool that is not disturbed at night would be found much better, as a consequence, in the morning. But after your fish is hooked, after he is played and almost played out, after you have exhausted him, and brought him skillfully and carefully to shore, he is not yet in the pot ; nor will he be unless you have an assis- 'tant expert with the gaff. There are all sorts of direc- tions about this important operation, some authors saying a fish must be gaffed in the shoulder, others preferring the tail, some the belly, and some the back, but, in fact, one place is as good another ; the main points are not to miss nor graze him, and not to jerk so hard as to throw ■iilMaMM THE SALMON. 105 him off tiie gaff. To prevent this, where yon anticipate finding only awkward aids, it is well to carry a gaff with a small barb, like an ordinary hook, I have had the indescribable pleasure of seeing my fish flang across the boat, and dropped in the water on the other side. The moment the fish is struck, the handle should be held perpendicular, so that he cannot flounce off. The best size for this implement is a length of nine inches from the end of the shank to the middle of the bend, from the latter four inches in a straight line to the point, which should be delicate and sharp, and at least two inches and three-eighths from the inner edge of the shank opposite ; the bend should swell* out so as to be three inches across at its widest, and the end of tho shank must be bent back and sharpened ; the steel tapers gradually from the point to a thickness of one quarter of an inch. Being nothing more than a large hook, it is easily carried, and when wanted for use, fastened to any suitable stick by driving in the projection on the shank, and winding the whole with stout cord. For very large salmon, a stronger and larger gaff would be desir- able, and for grilse a smaller one. When fish run, and throw themselves out of water, some writers direct yon to taughten your line ; but I say, heed tihem not. Your line is well out and sunk to some distance, the very jump of the fish will consequently bring a great strain on the hook, without your aid, and many a fish is lost by such usage. On the contrary, if you give to him as he leaps, you diminish the tension, and then the quicker you take up the line after he has fallen back, the better. If, on the contrary, when he 5* PPPPipmiiniiiPi^HeniniP 106 THE SALMON. leaps he is near by yon, and yonr line straight and out of water, he will try and strike it with his tail to break it, in which he may also be foiled by giving to him. My experience is to this eifect, and you will soon find out, if the fish are large and strong, how hard it is to do other ivise. It has been said that four times the length of the rod beyond the tip is the utmost length of line that can be handled with dexterity ; it is not meant that more can- not be cast, for I have often cast five times the length, but with an eifort that soon becomes wearisome, and, if across a rapid current, without the requisite command. It is best to fisli down stream, if possible, as otherwise your line sinks, and even in fishing across there will be considerable slack line. This is a second reason for rapid striking. There is another mode of managing a line, which is sometimes called casting, and by wliicli a distance of eighty yards can be covered. The angler has a rod as thick at the tip as one's little finger, and, a hair line as thick as the tip. Of course no reel can be used, as such a line wculd not run through the rings, or be contained on the barrel. The line tapers regularly to the fiy. It is usually used in rapid water, and to cast, the fisherman waives his rod from side to side, lifting as much of it as possible clear of the water, and then throws out strongly with an underhand motion. The line rolls, as it were, raising itself from, the water, as the impetus advances, till the fly is taken up and jerked over, BO to speak, at an incredible distance. When a fish is struck he is drawn in by hand. I have not tried this proceeding sufficiently to speak positively, but think that THE SALMON. 107 the heavy waxed lines now in general use WQuld answer to a comparative degree. It is a difSoult though not refined mode of fishing, and is the only way of casting eighty yards. Tlie following is a list of the principal salmon and trout rivers of Canada and New Brunswick, with the distances of the former from Quebec, and such informa- tion as could be obtained concerning their character and condition. Those marked in italics have been leased to private individuals, but the others are open to all comers. ■fr-'-:. -^(^^ Tlie Jacques Cartier is the only river near Quebec which, at the present time, affords any salmon. From Quebec to Murray Bay is . . Y8 miles. Here there is a river that furnishes a few salmon and many fine trout. ^ 'ir* * From Murray Bay to the Saguenay is 44 — ^120 There is excellent sea trout fishing in the Saguenay and its tributary, the St, Marguerite, is a superior salmon river. .^^^ , ^v-.;- t-^.'?- v-a>- -^ ,« ^.. '.--r^--" ■'■•'■'■/■ •'^s^ Eiver Escoumain 23 Between it and the Saguenay are the two Bergeronnes^ and both furnish a few salmon and many trout. |r Portneuf 26 Plenty of trout and some salmon. BauU de Cochon 9 "^"^ Impassable for salmon, but affording excellent trout fishing at its mouth. • ' LaVal , . . . . . .2 Superioi salmon and trout river. - ^ t4l THE SALMON. Bersamis miles 24r^d4 Affording in its.tribntaries many fine salmon ; between it and the La Yal are the Colombia, PloTor and Blanche, all poor salmon streams. Outardes . . . . . • .11 Haniconagan . . . .' . ,16 Mistassini . • . ' • « .13 Betscie . « • * . . • .3 Of these rivers I can obtain no satisfactory inform* tion. Oodbout . . . . . 16—67—261 A celebrated salmon river, one of the best in the province. Trinity • .15 Good salmon and trout fishing. Little Trinity . . * . , .' . 10 4 Calamet « * 8 . Pentecost #14 Kot a salmon river. St. Margaret . . . . ' * ^ • 86 One of the best salmon and trout rivers. Moisie ..... 24—103—364 Fine large salmon are taken in this river, and it is widely celebrated. Trout * 7 Manitou . . * ' , . « .86 Good trout fishing; the salmon are obstructed by falls. Sheldrake . . . . • • .16 Magpie 29 Furnishes a few salmoD. . THE SALMOBT. 109 St. John .8 An admirable salmon stream. Mingan . . . . . 16—101—465 Probably the best river in the province for salmon, and excellent for trout. Komaine . . . . . . .9 An excellent stream for both salmon and tront. Wascheeshoo . . * , . .53 Pashasheboo . . . • . .18 A few salmon. l^abesippi • • Agwanns ..... A fair supply of salmon. Katashquan . . Salmon fine and abundant. Kegashka . . • Salmon impeded by falls. Musquarro Affords good salmon fishing. . . 7 . 6 • 14-,106— 571 . 28 . 15 Washeecootai . . -^-^ . .. 12 Olomanosheebo • « . 11 ' Ooacoacho . 'K^^i- . 18 Contains some salmon. - •■ Etamamu • • . . 21 Fine salmon fishery. Netagamu A fine tront stream. • • Mecattina • • . . 4 Good salmon fishing. HaHa . .. ■li^il; • • 9 '*■•■' St. Angostitte • • ij ^5>ii* » . - t#vli^llpl 110 THE SALMON. Affords many salmon. . I Esquimaux .... 14—149—720 An excellent salmon river, somewhat run down. In New Brunswick there are salmon in the St. John and its tributaries, but the best of the latter, the Nash waak, has been closed with an ?.mpassable dam. From St. John it is ear^y to take the cars to Shediac, and cross to Prince Edward's Island, where there is magnificent trout fishing, especially near Charlotte, and tolerable accommodation ; or one can take the Quebec steam^^r to Bathurst and fish the Nipisiquit, which is. admitted to be the best river in the province, or the Restigouche and its tributaries, an excellent stream, but much injured by spearing ; or the Cascapediacs, which furnish some sal- mon and innumerable grilse. The Miramichi, between Sliediac and Bathurst, is a fine large stream. The streams in Canada emptying into the St. Law- rence from the south shore, are hardly worth mentioning as salmon rivers, having been ruined by mill-dams, with the exception of those that empty into Gaspe basin, but they all afford superior trout fishing. I would here remark, that where the name trout is mentioned in con- nection with the British Provinces, the Salmo Trutta Marina^ or sea trout, is always intended ; and the sal- mon fishing spoken of is fly fishing. The rivers that empty into Gasp4 basin, such as the Dartmouth, York and St. John,, are leased, as also the Bonaventure, that flows into the Bay of Ohaleurs. As explicit directions for travelling through the benighted regions called the British Provinces, ^e foL THE SALMON. i/ in lowing are ^ven from a somewhat unwillingly extended experience. Take the night train or any route that will bring you to Boston before half past seven a.m., for at that hour the boat leaves for St. John, not St. Johns, which is in Newfoundland. If you are too late, you may still, by means' of the cars, intercept the same vessel at Fort> land. This boat does not leave daily, but generally advertises in the New York and always in the Boston papers. It touches at Portland, where you may take a steamboat on its aiiival to Calais, and proceed thence by railroad to the Scoodic Eiver, where there is fine white, not sea, trout fishing, or stop at St. Andrews, whence there is a railroad in progress to Woodstock, on the St. John River. The Boston boat reaches St. John in about thirty- two hours, or at three o'clock; the fare is six dollars ; the meals extra, and, consequently, extra good. . The Waverley House, in St. John, kept by J. Scam- mell, affords thB best, though poor, accommodation, at a reasonable price. A train leaves on the arrival of the boat for Shediac, and makes the one hundred and ten miles in six hours, at a fare of three dollars. From She- diac a steamboat that connects with the train carries you to Chatham in twelve hours for three dollars and fifty cents, the meals being extra and infamous. At Shediac. John Q. Adams keeps the Adams House, and will fur- nish information by letter as to the time of the starting of the boats. Bowser's Hotel is the best in Chatham. From Chatham to Bathurst, forty-five miles, you are compelled to travel in s^ stage that only leaves three 112 THE SALMON, times a week, and never on the arrival of the boat, and will occupy ten hours of your time at a charge of three dollars and a half ; or you may take an extra for sixteen dollars. If you hire one of Kelley, the stage proprietor, make a tight bargain, for he is Biblical and takes in strangers. In case you should be too late to reach Bathurst the same day, or have leisure on your hands, stop at the Half-way House on the Tabasintac, which has the last syllable accentuated, and fish that night and the next morning for s.ea trout. They are taken from a horse-boat in abundance and of great size. In Bathurst there is a good hotel called the Welling^ ion, kept by Mr. Baldwin, with the efficient aid of Mary ; and also a more private establishment, by Bela Packard, which is the customary resort of Americans, l^iere is a telegraph from St. John to Bathurst, and Baldwin will meet at Chatham any guests that send him word, and bring them to Bathurst for fourteen dollars. . In the latter place, Ferguson, Bankin & Go. will furnish all the heavy outfit, such as pork, biscuit, butter, tea, sugar, tobacco, and will have them ready put up if written to beforehand. As it is customary on the Nipisiquit to loan the guides blankets, the same firm keep them on band, and will lend them to those that buy stores of them. Once or twice a month the Arabian leaves She- diac and stops within a couple of miles of Bathurst, and if you can manage to suit your time to hers,, you can go direct and be ticketed through for ten dollars. Her days may be ascertained at the office of the Boston boats, but it is well to telegraph to Bathurst to have a canoe to meet yon, as otherwise you may have difficulty in reach- ■** THE .SALMON. 113 ing town from tbe landing. Tlie same steamcir and its associate, the Lady Head, run to Dalhoneie, at the mouth of the EeBtigonche, or a stage for that place leaves Bathurst three times a week. Tlie Lady Head docs not stop at Bathurst, on account of her draught of water. On the Nipisiquit it is customary to have a camp- keeper or cook for the party, and two canoemen to each angler ; they furnish the canoe and receive one dollar a day each. The following are good men : John, Peter and Bruno Chamberlain ; John makes a good fly, but is sulky and willful ; Bruno is lazy ; Ned Veno and David Buchet, both of whom are excellent and willing, and Fabian Bodereau, who is a fair cook. To save your men some heavy work, where you do not intend to fish the Bough Waters, you 4rive with your stores to the Bound Bocks, the Fabineau Falls, or, if you please, even to the Grand Falls, but the latter part of the road is bad. The only Ashing on the Miramichi is above Boiestown, and to reach it you leave St. John in the night or day boat for Fredericton, arriving thore in eight hours at an expense of one dollar and a half. The night boat runs three times a week. The best house in Fredericton is the Barker House, kept by Mr. Fairweather, and in this city you must get your supplies for the woods. The stage leaves every Tuesday and Friday for Boiestown, nominally at ten a.m., and reaches that collection of huts nominally at six p.m. Tho fare is two dollars and a half, and the ordinary charge for an extra is ten dollars, but remember the stage proprietor is Kelley. The best tarem in Boiestown is kept by Avery, but about five ■<*; ■"■^""""^"iplipiiip nffPVwpapvmHPWPPMw^^iiHppilP^mi 114 THB SALMON. I miles np the river, at Cair helltown, is a nice, house owned by William Wilson, im i the true plan is either to write to him to meet you at Fredericton, or drive over to his place. He will engage your men, aid you witli the supplies, provide you with broad, besides making you generally comfortable, and you have gained so much in the ascent of the river. The stage from Boiestown runs to Chatham, and by that means you may continue to the Kipisiqnit, but there is no reliance to be placed on it, and an extra from Fredericton to Ohatham, one hun- dred and ten miles, costs thirty dollars. The stage fare is seven, and there is no telegraph to Boiestown. One of the most interesting ways of reaching the various rivers of New Brunswick Is by portaging from the head-waters of one into those of another. For instance, a steamboat leaves Fredericton semi-weekly, when the water is not too low, for the Grand Falls on the St. John ; a few miles above, the Grand Biver debouches, from the head-waiters of which a short port- age of a few miles takes you into the Waugan, one of the branches of the Bestigouche, or you may stop below the Falls and ascend the Tobique, a noble river, full of salmon, but which, strange to say, will not take the fly, and from Lake Nictou, the source of the Tobique, you can readily portage into Lake Kipisiquit, and by ascend- ing the main forks of the latter, a short portage puts you on the TJpsalquitch, a branch of the Bestigouche, and abounding in salmon. Another confluent of the St. John, the Shiktahauk, is crossed at its head by the Boyal Boad, where a wagon can be had to convey* your haggage to a. branch of the Southwest Miramichi, and Till SALKDN. 115 from Newcastle, at the month of the latter river, you can ascend the Northwest Miramichi and strike the Nipisiquit near the Grand Falls. These are but a few of the simplest voyages that may be made, but a glance at the map, or a talk with any old Indian guide, will reveal many others. .* «»"^»»wwp'»'™«^«^Bippminm lli ^^ BRUNSWICK. CHAPTEB VL 2"BW BBUN8WI0K. One bright nioonliuhfc mVi,* ; *i- »«■•. « heavy wagon, d™w?bv ' "^'^ ^"^ "^ Sim.. l-owli^g .long one .He Lr^rf"' '''"<'•> '''" province of KewBrunswTek 17 T*' '"'"^' "^ «"> t<-unk8 on the rack TJ^t """ '''«''«d down with bundle. „:„ bVinnumtlwe 7n « t"' f"''""' «■"• Jong leathern cases th.f "'* '"'"o". »nd two "•ed thr^e men Te dr Tv^li;^ -"»- ^^' It ca^ eye, and long, cnrly bw'tl^ ^ °^'"^' *'"' " »'''«'^d eon.fortw1thfac., ;of"nl"',.''"''"'^« «■»' combined • middle aged ^ItulT T""' ^" ">« t-^et seat. yonth, and a younger ITL? ^"?'" "* "> J"'' earliest hair and beard. Cir "1 ' , ^"'^ *"'' ""'^"^h thrilling tales of dXro' 0^^: LL '""> """^ """^ were told; vivid descrioLT f C^ """^ "^ *^« "''«««. earibou, the red deer Trh .f ^'"" ""^ """^' "'e «- ^Id boar, the rhSo^os Id rf'lf f '^ %-- peaceful description of Mu',, T'^^ «'«?''''»» J or fierce, striped base, or the t? *''"'"^"' *~"'. 'he ti-eworepleasanVaJirZT'T:"''"^^- ^« / way as tliey passed along between * ■ ■ ' ■ ■ '■■ ' • ' ■ ' . f NIW B1UN8WI0C IIT the Bombre lines of spnice and hemlock and jnniper, as the J ran into the deep shjide or emerged into the open moonlight till they came in sight of the Kashwaak, seaming the dark earth like a Yuiu of silver, when a glo- rious view presented itself to their attention. Far away as the eye could reach, stretched the valley of Nashwaak, silent as the repose of death ; not a sound but the rat- tle of the wheels broke the still air, while the moon bathed the rocks, the earth, the trees,* with its uncertain light, formed weird shapes out of the foliage, or cast strange shadows across the road. Still on, however, scarcely piftusing — as every true sportsman must pause before the beauties of nature — the party were soon lost in the shady descent that led' toward the bank of the stream, whose course they followed some miles, crossing it beyond, over a high, substantial bridge. Tlie road then branched off, traversing the unbroken wilderness, where for miles not a habitation was visible, till mid- night found thBm amid a heavy shower at McCloud's, the half-way house from Fredericton to Boicstown. The horses under the shed, a sound thumping on the door brought out the host, who attended to the wants of man and beast, and sent them on their way rejoicing, as soon as the storm had abated. There was little vari- ety in the scene; the road was mostly level and good, the forest was of the same dull character, with many dead trunks towering up amid it ; there were few houses and no settlements, and the country was principally 01:0 vast plain. As the morning light began to streak the east with grey, they came in sight of the peaceful Mira- michi, and turning off from the main road across the m^o^^^mmm'iimm^f'mr >9iiiPR!nppppp<pi 118 NEW BRUNSWICK. Taxes River, followed the course of tLo larger stream, till, nearly opposite a beautiful spring, where they had stopped to water their horses, they turned into a barway, and in a moment more reached Wilson's, their prospec- tive head-quarters. *' a< s^^ .^.^ ,--*> ; Wilson's habitation was a quaint-looking log house, perched on the edge of a bank overhanging what is called the interval, or fruitful stretch of level land lying between the river tod the hills, and its evident antiquity bore testimony that it had belonged to one of the earliest settlers. . ^ A '■: U-stocked garden, An extensive bam, a large drove of sheep and cows, suggested whut an industrious and comely wife and daughter confirmed, that Wilson's wag a well-to-do family. As a general thing, the people of this region are of the most short-sighted possible character ; they live for the present, and an easy way of making a dollar is irresistible, though it may entail the final loss of ten. The country is slowly going back to a savage condition; farmers, instead of attending to their farms, speculate in lumber, because it enriches one man in fifty; mortgage their farms, which are sold under foreclosures to strangers and allowed to grow up with weeds and bushes. Tens of thousands of acres are in this condition, and are being fast rendered irreclaimable. Instead of encouraging fish- ermen to come and spend money among them, although they admit it is about the only money they see, they annoy and overcharge at such a rate that they have driven away all but a few from Fredericton. Instead of preserving and increasing the fish, they obstruct the HSffWniMll NEW BaUI>lSWlCK. 119 channel entirely with nets, striving by one grand haul to destroy the supply forever. To this general rule Wilson is the only exception, and may be relied on, not only to do whatever in reason is required of him, but to do it at a moderate price. His only extravagant charge is for driving to Fredericton to meet his guests. The guides were waiting for us, and after making the requisite preparations and passing a comfortable night in the old log house, we started next day on our journey toward the head-waters of the Miramichi. Our canoes were made of the log of a tree, and familiarly called dug-outs, and were admirably adapted to the purpose. Being extremely long, sometimes thirty feet, and nar- row, they offer every convenience for poling, draw but little water, and are not injured by contact with a rock, that would pierce the thin bark of the delicate birch canoe, and will hold their way better against a strong rapid. They are made of the trunk of some tow- ering branchless pine-tree that the adventurous woods- man has marked during the winter for his own, and which, after being cut down, is transported to a conve- nient place, where it is hewn into the shape of the outside of the boat. Augur holes are bored in the bottom, and pegs, two inches long, are driven, to answer for guides as to thickness. The inside is then roughly hewn away, till the pegs are reached, when it is smoothed off, being left two inches thick at the bottom, and a half inch at the gunwale. Slender knees are introduced at proper dis- tances to prevent its warping under the sun ; a brace is fastened across from gunwale to gunwale, near the stem and stern, and the boat is complete. It is worth about |) i iwjipuiyi p jw, i ^aaM,y,WP» ' u,pjiJUJ i uji: ii pa ^ X20 NEW BRUNSWICK. * twelve dollars, and having neither hraces nor thwarts, but an open space its entire length, is convenient for holding a long rod, and being steadier nnder foot, offers many advantages over the birch canoe. It is particularly excellent in descending a shallow river, where occasional contact with rocks is inevitable ; but is too heavy to portage comfortably. For rapid travel, either up or down stream, it is invaluable. Our baggage was stowed, a comfortable seat made with the end of the tent upon the bottom of the canoe, our rods were rigged out for an occasional cast, and we commenced the ascent of the " Smiling Water." There had been heavy and continuous rains, and quite a freshet had now changed its ordinary placid exterior into one of angry turbulence. The river poured down fierce and wild, crested with foam and discolored with sand and decayed matter. But we made swift progress ; starting five miles above Boiestown, we soon passed the last settlement, and entering among the mountains, amid which flows the upper stream, trusted ourselves alone to the dangers of the wilderness, to the mercy of the black-flies for our comfort, and to our skill as sportsmen for our support. Ten months of close confinement in the city, years amid the horrors of civilization, had well prepared us to appreciate a return to man's natural state of savage life ; long contact with vice and folly had made us eager to taste once more of truth and purity, the communion with nature uncorrupted and unsullied ; to feel the aii blow through the waving trees instead of down narrow streets ; to hear the water rippling over its native bed, NEW BRUNSWICK. 121 Hud not througli Croton pipes ; to see the sun shine from out the blue sky, instead of being reflected amid murk and smoke from heated bricks. The spruce and fir-trees stretched in solid mass like a green wall on either side; occasionally, a white pine loomed above them, or a birch, with its satin bark, broke the dull hue; or where the landscape was more open, the graceful elm or willow stood forth in solitary beauty ; and the juniper, with its endless names of hack- matac, tamarack, larch or cypress, waved its weird arms aloft ; or the light, quivering poplar, with itri never- resting leaves, cast an uncertain shade. ■ ■ The weather had been changeable all day, occasionally bright and pleasant, the next moment dark and lowering — now the sun shining bright and warm over the hill- sides, then the rain driving in spiteful showers and veil- ing them in mist. The storm no sooner forced on our overcoats than the sunshine persuaded them off. Toward night, when heavier and blacker clouds obscured the sky, we determined to camp, and chose a point opposite a little tributary rivulet called Sandy Brook. 'Jt^ That evening and the next day were passed complet- ing our camp equipage of tables, chairs, basins, and various little articles, and in waiting for the river to fall. During this time one of those pleasant incidents occurred that are intensely enjoyed in rough woodsman's life ; two gentlemen who had been up the river and were returning, stopped and dined with us. Tliere was a grand discussion over flies, resulting in a mutual exchange, and a general mourning over the condition of the water, with, how 122 NEW BRUNSWICK. ever, the encouragement that the freshet had destroyed the nets and let the fish up to the higher grounds. Next day we killed our first fish of the season. I had gone ahove the island at the head of the pool opposite our camp, and was fishing slowly down, tpking occasion- ally a brook trout, when there came a heavier rise, a louder plash, and a fierce run that made my reel discourse sweetly. The fish had struck me in the broken water, and it was uncertain what he was till suddenly he sprang twice his length out of water, showing the silvery sides and gleaming scales of the lovely grilse ; again and again he sprang in air, making the water fiy as he fell back, and doing his best to break the line or shake out the hook. Bravely he fought, taking advantage of the current to run out lino, and rubbing against rocks to cut it through. In vain, foiled at each attempt, his strength rapidly diminishing, he was slowly brought nearer and nearer, till a dexterous blow of the gaff finished the struggle. Joyful at the good omen, we hastened to our camp, and were met by my companion, Dalton, who proudly exhibited a similar trophy. There was a grand supper that night, and strong hopes that the flood would abate, hopes that were destined to a cruel disappointment when next day the stream was found to be higher than ever, and heavy clouds portended a second deluge. • Our next camp was at Still Water Brook, a name that the present condition of that streamlet strongly belied. We did not, however, remain long, our spoii; being con- fined to grilse, and not many of those, and when an Eng- lish oflicer, who had been fishing above, called to say he MEW BRUNSWICK. 123 had token all the fish he wanted at a station further on, we l)rol< '.> up camp at once, to the great disgust of oup lazy cook, who thought he had cut his " sprunghungle," or stick that supports the kettle over the fire, for the last time. We pushed on to Burnt Hill, a famous camping- ground among all those that fish the Miramichi, and there, on the open point near the rock at whose base is the deep pool where salmon lie when the water is wani\ we established our sylvan home for the last time. Burnt Hill is so named from having been burnt over, years ago, and is still a mass of dead and blackened trunks, that tower in fantastic shapes toward the sky. Next morning, having selected my choicest cariboo fly, Abraham pushed the canoe across the boiling torrent, so that I could fish near the rocky shore opposite. Hav- ing made several casts toward the bank, he swung the canoe in, and, running its nose on a rock, gave me a chance to fish the centre of the channel. I had hardly cast, when from out "the curling wave rushed a mighty monster, which gleamed a moment in the sunshine and disappeared. I felt a heavy, dull strain on my rod, the fish swam deep and seemed unconscious of what had happened. Then, suddenly aroused to his danger, a magnificent salmon rushed down-stream and vaulted high out of water. Abraham glanced at me ; I returned the look, but not one word was spoken. The fish returned to his former station, as though disdaining a struggle with a fragile cord and contemptible fly, and remained there some moments, heavily swimming roimd and round. Suddenly he became alarmed, and away he went, thirty yards at least, the line whistling through mmmm ipp* 124 NEW BRUNSWICK. I i ' I ' the ringg and the reel hissing with the speed. He made a splendid leap and paused. I had just time to tell Abraham to swing his boat of? the rock where she was resting, when the fish started again. Down he darted ; the rod bent, the line flying through the water, and after him came the pursuers. He hesitated an instant above the worst rapids, and then sped down them ; once in a while I could see him amid the foam and flying spray, as he rolled himself half out of water over some heavy wave ; but my attention was occupied in keeping the line clear of rocks, and not exerting too much strain upon it. Admirably did Abraham handle the canoe. He was alone ; the water seethed and boiled round ns broken into a mass of fierce waves, small cascades and gleaming foam. It poured with raging current over high bowlders, and swept be- tween narrow rocks. He stood erect in the stem, his eye taking the measure of every falls, the strength of every eddy ; he swung the canoe's head first one way then another, easing her down over the higher waves, that, curling against the stream, broke over the bow in mimic showers, and pushing strongly through the circ- ling eddies. Not a rock did he touch, not a moment did the boat escape from perfect command, and when we were launched upon the quiet bosom of the deep pool at the foot of Burnt Hill Rapids, the fish was on the line. "We each drew a long breath and again exchanged glances. It was a beautiful spot to kill a fish. The water, all white and raging above, formed a broad eddy, that washed the base of the rock on which I now stood. Although there was still a strong current in the centre, NEW BRUNSWICK. 125 an expanse of clear water spread out at our feet, into which, after each rush, the fish could be easily led, and where his mad leaps were the only risk. It was our first fish, and I exercised the utmost care ; not till he was almost dead did I force him to the surface, wfiere Abraham, with one blow of his gaff, brought our prize to land. "What a beauty shfe was I The small, delicate head pronounced her a female, the destined parent of myriads cut off in her prime. The brilliancy of her flashing scales gave token that not long since had she been roam- ing free from danger along the shores of the seacoast, and her broad back and deep chest announced her heavy weight. Glorious in her outward appearance, our keen appetites pictured to our imaginations the rich red flesh in layers, with flakes of pearly fat between, the delicate thin sides of the stomach, the depth of solidity in her broad back. Our thoughts dwelt for a moment on the fine juicy flavor her fifteen good pounds would furnish for many a meal. But above all did we recollect with pride how well both of us had done in killing the first salmon in the Miramichi. » Mr. Dalton had been watching the contest from the bank opposite, and we returned together to the camp, where libations were duly poured forth in honor of our first capture, and preparations were made for a grand entertainment. That evening around the fire, after supper was finished, and the genial pipe was soothing as well as invigorating our minds, and after several personal adventures had been related, Duncan commenced the following history of wmm. mm MiimnngF 12« NEW BRUNSWICK. ■•ifitW'A ' 'f*J THE OH08T OF DEADMAN b LANDING. t n' ' " You saw that point of land we came by the otheJ day, where I told you a dead man was carried out from the woods? Well, I was there when he was killed. "We had been logging in the woods, and doing pretty well till we tried to draw out an uncommon heavy stick of timber. Sam Masters was with ns — we used to call him Swearing Sam, from a bad habit he was given to— and Sam had taken a great idea to have that stick of timber taken out before night ; but the horses were tired and it was late, and after we had dragged it part of the way all. but Sam proposed to leave it till to-morrow. But Sam insisted that he was not going to give up, and when we all agreed to quit, he got mad and swore he ivould have that timber out alone if he had to go to hell for it, and work till the day of judgment. We tried to persuade him off, but stay he would, and we left him with the horses and returned to our camp, which we had made at the lauding. After supper was finished, and it began to be late, we became anxious about Sam, and when he did not arrive, at near midnight, all hands set out to look hini up. . . ** We had not much trouble to find the horses ; they felt cold and hungry, and were neighing for their supper, but were surprised to see the log rolled off the truck, and Sam gone. But the next thing we noticed was Sam's head just out from the edge of the log, that lay across his body. It was an awful sight ; the moon was shining bright on his face, that was turned up toward NEW BRUNSWICK. 197 the skj*, but all swollen and discolored, with the eyes wide open and starting out of their sockets, and his tongue sticking out of his mouth, and the blood frozen round his nostrils and the corners of his lips. He musi' have been dead for hours. We had a hard time to roll the log off, and then he was mashed all out of shape, so we carried him the best way we could to the shanty, and next day wrapped him in a blanket and took him down the river. His wife was all struck of a heap when she saw lim, for Sam was a good husband ; if he did swear more than he ought, he never swore at her." "He would have been squelched sooner if he had," put in Dalton, aotta voce. " We felt pretty bad," continued Duncan j " but after a few days had to go back and finish hauling the logs, for we had a lot cut. It was cold weather, and the wind howled through the pines till sometimes, at night, we almost thought we heard hallooing in the w^oods, but no one cared to go out and see. About two weeks after our return, I happened to leave my axe where I was chop- ping, and as snow had begun to fall pretty fast, and it might be snowed over, I went back after it. I had forgotten precisely where it was left, and lost a good deal of time looking about, all the while the snow coming harder and harder, so that the track was soon covered. That was not much matter, for I knew the country well ; but it was growing dark, and the snow blinded me, so that I could not see plainly. " You may believe I did not delay any ; but after hm*- rying on as fast as possible for an hour or two, thought things looked strange; the trees grew tliick and the 128 NEW BRUNSWICK. ground rough and steep, and I could not tell where X was. I searched about for some landmark, but it was almost dark, and after trying in vain, and having a heavy overcoat with me, but no matches, I was about to crawl under the roots of a dead tree and make the best of it, when I heard somebody shouting in the distance. ^^ There is no mistake, but I was glad, and sung out back, and clambered over the trees and stones toward the voice ; but wliat was my surprise, on approaching, to see our own team, and one of the boys driving. Tliey had no intention of hauling another log, and must have been foolish to think of it in that snow ; but, stranger than all, when I called, did not stop or take any notice. To tell the truth, I began to feel mighty queer, especially as the driver was shaped uncommon like Sam, and I suddenly remembered that it was that night a month ago when he hauled his last stick of timber. I followed slowly along and never said a word ; the driver, whoever he was, was riding on the log, and now and then his voice shouted out what sounded in the storm mighty like a curse. Suddenly the drag struck a stump, the horses made a spring, the log started, the driver tried to jump, but slipped, and the log fell on him with crushing force. There was an awful shriek in the next blast that drove a shower of snow in my eyes, and when I looked again, hoi*ses, log and man were gone. I knew well enough where I was then, and did not take long to reach the camp, when the boys hardly knew me, I was so white and dazed like." "Let us see," said Abraham, holding his chin in a thoughtful way; " it was after that you swore off liquor?" NEW BRUNSWICK. 129 " Yes," said Robert. " The other boys hardly knew the liquor cask they had left in the woods next day, if 1 have heard right." " You need not laugh, boys," said Duncan, solemnly ; " there is no fun in seeing a ghost, and I had not taken more than a few drinks. Besides, you know how, next year, when Jake, and Dick, and some others were in the same camp, they heard Sam's old chest, that we had left there, creak as though some one had sat on it, and how the shanty door was taken off the hinges and held upright in the middle of the floor. And the black dog that left no track in the snow, but used to run along the ridge pole of moonlight nights, when nobody was in the shanty; and, finally, how the roof was all taken off when Tom's party was there, and although it was covered with snow, not a drop fell inside. No, no, spirits are no laughing matters." " Especially prime spirits," suggested the cook. "Jamaica or Holland, but I never heard of New Brunswick spirits before," said Robert. " Well, I can just tell you one thing," said Duncan, aroused ; " there is not one of you dare sleep in that shanty alone. Come, I will pole any of you down there to-morrow that would like to try. Who will g^ ?" A dead silence fell on the party, for, truth to tell, though bold enough round the fire together, the dwellers on the Miramichi are a good deal given to superstition, and not one of the party but some time or other had fancied he heard Sam's ghost shouting to his team of a stormy night near the landing. " Well," said ibraham, slowly, " I never saw but one 6* mmmmmm 180 NEW BRUNSWICK. ghost. It was a moonlight night, with a little snow on the ground, and I was alone, crossing a cleared lot wrliere the stumps stood pretty thick, when I noticed, crouched down behind one of them, a figure of some sort that looked like an old woman. It had no bonnet or hat, nothing but a cap on its head ; it wore a long, tattered dress, that blew about in the wind, while I could just make out a pair of thin, white arms ; but her face was black as a coal. It is no use to say I was not scared, for I think I was. There were some crazy people about at that time, who had escaped fi'om the madhouse ; but I was pretty sure I could outrun any of them, 'spe- cially a woman, and I knew it was no use running from ghosts, so I concluded the best thing to do was to keep right along and pretend to take no notice ; but, do my best, I could not keep my eyes off the old woman. I tried to whistle, but not a sound would come. I only blew a little, and not very steady at that. I tried to sing, but the first note I uttered made me jump ten feet ; I thought it was somebody else's voice, as sure as fate. I had sidled off as far as I could on account of a gully there was, and did not like to go down that for fear she should think I was afraid. TLie distance between us was growing less and less, and as I watched her sharper than ever, she appeared to make one or two moves, and then stop ; but all of a sudden, she jumped up, threw off her clothes, and started after me. I uttered one yell, and turned ; but, as luck would have it, caught my foot in a root under the snow, and rolled headlong down the stQcp side of the gully. ** I do not know what I said, I think I prayed ; but I NEW BRUNSWICK. 181 made coneiderable noise, anyway, and poked my head into a bush, and tried to burrow under tlio snow. Tliis lasted some time; but hearing nothing more, and not finding myself killed, my courage returned ; I took ou my head, and slowly crawled up the bank. Peering carefully over the edge, I saw a stump where the old woman had been crouching, burnt at the top, with some snow on it; there was a dead bush and roots at the bottom, while a little further off lay a quantity of dead birch bark, waving about in the wind. * Abe,' said I to myself, ^ you have been an awful fool to take a fired stump, a little snow, and some birch bark for a ghost. Never do so again.' And I never have, and have never been so scared from that day to this." After a hearty laugh at Abraham's fright, Kobert was called upon, and responded as follows : ^^ I cannot tell you a ghost story, but one of as scared a man as ever was seen. It happened at this very place, too, when we were camped on this spot, and was brought to my mind by what you were reading to-day of the man hunting a grizzly bear, and leaving off because the track got too fresh. Jim Baker was with us. He had lived most of his life in the settlements, and had only just come among us, but could play the fiddle and sing a song, and must have had a good ear for music, for among the first things he did was to learn to call moose. He was uncommonly proud of the performance, and though he had never seen a moose, promised to keep the camp in meat. Well, he kept calling all the time, and sure enough one day, while we were camped here, a bull answered. »; r ; .• ; • ^ ■ 132 NEW DRUNSWICK. * " A good hunter might call till he was grey before he conld bring a moose in broad daylight right up to t^ie camp ; but it was a fooPs luck, and sure enough we soon heard him rapping through the bushes, and then jump into the brook and begin wading down. Jim had out tlie gun, and started off to crawl along the edge in the bushes to meet him. We could see them both; Jim crept along as fast as he could at first, and the bull came faeter yet down the stream without showing a sign of fear. Soon Jim began to go slower, and finally stopped altogether, while the moose kept right on toward him, till he was within fifty yards, when he paused and took a general survey. Jim raised the gun, but when he did BO the animal seemed to have his curiosity aroused, and advanced several steps toward Jim, who lowered hi6 gun, and backed a few paces till the moose stopped again. Jim again raised the gun, and again the moose advanced and Jim retreated. This went on till the moose became satisfied, and with a smort bounded into the bushes and was gone. When Jim came back we asked him why he did not shoot, and he said we need not think he was afraid ; he intended to shoot, but did not know how the gun carried ball." ; -i ; vji^^i •.,* «. . ■ The next day my friend killed his first salmon, and Flrange to Siiy, thus we continued to the end, each cat »h- ing precisely the same number of fish. The days were beautifully warm, and rather given to weeping, but fresh and bracing ; whereas the nights were deliciously cool, almost too cold for Summer, and demanded 'plenty of warm blankets. Living in the most primitive but com- fortable style, feeding off a rough table, and often cook NEW BRUNSWIOJ. 133 ing half the dinner ourselves, but with a glorious feeling of entire independence, the heavens above, the earth beneath, and all nature round us, we had a splendid time, and many fish came to our net. ; t ^- , ^u^; * ^ Thus the pleasant days flew by; the sport ever honest, manly, invigorating and exciting, varying in luck, at times abundant in its yield, and then utterly unproductive — the uncertainty added zest; while the evenings and hot middays were enlivened with the story, joke or latest novel. Many an idle hour, when the sun shone too resplendent for the hope of sport, did wo while away, the men seated or stretched at length in various picturesque attitudes, and one of us reading aloud. But the time came when this was to end, and on the eleventh day the edict was promulgated to break up camp and return. , r? . , ^ ^^ ^ The tent fell and was packed, the pots and pans were huddled together, our camp s^Dres stowed, and we reem- barked for the descent of the river. Keeping rods ready for an occasional cast, we swept along ; the water was high, our men were good boatmen, the canoes were strong, and we rushed through the foaming torrent at a gallant rate. At Rocky Bend my friend struck five fine grilse suc- cessively, and lost all but one, much to his chagrin. He laid it to the size of his hooks, alleging they were too large ; but what genius will arise to explain how it is that Biilmon break away without any severe strain on, or damage to, the tackle. Is it a defect in the shape of the hook I If so, should it bend to one side, or curve in or out at the point ? Or is it in the force of striking, or place 134 NEW BRUNSWICK. where the hook holds ? The matter is so complex, that the most careful investigation has left me even without ft theory. Some of my friends swear by one of the above plans, others by another ; I have tried them all, and still the fish escape as frequently as ever. - /^ ^ . As we approached a well-remembered spot where I had taken a fine grilse in ascending, Abraham slowly ii-Ay.*'^'*; said : ^^r " Take care as we come down to this pool, for I am like the man that once shot a bear at a cleared spot just below, and whenever afterward he came to the same place, he clambered on the highest stump, and looked around to see whether there was not another bear. Wherever we took one fish, I always expect to take another." ..-^-w. ,,;'.■:,, v, . .^ :,;-,■,■ ^j^i.,,.>v:.^.,. - . I toid him it was somewhat the same with me, but in that instance we were doomed to disappointment — there was no second bear. . -^^i r- » > -v • -* ■> - - ^ ?s At Sandy Pond we made our camp for the night, as my friend had never seen a fish killed with the spear, and, although admitting its unsportsmanlike character, wished to experience how it was done. When darkness had settled down, our men kindled a flaming fire of pine knots, in an iron basket attached to a pole that projected from the bow of the canoe, and seating ray friend amidships between them, pushed off. They pulled against the stream, the bright light bringing out the stones at the bottom of the water in strong relief, exposing everything within a radius of twenty feet. Behind it stood the spearsman, erect, his quick eye glancing in every direction, the firelight falling upon ■'fe**5f:r NEW BRUNSWICK. 135 his reddened visage and illuminating his many graceful attitudes. With rapid motion he swung the spear from side to side as any passing object attracted his attention, ready for the death-dealing blow. With perfect facility he kept command of the boat, shoving her bow from the rocks and guiding it through the proper channel ; occa- sionally the spear was sent glancing through the water, and in a moment a grilse brought struggling to the sur- face and thrown into the bottom of the canoe, where the fire rays were reflected from his scales like the liquid gleam of the diamond. It was a picturesque sight, the waving flame, the active spearsman, the graceful canoe, and the intense darkness around ; but it was cruel and barbarous, and my friend desisted before many fish had suffered. Next day returned us safe and sound to Wilson's hos- pitable log mansion, where a hearty welcome awaited us. Our extra stores were divided among the men, a farewell spoken, the team once more harnessed, and we set out to join the stage at Boiestown for Chatham, on the . c ,'1 to the Nipisiquit. A .! ••auge place is Boiestown ; built by an American named Boies, it is a mere collection of unpainted shanty- like houses but with Yankee shrewdness, located upon a tine stream of never-failing water, with excellent mills and water power, it might have been a thriving place had not Boies, its presiding spirit, met with reverses. The maelstrom of lumber speculation had ingulfed him, and with him the prosperity of the town. There was no native capable of filling his place, and the glory of Boies- town had departed. 136 NEW BRUNSWICK. t k P The stage was due at six o'clock, but at six o'clock it did not come, nor at seven, eight, nine nor ten. "We told Wilson to return for us in the morning, and retired to rest in the nearest tavern, leaving word to be called when it did come. * ■ At midnight there was a pounding at the door an- nouncing the arrival of the conveyance that was to cany us and our baggage, two heavy trunks, seventy miles. It was a light one horse-wagon. We went to bed again^ and next morning found the stage-driver still at Boies- town, having turned out his horse to graze. Wilson, however, soon arrived, and we started on that ' dreary road, following the descent of the Miramichi to its mouth. There is one," and but one, pretty view in the entire seventy miles, and that is as you ascend the first mountain beyond Boiestown. Looking back, the peaceful valley that we had just left, stretching away to our camping-ground, lay basking in the sunlight. In the distance, scarcely visible among the trees, were the few houses that compose Campbelltown ; nearer was the straggling village of Boiestown, and at our feet ran the placid river, leaving broad intervals upon its banks, and meandering between smiling islands. The hay was ripening in the meadow, the oats were still luxuriant in their fresh green, the bushes lined the occasional fences or marked out the narrow swamps, while here and there were dotted the majestic white pine, the towering spruce, the noble elm or the graceful willow, and a dead tree now and then stretched its ungainly limbs toward the clouds. Beyond, however, we fell into one dull, dreary routine ; civilization was behind us, the few farms once cultivated NEW BRUNSWICK. 137 were falling back into tlieir savage state, the houses tumbling down, the barns in their last stages of dilapida- tion, everywhere windows broken out, doois off their hinges, huge cracks in roof or walls, told of general decay. Tlie people had fled, no one knew whither ; and of the few that, were left, the stupidity, avarice and extortion were incredible. They impose upon and annoy travellers and fishermen till they have almost driven them away. The stages fail to run or to connect as they undertaKe to do. No one appears to know their times of starting or arriving. Boats advertise to leave on days when they never have left, to stop at places that are not laid down on the map, but are colloquially applied to an entire district ; and omit places where they do stop. No man knows anything except his own indi- yidual business, and but little of that. The inhabitants mainly draw their support from the river, and yet are busy day and night endeavoring to ruin it; the nets from opposite shores lap over one another or reach from bank to bank, and are set week in and week out, while there is a fish running ; the smallest mesh is used, small enough to capture trout or herring. The few fish that Jo reach the spawning beds are chased with the merci- less spear without cessation till long after they are worth- less as food. Yet the people think the river has improved because the laws are partially enforced at its mouth. Netters complain of the spearers, and the spearers of the iietters, but neither do anything but harm. The upper stream is alive with nets, although netting should be per- mitted nowhere above tide water. The only crops of the region are potatoes, oats and 138 NEW BRUNSWICK. hay ; for nine months there is rigorous winter, and for three months cold weather. The great productions are black flies, midgets and mosquitoes. The Lord help such a people, for the people will never help themselves. Let my blessing remain with the land; I shall never return for it. The river itself is not only lovely to contemplate but would afford to reasonable beings abundant support. In May and June the Gaspereau or alewives, a species of lierring, Alosa Tyramms, make their appeararce in myriads, and ascend to the lakes to spawn ; in June and July the beautiful sea trout appear in shoals and urge their course to the head-waters and the cool brooks ; in July and August come the splendid salmon, struggling against every impediment that the wit of man, or want of wit, can place in their way, to perpetuate their species for that foolish man's support, and build their nests in the broad sandy pools. Tlie lively, energetic grilse come last, fighting vigorously to reach their sylvan homes. Not one of all these races is taken fairly or properly, nor when his destruction will do most good and the least harm. Having dined at Decantelon's, we reached Lynch's by dark, where we supped and passed the night, and next day, after breakfasting at Magee's, arrived at New- castle by nine in the morning. Seeing a boy, my friend inquired: . - ^ "Boy, when does the stage leave that runs to New- castle?" ■-- :...,-.--.•■ f-;- • - .- - " A'most any time ; one has gone, but there will be another going in an hour or two." - :; - -: NEW BRUNSWICK. 139 '* Whore does it start from ? We must inquire for our- selves, I see." '*0h, anywhere round the streets; up one street and down another." " Now that cannot be," continued my friend ijternly ; <'it must start from some place, and wo do not wish to miss it." " Well, it will be along ; it goes all around." " It has to cross that ferry, I believe," said my friend, almost savagely. . _ " Yes," said the boy. !>. " We will wait there where it cannot miss us." " Why, there it comes now ; don't you see it on the other side of the river 3" Sure enough, there it was ; and from that moment it never escaped our eye. There was a popt-office near by. " Postmaster," said my friend, " as you must know, on account of your official position, will you tell me when the Princess Royal leaves Chatham for Shediac." " Oh, yes ; every Monday and Friday. It is advertised in the paper." " Now there is some satisfaction about this," and out came his note-book. " Every Monday and Friday — ah, yes, the paper says Why, the paper says Monday and Thursday I" " Impossible I So it does ; why she never sails on Thursdays. There must be some mistake." " Somewhere no doubt," said my friend, despondingly, returning the note-book ; nor was he much relieved by being afterwards informed by the stage-driver that she sailed neither Thursday nor Friday, but only Monday. 140 NEW BRUNSWICK. At Chatham, Mrs. Bowser received us hospitably and noisily, and there we met some good sportsmen and fine fellows. The sportsmen are the salt of New Brunswick earth ; they have not a trait in common with the other inhabitants, but are jovial, friendly and open-hearted. One cannot know too many nor see too much of them. We owed them many thoughtful attentions, which we will repay to them or others of the race of fishermen, passing on the obligation. Forty-five more miles of weary road, crossing in its course the Tabasintac, that splendid trout stream, and we reached Bathurst, where we found the guides await- ing us at the "Wellington House, having received our telegram, and next day we began " life in the woods " once more. v v Our camp was. pitched at the l^ound Rocks, the lowest fishing station on the Nipisiquit, whither we drove with our luggage in a wagon, and met the canoes. Our rods were hastily put together, and in Rock Pool, at the second cast, I took a fine grilse. Others followed, and next day came the salmon. Splendid fellows just from the sea, their scales resplendent with the reflected light of their ocean homes; solid, strong and brave, leaping again and again, madly disdaining restraint, and fighting fiercely till the last. The water was strong; in some places the rapids were impassable. Sad to tell, the fish knew it, and alas, too often darted down them, whisking their tails in joy at their recovered freedom. Our sport was magnificent. - ,^ "^ . " After fishing the Round Rocks and the Bush Falls, we ascended the river to the Pabineau Falls, where we NEW BRUNSWICK. 141 pansed only to exchange friendly greetings with two fellow fishermen, and continuing through the dark, silent waters of the Bittabock, dined at the Middle Landing, where the stream pours seething in its narrow channel between high rocky banks, and where it is said to be six fathoms deep. We passed another angler at the Chain of Eocks, and reached the Grand Falls and pitched our tent on its precipitous shores by sundown. Wild indeed is the scenery at the Grand Falls, the highest point the salmon reach. The falling water, in long ages, has worn away a channel between high bluffs, and now, in ordinary seasons, poure through a narrow gorge that once could be leaped across, but which has been blasted to admit the passage of timber. The sheet of water falls in a mass of foam some forty feet, the spray rising in volumes, and producing in the summer's sun a beautiful mist rainbow. The granite rocks have been worn in deep holes by revolving bowlders, and in winter the whole chasm, filled with ice and water, must be grand and impressive in extreme. There is a smaller, second fall, which the salmon occa- sionally try to leap ; but they spawn in the pebbly beds below, the whole course of the stream, especially at the basin a short distance from the falls. The principal natural fly of the Kipisiquit is about three-quarters of an inch long, has a yellow body and orange tip, two short whisks and two long, yellow antennae, six thick yellow legs, a large, black head, a thick yellow body with nine rings, and four reticulated, dull yellowish, transparent wings. They are not very abundant, but there are many small nocturnal flies, that will be drawn together with a light in swarms. 142 NEW BRUNSWIOE. * - It is extremely interesting to stand on the rocks over" hanging the river and watch the salmon, their every motion distinctly visible, and their numbers readily counted. When one is casting the fly, his companion can see the fish move to take it, and call out when to strike. Salmon seem to rise very slowly and deliberately and can be observed of a bright day together in crowds, holding their own against the current with a scarcely perceptible effort. Not one in a hundred will notice the fly ; ordinarily nothing but the fins are in motion, but occasionally an individual will give a flirt and turn up his side, which flashes like silver through the water. We fished the Camp, the Falls, the Rock and Cooper's Fools with great success ; the fish were numerous, fine conditioned, large and strong. We had many a fierce contest ; often was our line run out for seventy yards ; the fish made splendid leaps and vigorous rushes, but we lost very few, as there was but one bad place. That was below the Falls Pool, where a stake had caught in the middle of the current ; I found its locality by losing a fine grilse and a casting line. -^ . r . The days wore on most pleasantly ; salmon occupied all our thoughts. The first thing in the morning we looked for salmon, then we fished for salmon, then we breakfasted on salmon, and then again fished for them ; then made flies to catch them, next dined on them, again , fished for them, and then supped off them, and lastly dreamed of them. But the happiest and longest of sum- mer days must end ; our time came to return, and the camp was struck. , , v • ,■ The river is quite evenly divided between the various Btopping-placeB, and it is almost exactly three miles NEW BRUNSWICK. US between each. There are six good fishing places : the Grand Falls, Middle Landing, Bittabock, Pabineau Falls, Bound Kocks and Bough "Waters. "We stopped at our original camp, the Bound Bocks and there we struck our last fish. My friend hooked in the middle of the current a noble specimen, that gave such splendid play that I laid down my rod to witness the contest. The bright sides of the fish, as he leaped again and again out of water, proved that he was fresh run and strong, an impression his fierce ruslies confirmed. He was played with great care and delicacy ; but alas I suddenly darted across the current, took a turn around a rock, and returning passed round another. All hope was given up, but when the canoe was skillfully pushed across after him, he was found to be still on and the line uninjured by the smooth rocks. My friend, greatly rejoiced, had another severe contest, and foiled two determined efforts at escape down an impassable rapid, and when compelled to follow him through some very rough water, did it in a masterly style, standing erect in the canoe, which was ably handled by the two Chamberlains, and guiding the fish through the safest channel. Nearly an hour had been expended, and the fish, almost exhausted, made one last effort to reach the next rapid, and being prevented, came alongside, feebly turning ovfer and over. My friend unfortunately had put on a double leader and could not reel up short, so the salmon lay deep under water, dimly seen, when John attempted to gaff him. At that instant the fish turned, the gaff slipped, he made a rush into the current, and one cry from my friend, " Tliere, he's off," told the tale. The line sprung up into the air, we looked n'mm- wmimm^mmm/mmmm^iinin 144 NEW BRUNSWICK. at one another in silence ; the occasion was too sad for words. My friend sat down upon the rocks in despair ; I felt for, but had no power to console him. At last, slowlj and sadly, he broke the mournful silence : " Let us go home," he said ; and we went. Good bye, lovely Nipisiquit, stream of the beautiful pools, the fisherman's elysium ; farewell to thy merry, noisy current, thy long quiet stretches, thy high bluffs, thy wooded and thy rocky shores. Long may thy music lull the innocent angler into day dreams of happiness. Long may thy deep holes afford secure havens of safety for the salmon, where they can bid defiance to the rapa- cious net and murderous spear. Long may thy romantic scenery charm the eye and gladden the heart of the artist and welcome the angler to a happy sylvan home. And often may I visit thee,, beautiful Nipisiquit ! WHITE TROUT OF THE SCOODIAO. 145 '> 1 i /'• *■ CHAPTER VII. , , ' ._■..- t. V . ■ WHITE TROUT OF THE SCOODIAO, OB BT. OBOIX. I AM unable to give a scientific description of these beautiful and delicious fish, and believe they have never been properly described. They however closely resemble a dwarfed salmon, and have been supposed to be these fish landlocked, prevented, by a natural or artificial obstruction, from completing their annual migrations to and from the sea. The better opinion, however, is that they are a distinct fish, and the color of their sides natu- rally suggests the above appellation, although they have no popular name. The name Scoodic is applied gener- ally to the St. Croix Elver, its lakes and tributaries, and in Maine they are known as the St. Croix Trout, in New Brunswick as the Scoodic Trout, while Mr. Perley sug- gests that they may be the Grey Trout. ^* They are, however, extremely tame and numerous, take the fly readily, afford excellent sport, and delicious eating. They weigh from one pound to four, and may be taken in hundreds. The season commences about the first of June, and lasts throughout that month, and the best files are the gay ones, composed mainly of feathers from the golden pheasant. The scarlet ibis and Irish lake flies are prime favorites. Tlie steamer of the International Line, from Boston or 1 '_"J i 1^^ttftf P^pmippPMi a.T— 'T:-U,^lf^"5"5SV«- f^iTc-^^f^PWMn?^ ?«|^TiT^' ..^:- -.^ *T-^fT?nV«*_<.7M'^ - 146 WHITE TROUT OF THE SCOODIAO. Portland, connects at Eastport witli a river boat for Ca« lais, whence there is a railroad to Lewis' Island. From Lewis' Island it is nine miles to the fishing-ground, six of which are by water and three . by land. A man named Goole will take the baggage over the portage, and the best fishing is above the Grand Falls, between the first two lakes. Inquiries must be made at the time about the necessity of carrying the canoe across the por- tage, as often no canoe can be obtained at the fishing- ground. Of course the angler must expect to camp out, and will provide himself accordingly. Note. --Since tlie above was written these fish have been examined by Professor Agassiz, and prjuouiiced to be sitlmou. white-fish. 147 CHAPTER Vin WHITE-FISFT. Voregonua Alhus — Attihawmeg. — Altliougli included in the salmon family by having the second dorsal adi- pose, and the fin-rays soft, this fish difibrs totally from either the trout or salmon. It has minute velvet-like teeth, scarcely perceptible to the touch, except on the gill-arches, where there is a row of long and slim ones, like bristles ; the scales are large and t!ie body com- prcssed^ like that of a shad, and it has been called the Fresh-water Shad. The mouth is very small, utterly un- snited for seizing the prey on which the trout and salmon feed ; the color of the back is greyish blue, and the sides white. Fin-rays, D. 13.0; P. 17; Y. 12; A. 13; C. 19f, the second dorsal being adipose. The proper appellation for this fish is the Indian name, Attihawmeg, and if sportsmen would in all cases follow the names used by the aborigines they would show more sense than the common people of our coun- try, who think every fish with a spiny back fin must be a bass, and every other a trout. The Attihawmeg abounds in Lake Huron, where it attains a weight of twelve to fourteen pounds, and is tolerably abundant in Lakes Eric, Ontario and Michigan. It feeds on mussels ^,- j?iayrirtti i i i ir ia«Ma»»iawa«>rt-.-^,^^ :'-Kff-H'-j''' 148 WniTE-FISH. and shellfish, or on aquatic plants, and is usually taken in nets. The general opinion is that it will take no bait, natural or artificial; but it might be tempted by the artificial fly, or perhaps the cray-fish. It is the finest fresh-water fish of America upon the table, having no rival that approaches it in excellence except the Otsego bass. But being extremely delicate, it should be eaten immediately on leaving the water, and is never in condi- tion in the cities. If it has been frozen, as is always the case in "Winter, the Attihawmeg is utterly wCrthless. It is unsurpassable split and broiled, very similar in appear- ance and flavor, only much superior to the shad. It is not properly a game fish, whatever may be thought of its delicacy of taste and appearance, but a description of it is necessary to complete the series and to distinguish it from certain others. CISCO. U9 *? CHAPTER IX. CISCO. 1 BECOBD a description of this fish for the purpose of caiHng to it the attention of those who have the requisite knowledge to determine what it is, and beg naturalists, if it is still undescribed, to leave it its own pretty, ori- ginal name. It inhabits Lake Ontario, near its outlet into the St. Lawrence, and is taken in the neighborhood of Cape Yincent. It is one of the Goregonics group, but neither the White-fish, Attihawmeg, Coregonus aU)VSy nor the Otsego Bass, Coregonua Otsego. It may be related to the Coregonus clwpeiformis^ although differing much from the meagre description of the latter in the accounts copied one from another, of Dr. Mitchill, Lesueur, and Dr. De Kay. The Cisco is not so compressed nor deep as the white- fish ; the teeth are more delicate and velvety, and in the gill arches are a few long, distfnct, slim teeth or bristles. The mouth is smaller than that of the white-fish, and when open, perfectly square. The scales are similar to those on the latter, but the tail is so delicate as to mako counting the rays mere guesswork ; the point of the tongue is hard, the back colored green, the sides silver white, while the first ray of the pectoral, ventral and anal fins is darkish. The first dorsal has ten soft rays , . ^gjjl/^^ittmv**''.'- 150 CISCO. the second is adipose ; the pectoral has fourteen soft rays, the ventral eleven, the anal twelve, and the caudal, as well as I could count them, fourteen. It is a very- beautiful and delicate fish, more so even than the white- fish. .■■■ ■ - :'^ .'■■-■■_ The Cisco is taken at Cape Vincent, with the eel fly- baited on a small hook and dibbled along the top of tlio water, and is said not to notice any artificial fly. I unfor- tunately had no chance to try, though I saw them rising and taking the natural fly readily. They do not rise with the rush of a salmon or trout, never springing out of water, and simply show their heads as they seize their prey. The eel-fly is a fat and sluggish fly, and it may be that the fish rising slowly, as they naturally do, would disco- ver the deception even if an imitation eel-fly were offered to them. This fly, as I have elsewhere observed, is simi- lar, both in appearance and habits, to the famous Euro- pean May-fly. The fish known as the lake herrings mlmo dupeifcr- nviSf althouij^h very similar in appearance, has certain dis- tinctive characteristics ; for instance, there are minute teeth on the tongue, and the fin-rays, as I make them, are — D. 12 ; P. 16 ; Y. 11 ; A. 11 ; C. 19| ; B. 9. According to Lesueur — D. 12 ; P. 16 ; V. 12 ; A. 14 ; C. 19|. In the lake herring I also found the first ray of the dorsal the longest, although Lesueur says it is simple and short ; the tail is deeply forked. The dorsal termi- nates nearly opposite the ventrals, and the second dorsal is opposite the centre of the anal. OTSEGO BASS. 151 .:'*-"' ;;.■ CHAPTER X, OTSEGO BASS. Coregonus Otsego. — ^This fish must be carefully distin* guished from the Oswego Bass, there beiug no resem- blance except in the stupidity of confounding by name one of the perch family, to which the latter belongs, with one of the salmon family, to which this belongs. The Otsego Bass is closely allied to tu j white-fish, but has numerous dusky longitudinal lines on the sides. Its mouth and scales are small, and it appears to have no teeth except the bristles on the gill-arches. The lateral lino is nearly straight, and the tail is deeply forked. The back is a rich blue, fading into green, the sides bril- liant with mother of pearl, and the belly gleaming like molten silver. The rays are as follows: Br. 9 ; D. 13 ; P. 17 ; V. 11 ; A. 11 ; C. 22. The second back fin, as in all the salmon tribe, is adi- pose and rayless. These fish have as yet only been found in Otsego Lake, where they are rapidly diminishing in size and numbers. They are not known to take any bait, and are presumed to feed on aquatic vegetation. Early in spring they seek the shallow water for a few days, when they are taken in nets ; but shortly retiring to the deepest water, they remain till Autumn, wher they .;,^a{)(iJl*«ti«*».*i.-- 152 OTSEGO BASS. again seek the shores to spawn. They never exceed four pounds, and rarely two, and though undesirable on table, are not a sportsman's fish, and have been described only that they may be distinguished from other species. ^, . ' ■> ' TnS BLUE-FISH. ^53 .'i»-' \.,:: ^ ■^.M, CHAPTER XI THE BLUE-FISH. Temnodon Saltator — Soomler Plumleus (Mitcbill) — Horse Mackerel — Oreen-fish of Virginia — Skijpjack of South Carolina, ' Tliis fish belongs to the mackerel family ; it has pro- jecting teeth in the fore part of the jaws, and velvety teeth on the roof of the mouth and tongue. The first doi*^ sal lies in a furrow, and there are two minute spines con- cealed under the skin before the anal. The scales extend over the head, gill-covers and high on the fins ; the back is bluish-green, and the sides and abdomen lighter ; the pectorals, second dorsal and tail are greenish-brown, while the ventrals and anal are white, tinged with blue. The gill-cover has two indistinct flat points. • The fin- rays are as follows, the spines being distinguished from the soft rays. D. 7.1.25 ; P. 17 ; V. L5 ; A. 1.27 ; C. 19f These fish furnish one of the most remarkable instances of the appearance and disappearance of species on our co»ast. As in our day, with the Spanish mackerel, that darling of the gourmand, so in former times, the blue-fish appeared suddenly. He was first seen on the coast of Massachusetts in 1764, and then not again till 1792 ; and it is only since the year 1830 that he has been abundant. •js^mitifm,^"" IH THE BLUE-FISH. He seems to have superseded another and larger fish of the same name, and as his numbers augment, those of the weak-fish, otolithus regalis, diminish. The bhie-fish lias singular vagaries, sometimes crowding every inlet in swarms, and then deserting us altogether, visiting in one season one locality and in the next another, but ordi narily frequenting our entire coast north to Massachusetts. They afford excellent sport on a rod and line, being among the strongest and boldest of their kind, taking the fly readily, and making fierce and well-sustained rushes ; but from the localities they usually frequent, they are mostly taken with a hand-line from a sailboat. An artificial squid of bone, ivory or lead, is trailed along at the end of forty yards of stout line, from a boat dancing merrily over the waves under the influence of a fresh mackerel breeze. The boatman's business is to watch for a shoal, which can be seen by their breaking, and when he has found it, by repeated tacks to keep the boat in or near it ; the fisherman's duty is to haul in steadily and regularly immediately on feeling a bite, and to get out his line again as soon as possible. The fish dart forward, and throwing themselves out of water, turn a complete somersault, when, if the line is not taught, they will throw the hook out of their mouths. The dash- ing of the waves and flying of the spray, the rapid exhi- larating motion of the vessel, the fresh sea-breeze, the rapid biting and fine play of the fish, make a day i)as8 pleasantly if they do not afford scientific sport. Blue-fish attain a weight of thirty pounds, and the largest being usually taken outside the bars, beyond the breakers, are a source of much amusement to our yachts- THE IJLUE-FISII. 165 d the id the achts- rnen ; but the arms of the fisherman soon v/eary, and their hands, unless protected by leather gloveti, are often seriously lacerated. The fishing can hardly be said to begin till July, and continues till late in the Autumn ; the smaller fish are taken early. , > ,<., If cooked when just out of their native element, these fish are excellent, but they soon lose their flavor. They should be broiled, or split and nailed on a shingle and roasted quickly before a hot fire. r v;^ rf. „^.;% Undoubtedly they could be taken with the trolling spoon, and a stout leader of double gut running on swivel traces attached to a dark hand-line would add greatly to the success. In fact, like all other fish, at times they are shy and must be fished for with fine tackle, and then the rod and line come into play. In fishing with a rod from a sailboat, the moment a fish is struck the sheet is eased off',-the boat run up into the wind, and the fish killed at leisure ; if the boat were kept in motion, the strain would be too great for the rod and reel. One of the favorite haunts of blue-fish, although they frequent the entire length and breadth of the Great South Bay of Long Island, is Fire Island Inlet; and there, of a bright summer day, may be seen congregated the white sails of fifty boats tossing about in the roll of the breakers, clustering together as the shoals collect, or scattering far out to sea in the hopes of better luck. There, when the wind blows, they may be seen under double reef, plunging along, throwing the spray from their bows, or, if a milder day, under full sail, generally a single one, sweeping over the quiet waters. Moderate 156 THE BLUE-FISH'. weather is the best, and it is no nse fishing nnless th« fish are on, which means that their visits are variable. At midday, when they generally cease biting, the adven- turous fisherman may land on Raccoon Beach, immor- talized by the genial wit of J. Cypress, jr., and either cook his fish by a fire built from the waifs of the sea, which I decidedly recommend, or get a fashionable din- ner from Dominy or " t'other man " that keeps a hotel there. At this time it will be found, and I note the fact for the benefit of future generations, that a little liquor containing condensed carbonic acid gas and vulgarly called champagne, with water reduced to the tempera- ture of freezing and commonly called ice, will be pleas- ing to the palate and beneficial to the inner man. In explanation of this episode, I may say I have just been there. ,";-*?;, \ \ ^^^^ SNArriNG MACKEREL. 167 J •■ H * 'll"'' ■ ■ • CHAPTEK XII. SNAPPING MACKEREL. Temnodon SaUator. — One of the gayest, merriest, live- liest, little fish that chases and devours those smaller than himself, and is chased and devoured by such as are larger, is the Snapping Mackerel, the young of the pre- vious species, but individualized from the voracity with which he snaps at the live or dead bait. He is a bcau- tiAil, silver-sided little fellow, weighing from an ounce to half a pound, and makes his appearance in immense numbere along our coast in the latter part of September or fore part of October. " Whence he comes, Whither he goes, Nobody cares ' ;p'- And nobody knows." / He must have just arrived, however, from the parents' spawning ground, his diminutive size proving that he has not been long out of the shell. He roams about, at first in small numbers, but soon increasing to multitudes, and gives active chase to the minnow and spearing, that may be seen momentarily springing out of water in their frantic efforts to escape his charges. He lurks in the foaming water of a mill-tail or sluiceway, or in the eddy- ing current of the receding tide, watching for his prey mm mmm 158 SNAPPIXO MACKEREL. as they swim or arc drifted along iinsnspicioiisly. He makes one dasli, u dozen startled spearing leap into the air, and swim for dear life ; but tlie victim is generally "ajTied olf, a dainty and epicurean meal. Spearing invariably swim near the surface; they haunt the gates of tide-mills wlien the tide is rising, and are drifted in with the current when the gates open before the advancing waters. The snappers take the opportu- nity, not merely to plunge among the shoals before the gates lift, b*it afterward, when the spearing, who are helpless in a strong current, are swept along, to pounce upon them. Of course ii- such places they can be captured with most success. When they tiist make their appearance, not longer than your forefinger, but tender and delicate beyond belief, they may be found at low walev in the rivulets of white frotli that run bnbbli/ig from holes and leaks in the mill-gatcE. The best mode of taking them at this time, for they are small and fastidi^^ns, is with a salmon-rod and a tiny spearing on a Limerick hook ; by making casts and drawing the bait along the surface of the water and through the frothy eddies, the young inno- cents are deceived, and thinking to prey upon their weaker brethren, become themselves a palatable viand for larger creatures. They break like trout, without throwing themselves out of water, but with a noisy snap, and if they ^niss th'> bait at first, will follow it resolutely. It is no mean sport to stand upon tlie old worm-eaten, weather-stained bridge, and wield the long rod, playing your allurement over the water to the music of the rush- ing current and the stefidy clack of the mill-wheel, and SNArriNO MACKEREL. 159 see one after another of the green-backed, silvery snap pers dart from under the accumulated frotli, chase aj»d swallow your bait, and no slight satist'action to observe the increasing nuinbcr in your basket, and think of how your friends will enjoy their supper that night. There is one singular fact to be observed, that whereas blue-fish invariably take the invitation squid, or artificial fly, with voracity, the snapping mackerel, except in the South Bay of Long Island, can rarely be tempted by it. In Long Island Sound I have failed with th#fly and the spoon entirely, and have found the gutta percha minnow to work only passably, whereas in the South Bay they are taken readily with a leaden squid, of a peculiar shape, run on a large hook and polished bright. Qlie spearing is their favorite food, but the extreme sensitiveness of that remarkable little fish, that renders keeping him alive impossible, injures the attractive- ness of the bait. As has been elsewhere observed, when small fish are used, it is desirable to keep them alive if possible, and the snappers will often give the preference to a lively killey, that by his efforts to escape incites the eagerness of their pursuit, over a dead spear- ing, that by his peculiar manner of resting in the water arouses their suspicions. As the season advances, the fish are found in all rapid cuiTents of the salt water, and the barred killey is by far iiie most killing bait. The best way of rigging your tackle is to have a small float and light swivel sinker, below which there is a short leader of gut. The latter is fastened to the middle of a piece of whalebone or wire about two inches long, to each find of which the hook, ■ W '■'■'!;. 160 SNArriNG MACKEREL. .^^' dressed on gut, is attached. As the teeth of these vora- cious fish are sharp, and after being hooked they snap continually, the silk whipping of the hook, as well as the gut itself, is soon bitten through. Either a small quill may be slipped down over the hook before it is attached, and into this the teeth sink without damage, or care must be taken to put a couple of half hitches with tlie snell over the shank, as the whipping wears out. A liguu rod and reel are necessary for this spore, and there is the same skill and excitement in the repeated uasts that lend to striped bass fishing one of its peculiar charms. The morning hours, the last of the ebb and first of the flood, are the most propitious times ; but as the Fall advances, any hour, tide or place will furnish sport in abundance. I was once fishing with a friend whose experience is greater with the pencil than the rod, on one of those glorious evenings of what might be properly styled in ou^ country "fiery brown October," and our success made us unmindful of the fleeting hours that had bid the sun farewell and welconaed the moon from her bed. Cramped as we had been in a cockle-shell of a boat, we had taken one of the thwarts and the oars, and placing tliem, across the gunwale, had made two high but dan- gerous seats. Tlie boat was extremely unsteady, and many and solemn had been my unheeded warnings to move as little as possible, and to exercise care in what- evei' motions were unavoidably necessary. The fish were out in force, and seized our bait frantically the instant it touched waves, over which the moonlijfht glanced in tiny ripples. A northeaster had been blowing, but, dying SNAFFINO MACKEREL. 161 away, left only a long, heaving swell, that was hroken by neighboring projecting rocks, and in no wise added to the steadiness of the boat. Our eagerness increased with the increasing darkness, and when unable longer to see our floats, we cast out and reeled in, finding generally a worthy reward for onr pains. The fun grew fast and faster ; at one particular place we were always sure of a fish. To reach it was a long cast, and my friend, in an effort to excel himself, leaned back for a vigorous throw, lost his balance, and toppled overboard. His weight, as he went on one side, careened the boat, threw me down to leeward, and let the water pour in over the gunwale in barrels. Down almost under water I saw the other gunwale turned up and nearly over me, when my friend, falling headlong out, gave the boat a lift, of which I took advantage by getting back amidships pretty well ducked, but not yet cast away. The water was nearly i;p to the seats, but by careful balancing, I could keep her afloat. Imagine my horror when my friend reap- peared from the oozy depths to which he had descended, and commenced madly trying to clamber over the side. I begged and besought him to think of what he was doing ; that I was still partially dry ; that my watch was a patent lever ; that I had a family of small children ; and that the boat would never, in her present state, hold us both. Reluctantly he listened to reason, and allowed me to bail her out with a bucket we had provided to carry our fish. As I threw out the water I could just see with deep regret, in the moonlight, the sparkle of fish after fish that I was unavoidably throwing away, and that I hoped would have served so different a purpose. IP '' ^ IIP^" 162 SNAPPING MACKEREL. ■■ i V. !■: (-* :. ^ r She was finally freed of water ; hats, oars and rod were picked up, the latter by means of the float that was calmly fishing all by itself; my friend, who had swam to and was shivering on a neighboring roek, was taken aboard, and we returned, solemn and sad, my friend very cold and myself greatly disgusted. rf v. - In fishing, therefore, for snappers, it is better not to fall overboard ; but if, by yout awkwardness of doing so, you half fill the boat, never try to climb in over the side, but sacrifice yourself bravely. "W"^ were using on this occasion a bait that, late in the season, is often more suc- cessful than any other — a part of the fish himself. This, in the early fishing, they will not touch ; but in cold weather, frequently prefePi - - -^ - ^ ^ >. It is a singular fact, that although blue-fish have always abounded in the Great South Bay, snapping mackerel were unknown there till lately ; whereas, while the latter have been abundant in Long Island Sound from time immemorial, the former have never been taken there to any great extent. - > : *, r TEE COMMON CARP. 103 CHAPTER Xni. THE COMMON CAEP. Oyprinua Carpio. — ^This, as Avell as the goldfish, Cy- prinus auratus^ is not a native of our country, but has been introduced from Europe, and naturalists have sup- posed that there is no native C!irp of any size in this country. I have seen a fish called the Western Carp, which, although I had no chance to more than sketch its head, was certainly a true carp, and of four or five pounds' weight. It had large scales, and all the fin-rays soft, except the first anal, which was robust. The common carp, which has increased with amazing rapidity till it is found everywhere in the Hudson River, has a small mouth, fleshy lips with nt teeth, large scales, three branchial rays and teeth on the pharyngeals ; has tlie first ray of the dorsal and anal fin serrated behind, has two barbels at the angle of the mouth, and a smaller one above on each side, small eyes, large nostrils, a high back and radiating striae on the gill-cover. The color ii a golden olive, lighter underneath. These delicate fish, having become acclimated, and finding the Hudson River suitable to their wants, are increasing rapidly in size and numbers ; but none that I have seen equal the western carp or are properly game fish. f . 164 MASCALLONGB. '■ CHAPTEE XIY. MA30ALLONOE. I l^ox Estor — Masqueallonge < — Mitshdlunge — Muscob' Unga — Masquinongy — Maakinonge — Muscanonga, The sidea of the body are marked with numerous rounded, distinct greyish spots. Tliree bands of card- like teeth are situated on the roof of the mouth, on the palatines and vomer, converging to a point toward the snout. There are long, sharp, distinct teeth along the edges of the upper and lower jaw, and continued to the extremity of the latter, althougli some authorities assert the contrary. The gill-arches are also covered with teeth. Mascallonge reach a length of about six feet and a weight of seventy pounds, and the comparative length of the head with the whole fish is as one to four. The fin-rays are as follows : . Branchial or gill-rays 20 ; Dorsal 18 ; Pectoral 16 ; Ventral 11 ; Anal 17 j Caudal 24 ; according to my best computation. * Br. 18 ; D. ^-; P. 13 ; Y. 11 ; A. 21 ; 0. 19f — i>r. De Kay. D. 21 ; P. 14 ; Y. 11 ; A. 17 ; C. 26.— i??-. MitchilL D. 22 ; P. 18 ; Y. 13 ; A. 20; C. 26.— Pw/. Agassis. The lateral line is not continuous, the under jaw is more elongated than that of the northern pickerel and ssaeSR: '*mm«MiMHi MASCALL0X6B/ ill. mz. is land some fisli have on tlieir sides dark spots on a light grey- ish ground. The name of this fish is derived from Masque allonge^ long snout, which is a translation from the Canadian Indian dialect, of Masoa-Twnga^ words which have the same signification ; and from corruptions of these two designations arise our numerous names. I took great pains to ascertain precisely how the Canadian boatmen, who are a cross of the Indian and Frenchman, pro- nounced this name, although, in their French patois^ he is ordinarily called Brochat^ and the best my ears could make of it was Mae- or Muscailung, the latter syllable being guttural. But as the most sonorous, expressive and appropriate name is Mascallonge, it is desirable that all sportsmen should employ it. "^ '* '^^ ^"^^^ There is a dispute as to the size and weight that these fish attain, and while some writers claim for them a fabu- lous size, others entirely underrate them. Mr. S. D. Johns- ton, the proprietor of the Walton House, at Clayton, a son of Mr. Johnston, who was a prominent man in the Cana- dian rebellion, and for many years forced to hide among the Thousand Isles and live by his hook and spear, said that the largest fish he ever saw was taken by his father, who, in one night, speared two Mascallonge weighing respectively sixty-three and forty-two pounds. Tliere is plenty of authority to prove that there was taken near Clayton, in the year 1859, a mascallonge that measured five feet seven inches in length, and weighed fifty-one and three-quarter pounds, that it was poor and thin, and in good condition would probably have weighed over sixty pounds. One fisherman caught in a single year twelve mmmSSWSmBfm I6d l^ASOALLONQE. r mascallonge, ranging from twenty-one to forty-four pounds. Larger lish and far greater numbers may per- haps be taken in wilder waters, and, indeed, in some of the lakes in . the remote parts of Canada these fish are innumerable. Their length, proportionally to their weight, is, in con- sequence of their peculiar shape, excessive ; a fish of twenty-five pounds' weight will measure forty-six inches in length by six in depth, and a fish of seventy pounds it is presumed would be over six feet in length. Although this is not quite equal to the great pike of Pliny, that weighed a thousand pounds, and was drawn out by a pair of oxen, and caught on a hook attached to an ox chain, it must be- regarded by the most fastidious as respectable for the present degenerate days. If the accounts we receive are reliable, the pike of Europe, of which the old song erroneously says : ■::'F " Turkeys, carps, hoppes, piccarel and beer Game in^o England all in one year," vastly surpass ours in size, a fish being taken in a pond near Stockholm with a brass ring round his neck, having an inscription to the effect that he had been put into the pond by the hands of Frederick the Second in 1230, or 267 year? before. He weighed 350 pounds, and measured fif- teen feet, and his skeleton was a long time preserved it Manheim. The ring was arranged with springs so as to enlarge as he grew. The Shannon is said to have pro- duced a pike of ninety-two pounds, and Lock Spey one of one hundred and forty six ; but, when reading of these accounts, I feel like the Yankee, who, when boasting of MASCALLONQE. 107 hie great country, and especially its great cataract, was somewhat taken abac]c by being told his land produced no volcanoes, nothing to equal Vesuvius or Etna, but who, after thinking a moment, replied : " That was true those were big fires, but he guessed Niagara had water enough to put them all out." So I think our mascallonge could eat up the biggest pike Europe can produce ; and it will be a pity if, when our country is as old as Europe^ we cannot tell as extensive stories. :. IE I Head of Wettern Oupk 168 FICEERELb CHAPTEE XV. PICKEREL. In some remarkable and incomprehensible manner the good old name of Pike has fallen into disuse, and is now applied in this country to a fish that is not a pike at all, but a perch, Ludo perca^ the Pike Perch, Big-eyed Pike, or Glass Eye of the Lakes ; while the name Pickerel, which is merely the diminutive of Pike, is appropriated to the most gigantic and ferocious monsters of the deep. There is no fish whose appearance is more appalling, and whose appetite is more ravenous than the Great Northern Pickerel, which is alleged to attain a weight of twenty pounds, and which, in its fury, will 'pounce upon and swallow almost any small moving object. Nor does it much surpass the common pickerel of our ponds, which has very similar habitS| and sometimes weighs as high as ten pounds. The pickerel family, like most of the fish of America, have never been properly classified by the scientific, nor named by the vulgar. In fact, they, with the exception of the mascallonge, appear to have no specific names in common parlance, while naturalists have vague or no acquaintance with their peculiarities. Sportsmen and others speak of catching pickere^, whether it be in the St. Lawrence, Great Northern Pickerel, which seem to '*Pfi".*»'1^l"WSBf?'' FICKEREL. IGO have bad no scientific designation till named by Agassiz 3sox Luoioides, or on Long Island, ^sox Faaciatua, or on our principal inland waters, Eaox MetioulatuSj or in some of tbe lakes of the Eastern States, where a fish is caught, of which Dr. De Kay, in his "Natural History j>f New York," doubts the existence, and which Dr. Mitchill has dubbed the Federation Pike, Eaox Tredecem- radiatus. In truth, the distinction between the Mascal- longe and the Great Northern Pickerel is scarcely visi- ble even to the eye of science, and to the unlearned is marked only by a slight difference in the shape of the head and the coloring of the sides. The light tint is yel- low in the pickerel and white in the mascallonge, while ill the latter at times the sides have dark spots on a white ground instead of the dark network of the pick- erel. It has even been doubted whether these fish are not identical, and the difterenccs of size and color pro- duced by local habits; but the views of all practical fish- ermen lean the other way, and they can at once distin- guish the smallest mascallonge from the largest pickerel, although they are unable to point out the precise dis- tinctive characteristics ; while scientific men do make out that there is a difference in the number of the fin- rays. For the latter, however, although I have given the most careful attention that could be expected from an amateur, my enumeration differs from that of all others as they differ among themselves. My computa- tion of the fin-rays gave — Dorsal 18 ; Pectoral 16 ; Ventral 11 ; Anal 17 ; Cau- dal 24. While according to Dr. Mitchill they were respectively, 8 :: 170 PICKEREL. ( D. 21 ; P. 14 ; Y. 11 ; A. 17 ; C. 26. And according to Dr. De Kay — D. 21 ; P. 13 ; V. 11 ; A. 21 ; C. 19f \ t > , And according to Professor Agassiz — /' ; • D. 22 ; P. 18 ; V. 13 ; A. 20 ; C. 26. This goes to show that eitlier it is very dlffi^^ult to count the fin-rays, or that they differ ; to the latter of ^ which suppositions iny belief inclines, as I think tlie older the fish the more fin-rays are formed, or so hard- ened as .to be perceptible. The habits of this class of fisli are as similar as their appearance, and whetlier you capture a tl pickerel with your fly in some shallow Long IsLmd water, or entrap the huge mascallonge with a treble hook half concealed beneath red flannel and shining tin, they rush with the same eagerness and grasp with the same determination. I anmsed myself one evening on Long Island in casting over a newly-made shallow pond with my ordinary trout cast of flies, and seeing the ferocity with which pickerel, varying from four to nine inches in length, would dart ' upjn their anticipatcMl prey. All pickerel inhabit sluggish water, and abound among the long, grassy pickerel weed that thrives upon a muddy bottom. The St. Lawrence, where it winds amid the beautiful Thousand Isles and forms innumerable deep and quiet bays, is their favorite home. The water, flow- ing from the immense lakes and holding suspended the seeds of aquatic plants, is favorable to the growth of the pickerel weed, and is in every way suitable to the fish themselves. The latter, however, have great power, aud can unquestionably stem a strong current, for no . FKKEREL. 171 doubt they ascond the rapids of that miglity river, heing *ound in the eddies ; but they prefer quiet water, where they can lurk among the weeds, watching stealthily for tlieir prey, or bask Hear the surface in the warm summer sun. Both mascullonge and pickerel abound in the innu- merable lakes of Lower Canada, and are bo abundant in addition to being almost tasteless, as to be unsalable for food. In other waters pickerel are found in the summer months among the lily-pads, often in water scarcely deep enough to cover their backs. The federation pike I have never taken, except in some of the remote ponds of the wild woods of Cape Cod, near Sandwich and Wareham, especially in the Little Herring Pond. And although at the timO I had no knowledge of the scientific distinctions of fish, I at once recognized the description which I saw for the first time afterward, but had often sought in vain among our works on ichthyology. All the pickerel family are readily distingui8hal)le by their having but one dorsal, and that opposite the anal fin and near the tail, and the sportsman acquainted with one will readily recognize all the tribe. . . , / There are many ways of capturing ^his fish, and he is not the least particular if he is offered anything that has the semblance of food. He may be trolled for with dead bait, generally a minnow, or better, a yellow perch, on a gang of hooks, or fished for with a live bait and a float, iind he will readily take a frog, provided the latter si uU not, as described in the " Angler's Miseries," have the intelligence to creep out upon a stone and watch the fisherman, whi]e the latter watches his float; but the *. 172 nOKEREL. 1 true Way in open watei is to fish for liiin with a Bpoon. Tho last is objected to as being too destructive ; but as it is clean, requires no bait, and is little trouble, and as the fish are utterly worthless either for sport or tho table, the sooner they are destroyed and replaced by nobler sub stitutes the better. Among the water-lilies the only mode is to use a long, stift* rod and short line, loaded with one buck-shot about a foot from the hook, and baited either with a minnow, the belly of a yellow perch, or better than all, a slip of the skin of pork cut into something resembling a small fish. THie latter never wears out, and can hardly be torn off, while it often is preferred to more natural food. The bait is dropped into the opening among the lily-pads, and sinking rapidly, by the weight of the shot, toward the bottom, is started up again by a twitch of tho rod, and goes bobbing up and down till tho pickerel, ren- dered frantic by such an absurd performance, can stand it no longer, and with one furious rush determines to end the gyrations of such a silly creature. Never wait for pickerel to gorge the bait, discard such old fogy notions, and by the aid of a strong rod and line, pull him out at once. At least one-half the time fish eject the bait instead of swallowing it, and no one who has ever eaten pork can question their taste. Waiting five or ten minutes, or till they make two or three runs, will not do in our rapid country. I have seen fish that were corpulent with over-feeding, and surrounded by their favorite food, young herring, taken by a piece of themselves being spun in this manner, when they would touch no othei bait « PICKEREL » « 173 But the most wonderful mode of all is that practised in the St. Lawrence, and generally among the larger waters of Canada and the northern States. Tlie fisher- man places liinisulf in the stem of a light canoe-shaped boat, with his face forward, the oarsman sits near the hows, of course facing aft ; on each side of the fisherman are pegs like row-locks, or grooves, in the gunwale, with corresponding round holes in the stretchers on the oppo site sides ; two short, stiff rods are laid across the boat, projecting on each side like wings, kept in their places by the pegs, and their buts supported by the holes. A long line is let out from each rod, say forty yards, armed with a spoon bait ; while the fisherman holds an ordinary troUing-line in his hand, and is thus rowed about till either he, or more frequently his oarsman, perceives from the bending of the rod that he has a bite, or he feels a dead drag on his hand-line. If it falls to the share of the rod, he takes the latter up, ends it round till he can reach the line, when he pulls the fish in by hand. If ho uses a reel, it is a good plan to take one or two turns of the line round it, so that it will just render. By so doing he might save the rod from breaking, which would be apt to happen with a heavy fish. Mascallonge invariably stoj) perfectly still when struck. In landing a fish by hand, which is always the prefer- able mode, the reel only being used for an emergency, hold the line very lightly between your fingers and give to every jerk or rush. Innumerable large fish are lost by an endeavor to pull them in by force, and I have seen men, with their hands cut by the line, complaining that they had lost § mascalonge of forty pounds. Pickerel ■ : 174 PICKEREL. never make many nor long-sustained rushes, but they give powerful jerks and flounces that, if resisted, will tear out or break any hook ; otherwise, they can ordina rily be drawn through, or more properly over, the water like a wet rag. The person who pulls thera in as though it was a question of strergth between him and the fish, deserves to lose tLoi i and have his fingers cut besides. The moment, however, the fish is at the side of the skifl^, he should be either gaffed or lifted over the gunwale at once, as more are lost then than at any other time. Their jaws are mere skin and bone, the skin tearing away at once, and the bone forming no substance in which the hook can imbed itself, the latter sometimes slips out or more frequently is broken off. If you value your fingers, never put them in a pickerel's mouth or gills, which are armed with innumerable sharp and even venomous teeth. The best weather for trolling is a light, southwesterly breeze, and in large and deep waters a bright sky ; in a heavy wind, it is impossible to manage the boat. The hook should always be on wiror or gimp, the former preferable as the latter is so rarely what it pro- fesses to be, and of course should be attached to the line by not less than two swivels. The best spoon is the so- called Buel's patent, with three hooks, either in one piece, or soldered firmly together, and a small elliptical piece of tin, copper or brass, made to revolve round them by means of a shoulder on thf shank. This may be tin on one side and red on the other, or copper and brass, or copper or brass alone, to suit the angler's fancy, and the shank of the hooks is wound with scarlet flannel, or ^ ■ ^5*#JT PICKEREL. ITS covered with the ibis feather, or left uncovered, as expe- rience shall dictate. Bright spoons are preferable on dark days, and for mascallonge the oldest and most suc- cessful fishermen use no feathers or flannel. Avoid purchasing any spoon with small, dangling hooks, or with more than three or less than two, or with any fastening of any kind except wire or gimp. Nothing else will for a moment stand the terrible teeth of these ferocious monsters. I once had an expensive imitation pearl fish, that was fastened with thin brass wire, bitten ofl:' by the first pickerel that touched it. If you use a reel, you will of course use your ordinary bass line ; if not, purchase a common stout hand-line, and troll with from forty to fifty yards out. Your troUing-rod must be short, stiff and strong, not over ten feet long, and can be readily mado by adding a stout top to your but and second joint; while, for weed fishing, you must have a long, stiff rod, and when the fish are heavy and tangle themselves in the weeds, which their first rush will often do, you must reach your line and draw them out by hand ; by taking hold of the wire or gimp, you can readily land a ten- pound fish. These fish, both pickerel and mascallonge, can be cap- tured in immense numbers in the St. Lawrence, at Capo Vincent, Clayton, Alexandria Bay and many other places ; in Lake Champlain, near Rouse's Point ; and in all the lakes of Canada ; but they are dull sport in the catching and poor food in the eating. Believe no one who boasts of the fine flavor of the mascallonge , cook him as you will, he is nothing but a dirty, flabby, taste- less pickorel. And as for the sport, carry a blanket with 176 PICKEREL. you, take a tnm with the hand-line round your leg, and Btretching yourselves as best you may in the bottom of the boat, sleep comfortably till either a call from your oarsman or a tug on your leg rouses yoa to the dreary work of pulling in a wortliless, unresisting log. When you strike and lose one fish, remain rowing round and round ; if he is not much hurt, he will bite again, and where there is one there are more ; remain at that spot till, by passing over the ground once or twice without a strike, you are thoroughly satisfied you have exhausted the supply. There is sometimes great beauty of sce- nery, and if your guide has anything to say, which he rarely has, you can, as you should be able ever to do in the open air, enjoy yourself. The mode of fishing among the pond lilies that I h.avo described is much more exciting, requiring continued activity, some skill and no little judgment, while there is greater risk of losing your prey. To avoid the latter casualty, if the fish weigh not over four pounds, lift him out at once, and proceed in the same way with larger fish to the extent your rod will stand. As for snap- fishing, that is, using a hook so constructed as to spring open or shut the moment it feels the bite, and thus grasping the fish or imbedding an extra hook in his jaws, 1 have only tried it suflficiently to be disgusted with it, although probably it may work well in open water. If, however, it touches a weed, it will be sprung, and then you cannot catch a fish at all till it is reset. It was invented to a,void the h ok'S coming out of the pickerel's mouth, which, from the nature .of the latter, it is apt to do, a difficulty which old, slow, poky, English punt- PICKEREL. 177 id [)f •ur ivy len ind and jpot it a sted 8ce- rhicli to do fisliers endeavor to remedy by allowing the pike or jack, as they call him, to gorge the bait. A pickerel, like a trout, rushes up, strikes his piey, and immediately returns with it to his haunt ; he then ends it round, having gen- erally struck it crosswise, and swallows it. This he takes much longer to do than a trout, and the English works on fishing direct you to wait five minutes or till he runs again, and then, by striking smartly, you can fix the hook into his gills or stomach, from which nothing but the knife will remove it. The disadvantage, however, is that the pickerel often eject instead of gorging the bait, and when the fisherman, having impatiently awaited his five minutes, comes to strike, he strikes naught but tho thin water or the stem of a water lily. After a few such disgusting results, he will probably determine, as the writer has, to strike at once, unless, by one of those exceptional cases to all good rules, some peculiar diffi- culty forces him to proceed otherwise. The word spoon, that has been so frequently used, is derived from the use originally of the bowl of a pewter table-spoon, into one end of which was fastened three hooks, and into the other a swivel attached to the line, and which, by playing and flashing through the water, attracted the fish ; the old- fashioned spoon is now out of use, and entirely super- seded by Buel's patent. Pickerel, especially the smaller varieties, will take a fly, but not very readily ; and this can hardly be said to be an established mode of fishing for them. There is another style of pickerel fishing which is amusing, to say the least of it, and is practised exten- sively throughout the State of New York. You take a 8* wmm 178 PICKEREL. Bmall piece of flat board abont nine inches across, and pass a stick through a hole bored in the centre so as to project above and below it ; the lower end is then loaded, and to the upper is attached a line of some twenty or tliirty feet, that is baited with either a live or dead min- now. The line is coiled on one side of the wood, and leaving sufficient end for the baif to sink to a proper depth is fastened slightly in a slit cut in the wood like the thread of a spool. As many as you please to use are then placed in the pond and left to fish while you row r.bout or otherwise employ yourself. If a pickerel takes the bait, the line is jerked out of the cleft, and uncoiling, allows him to carry off and pouch the bait, but when he undertakes to move away he is hooked by the resistance of the wood against the water. The motion of the float can be seen from some distance, and it is quite interesting to chase one after another that go " bobbing around," as fish after fish is hooked. A plan somewhat similar to this is described by Walton and other writers, and it is merely a modification of an old invention. The best season for pickerel fishing is after the first of September, although they are taken at all times, includ- ing their spawning seasons of February, March and April, and are quite good, voracious and abundant in July and August. The English pike is reported bo show an abstinence from food in Summer that our fish never exhibit, and, indeed, differs from ours in many particu- lars, and none more to his credit than his scarcity. In Summer our fish resort to^iho sli allow water, as they are also said to do in their spawning season, and at botl PICKEREL. 179 tiii^Gfi llioy are sliot or speared without mercy. In fact, the quick eye, ready hand and steady foot reqirred for spearing renders it an exciting and reputable sport, worthy of, and often unattainable by, the best of us. In Winter, pickerel seek the warm, deep water, and are caught through a hole in the ice by a live bait on a hand line. This is said to be very exciting, provided a rude hut is built over the hole, and a fire made in the hut, and provided the fisherman, seated in a comfortable chair, provided v,'ith a book, a segar and a glass of hot punch, has an assistant to pull out the fish. It is alleged that these fish are, " during the height of the season," brilliant and beautiful ; if that is so with any, except the Long Island Pickerel and the Federation Pike, the height of the season must have been too high for me to reach. The family of the Esocidm are truly typified by ilie voracious and terrible Esox luceas^ wolf-fish, the true pike, from which they take their name, and include among their numbers the formidable Gar-pike, Esox osseus of the Southern waters. Although their flesh is hardly fit for the table, they are universally abundant, and their capture affords that kind of pleasure always derived from taking many and large animals of any description. The principal species known in this country are : The Mascallonoe, Esox Entor. The Northern Pickerel, Esox Lucioides^ both of which inhabit tlie great rivers and lakes of the North. The Common Pickerel, Esox lieticulati's, of the mi4 die and northern States. "'^HE Long Island Pickerel, Esox Eaeciatus. 180 PICKEREL. The White Ficeebel, Hsox Vittatua, of the West, v The Black Pickerel, Eaox Niger, of Pennsylvania and of Saratoga Lake, New Tork, whicli Dr. De Kay presumes to be only the young of the common pickerel. The Fedeeation Pike, £sox Tredecem Radiatus^ of the eastern States. > THE GREAT NORTHERN PICKEREL. 181 CHAPTER XVI. THE GREAT NORTHERN PICKEREL. Esox Ztccioides. — ^Tliis fish is very similar to the mas- eallonge, so much so that it is not mentioned in most of the works on American Ichthyology, being confounded with the latter. The principal differences in appearance are, that the snout of the pickerel, the under jaw espe- cially, is shorter and more obtuse than that of the mas- callonge, the light tint of its sides is yellower; and it never attains over twenty-five pounds. The markings on the sides are somewhat different, the light, elongated spots of the pickerel, being occasionally replaced in the mascallonge by dark spots on a greyish ground, and the fin-rays are not so numerous. Dorsal 18 ; Pectoral 16 ; Ventral 10 ; Anal 15 and Caudal 24. Or, according to Professor Agassiz — D. 21 ; P. 16 ; V. 11 ; A. 16 ; C. 17. The principal color is dark grey, lighter on the sides than on the back. These fish are caught in all the sluggish waters of the North, and on the same ground and at the same time with the mascallonge, and coincide with him entirely in habits and disposition. They exhibit the same ferocity, are allured by the same baits, entrapped in the same manner, and, in a culinary point of view are, if possible, inferior. '^ fnT'-rtj^rrri " 182 ^'•v. TIIS COMMON FICKEBEL X CHAPTER XVII. THE COMMON PICKEREL. ^sox MeticulatxLS. — ^These fish, which are soraetimea called by the learned, and none others, Pike, have on their sides a network of dark lines upon a yellowish ground, and are named by naturalists from this peculiar- ity. The lines are sometimes longitudinal, and but little reticulated. The fin-rays are — Dorsal 18 ; Pectoral 16 ; Ventral 10 ; Anal 14 ; Caudal 19^. Or, according to Agassiz — , ; vi;^,>, . D. 20 ; P. 16 ; V. 10 ; A. 20 ; C. 18. *^ : ......^ Tliis fish rarely exceeds ten pounds in weight, although he has been said to attain fifteen ; but in these instances lias probably been confounded with the ^Northern Pick- erel. He abounds all through the northern States, and is emphatically the Pickerel, when the word is used without other qualification. The darker, more sluggish and weedy the water, the more he likes it ; old roots, decayed trees and a muddy bottom are his delight, and by his ferocity not a few ponds have been depopulated of superior fish. Among a certain class of fishermen he is a favorite, though utterly worthless for the table or as sport, and the little enterprise our farmers have shown has been in introducing this despicable fish into good waters, where, in consequence of his rapid increase and THE COMMON PICKEREL. 183 voracious habits, he has soon exterminated all other varie- ties. Even excellent trout ponds have been treated in this way. The largest of these fish within my range of informa- tion, are taken in Long Pond, New Jersey, a large pond, originally a natural lake, and rendered more extensive by damming. The head-waters are filled with dead trees, amid the roots of which pickerel hide and thrive. There they wre said to attain ten pounds, and often exceed five. Generally, however, five is the limit, and many more are taken that weigh not over three. These fish are not found in the waters of Canada, and are usually captured with live or dead bait, or a piece of pork, although in favorable water they would undoubtedly take the spoon, like their congeners of the north. Their habits are similar to those of the northern pickerel and mascallonge. ... 5 ',t»#'-f'* -*"•••"'-- 'W- 184 .. FEDERATION PIKE. ,• I > CHAPTER XVIII. ' FEDEBATION FIKB. JEsox Tredecem Radiatvs. — ^This fish, simply so called because it has no name among fishermen and sportsmen, is almost unknown to naturalists. Dr. De Kay doubts itg existence, and it is described alone by Dr. Mitchill. I take, therefore, much pleasure in adding my testimony, so far as it goes, to its existence, although after all it may be merely a northern or common pickerel so altered by a change of food and water as not to be recognizable. There were a large number taken in the Little Herring Pond, on Cape Cod near Agawam, and the secret of their existence being kept for years, we had excellent sport before the natives found it out, and with their spears and guns, fishing through the ice and killing them on the spawning-beds put a termination to their existence. A few may remain, and thus determine the question. We caught large numbers, taking them of ten pounds' weight, and readily killing in a few hours a hundred and twenty-five pounds. The fish were peculiarly beautiful in appearance, so much so that I made a rough outline which is now before me, and marked in the colors for the purpose of painting the picture of one. I afterward found the undertaking difticult, on account of the dissi- milarities of the common pickerel, which I purchased in FEDEUATIOJi PIKE. 185 inni'ktt and endeavored to use as a guide. Tlio water of this pond was clear as crystal, and coinnnniicatud with the ocean ; it was alive with herring, perch and other small fish, as thick as the gold leaf in a bottle of Eau de vie de Dantsicy and may have had a great effect upon the coloring and shape of the fish. At the time I was struck with their appearance, and examined all the works on icthyology at my commaiid, but could find no satis- factory description. The head was that of the pickerel fjimily ; of the teeth and fin-rays I remember nothing accurately ; the back was dark brownish green, grow'ing greener on the sides, where it was interspersed with numerous lilac spots or scales, and shading off, as it descended on the sides, into light green with yellow scales ; then into yellow with brilliant silvery scalet, terminated on the belly in the purest white. The dorsal fin and tail were dark green, the anal burnt sienna, the ventral yellow, with, I believe, the firsfr ray red, and the pectoral yellow and reddish. The back of the head was dark green, the gill-covers were partially covered with scales, the iris was yellow shot with pearl ; between the eye and the nostril there was a spot of lighter green ; the snout and tip of the under jaw were dark green ; adjoining on the under jaw was a warm lilac color, becoming purplish as it p.dvanced toward the gill-cover. The lower part of the fore gill- cover was of a pearly tint, deepening into purple as it ascended ; the gill-rays were a beautiful warm light mother of pearl, and behind them was a yellow tint. These colors were all exquisitely brilliant, and bid defi- ance to my palette. The sides were variegated with LP] IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) # ^^^ 1.0 I.I te^ lM |2.5 ■ 50 ■^™ HHB ■^ ISi£ 12.2 ii 1^ 1^ 1.25 |||./ 1.6 ^ 6" — ► ^ 7] "^ ^^>' <^'^^'^' •V <% , Photographic Sciences Corporation 33 WIST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, N.Y. MS80 (716) 872-4503 *- '<si^4i „v <E K, r 5*s mmmm *• 186 FEDERATION PIKE. I ! irregular broken horizontal black lines, extending nearly to the tail, which was forked. Toward the belly these lines disappeared ; and the scales of the whole body were small and numerous. The depth was unusually large in proportion to the length, made greater probably by my drawing the outline round the fish as he lay on his side. I took three outlines ; but the best speci- men weighed six pounds and a half, and was twenty-four and a half inches long to the centre of the tail, and twenty-three to the root, by five and a half deep, the head having a length of seven and a half inches. These fish were not only remarkably beautiful, but were excellent on the table, and diflfered utterly in both particulars from all other pickerel. Tliey were taken in Summer among the water lilies, with the belly of a yel- low perch or a piece of themselves, and surrounded as they were by the most delicious food, visible to our eyes in unlimited quantities, were naturally dainty. The above desciiption accords wonderfully w4th that of Dr. Mitchill, and there can be no doubt that the fish are identical, although I did not count the fin-rays, which Dr. Mitchill gives at — Br. 13 ; D. 13 ; P. 13 ; V. 9 ; A. 13 ; C. 21. THE ^ONG ISLAND FICKEREL 187 ■=h.P i.*,«.-' . ,•=; .Vi,,v, 4, 1, . , P-'^' V'/ CHAPTER XIX. ■^f' THE LO^G ISLAHD flCKERSU Esox Fasciatus. — ^Tliis fish has no name whatever in common parlance, and naturalists have dubbed him Va- ried Pickerel, Mackerel Pickerel, and other terms which are unknown except to their authors. He abounds on Long Island, although he is found elsewhere throughout the State, and probably the most appropriate name would be Banded Pickerel, as his scientific appellation justly suggests. Varied pickerel is appropriate to nothing, and mackerel pike to the scornheT esox^ another fish altoge- ther. This fish is distinguishable by having dark verti- cal bands upon his sides, and being altogether of a darker hue on the back than any other pickerel, while the pec- toral, ventral and anal fins are lighter colored and some- times reddish. A dark band passes from the eye to the angle of the jaw, and the fin-rays are — D. 22 ; P, 16 ; V. 10 ; A. 18 ; C. 18. Or, according to Dr. De Kay— D. 15 ; P. 16 ; V. 9 ; A. 14; C. 19f. This fish never exceeds one pound in weight, and one foot in length ; and although endowed with all the fero- city of his family, does not apparently injure the trout ponds of Long Island, where he has a local habitation and a name. Probably he cannot destroy the larger fish, ipfupii 188 THE LONG ISLAND PICKEREL. and- the young fry do not live wli^re ho resorts. It is not from want of will but of power tliat he is harmless, for he will take a small fly with the same ravenous eager- ness that the mascallonge exhibits in seizing the deadly spoon. He is fat and free from bones, and not a bad pan flsh, and in these particulars, as well as in habits and appearance, he sets his big brothers a good example. ,>V ;. ■■j^i^ *■• •*. ' •'0: ■' THE THOUSAND ISLES. 189 .<%■■'•■- CHAPTER XX. THE THOUSAND ISLES. ;,» At the upper edge of the State of New York, where civilization terminates and Canada begins, a mighty river, the outlet of a hundred lakes and thousand streams, flows amid innumerable islands in a -fierce crrrent toward the sea. It bears upon its broad bosom in im- mense rafts the wealth of the forests of the Northwest. Enormous quantities of timber, collected from all its tribuoaries, even from tlie region around Lake Superior, are brought in large vessels, mostly three-masted schoon- ere, to the head-waters of this stream, and there, at Capo Vincent or its neighborhood, are bound together into rafts,, preparatory to descending the rapids. These rafts cover acres in extent, and sometimes have as many as fifty shanties built upon them to accommodate one hun- dred men for months, or until they shall reach Quebec or Montreal. Launched upon their journey, they are car- ried along by the current, and by sails when the wind is favorable, and even without the latter, moving as they do by the force of gravity faster than the stream, can be steered to some extent. Bough oars are fastened on the fore ar>d after part, by a vigorous use of which the raft can be kept from danger and retained in the middle of the stream. They press on with resistless force, some- ♦' 100 THE THOUSAND IBLBB. I \ ■ : times passing entirely over projecting rocks or small islands, and in one instance carrying off a lighthouse that had been located near their path. One end often runs far on shore, when the other swings round and drags it off; vessels of all kinds keep clear of them, if possible. They are bound together with withes made by twisting gaplings, and so strongly that they rarely give way when rushing over rocks or descending rapids that are almost cataracts. Sometimes they are composed of logs, some- times of rough staves. Tlie latter are bound together in cribs, and instead of three d/ams making one crib, as is common in New York, three mbs make a dram ; and the wood measure of the Korth may be said to be 1000 Staves make one Crib ; 8 Cribs make one Dram ; 20 Drams make one Bafk. And no one has any scruples whatever, iot the country being poverty itself, the people are neither elevated nor moral, and eke out a scanty subsistence by rafting and fishing. The people use for fishing, boats on the plan of a small whaleboat, built of tliin cedar, and the surprise of my companions upon their first visit to this desolate region, was by no means 5;mall on diaeovoring that they were expected to fish with three lines at once, holding one in Itheir hand and having a rod projecting from each side . of the boat in addition. . "We had arrived the evening before at Clayton, and, like true knights, finding there was to be a ball given by the natives, had attended it, and danced till the wee hours, with pretty little bright- eyed girls, strange dances called by Indian names, among TUB THODSAXD ISLES. 191 r small hthoxise id often \d drags possible, twisting ray when re almost gs, Bome- gethet in jrib, as is ; and the wliich the most remarkable was Moneymust. It was in the latter part of July, and the day after the ball being, bright and beautiful, with a southwesterly breeze, we each selected our boatman — for only one fisherman can go in each boat — and started for a day's sport among the mas- callonge and pickerel. We separated at once, some going up-stream, others across by Powder-horn and Shot-bag Islands, while I kept down along shore and ran into the bay behind the old mill. I had on the line of my right-hand rod. a Buel's patent spoon, tin on the outside and red on the inside, bright- ened, by being rubbed with pumice stone, till it shone like burnished silver, and, with red ibis feathers wound round the treble hook, it glanced and sparkled through the water, visible at a great distance. On the left-l^and rod the spoon was copper on the inside, and the hook» were wound with scarlet flannel, while that in my hand line had copper on the outside, brightly polished, but neither feathers nor flannel round the hooks. We passed down from the outer point of the island toward the lower part of the bay without success, but when return- ing inside, my right-hand rod suddenly bent, and the line slowly unwound from the reel, over which I had taken a couple of turns to prevent its rendering too rapidly ; dropping the hand-line, which was made fast to the seat, I seized the rod, and turning it round and reach- ing my line, commenced to draw it in as lightly and delicately, but steadily as possible, just holding it between the tips of my fingers. The fish was large, and when he was about half-way in, having come thus far with no o^her ob^ect'ons than a few violent flounces, he 192 Tins THOUSAND ISLEa mado a fierce rush; instantly the line slipped with a steady but slight strain through my finers, and he dashed off for some distance, but soon tired, he allowed me to pu?J him up to the side of the boat ; once there, grasping the wire above the hook, I lifted him quickly over the side and threw him on the bottom, where he flounced about vigorously and with energy enough, if exhibited sooner, to have broken almost any line. Taking the hook carefully by the shank, 1 twisted it out of his mouth, and weighing him with the scales that were always in my pocket, found he weighed ten pounds. Turning at the head of the little cove, we retraced our path and struck another ^sh, and so over and over again, some of them making violent but unavailing efforts to escape, others slapping off just as they were being lifted into the boat, others again coming in with their heads out of water like a yawl towed behind a steamboat. Sometimes it was the right-hand rod that bent, some- times the left, then the hand-line felt the strain — often two and sometimes all three at once ; it kept me busy, to say the least of it. The reels were of little use, as the boatman had to keep rowing to prevent the lines sinking to the bottom and catchin^' in the weeds, which, in spite of all precautions they sometimes succeeded in doing, and the strain was consequently too great for them. The bottom of the boat was filled with the long-bodied, wolfish and ravenous devils, that snapped their jaws, struggled about, their eyes gleaming with impotent fury and merciless cruelty, as ugly looking a set as the sun ever shone upon ; but as they were brought in, one after another, my oarsman was d Hghted. THE THOUSAND IBJJSS. 193 ath a iaslied me to asping er tbo ounced Ijibited ng the of bis it were ids. retraced ind over ig efforts re being itb tbeir iamboat. Lt, Bome- n — often le busy, ie, as the [s sinking I, in spite in doing, lor tbem. |g-bodied, eir jaws, itent fury Is tbe sun one after We remained' on the same opot, rowing round antil satisfied we should get no more, when we headed oyer toward the Canadian shore, mto the far-famed region of Eel Bay. The latter takes its name from a fly that is found in the fore part- of July in immense numbers on the waters of this region. It appears to one who lias small claims as an entomologist to be the May-fly or famous Green and Grey Drake of England. Some that I pressed and brought to the city were recognized at once by the English fly-makers, who were delighted to see an old friend, and made a number of them for me after the pattern, saying that there was but a shade of color between them and what tliey had so often pre- pared as the May-fly at home. These flies appear in myriads; when the wind is northerly, the waves will cover the dock at Cape Vincent with them several inches thick. Their body is long and so heavy that in the early morning, when their wings are damp with the dew, they cannot rise to fly and are readily picked up by their wiiigs, which project invitingly above their backs. Eel Bay is named from the immense quantities of these ilies that appear there ; they constitute the principal food of the fish from which they derive their name, as well as of the Cisco, black and rock bass, chubs, and probably many others. They rise with difficulty from the water, and fly heavily and slowly. Our course carried us across the rapid current of the St. Lawrence, where my boatman was glad to have me haul in my lines, that dragged heavily, as there was no chance of taking fish. We were soon in the bay, an extensive reach formed by a bend in the St. Lawrence, • • 104 THE TnOUSAND ISLSES. lying upon one aide, out of the force of the current, aridT filled with innumerable islands. It probably holds within itself a thousand isles. They are of all kinds, shape, form and appearance, some half a mile in extent, consti- tuting a cultivated farm, others a bare rock scarcely pro> jecting above the surface, some covered with a ,dense foliage, others furnishing a single tree, and many bare of tree, bush or grass. There is immense variety of appearance, but all are inconceivably picturesque. None are very high, but at times the rocks run straight up like a wall of stone, while others are long, low and flat. They are clustered together, often affording barely room for the boat to pass, and offer to the eye every variety of shape and foliage. Amid them we now wan dered, admiring their bewitching beauty as they lay basking in the broad sunlight upon the calm bosom of the river. Seldom are they inhabited, and most of the primeval forest trees, having been cut, they have grown up with a dense underwood, occasionally relieved by some tall monarch of the forest that h&s survived the fury of man. Keeping close along, under the overhanging tree or rock, or passing into the open water with ever-changing scenery, we drew from the "vasty deep," where the long pickerel weed could be seen reaching up toward the surface, one after another of those savage monsters, the Great Northern Pickerel. Without catching any- thing of wonderful size, we had taken an unuc jal num- ber, when the calls of hunger warned us that the hours were fleeting faster than we thought. Landing at the point of aa island where there was t THE THOUSAND ISLSa 195 a within , Biiape, t^ consti- sely pro- a ^dense any ^^^^ siriety of e. 1^^»® raigiit up ^ and flat, ng barely eye every , now wan B they lay boBom of lOst of the Lave grown relieved by irvived the beautiful natural grove, we set to work to build a iiie and prepare our fish for dinner. The pleasantest arrange- ment connected with this fishing is that each boat is provided with a basket of good cold fare, a frying-pan and the necessary means of cooking ; and in the middle of the day it is customary for several to meet at an appointed island, and for the fishermen to have a jolly dinner. Although we were first to arrive, our com panions were not long behind us, and the best fish, especially the black bass, were selected, cleaned, split open, and fried in the grease tried out of a few pieces of salt pork. Our provisions were combined and made quite a handsome picnic set-out, rendered more, accept- able to our sharpened appetite by a few glasses of iced champagne. Of course we had our stories to tell : how skillfully we had landed this fish, or how unfortunately we had lost that; and one man, who had struck and almost landed a mascallonge, was agitated with mingled happiness and despondency. The days were long, our boatmen had had a hard tug of it, the shade was grateful, the champagne refreshing, our cigars excellent, and con- sequently no one was hurried. The wind, however, kept increasing, and after a couple of hours, pleasantly passed, we once more embarked and bid each other farewell till night. My boatman struck well in toward the Canadian shore ; but although we crossed places where he had had won- derful success on many a previous occasion, and of which there were extraordinary stories of mascallonge, our luck had deserted us. However, perseverance was re- warded ; suddenly my hand-line was taughtened as 1^ THE THOUSAND ISLES. though it had Btruck a log ; for a moment it was still, then I felt the motion of the fish. The boatman instantly dropped his oars and reeled in as quickly as possible the other lines— just in time ; for the fish, feeling he was caught, made one rush directly toward us. I drew in the line hand over hand, to have something to give out wlien he should make away again, but not nearly so fast as he moved. He passed close to us ; we could see the broad bacic, the long nose, the fierce eye, the mighty length of the mascallongo. " Turn the boat broadside toward him," I whispered as he passed. Away he went, the slack of the line hissed through the water as his increasing distance took it up, and partially deadened his. way as he reached the end of it and camo against the light though steady strain with which I held it. Giving to him, at first readily then more sparingly, I again turned him ; this time he did not approach so near, but swung round well in-shore. Then, with a sud- den rush, he came straight on, and flashed directly beneath the bottom of the boat. If the line once touched the rough surface, or caught in a splinter of the wood, wo knew it would part like pack-thread. The oarsman tried to swing her round ; there was no time ; hastily gathering a few coils, I threw them into the water at the stem, and passing the line over my head, anxiously watched them sink. Suddenly they were taken up, the line in my hand taughtened and lifted out of water ; it had not caught, and that danger was past. The strug- gle lasted long ; again and again he darted away ; once he nearly exhausted my line, and compelled me to use THE THOUSAND ISLE& 197 coneiderable force, but generally I held the least possi- ble strain on him. Finally, he made one grand rush, was foiled^ allowed himself to be drawn alongside, and was neatly gaffed by the boatman. He was an immense fish, a triton even among pickerel of ten pounds. Beauty he certainly did not possess, but grandeur and ferocity marked every lineament. His huge head, immense jaws, and terrible teeth, his long, narrow body, large fins, and broad tail, and above all, his fierce, gleaming, savage eye, marked him as the undis- puted master of the fresh waters. His enormous size and prodigious strength, the latter exemplified by his nearly Bpnnging over the gunwale, indicated that he had no match even in our cxteuBive lakes, while his merciless ferocity, that would spare neither large nor small, friend nor foe, was but too apparent. His weight, as afterward ascertained, was thirty-five pounds, and his length was excessive proportionally to other fish. Although he fought well, he had not exhibited in the water the vigor he did out of k. Now that his fute was sealed, he lashed about, struggled and flounced as though his capture had just commenced, and scarcely showed an intimation of approaching death or surrender. It appears to be a peculiarity of the pickerel family that they exhibit their courage and strength too late, waiting till they are man- acled before they fairly rouse themselves to the emer- gency. Their efforts consequently afford little pleasure to the sportsman or profit to themselves. Having captured the master spirit of the stream, we did not wish any of his smaller brethren, and while he was dying we wound up the hand line and removed the 193 THE THOUSAND ISLES. Bpinning tackle from the others. I then took out a twelve-foot salmon leader, or casting-line, as our friends across the water express it, and fastened on it, at equal distances, five large flies, the upper dropper and tail-flics being dressed with white and ibis feathers mixed on a large sized salmon hook, while the intermediate ones were small, dark colored salmon flies. This leader, thus equipped, being fastened to one line, and a similai* one, except that a small, gay spoon replaced the tail-fly, to the other, they were trolled thirty or forty yards astern, so that they sank well as we moved slowly along. Then, leaving the quiet bays, with their sluggish current and weedy bottom , we struck out boldly into the rapid water and sought the rocky shoals where black bass love to hide and wait. The wind had increased till there was quite a sea, and it was difficult to manage the boat ; but that was soon forgotten in the excitement. The fish were numerous and in excellent disposition ; every shoal we crossed furnished us with several ; we often took two or thsee at a time, and occasionally had both lines engaged at once. They were brave, vigorous and determined ; madly they darted forward on feeling the hook, and threw themselves high out of water to shake it from their mouths ; finding that vain, they made rush after rush to escape, again and again they leaped in the air, resolute and courageous to the last ; not till they were in the net would they sni^ render. "^ Strange it was to note the different shades of their colors. Their deep sides, for they are an awkward-looking fieh, and their shape gives little indication of their , I THE THOUSAND ISLES. 199 strength, were, in some, of that dark green, ahnost black, from which their name is derived; in others it was a light green, and again in others pale yellow. Whence these variations are derived, unless it be from the shade of the ground' they live on, to which all fish are said to assimilate, is not known ; but it has often led to their being divided into distinct classes, or mistaken for other species. Their peculiarity of springing out of water is remarkable. Salmon, and blue-fish do so frequently, trout rarely, and other fish seldom or never ; but a black bass of any sixe will invariably make one or more des- perate leaps. It is a glorious sight to see his full length above the watier, and a nervous moment till the line that has been slacked is again taughtened by his strain. Such leaps are his most eifective means of escape, by enabling him to shake the hook from his mouth or strike the line with his tail ; and though not so persevering as the trout, generally, at the sight of tin net, he makes a final, dan- gerous rush. We coasted along by island after island, crossing near one named after "Old Bill Johnston," memorable for having taken an active part in the Canadian rebellion, and long forced to hide from his English pursuers. Johnston's Island, as it is called, was his favorite resort, where he was succored and warned of danger by his beautiful daughter, universally known as the Queen of the Isles. What a theme for the poet or the novelist: the father safe neither on the English shore, where ho had waged unjustifiable war, nor among the Americans, who would have been compelled to surrender him, lurk- ing among tLose beautiful isles, then wilder and more 200 THE THOUSAND ULB&, ;^ densely wooded than now, tnisting for his support to hia rod and line — ^for he rarely dared to use his rifle— and to the scanty supplies brought by his daughter ; the latter residing on shore watching for any expedition that might be Htf.ed out against him, and at the first intima- tion darting off in her light canoe in spite of rain or storm, in the daylight or impenetrable darkness, and arriving at her retreat, perhaps just in time to warn him of his danger and enable him to escape. Imagine the woman's ready wit, ever at work, ever on the watch for him ; imagine the father's joy on seeing her amid his trying and wearisome solitude, and her anxiety till he is once more out of danger. The thought that such things had really happened so near to where we then were, added to our excitement, and was only dissipated on passing Whisky Island, which is in dangerous prox- imity to the former. Our boat was headed down-stream and driven betore the strong wind ; we moved rapidly with varying suc- cess till we arrived at one little shoal, the name of whicli I have forgotten, or it never existed, and where we found fish innumerable. Frequently every hook on both lines was engaged ; often I landed three, sometimes four, and once or twice five fish at a time. The sport was wonderfully exciting ; first one rod bent, then the other ; and then, while I was busy foiling the struggles of fish BO numerous that they made the water foam, I would see with a feeling of despair the other rod bend and the line slowly render round the reel. It was impossible to' move faster, useless to hurry ; but, as quickly as I could and dared,- the fish were brought to net. This shoal wap THE THOUSAND ISLES. 201 to Ha gmd to latter i tliat iatinia- rain or J8, and yoe the fctcli for 7 till be lat Bucli ^e then ifisipated )U8 pro^- expoged to the full fury of the wind, and the water dashed in over the bow or broke against the side, while the oarsman had all he could manage to row against the blast. Bound and round this spot we moved, ever with the same result; the lines were not half out before they would be seized, it was almost impossible to keep the two rods in play. This lasted till we were both utterly worn out with the excitement and the exertion, and were com- pelled to give up from sheer exhaustion. My fingers had many a bloody mark left by the reel-handle, that a sudden rush had jerked from my grasp, and. being compelled in the uncomfortable seat to turn my body round to reel up, my back was almost broken. The man had rowed as long as he could, but was forced to run down between the Powder-horn and Shot-bag Islands and rest awhile before breasting the storm homeward. We had had gr«at luck, taking in the last hour and a half seventy-three bass. It was a glorious sight when we arrived at home to see our fish laid out side by side, the mascallonge at their head, and tapering regularly down to a half-pound black bass. The latter do not average any great size, rarely exceeding three pounds and never known to be taken over six ; but a day upon the St. Lawrence among those beautiful Thousand Isles, either in pureuit of the mighty mascallonge tlie furicus pickerel, or, best of all, the spirited black bass, will never be regretted by the poet or the sports man, fr' -':.'■■"' -iX-^''' 202 STRIPED BASa CHAPTER XXI. STRIPED BASS. Lahrax Lineatua-^Bockfish of Pennayloama and thi South— Perca Lahrax (Smith) — Soiena Lineata (Black.) This fish, which has a large number of scientific names and several popular ones, belong to the Perch family, has two spines on the after part of the gill-cover, and the margin of the fore gill-cover rough like the edge of a saw. Its color is bluish on the back, light on the sides, and white on the belly. • The sides are marked by seven to nine longitudinal dark lines, from which its name is derived, the upper of which reach the tail, but the lower fade out above the anal fin. These lines sometimes are broken or consist of contiguous dots. The ventral fins are below and somewhat behind the pectorals, and have the first rays spinous. The fore part of the dorsal has nine spiny rays, and at the interval between that and the after part there is another small hard ray, while the after part is composed of twelve soft rays. The pectorals have sixteen soft rays, the ventrals one hard and five soft, the anal three hard and eleven soft, and the tail seventeen soft rays. Whether the name Bass means Perch or not, I cannot say, although there is no such tradition among my Dutch ancestry, and I am unable to«find the word in STRIPED BASS. 203 a/nd thi (Black.) ic names 1 family, ', and the jdge of a the sides, by seven name is the lower stimes are jntral fins and have lorsal has [at and the le the after pectorals I and five [d the tail [t, I cannot imong niy le word in their Dutch dictionaries. There could, however, be nc more creditable derivation, and as many authorities assert the fact, it is as well to let it pass. The fish are found along the coast from Maine to Florida, although they appear never to have visited Europe, and are the gamesi salt water fish of our continent. In their season, wiiich is at intervals from early Spring to late in Fall, they are taken on the bars and in every creek of our ex« tensive coast. The net destroys'the greater number, but they bite freely and fight bravely for their lives. Great skill and experience are requisite for their successful capture when they are shy and scarce, but when abun- dant or hungry, although always a dainty fish, they bite rapidly and boldly. Like the squid of the deep seas, these niay be said to be the largest and smallest of fish ; they are taken from an ounce to a hundred pounds' weight. Tlie Striped Bass becomes an object of the angler's attention in April, when he runs up the rivers to spawn. He ascends into cool fresh water, until arrested by a natural, or, too frequently, an artificial barrier. He is taken under the Cohoes Falls in the Mohawk, and at Al- bany and Troy in the Hudson, and reaches the very head- waters of the Delaware, where he is known as Rock- fish. Many, and those the largest, do not appear to leave the salt water, and are found in the small bays and inlets. la the fall, when the cold weather sets in, they retire to the salt water coves and lagoons, where they lie imbedded in the mud or hiding near the bottom, secure aguinst danger, or discomfort from cold or storms. Ad- vantage is taken of this peculiarity by the market fish* 204 STRIFED BASS. ermen, and there is a pond on Long Island, near Sag Harbor, and others near Point Judith, that are a source of great profit to their owners. The mill-pond at Stam- ford having carried away the gates one Winter, and run out nearly dry, striped bass of immense size were picked up by cart-loads from the muddy bottom. These fish can be confined to fresh water without being permitted to vitit ^he sea, and they will not onlj live and breed, but are said to be much improved by the change. In September they appear o^ the coant in shoals, and are taken both inside and outside of the bars, and in the bays and inlets where they resort for food. As they are much sought after and highly appreciated, and as I have added largely to my ovvn knowledge by drawing extensively upon the experience of my friends, the following description of the numerous modes of tak- ing them will be found rather minute. When they first appear in April the shad are running, and hence, in the rivers that the latter frequent, shad roe is the best though most troublesome of all baits. In places where shad are not to be found, the bass are sus» picious of such bait. As it is most difiicult to fasten on the hook, it must be cut with the skin that envelops it, and tied on with tow, flax,' or floss silk. Stonehenge, after eloquently defending the use of the salmon roe as a bait, which is ordinarily considered a kind of poaching, gives for its preparation the following directions, that apply equally well to the shad roe : Boil the roe without its envelope for twenty minutes ; bruise it in a mortar to a uniform consistency ; add to each pound an ounce of common salt and a quarter of an ounce of saltpeter ; STRIPED BASa 305 beat them together and store it an earthen jar covered with a bladder. Frank Forrester recommends that the roe be well washed and thoroughly dried in the air, salted with two ounces of rock salt and 'a quarter of an ounce of saltpeter to a pound of spawn, dried gently and potted down, covered with melted lard or suet in earthen jars. This, either fresh or potted, is a most effective bait for striped bass, but I confess for trout my experi- ence is to the contrary. In streams that the shad do not frequent, striped bass are taken early in the season with' slirimp threaded on longitudinally, by passing the point of the hook under the back plates ; as the season advances, and ciabs shed their coats, with the shedder, or better, soft crabs; and in the Fall with shrimp, the bass, or barred killey, and the spearing. In fishing with shrimp — and it is a good bait all the season through, and must be tried when others fail — use a float fastened about three feet above a swivel sinker, to the lower swivel of which are to be attached two distinct gut leaders, one of three feet, the other of two. Single gut, if large, round, and true, is decidedly preferable to double, and the hook should never be a coarse, clumsy Limeriok, which has such an undeserved reputation, but a delicate Carlisle, ■with a broad, round bend. If very large fish are ex- pected — ^and they rarely are — use No. ; but gener- ally No. 8 is large enough. With crab the hook must be larger. I prefer a,lway8 to have the point of the hook covered,. and recommend that the shrimp should be bunched on till they hide the hook entirely, and form a round, attractive bait, composed of so many shrimp as no bass ever before saw together. piw«llPiiifwwwwwpp|Pi»!npiP^Pifpwpp(ni»BP!^^ •fW 206 STAIPED BASS. In JiinC) and throughout the Summer, the crab is a better bait ordinarily than the shrimp. I prefer the soft crab, because it does not dull the point of the hook, as will sometimes happen with a shedder that is not quite ripe ; it is easily cut up into proper baits, whereas the shedder'has to be skinned, or, more properly, shelled — a long and nasty operation ; it is always in good order whereas others, unless carefully selected, and kept just the right time, will tear to pieces in the course of preparation ; and finally, the skin of the soil crab, especially as it verges toward the buckram, enables the hook to retain its hold. Judging from human nature, I fancy the fish must prefer a nice, soft, plump bait, to one that is jagged and half full of pieces of shell. Most writers say, fish with crab on the bottom, be- cause there it is naturally found ; I say, fish with it near the top, because ho sensible fish can imagine that a quar- ter of a crab long since dead and dismembered has any control over its own motions. In fact there is no unbend- ing rule for fishing ; the only way is to try all plans, and if the fish will not notice your crab suspended in mid-water, take off your float and swivel sinker, put on a running sinker, as it is called, -made like a piece of lead pipe with a small hole in the centre, tie a knot in the line to prevent its going down on the hook ; use a single bait of a good-sized piece of crab and cast well out from you, and the first eel that comes along will astonish, not to say disgust you. The line being free, though the lead lies on the bottom, you can feel the first touch of a fish, and strike at once ; whereas if tlie sinker were the old-fashioned deep sea lead he would have to drag its weight some distance before the fisher- STRIPED DASS. 207 man would bo aware of his proceedings. A man, by fishing on the bottom, although justified by a philosophy which establishes the fact that bass ought to look for crabs there, and not dangling about in mid-wat \*, will surely catch three eels to one bass. The truth is, crabs are not found on the bottom in such places, generally strong foaming currents, whicli they never frequent un- less carried away by the force of the water, and soft crabs are by their natural enemies, and many other causes, often torn into pieces and borne about by the tide. The bait should be kept in continual motion : this is the first law of all bait fishing. It is done by twitching the rod, and induces the fish to seize the prey, which they imagine is about to escape. I have seen them time and again dart at a bait when in motion, that they had smelt round contemptuously when still. Crab is uni- versally regarded as the preeminent bass bait in Summer, although its reputation is disputed by that wondeiful production of the sea, the squid. This horrible monster, of which sailors tell such astounding stories, has illuminated the tales of olden time, and been a pet forecastle yam with ancient and modern mariners. There are accounts of ships seized by its arms, that reached to the mast- heads, and sunk or only saved' by prayers to the Virgin Mary and the vigorous use of axes on its many muscular and boneless limbs ; of grateful mariners presenting pic- tures of the dreadful encounter to the shrine of Onr Lady ; of huge pieces of the arms of this fish, indicatinj^ that they must have been sixty or more feet long, found in the maw of the whale, whose food they are ; and hor 203 STRIPED BASS. rible Btories whispered with bated breath, of men in bathing drawn down by even tiie emaller of the monsters. Tliongh there must be soraethfng in it, I doubt if this is all true, notwithstanding the squid is ugly enough for any- thing. With us the squid or cuttle-fish is liarinlcsB except to the sight, and in his native element is glad to hide him- self in the obscurity of a dark liquid that he has the power of emitting, when pursued. Tlie on\y bone in his body is in the middle of his stomach, and what it is put there for unless to give him an accurate idea of indigestion,* r.o one knows. For the present it is enough to say he is good bait, although not handsome, and may be used cither in trolling or still iishing. Another excellent bait early in the Fall, although no- where mentioned in the books, and, I believe, my own discovery, is the scollop. My attention was first called to it by some men opening them for the table and throwing the many-eyed skins into the water. The bass collected at once and rushed eagerly to the very dock, almost springing out of water to seize the coveted mor&el. Upon this hint I acted, and by great care, for tho scol- lop is extremely tender, and by passing the hook several times through the skin, I succeeded in keeping the bait on while I cast very gently. My success was astonish- ing, and then and afterward I took the largest fish under the most unfavorable circumstances with it, when they would not touch the most tempting crab. The lieurt of the scollop is pearly white, and is attractive and so good that no wonder the bass should be crazy for it. It is difficult to manage and easily washed off the hook, but if any fisherman shall see bass, as I have often, lying 'Tjr^^'* STRirCD MiASS. 209 in a deep pool, occasionally leaping out or slnggiBlily showing their back fins on the surface and refusing all allurements, let him try scollops, and he will think of mo in his dying hour. As the days grow colder and the crab rcassumes Lis impenetrable coat and dangerous pincers, shrimp again come into play, and on many occasions the belly of tho white soft clam will attract the bass even earlier in the season. But in August I have had excellent sport cast- ing, if I may use the word, for him with the spearing. Early in Summer a delicate little fish an inch or two long, pearly white and semi-transparent, witli a black eye and a white band along tlie lateral line, makes its appearance on the shores of Long Island Sound and else- where, and has come to be called the spearing. It is a beautiful fish, and properly dressed might rival in delicacy the far-famed English w^hite-bait ; but it is never brought to market till later in the season, when it has grown several inches long and is comparatively tasteless. Being too small in the early summer to take a hook, they are diflScult to catch ; but an excellent net, both for them and killey-fish, can be made of mosquito netting stretched double between two hoop-poles, with a stout cord run along the top and bottom to receive the leads and floats respectively. The netting being of extra width, can be doubled together with the lead line laid in ^tlie bag, or, as sailors would say of a rope, in the bight, and the leads being small pipe, fastened at short intervals, will keep the net close to the bottom — an important par- ticular. It should be five to six yards long; and two men, taking each a handle, can sweep a considerable part tt 210 STRIPED BASS. of the shore, and often fill a pail with minnows or spoar ing at one haul. The killey-fish, bo called by our ancestors from being caught in the kills or creeks, and which, by the by, are at least of three kinds without counting sticklebacks, will rush about and try to creep under the net ; but spear- ing, which always go in shoals, when once in the net do not seem to be able to escape, and will stay there as long as it is kept in motion. No fisherman living near the water should be without this contrivance, as nothing is BO annoying as to be unable to get bait ; he will soon acquire considerable skill in its use, and if he is as boy- ish as a fisherman ought always, though grey-headed, to be, he will experience much excitement in the pursuit even of his bait. If spearing cannot be had, though that is rare, the barred killey, vulgarly called the bass killey, is the next in beauty and attractiveness ; it is the Fandvilu% foAciatus^ or striped killey-fish of De Kay, and if it cann6t be had, the ugly green killey-fish. Fun- dulus viridescens, may be used, but with doubtful suc- cess. ^o cast with spearing in the manner here suggested 8v jcessfully, a stout long salmon rod will be requisite. A small hook is run through the spearing's mouth and out at his side, for he is long since dead, and a cast is made into the foaming torrent of a mill-tail or rushing tide. The bait is vlrawn irregularly over the surface of the water, and again cast and played like the fly. The bass strike it as trout or salmon take the latter; and there is the same skill and uncertainty in the pursuit. I was once fishing in this manner for snapping mack* STRIPED BAS& 211 erel, the young of the blae-finh, Tenmodon saltator, with single gut half worn through, and the lightest tackle. I had been quite successful, much to the disgust of older men who were fishing in the usual manner with live killey and no luck, and finally made a cast right among a number of their floats. Suddenly, from the turbid depths, shot a huge bass, gleamed for a moment in the sunlight, and disappeared beneath the surface carrying my spearing in hid mouth. It was a splendid fish, and my skill was tried to the utmost ; many a run I was forced to give to, and only the great lengtli of line I had on the reel saved him ; after a good half hour's excellent sport I brought him to the net, and my companions were still more disgusted at their want of luck. I again made a few castf^ catching several snappers, when another bass, full as large as the first, struck me and was landed after an equally spirited contest. Tin's was early in Sep- tember, and before the fish were taken by trolling in that neighborhood. In June and October, bass of great size are captured off Point Judith with half a mossbunker, otherwise men- haden, hard-head or bony-fish, the Alosa menhaden^ thrown from the rocks by rod or hand into the surf. The bait is ordinarily tied on the hook, which is large, and thrown without float or sinker as far into the sea as its weight will enable the fisherman to cast, and then slowly reeled or drawn in. Similar fishing is pursued at New- port, and bass are frequently taken of over forty pounds. A favorite mode of catching these fish is by trolling from a boat either with rod and line or hand-line and with the natural squid, or the imitation made of pewter, iiil 212 STRIPED BAS3. I ' if ■■» tin or bone. In this mode verj large fish were once taken at Hell Gate, but the glory thereof has departed. Where squid cannot be obtained, the large spearing or barred killey will answer well. There is this redeeming quality about taking striped bass with the float and sinker, that the fishing generally being done in a rapid, and at times, boisterous current, the bait has to be kept in motion, and it is necessary to reel in and cast out every few minutes. As great skill in casting can oe obtained, and there is an immense advantage in throwing into the exact spot, it is truly a sportsmanlike mode of procedure. A good fisherman can cast thirty to forty yard?, or even more, into the size of a hat, without tangling the line or jerking the bait, while the tyro will generally fail reaching half the dis- tance, and will frequently leave his baits on the way. I can cast better and further from the left side, and have heard many old fishermen say the same, but you must be able to use the rod on either side. '^^^^^' v^^^^^ , As there are persons ro ignorant as not to know how to cast at all, and as I once found one stopping his reel with his first finger, I will say that to make a cast the line is reeled up till the float touches the tip, or in case no float is used, till the bait is within a foot of it, the right hand grasps the rod at the reel, which is turned up, and the thumb placed upon it to regulate the escape of the line ; the left hand is near the but ; the point of the rod is then carried back behind the fisherman, and witii a steady, springy notion is suddenly brought forward and the line delivered. A jerk, or the fouling of the line, which will surely happen if it is allowed to overrun, will a,. STRIPED BASS. 218 once irted. ig or briped erally irrent, lary to it skill imense truly a aerman the size le bait, the dis- way. I id have must he LOW how his reel cast the or in Dt of it, turned escape Lt of the ^nd witiv forward |the hne, •un, will tertainly tear off your baits, and perhaps your float and sinker ; the siiiker must strike the water in advance of the float, or the leader is apt to bitch round the upper point of the latter. The most scientific and truly sportsmanlike mode of taking striped bass must be admitted to be with the fly ; which, unfortunately, can only be done in the brackish or fresh water. Like salmon, they will not take the fly in tlie salt creeks and bays, and thus, though the sport is excellent, it is confined to few localities, and those diffi- cult of access. Fly-fishing may be done either with the ordinary salmon rod, or in a strong current with the common bass rod, by working your fly on the top of the Water and giving a considerable length of line. The best fly is that with the scarlet ibis and white feathers mixed, the same as used for black bass ; but bass may be taken with any large fly, especially those of gay color. Excellent sport is frequently had in this way from off some open bridge, where the falling tide, mixed with the fresh water, rushes furiously between the piers. It is generally conceded that the best time for bass fishing is at night, especially if the moon be bright. The "most favorable wind is a southwesterly one, strong enough to make a good ripple on the water, and the right time of tide from half-ebb to half-flood. In the shallower ir^ots the neap tides are preferable, as they do not drain the water so low as to alarm the fish. In bass fishing, whether for trolling or casting, the rod should be eight to ten feet long, stiff and light, but with a certain amount of elasticity. A rod made of a piece of bamboo, cut in two joints, will, until some awkward m mm ■m * 214 STRIPED BISS. friend steps on And breaks it, answer ia well as any other, and one that costs three dollars is in every particular as good as one worth forty. The light bamboo jointed rods of our ancestors are no more to be had ; the makers say it is impossible to get the cane of the proper taper, and rods of ash and hickory have come into fashion. The latter will answer every purpose, but as they are sure to warp, the guides should be double, so that the line can be shifted from one side to the other. - Patent standing guides are all the fashion with us, though the English use the old-fashioned rings made large. Of course we prefer our own invention. The funnel-top should be large, and for a valuable rod, or a particular gentleman, should be made of agate. They are infinitely superior to the old-fasliioned ring-top still used in England. Avoid having many guides; they create friction, and three or four will answer every purpose. If you are a gentleman and a man of fortune, of lavish hand and open heart, you should use what is called a grass or raw silk line, buying a new one every two weeks, by which time it will be rotted out. It does not kink or over-run, works beautifully, and will enable you to cast ten yards further than with any other; but it is not strong at best will rot immediately if not dried after the least exposure, and costs money. If you are a poor or a careless man, buy a new flax line every year, and throw it away in the Fall, after being disgusted with it all the season. If you are neither of these, buy a plaited silk line of one hundred yards ; be sure and get a new one, and take care of it. lines may be preserved from rotting by being dipped * :. -i^^ **^' ■;-«* STRtt^ED BASS. 215 other, lar as i rods jrs say sr, and . The jure to ne cau banding English arse we auld be itleman, superior , Avoid three or hi a mixture made of one pound of printer's yamish, half a pound of siccity, and one gill of spirits of tur- pentine, warmed up together, or in the ordinary drying- oil sold at the paint shops, and although they do not render quite so easy, I have all mine, trout and bass lines, so prepared. I cannot take the trouble to dry my lines after every exposure, and if once forgotten, without ' being so protected, they are ruined. A well-made silk line is strong enough to hang oneself by, if the angler should be disgusted with life by his ill luck, and coated in this manner they will last a long time. They do not get saturated or take up water in casting, and do not stick to the rod as they otherwise would. Lines for fly fishing, prepared in a similar manner, are sold in the fishing-tackle stores, although the makers are opposed U an improvement that will diminish their business. The line is dipped in the preparation when warm, and left in all night ; it is removed next morning after the mixture has been rewarmed, and is stretched in a garret or other place not exposed to the sun or rain, and the superfluous varnish wiped oflT, and after it is thoroughly dried, it is well rubbed. . This preparation cannot be used with linen or cotton lines, as it will rot them. In striking a bass you cannot be too quick, and when fishing with a float your line will sink in the water and enable you to trip the float and fix the hook at once. Tlie fish must then be kept well in hand; but never exhibit severity unless compelled by circumstances ; be rough, and the fish will be rough ; be gentle, and he will come to you like a friend. Keep him from the rocks and bottom if possible ; but give to his willful rushes till he •?*■- ■Pipllpiiiiiiiiii * 216 STRIPED BASS. is content to listen to reason. By this course you will avoid feeling often that sinking of tLe heart that follows when the strain suddenly ceases on your line, and you know he has escaped. That fine game fish of the southern States usually called bass or red-fish, belongs to another family, and is the Corvina ocellata^ or branded corvina. It is distin- guished by a peculiar black spot, like a drop of ink, near the tail. It furnishes noble sport and excellent eating, abounds in the neighborhood of the Chesapeake Bay, and is highly prized at southern tables. ■'1' 'f^ BLACK BASS. £17 CHAPTER XXII. BLACK BASS. Griatea NigHcana (Agassiz) — Cenirarchus Fasoiatua (De Kay). This fish has innumc rable scientific names, while it can scarcely be said to have any distinctive popular one. Bass, either alone or with some additional appellation, is applied by common usage to almost the entire perch fam- ily, one of the largest among the American fislies, while scientific men are at as great a loss for appropriate nomen- clature or accurate distinctions. There are probably several species classed under the same name as this fish, and itself differs greatly in color and appearance, accord- ing to its food, water or locality. There is no doubt that all fish, and more especially trout, change their hues according to the color of the water they inhabit, or even to the light or shade of their favorite haunts. It is sup- posed that they assimilate to the bottom where they are found, a provision of nature to protect them from their enemies of the air. Unquestionably the same species present a very different appearance in clear, limpid streams, and in muddy, sluggish brooks. Black Bass are Baid to possess of themselves the power to change their color at will, and have been known to do so repeatedly when confined in a vessel of water. They are found to 10 mm r^'mmmtm''^^ ■HPPVPP mm 2X8 BLACK BASS Iiave black, green and yellow sides, according to circum- stances, and often within a short distance of one another, though their backs are generally dusky black. The gill-cover has two flat points, the teeth are minute, while the back fin, though single, is partly divided into two. It contains ten hard 'and fourteen soft rays ; the pectoral has eighteen soft rays, the ventral six, the first one almost spinous, the anal three spines, the first very short, and twelve soft rays, and the tail sixteen soft rays. This fish has been confounded with the Lake Huron Black Bass, JIuro nigricans, which is now supposed to be a different variety, characterized by two longitudinal lines or stripes running the entire length of its body. The gill-rays are six and the fin-rays, as given by Dr. De Kay, are as follows, but I think liable to consider- able variation. D. 9.1.14 ; P. 18 ; Y. 6 ; A. 3.12 ; C. 16^. Black Bass, belonging as they do to the perch family, have many of the habits and can be captured in the same manner as their congeners. Bat, as they are infi- lutely superior in flavor, they are equally so in game and sporting qualities. They will take minnows, shiners, grasshoppers, frogs, worms, or almost anything else that can be called a bait, and like all fish, prefer the live to the dead. Tliey may be fished for with good stout tackle, gut leaders, a reel, and an ordinary bass rod, in the same manner as fish are generally captured by boys and blockheads. In June they aflect the grassy bottom in water fifteen to twenty feet deep, but as the season advances they resort to the rocky shoals and rapid cur- rents, where they are taken on and after the middle of ilri BLACK BASa 219 July by sportsmen with tho fly. They may be captured by casting the fly as for sahuon or trout, and this is by far the most sportsmanlike way, but the most destructiye and usually resorted to is trolling. For casting, a two- handed seventeen foot salmon rod is preferable, while for trolling, a short bass rod is the thing. By anchoring your boat to the windward of a shoal, or by walking out on some point of rocks, you can command a great extent of water witli your fly-rod, and have royal sport alone, whereas for trolling an oarsman is indispensable. The flies to be used are the ordinary small-sized salmon flies, not too gaudy, though the first dropper and tail fly may be larger and made of white and ibis feathers mixed. In casting you will use your ordinary cast, but in trolling you may attach five or six flies to a long sal- mon leader at equal distances, and will frequently take several fish at a time. My experience has convinced me that a number of flies attract fish, whether trout or bass, and the more you can conveniently use the greater will be your success. Black bass abound in the northern waters, where they are invariably trolled for with two rods, one on each side of the boat, in the same manner as in taking pick- erel, but two rods are a great additional trouble, lor when a fish strikes one the other has to be reeled up by your boatman, lest the hooks sink to the bottom. If the boat is kept in motion, it is almost impossible to reel in a large bass, and would make a labor of a pleasure, even if he should be eventually captured. A small trolling spoon is excellent bait, probably pre- ferable to the fly at all seasons except the middle of 1^ mm m inpp 220 BLA\;K BAS9L July, when the eel-fly, the principal food of the bass, is jast disappearing, and the artificial fly is then a luxury. In case a spoou is used, the shank of the hook is usually wound with ibis feathers, and a Buel's patent is the favorite. It has been recommended at times to fasten a forked piece of pickerel tongue on the bend of your fly- hook, but like a similar direction as to a worm" on a trout fly-hook, I have no faith in it. Another successful bait that has, in my opinion, more reputation than value, is the Tcillrdevil, a creature that is beyond my powers of description, and must be seen to be appreciated. The hours and days favorable for fishing are, in the main, similar for all fish ; if the water is deep or turbid there may be an exception, but generally a southwesterly wind, a cloudy sky, and the morning and evening hours, will yield the best sport. This is so for black bass, and the more wind the better, until it becomes difficult to row and manage the boat. In thf western wilds, where deer are plentiful, an attractive fly is made by tying a white and red tuft of deer's hair along the shank of the hook ; the thread being passed round the middle of the tuft, allows the upper part of the hairs . to be bent back by the motion through the water, giving an appearance of life to the bait. An ingenious mode of proceeding is suggested ia Brown's Angler's Guide, that is worthy of young Ameri- can genius, to which it is attributed. A boy having caught a sun-fish, runs his hook through its nose and out at its mouth, covering the point with a lively worm. Other sun-fish^' seeing their fellow have all to himself a fine, fat worm which he seems unable to master, collect BLACK BASS. 221 round him, and by thoir nnmbers attract the bass, who dashes in among them, and while the rest make off, swallows the one with the worm, and of course himself falls a prey to the ingenious young fisherman. This like the use of cray-fish, mice, swallows, and many othei baits, may be excellent, but I have never tried it or them ; so* long as the fish will take a fly, I fish witli nothing else ; it is infinitely more exciting to kill one fish on the fly than ten with bait. Black bass are taken among the Thousand Isles in immense numbers, but not of any great size, rarely exceeding three poun-^s. In Lake Ohamplain, near Eouse's Point, and in the lakes of Canada, they gro^ larger. The largest, probably, never exceeding eight pounds. They are taken in most of the waters of the northern and northwestern States, especially in the Niagara and Detroit rivers. Lake St. Clair, Lake Erie and Lake Huron. They make their appearance from deep water in May and June, grow to great excellence in July and August, but are in their best condition in September and October. They are a fine, noble game fish, and where trout are not to be had are well worthy of the sportsman's attention ; when captured, which can only be done by skill and care, they prove an excellent addition to the table. The fish usually known as trout at tlie South, idbeit that name is applied to many varieties, is a species of black bass, and is taken by trolling with a rod and short line before the boat as it is rowed aloilg. ^nfes^ii:;- ■■•'.■« V' ipmniMipippipiii BOCK BASS CHAPTER XXin. BOOK BASS. CentrarchvA ^neus. — ^Tliis is an entirely distinct spe- cies from the Black Bass, though, being somewhat similar in color and shape, is often confounded with them. The same may be said of the Os^7ego Bass, which is now ascertained to be equally distinct, though commonly known as bass, and supposed to be identical. The fish under consideration must in no wise be confounded with the Rock-fish of Pennsylvania, which is the Striped Bass, Lahrax Uneatua^ and which the benighted Pennsylva- nians would oblige us by calling by its right name. The Rock Bass has two flat points at the angle of the gill-cover, and is distinguished from the variety last de- scribed by six or seven spines and eleven soft rays in the anal fin. The dorsal has eleven spines, and ten or twelve soft rays ; the pectoral fourteen soft rays, the ventral one spine and five soft rays, and the gill-rays are six. The fin-rays are given by Dr. De Kay as follows : D. 11.12 ; P. 14 ; Y. 1.5 ; A. 6.11 ; C. ITf. This fish is found in much the same waters as the black bass, and, like the latter, made its way on the com- pletion of the Champlain canal through it into the Hudson River. It takes any of the ordinary baits, preferring, however, the cray-fish, Astacita JBartoniy and can be ROCK BASB. 223 captnrod even with the flj, but not readily. In the St. Lawrence River it feeds mostly on the eel-fly, so long as that lasts, choosing, I believe, the dead ones; and in July I have found them filled with that fly. They never attain the size of the larger black bass, although they are taken of over three pounds, but are a brave, vora- cious fishyand excellent at table. m % m ^m^^f^m^m^^ 224 THE PIKK PERCH. . , ' ' -. ■,• ■, ,,;;• ■: :,' :".''■ .v>'^>Y-'"; A'-'/^A >> ' : .1 f 1 '■•, :■■.-'■ ..:;>>; '':■ . ,fH;i,; • ^uj:;;^' ,■■■'',- , J ii ',■',•' f -i CHAPTER XXIV. THB PIKE TEROH. ( , ..«.■;>,•'' ■, «• V " Lucioperca Americana.— ^\h fish is mentioned more on account of the absurd misnomers that have been applied to it, to warn persons against similar errors, than on account of its sporting qualities. There appears to be some confusion among naturalists concerning this family ; there is probably an undescribed species. Dr. De Kay mentions a bluish fish which he regiirded not as A distinct variety, but as an aged specimen. By a close comparison of the two, I am satisfied that although tlie scientific peculiarities are wonderfully alike, there are substantial difibrences. The Pike Perch is called the Glass-eye, the Big-eyed Pike, the Pickerel, Pickering, and Pike of the Lakes ; whereas a simple suggestion will establish the difference between it and the pikes or pickerel. The latter has all the fin-rays soft, and the ventrals in the centre of the abdomen, whereas this fish, which is a true perch, has many spinous rays, and the ventrals close beneath and just behind the pectorals. The Pike Perch is of an olive color on the back, yel- lowish on the sides, and white beneath. It attains a weight of thirty pounds, and is distinguished particularly by the peculiarity of having the membrane attached tc THE PIKE PERCH. 225 the last two rays of the first dorsal jot black, whureaa tliat attached to the other rays is yellow. The lower edge of the gill-cover has been described as smooth, but I find the fore part of it slightly serrated ; the posterior part has one flat spine, beyond which there is a pointed membrane, and above a rudimentary spine. Tliere is a sen'es of sharp teeth on both jaws and the gill-arches, two in the front of each jaw being long and conspicuous. The base of the tongue is roughened but toothless, and I can find no teeth on the vomer. The scales are not large, and have the edges marked out by a series of dots. The fins, as I make them, are — Br. 7 ; D. 13.2.20 ; P. 10 ; V. 1.5 ; A. 1.14 ; C. 17|. But according to Dr. De Kay they are — * -"^ Br. 7 ; D. 13:1.21 ; P. 16 ; Y. 1.5 ; A. 1.14 ; C. 17f. The color of the anal is reddish yellow ; of the ven- trals light yellow, and pectorals yellowish olive. Tliere are scales on the gill-covers ; those on the fore gill-cover being scattered and few. Beyond these differences my examination found the ordinary pike of the lakes to ac- cord with the description of Dr. De Kay ; but the other species that I have mentioned was very different both in color and appearance, and is, as I conceive, the true Ohio salmon, a name that has been applied to the spe- cies just described, f ^ t. , ^^ti -^ - ^> ? ^ ^ ^ » . ^ ^^^ As for the color in the latter species, that was totally different, being so far like the salmon as to have no doubt given origin to the name. It is bluish grey on the back, greyer on the sides, and white on the abdomen, The only part of membrane of tlie dorsal of the salmon that is black is that attached to the last spine alone of 10* *i. m 226 THE PIKE PERCH. the first dorsal. The shape of the fore gill-cover k slightly different, and the spines on its edge are more distinct and regular, like teeth. There are no bars on any fin except the dorsal ; there are no scales on the gill- cover, and the fins are all light and transparent. There are minute teeth on the base of the tongue. The fish that this description is taken from were found in New York market on the 25th day of February, and may have "been altered by their winter dress ; but they were unknown to the fish-dealers, one of whom called my attention to them and inquired their name. They did not weigh over a pound, and the largest was fifteen inches long, of which the head was four. Of tho dorsal, the second, third and fourth rays were the longest. Being but a sportsman, I mention these matters to attract the attention of the learned, who would do us a favor if they would seek out the old Indian names to apply to our tinonymouB fish. 'i\?^- -/^ There is a third described species of ludoperca or pike perch, as the word means; lueiqperca griseaj that is found in the limits of New York, as well as the ^wm- perca canadensis^ which helongs to Csinsida. '' ^" It is t ' be observed that Dr. De Kay puts the length of tLe Iticioperca america/na at 14.5, but says they ar,^ occasionally much larger ; whereas the fish known as the pike of the lakes is taken in immense quantitiep m Lake Ontario, in April, of twenty pounds' weight, and rarely falls below five. There is a small pike perch known as the sorga, with the same general characteristics, but with the membrane attached to the last spine-ray of the first doroal alone black. Tlie back is yellow mottled with THE PIKE PERCH. 227 black, and shaded down the sides to white on the abdo- men; the first dorsal is yellow with dusky spots; the second dorsal and tail yellow with dusky bars ; the gill- cover is scaled and the fore gill-cover partly scaled. It is precisely the shape of what I call the Ohio salmon but of a totally different color. Its length is about twelve inches, and its weight does not exceed a pound. Tlie fin-rays are — Br. 7 ; D. 12.1.18 ; P. 12 ; V. 5 ; A. 1.11 ; C. 17f . There are unquestionably at least three distinct varie- ties, besides the grey and the Canadian pike perch; they are popularly known as the pike the sorga, and the Ohio salmon, and all are highly esteemed for the table. mmm MPW 228 THE YELLOW PERCH. CHAPTER XXV. THE YELLOW PEECH. Perca Flaveacens. — ^The Yellow Perch has, as his name indicates, a predominant yellow color on his sides; there are a number of dark vertical bars over the back, and the pectorals, ventrals and anal are orangv*). The gill-cover is serrated beneath and armed with a long spine, and the fore gill-cover has a toothed margin. There are two dorsals ; the ventrals are be- neath and slightly behind the pectorals, and the teeth are minute. The greatest weight is four or five pounds. The fin-rays are as follows — D. 13.2.15 ; V. 1.5 ; A. 2.8 ; 0. 17|. Unfortunately, this fish, equally despised by the gourmand and the sportsman, abounds in our fine ponds and lakes, that ought to be devoted to his noble con- gener, the black bass. He will take the fly if it is allowed to rest in the water, and after hooking a trout that had fouled in the weeds, I have found a perch on the second fly. He spawns in April of May, seeking the sandy shore, near projecting roots, where there is a depth of a foot of water. I have seen them crowd- ed together, male and female, jostling and following one another round and round through the roots, pressing out milt and spawn^ and so busily engaged that they could THE YELLOW PERCH. 229 6e taken witli the net or the hand. In mere wantonness and desire to diminish their numbers I destroyed all I could, hanging them on strings with the spawn stream- ing from them. The eggs, which were almost trans- parent, were in the water in masses, kept together by a glutinous substance, and each marked with a thick spot, and could be taken up in the net, straining slowly through the meshes. Yellow perch will take worm or minnow, preferring the former, and it is probab]3 destroy numbers of young trout. Their flesh is coarse, white and tasteless. They are pursued only by boys and ladies. tA -■ ■ V* '%:._ Jti.: 230 PROPAGATION OF FISH. CHAPTER XXYL ■ '\-;> f! . >-« PROPAGATION OF FISH. There is no subject more important to the material welfare of our country, or that a persistent and willful disregard of the laws of nature has rendered more neces- sary, than the culture of the various tribes of fish that were once abundant in our rivers and lakes and along our coasts, but which are rapidly diminishing, and threaten soon to become extinct. How sad it is to think that once the glorious salmon leaped and frisked in the quiet waters of our noble Hudson, and sought bowers of love in its cool sources ; that they were formerly so plenty in the Connecticut, as I have already mentioned, that a person buying shad was required to take a proportion of salmon. How great the loss, not merely to us sports- men, but to the long-headed political economists, who calculate to a penny all that a natioa would bring if put up at auction, and look at everything as a tjurce of wealth. Thousands of dollars are sent yearly to Nova Scotia and the Canadas to pay for salmon that even there are rapidly diminishing, whereas, with a little public spirit, they might abound at our own doors. There is no doubt that all these streams might be restored, and many othera supplied with salmon, at little expense and less trouble PROPAGATION OF FISH. 231 in fact, the sportsmen would take the affair into their own hands, if the proper legislation could be obtained. But 80 long as private individuals are allowed to dam the water-courses by an obstruction so constructed that the fish cannot surmount it, so long will private enter- prise and public effort both be in vain. A dam, no mat- ter how high, is rendered entirely harmless by be'ng pro- vided with a narrow sluiceway or flume, a few feet wide and leading to the water beneath, or by boxes placed one below another, making a number of small leaps. This the salmon can surmount, even with a moderate depth of water, and will, if left undisturbed, readily ascend at night. It occasions no loss to the proprietor, is built at little expense, and yet the want of it has cost our State alone millions. It is now required in the dams of Lower Canada, where effective laws have lately been found necessary to preserve the fish even there from annihilation, and could be introduced on all our streams for one-tenth the annual tax we pay to the British Pro- vinces for salmon. With the destruction of the forests, saw-mills, those enemies of fish-kind, have greatly dimin- ished, and could easily be so regulated as to do no harm, and as the same thing may be said of the tanneries, there need, be nothing to drive the fish away were the waters replenished. Tliis we sportsmen will undertake to do, if our legislature will, for a few moments, forget Republi- can and Democrat, and attend to the interests of their constituents by passing laws similar to these enacted for tlie Canadas. It is strange indeed that, while we pay a heavy bounty to our countrymen engaged in the cod fisheries, we mm 232 PROPAGATION OF FISH. should be unwilling to adopt the simplest legislation tc preserve, foster and protect our other fishing interests. Cod are not generally considered equal to salmon or trout, and although at present more numerous, a few years of culture might bring the latter extensively into competition. I am not in a position to give statistics, but the salmon that are sold in our markets fresh and smoked, to say nothing of that which is pickled, must amount to millions annually. No one single subject is so important and so capable of adding to the wealth of our country as the re-stocking our rivers with their natural inhabitants, s * : ii, ^^ ;?s<v "' .^ - • >j;3^- h-r * v^^r.\ TlierJB is a very erroneous impression, encouraged, too, it is shame to say, by Smith, in his work on the fish of Massachusetts, that the w^ild creatures of the woods and waters must, in the nature of things, disappear before man. Now, although this is a lamentable fact, it is not a necessary consequence, and there is nothing in man's capturing fish or killing game, properly and reasonably, that will seriously diminish their numbers. Fish and birds prey on one another ; for every large trout a man takes he saves a hundred small ones ; for every hawk he catches hovering over his barnyard, and kills, he saves a hundred quail, and thus, although he kills them himself, he preserves them from vermin, from one another, and from birds of prey. If he will add to this a veiy little care and protection of the young, he will increase the supply a thousand fold. = -kv...v- ^,: .^ « j^- . <^i>v m It is calculat J that the roe of one shad or cod would stock the world, but that not one egg in a million arrives at maturity. The lowest calcuhition of I he roe of a «^ PROPAGATION OF FISH. 233 pound trout is five hundred, and I believe it frequently exceeds a tliousand, and salmon have many more. Con ceive, for a moment, if each female trout produced one- hundred mature fish, which in three years would eacli produce one hundred more, the incredible number that would exist. Hie waters of the earth are capable, if as well tilled, of supporting as many as the land ; and there is no reason why they should not be cultivated. Nothing is simpler ; as with the land a savage may scratch up the earth sufficiently with a stick to support Jjimself and family, a scientific farmer, with proper tools, would in the same ground support a hundred times as many ; so with the water, a careless, lazy person will get one fish for ten eggs, while a thorough-going, careful laborer will bring to perfection almost all. Tliis may be done with only the labor, which, in fact, is the greatest of pleasures, and at the small expense of feeding the fish. Young fry require fine food, such as meat or fish grated, but as they grow older, de^ur almost anything. Konalds, the author of the " Fly-fisher's Entomology," having dosed them with cayenne pepper and mustard, found it not in the least disagreeable or apparently injurious. If this were an attempt to introduce fish where they had never before existed, there might be some doubt of its success, but it is merely following a course adopted in England and France with astonishing results, by which many streams that had been as totally depopulated as the Hudson, and none could be more so, have been entirely restocked, and are now sources of great profit to 234 TROrAGATION OF FISH. their owners. There is nothing, therefore, in the least startling or original about the undertaking, and it requires public aid only because rivere are never here owned, as in England, by one great proprietor. It applies to all our fresh water and most of our salt water iish, and is in full operation upon some of the smaller ponds in this country. Where the fish are open to all, there is not sufiScient interest for one person to under- take their culture, and as this must always be the case with salmon, their production must be made either a question of public interest or private enthusiasm. Tlie latter, with the sanction of the former, will bo fully suf- ficient for the purpose. One invariable peculiarity of the American people is, that they attack, overturn and annihilate, and then laboriously reconstruct. Our first farmers chopped down the forests and shade trees, took crop after crop of the same kind from the land, exliausted the soil and made bare the country ; they hunted and fished, destroying first t^e wild animals, then the birds, and finally the fish, till in many places these ceased utterly from off the face of the earth; and then, when they had finished their work, that race of gentlemen moved west to renew the same course of destruction. After them came the re- storers; they manured the land, left it fallow, p.ut in practice the rotation of crops, planted shade and fruit trees, discovered that birds were useful in destroying insects and worms, passed laws to protect them where they were not utterly extinct, as with the pinnated grouse, of Pennsylvania and Long Island, and will, I predict, ere long re-stock the stream^, rivers and f PROPAGATION OP nSH. 235 ponds with the best of the fish that once inhabited them. ■• -'" ■ -w .i* ' r-. r' '. ,'nr ■,<i,'i':t.! ,,A» i.-'-r«^i - . kfV^"'i:- *>Hi •♦" Another utterly erroneous impression exists that steam- boats and river craft frighten away the denizens of the deep, and the disappearance of striped bass in Hell Gate is brought forward as an evidence. But the proof docs not sustain the proposition ; it cannot be doubted that the fish have diminished, but in Hell Gate the change was produced by blowing out Pot Rock and destroying the best eddy. It may be well to remark, for the bene- fit of the benighted individuals who do not reside in the city of New York, that Pot Rock was situated in the centre of Hell Gate, and being only some seven feet under water, was as much admired by the bass as it was dreaded by the steamboats, till the United States Govern- ment employed a French gentleman to blow it to pieces with gunpowder, so that there should be twenty-one feet of water over it at low tide. Since this was done the bass have left in disgust, and the steamboats have had the better of it, which they never would have had unless aided by gunpowder and a Frenchman. Of course, fish are not so numerous as they were fifty years ago, when there was little market for them, but the net is to be blamed rather than the steamboat. The first attempt at artificial fish-culture in Europe was made by Messrs. Gehen and Remy, in France, although it appears to have been known to and prac tised by the Chinese for centuries, and by tlie Germans a hundred years previously. In 1850, the attention of the French government was called to their eftbrts, and M. Milne Edwards was appointed by the Minister of W- 236 PROPAGATION OF FISH. Agriculture to examine into the subject. His report was BO favorable and so fully confirmed by subsequent inves- tigation, that the government took tlie matter under their own care, established extensive works, stocked to repletion many of the rivers, and now supply all France with impregnated egg or young fry of the best vaneties. In England, that land of sportsmen, the discovery was hailed with enthusiasm, and put in immediate and suc- cessful operation. Millions of trout and salmon were hatched, and the results were truly wonderful. Rivers that had ceased to afford a single fish were made to teem with them, and large revenues were obtained from the fishing rights. Over a million fish were introduced into the waters of one company, and surprising discoveries were made as to their growth. In Scotland, a large number of young salmon or smolts, being one year old and averaging an ounce weight, were marked by cutting off' the adipose dorsal fin of every hundredth fish, and allowed to descend to the sea. They returned in two or three months, the smallest weighing three pounds and a half, and the largest nine pounds and a half. Suppose that one hundred thousand out of the three hundred thousand hatched returned, having gained an average weight of five pounds, and worth in New York market forty cents a pound, will some one that is good at figures please calculate the hook and net profits. ^ t ' Very confused ideas of the growth offish are popularly entertained ; numerous contradictory statements are to be found in the books and to be heard from sportsmen, but the truth is generally missed ; in fact, everything depends upon the food. A strong fish grows the. fastest; PROPAGATION OF nSH. 237 the larger he becomes the more he is able to seize and bear away from his brethren. Hence, in the same hatching, I have seen trout at one year of age, the largest of which was six inches long and the smallest less than three. In two years, with good feeding and a variety of food, snch as is always to be found in a newly-made pond, they will grow to weigh three-quarters of a pound. In overstocked streams, like our country brooks, where there is little on which to feed, tr<jut never attain any considerable size ; the greater number will not exceed a few ounces, and a pound fish is looked upon with awe. The migratory trout that go to the sea in Winter grow much faster than those that remain in the fresh water, and will frequently gain a pound in one season. With this explanation, these differences of opinion are perfectly reconcilable, one observer having drawn his conclusions from individuals luxuriating on the fat of the land, or rather water, and another drawing his from some poor, half starved specimens. Range of water is indispensable to the attainment of great size ; there is no species but is puny in confined limits — a result that follows naturally from tlie first statement ; in large streams and lakes there is greater variety and abundance of food ; but they will increase rapidly if well fed, no matter how restricted their dwelling-place. Frequently a trout kept in a spring will attain several pounds in weight in conse- quence of being well served by the children of the house- hold. A gourmand will find his advantage in having them stall-fed, if possible, before being killed for tlie table. Three-year old trout spawn, and it is said tliat small trout have sm\ller eggs than those of greater size and 238 PROPAGATION OF nSH. age, tliat the young of the latter are larger and grow faster than those of the former ; but my observation has not convinced me that this is the case. Tlie spawning season commences abont the middle of October, and lasts nearly two months, some fieb, like hens, laying and hatch- ing earlier than others ; a great convenience to the breeder, who is not hurried by their coming in all to- gether. Of course, the young appear at different times, the first about the ninth of January and the last in March ; they take about sixty days to hatch, according to the weather and water. When they first appear, the body of the egg, like a bag, adheres to the abdomen, and its absorption forms their support for thirty days, after which they must be fed with pieces of worm, of raw or cooked fish, and of raw or cooked meat grated or pounded fine or with boiled blood. They eat, also, small animalculfls in the spring-water, flies or insects that float upon its surface, and are especially fond of the micro- scopic animals in stagnant pools, and I should suppose of the minute worms generated in boiled flour allowed to turn sour. But contrary to the generally received opinion, I warn breeders to keep frogs from their trout ponds ; as these live on the young fish. Although the trout may fancy frog's spawn, which is questionable, tlie latter more than return the compliment by preferring the young fish entire. My attention was particularly attracted to the fact that around the pond where the fry lived, the frogs were abundant, while there were none in the preserve of the big fish. I concluded they were afraid of the latter, till one day I caught and threw a frog to thorn, and found, much to my surprise, they would PROPAGATION OP FISH. 239 nd gro^ Eition has (pawning and lasts nd hatch- le to the in all to- ent times, ie last in according ppear, the abdomen, lirty days, worm, of ; grated or lalso, small that float ;ho micro- d suppose ir allowed received lieir trout ougb the mable, the preferring ,rticularly bre the fry ji*e none in [hey were rew a frog ley would not swallow him. Being some hnndrods together, they struck at him as they would at a stick if thrown upon the water, but immediately dropped and let him escape to land. Although I tried the experiment over and over again, they had found out what he was, and now would not touch him. To complete my enlightenment, I only wanted an experience which was destined soon to be furnished. I had an aquarium in which were kept, among a quantity of small minnows and other fish, a frog that had ex- panded from a tadpole, together with several ta' poles *hat were expanding rapidly. The frog had attained a ipectable size, and was a great favorite, from the readi- ness and suddenness with which he seized and devoured flies ofifered to him, and was endeared to our hearts by several hair-breadth escapes, such as jumping out of the aquarium and being lost for days round the room, and even falling out of the window, through the area grating into the cellar. He was wondrously solemn, but had a way of darting on a fly that was invariably fatal. We began to observe, however, that our small fish disap- peared strangely, "leaving not a wreck behind," and always at a time when the frog seemed to have suddenly grown in circumference. This continued till my suspi- cions connected the two together, and one day we abso- lutely saw him seize and swallow a minnow half as long as his own body. His plan was to remain perfectly motionless till his destined prey swam near, when he would make one spring, and devour it at a gulp- In spite of his cannibal propensities, we kept him, although we could often see the shape of a fish under his extended ipiiipi 240 PROPAGATION OF FISH. sides, and our aqnarinm was nearly depopalated, till at iaet he Bwallowed one of his brother tadpoles, and our eense of justice cotistrained us to banish him to the country. The reason that the frogs collected round the breed- ing-pond was now perfectly apparent, and doubtless" hundreds of fish paid for their presence. Give the fry something safer than frog spawn ; they obtain so much from the water they need little extraneous food. The first thing, however, is to get the young trout to feed. ^ It may be well to remark that salmon and trout are the most difficult of all fish to breed ; they require more care, and have to be watcbed closely in consequence of certain unfortunate habits. For instance, they will eat one another ; a trout of twelve inches will dispose of one of six and think nothing of it, and this no matter how well he is fed. Perhaps he has been offended, but it rather seems to me an experiment to see how capacious his swallow is. "When large and small are together, the latter, being the most active, are invariably first to seize the bait or food ; no man ever caught at the first cast the largest trout out of a shoal. While the smaller ones are busy with the food, the larger seize them, sometimes even by mibiake, I fancy, in making a rush at the same morsel, and if they are caught by the gills, good bye to them. After a straggle, they get ended round, and down they go head foremost, their tails often waving out of the destroyer's mouth for hours, a sad memento of their untimely fate. Fish of one year will devoar those of the next, and a friend of mine lost ** PROPAGATION OF FISH. 241 ail at id our to the breed- abtless" 7G the obtain aneons g trout out are e more mce of vill eat of one er how- id, but how small re, are n ever shoal, larger icy, in thousands by a yearling happening accidentally to get among the fry just hatched. The ponds from which my experience is mostly drawn I have no part nor parcel in, further tlian what may be claimed from having furnished extensive advice ; but I have taken a deep interest in their success, and if I speak of them as my ponds and my experiments, the party tliat really made them will understand and excuse me, and the public will comprehend that no egotism is intended. They are five, and will soon be more, built of gravelly sand along a bank that is filled with pure, clear springs, and about five feet deep. In the first place, the musk- rats are annoying, having in one instance tunnelled a dam and let out over a hundred breeders, and when the ^xpense is not an object, it is well to put a fence of boards or even stone-work in the middle of the dam. Tliese ponds all communicate with one anotlier at the surface of the water by a sluiceway that can be closed at pleasure, and each can be drawn off dry separately. In that which might be called the highest, and communi- cates directly with the principal springs, are placed a row of boxes about twelve feet square and ono foot deep, divided into compartments by divisions of wood, with openings cut to let the water circulate. The boxes are kept on a level by being supported on stout pegs driven into the sand, and are filled about half full of pure white gravel, leaving the water about four inches deep. There is an open passageway to the outside and through the partitions, whereby the fish can enter, and doors, com- posed mainly of wire, keep off leaves and twigs that would foul the water, but can be lifted at pleasure. Jl m ' ' ■■^^^'l^-^'^^--^^^^ ?* 242 PROPAGATION OF FISH. These boxes become more or less covered yeai \y with a green aquatic growth that is always found in spring water, and need a good scrubbing every Fall before they are used. The gravel need not be changed, and the water will carry off the sediment as the scrubbing liber- ates it. The fish, however, do not confine themselves to these boxes, but spawn all over the pond in every little scour that the spring water makes ; for as yet we have not tried extruding the eggs artificially, having attained suffi- cient success in the natural method. The breeders, of which there are about three hundred, occupy two of the ponds, and the others are used for keep- ing the fish of the various years separate ; at the age of two they are saf3 to be trusted and may be said to be of full age, and even in twelve months have learned a great deal about taking care of themselves. Some of the breed- ers weigh about a pound and sc half, and anything less than six inches lefb among them would be devoured at once. They were originally taken on their spawning beds with a scap-net, but are now kept over from year to year, thriving well on minnow and meat, their principal food. In order to spawn, trout seek the narrow and shallow spring runs, where they can always be found' in pairs, and, with a little skill, caught in a net or taken with the fly — for I utterly deny that - ley will not feed when spawning — and can be accumulated in tliat way from year to year till a lai-ge number is obtained. While tlie small trout are in the breeding-pond, the large ones are rigidly excluded, but when they have been removed, by drawing off the water into the lower ponds, :|t'. PROPAGATION OP FISH. 243 and the epawniug season has arrived, the communica* tion with the stew-pond is opened and the breeders let in. They do all their pairing, making theirHbeds, spawning and milting of themselves without human help, and ar^ allowed to remain till about the first of January, when the pond is isolated again and drawn off, BO that they can be captured with a scap-net and returned to their former habitation. Care must be taken to handle them as little as possible, as handling rubs away their natural slime, and induces a sort of white fungus that will sometimes prove fatal. And you must give heed to your steps while netting the fish, lest you tread upon a spawning bed, which can be recognized by its being free from mud and leaves. The fish, when they have determined the locality of their nest, clear away the sand and deposit the ova upon the clean pebbles, the male impregnating them at the same time. They will eat one another's spawn, and the male is ever on the watch to guard his wife from such an outrage. After the eggs have all been exuded, the parents fan the sand over, covering them entirely from sight. This is an important matter, which the artificial breeders omit, and the omission of which, doubtless, leads to the destruction of many eggs by fungus and sediment. In artificial breeding, I should strongly recommend that eggs covered with clean sand should be tested in comparison with those uncovered. A num- ber of the eggs, after having thus been deposited, were removed and exposed uncovered to the water : they died in a few days and turned white. The eggs when first exuded are a brilliant golden 244 PROPAGATION OP FISH. orange, but when impregnated change to a pale, trans* parent yellow, with a small black spot in the centre, and on losing their vitality turn white. "When one dies in artificial breeding, it communicates disease to the rest unless it is removed, but in the natural method the cov- ering of sand isolates them and appears to prevent this. The water must flow steadily, and, if not sufficiently fresh and abundant, should be allowed to fall in little cascades, to give it life. As the operation proceeds, the change in the egg can be readily seen with the micro- scope, the cells of which it is composed clustering to one side. Any one curious on this subject is referi-ed to Dr. Garlick's interesting little work on fish culture. Every old fish having been carefully removed, the breeding-pond is refilled immediately, and the young, awkward, unwieldy little infants, soon make their appear- ance, and after their thirty days of self-sustenance are fed on worms cut in small pieces, on grated or pounded fish or meat cooked. Before Summer is over they are a few inches long, and are driven down into their new home by again drawing off the water of the breeding-pond into the latter, and frightening them into it. The number raised in this manner is perfectly surpris- ing. From about one hundred breeders, male and female, we produced over seven thousand fish, the latter fact being determined not by guesswork but by actual count.' An average of nearly one hundred and fifty young, in spite of frogs and accidents. One is apt to under-estiinate in- stead of exaggerating the number by guessing ; they are so small and lie so quiet that they almost escape obser- vation. " ",ev '■:>v,;;c, - ■:*'r- .•^.::v.;;^tvr:':->v*' W:.:e PROPAGATION OP FISH. 245 The foregoing is all that it is necessary to dj to raise fish in abundance ; the main point is their protection, and this is effected by not allowing them to enter the open water till their second or even third season. Nothing is more entertaining than to feed the full-grown fish, and enjoy their breaking at sticks and weeds in their eager- ness and confusion ; this they will often do one after ano- ther for twenty times. Their slow motions till they per- ceive the prey, and then the ferocity of their rushes, assimilates them to the dreaded salt water shark. With watchful eye they move cautiously abort, but woe to the fly or minnow that touches the surface 1 A dozen rush at it and fling themselves into the air, turn- ing suddenly on their sides by a flap of their tails, and disappear as instantly, one of them with the victim in his mouth. Tlie natural method of propagating fish, though abun- dantly successful, and so simple that there is no skill required to perform it, cannot be expected to equal the results effected by artificial fecu'ndation. The latter, however, requires considerable care, and although a total failure is almost an impossibility, neglect will result in great loss. Each trout should produce several hun- dred young, and if a business is intended to be made of it, the artificial method must be pursued. The first consideration, therefore, is to obtain a male and female fish, fully prepared to spawn. This is deter- mined by the ease with which the eggs and milt can bo pressed from them ; for if it requires more than the light- est pressure, the spawn will not be mature, and the parent's life may be destroyed if the operation is per- 246 PROPAGATION OF FISH. eisted in. The only entire failure I ever heard of was effected in this manner, a friend succeeding in killing several fish without raising one. Where there can be made a convenient stew-pond, with, a gravelly head-water or springy sides, there is no difficulty, as the fish may be taken at any time, and may be kept here till the proper season arrives. But it is said, though on questionable authority, if there are no appropriate spawning-beds at hand, the nature of the fish changes, and they either delay or cease spawning altoge- ther. The roe is incased in a skin, the rupture of which will produce death till the time of maturity, when it is absorbed and the eggs lie free in the abdomen and can be readily extruded. The female is taken in the hand when ready — and observe that fish as well as other animals will be gentle in proportion as they are handled gently — the abdomen is pressed carefully with the other hand, the eggs are forced out and allowed to full into a basin or pail of pure fresh spring water. "When all the spawn is deposited, it is as well to agitate it with a feather, and, if there is extraneous matter, to pour ofl:' and renew the water. The male fish is then taken and treated in the same wav, the milt being allowed to fall into the same basin and brought into thorough contact with the eggs by the use of the feather again. The milt of one male will answer for the spawn of several females, and it is said that the milt will be renewed in the male in the course of a few days ; but this, not corresponding at all wth the female, is at least doubtful. The reason of the superabundance of milt over the roe is a simple provision of nature to make PROPAGATIOX OP FISH. 247 up for the quantity that must inevitahly be washed away by the water, without coming in contact with the latter ill the natural process. The impregnation of the' eggs may be ascertained by their alteration in color, exchanging the orange for a yellow tinge, and by the presence of the black spots, as in the natural process ; when it is thoroughly eflfected, the water is poured off and fresh supplied. Care should be taken to preserve the^most perfect cleanliness; sediment is very destructive to the vitality of the embryos. There are several modes of disposing the spawn, either in boxes, half full of white pebbles, with sides perforated with holes, or in wicker baskets, either with or without pebbles. It is nowhere recommended to cover the eggs with sand ; but as the fish naturally pur- sues thia course, and as great injury is produced by sedi- ment and delicate aquatic plants, and as disease is com- municated from one to another, I would decidedly advise that it should be given a trial, and the comparativa results observed. It \vould certainly presei-ve the eggs from many of their principal dangers from water-bugs and insects, from dirt and infection, and can do no injury to the young fry, which, when hatched, readily make their way through it to the pure water. These baskets or boxes are arranged in various ways, according to convenience, and will do well so long as a pure stream of spring water, about 32 to 35 degrees of temperature, flows through them, whether directly from the spring or intermediately through one another. By allowing a few inches' fall from one to another, the water is aiiratcd and its vivifying powers increased. Care must 248 PROPAGATION OF FISH. be taken to remove the sediment, fiingns and minute plants as they form, together with all eggs that turn white and die. The boxes should be covered with an open-work cover, either of lattice-work or wire, to keep out leaves. A large species of sieve, of galvanized wire, can be obtained at the stores, and answers well for this purpose, and also to make doors to the breeding-boxes and to be fitted over the outlets or communications be- tween the breeding-ponds, to keep the fish separate. The water should be four inches deep in the boxes, and its temperature affects the rapidity of development. A thorough examination should be made every few days, and if the sediment increases beyond control, the eggs may be bodily removed into a clean box. "When the young appear they may be left in the boxes or allowed to escape into the pond at large, and will take care of themselves if there be no larger fish around ; in the lat- ter case expect to see them no more. If regularly fed, large numbers can be kept without trouble or danger in narrow accommodations until they attain a respectable size. Since writing the above I have had an opportunity of examining Fry's excellent and thorough little work on fish-breeding, which, though principally a translation, exhausts the subject in its present stage, and contains all the requisite instruction. It is recommended to place the fecundated ova on willow hurdles suspended in boxes an inch or thereabout beneath the water, so that they could be conveniently removed and examined. An excellent substitute would probably be, what can be found univer- sally throughout our country, a champagne basket. It PROPAGATION OF FISH. 249 oxes oiild Uent iver- , It is asserted tliat the same water may be used over and over again if filtered, and that it may be allowed to pass from one box to another to an unlimited extent. That in case aquatic vegetation makes its appearance, the eggs can be transferred to a clean hurdle. The reader is solemnly warned against heaping up the egge upon one another, a fault entirely inexcusable consider* ing the small space they occupy, and a good food is sug- gested in the fecundated eggs and consequent young of other species. The transportation of fish is one of the most important subjects that presents itself, and with full grown trout is one of the most difficult to efifect. But the impreg- nated eggs can be carried with care for hundreds or thousands of miles with little loss and no inconvenience. The best and healthiest looking spawn must be selected, and if it can be left for a few days to mature after impregnation, so much the better ; it may be deposited upon sand or the leaves of plants found in tlie waters it frequents, placed in a wooden or tin box, and covered with similar leaves or sand, upon which another layer of eggs and leaves or sand can be placed, and so on till the box is full, when it is dipped in water and thoroughly saturated. The lid is put on to prevent any motion of the contents, and it can be carried almost any distance if it is occasionally dipped in water at a low but not a freezing temperature. Upon arriving at its destination, the contents are poured out carefully, and the eggs hatched in the ordinary way. Young trout a few months old can be transported with facility in water cooled with ice. For travelling by r^l« 11* 250 PROPAGATIOX OF FISIL road, the most convenient plan is to have round zinc cans of about two feet and a half diameter and three feet in depth, with the top projecting over on the inside, pierced with minute holes, and carried down into the water for a short distance, leaving a place in the centre of six inches diameter, where the ice can be kept witliout dan- ger of injuring the fish. On the upper edge of one side, there is a small door through which the fish can be poured. By continually renewing the ice, yearlings may be transported without difficulty, fifty or more in a can. It is supposed the cold reduces their respiration, or possi- bly the dissolving ice communicates air to the water. Trout of half a pound or over cannot be carried more than a score or even a dozen together, or they will die in spite of the greatest care in a few hours. The cans have handles to which ropes are fastened by broad hooks, and may be suspended from the beams of the baggage cars, where they sway slowly forward and back, and do not shake anxl jolt out the water as they otherwise would. It may be well to remark, for the benefit of those desiring to stock trout ponds, that Mr. Aaron S. Vail, of Smith town. Long Island, has devoted his attention to the artificial culture of trout ; that he has been very suc- cessful and is willing to stock ponds with any number of young trout at reasonable rates, and has generally quite a number of both young and old fish on hand. I believe he charges for young trout of one or two months seven dollars a hundred, but for larger fish of one year or more he expects five or six dollars a dozen ; his expenses of travel to be paid, but the fish to be charged for as dellv* ■-^5":-^ PROPAGATION OF FISH. 251 ered alive and healthy at the place of deBtination. For more accurate information it would be better to commu- nicate with him direct, and his breeding apparatus ig well worth a visit. Besides the trout and salmon the only other fretb water fish worth breeding is probably the black bass. There are many localities where the water is too warm or quiet for trout, which demand cold and rapid currents flowing from fresh springs. The black bass will thrive in almost any clear pond with a pebbly or sandy beach on which they can deposit their ova. Like all the perch family, they spawn in April and May, and hatch in a much shorter time than trout, or in about two weeks ; they build their nests in the sand, and extrude the milt and roe by pressing upon or between roots and stones, and either cover or leave exposed their eggs. They may be treated in the same manner as trout, but do not require the running water nor one half the care and attention. Tlieir increase is still more rapid. Undoubtedly the mascallonge could be acclimated and treated in the same manner, and the striped bass might be introduced into and confined to the fresh water with eminent advantage. There is also an opportunity for novel and interesting experiments in the crossing of various species, upon which there is little definitely known except that it can be done. The spawn of trout has been impregnated with the milt of salmon and has produced young, but what the young were, and whether they were capable of breeding among themselves, is not settled. Salmon give a much greater quantity of eggs than the mm^ mm m 252 PROPAGATION OF FISH. trout, estimated at over 10,000 in a medium sized fiah. The young, called usually pinks, remain in the fresh water one year after hatching, when they are termed emolts, and descend to the sea, returning in a few months, generally about the middle of June, weighing from one to ten pounds, and are then called grilse. After they have spawned as grilse and again returned to the sea, they are termed salmon. They grow with astonishing rapidity in salt water, a large fish doubling his weight in a little over a month, until a certain size is attained, when their growth almost ceases. Smolts rise readily at the fly, and may be mistaken for trout, which they some- what resemble. I have taken great numl?era oi them when fishing for trout in Canada, and was at first some- what at a loss to tell what they were. Of course I relieved them carefully of the hook, ana returned them to their native element. Salmon spawn in pools, on rough, gravelly beds, com- posed of small stones about the size of a walnut, and ac- cording to Eome accounts, require several days to deposit all the roe and milt. They should be taken by the net when engaged in this operation, and treated in the same manner as trout, or placed in a tub where they can be held by head and tail, and the spawn expresaed without injury. This course may be pursued with all fish whose weight would render them unmanageable out of water, but will not generally be found necessary. Tliey spawn in NovembCi oi December, hatch in March or April, and next March or Apri! descend to the ocean. In other particulars they do not difier materially from trout, and the mles for the propagation of the latter will appl} - Vropaqation op pisn. 258 eqnally well to them. They remain in the fresh water daring the Winter, descend to the sea early in the Spring, and return in June. Tliey invariably return to the river where they have bred, and in the course of their ascent will overcome powerful rapids and considerable falls. For a more full account of their habits, the reader is referred to the appropriate title. l|Ppqp9ii!«iP<iliPiP« I . I U iV Jiilip-iu mmw ■PBP 254 FLIES. ppppiililll FLIES AND KNOTS. 255 CHAPTEK XXVII. FLIES AND KNOTS. It is generally considered that fly-making cannot be taught by written instruction, but this depends some- what on the intelligence of the scholar, who must not undertake to conceive the result before he has waxed his thread, but should be content to follow the directions word by word. At all events there is something that the experienced, and an immense deal that the partially instructed beginner may add to his store of knowledge, and if the following directions will not make a novice perfect, they may aid him when he has had a few per- sonal lessons. To tie a fly, the gut should be singed in a candle or bitten at one end, and the hook and thread waxed to insure the hook's not coming ofi^, which, when a flne fish has it in his mouth, is a heart-rending casualty. Take a few turns with the thread on the shank of the bare hook, nearly to the head, then applying the gut, whip it firmly on by working back to the bend ; under the last turns at the bend insert whisks for the tail dub- bing, floss or herl for the body, and tinsel if desired. The floss, silk and dubbing are generally spun or twisted in with the thread, and then wound back toward the shoulder, but they may be wound on before, with, or after the thread. Care must be taken that the turns ppiip«ilp \'^'ifmi^i!i;mmm '^'WlJ^piliPPil 256 FLIES AND KNOTS. at the bend be firm, and when the material is earned back, the body is finished with a couple of turns of the silk, a hackle is tlien introduced under them and firmly ly secured. Wind the hackle round the hook at the place wliere it is inserted, and when it is suiSciently thick, and the fibres which constitute the legs stand out well, tie it down. Prepare your wings by stripping off the requisite number of fibres, and tie them on, either single or divided, and finish off. To make a buzz-fly, that is, one with the hackles the whole length of the body instead of only at the shoulder, insert a hackle at the bend at the same time with the body and tail, and twist it round the body after that is put on, and fasten it at the shoulder. The wings are sometimes laid on point- ing up the shank, and afterward bent down and brought in their places. And thus, if any one desires, he may make a fly. Few people in this stage of civilization dress their own trout flies, and although skill in the art will enable you to make a better selection in your purchases, it is rarely useful at the riverside. The bettei* plan is to have a great variety, keep them safe from moths by the use of a linen bag, and fish often enough to prevent the gut*s decaying. I have flies that have been in my possession for fifteen years, and yet seem to be as good as ever. You would require a knapsack to keep all the articles requisite to dress every fly, and would waste half your day in the operation. Nor is it yet settled that by imitating the natural insect you gain any advantage ; one half the most skillful fishermen a&sert that the fly, as for instance, the scarlet ibis, need resemble nothing on earth, or in the FLIES AND KNOTS. 257 waters under the earth, and that the shai-p-sighted fish are never deceived by tliinking oura the natural insect, bui take him for some new and undescribed species. As for myself, to use the quaint language of the editor of the " Knickerbocker," " sometimes I think so, and then again I don't, but mostly 1 do." On certain occasions it would seem that the closer the imitation the better, on others the less the similarity the greater the success. Upon this question my friends stand like the hackle on a well- dressed fly, " every which way." At any rate, it is iro time to be dubbing when you ought to be fishing, and if you cast a long line and a light fly and the fish will not rise, you may be sure they will not. The various flies that appear upon the surface of the numerous and varying waters of our country, from the borders of Mexico to the confines of Labrador, would fur- nish the subject for an instructive and interesting work. The natural flies, whether hatched from the caddis at the bottom of the streams, or froui the burrows in the ground, or the knots on the limbs, or the cocoons, amid the leaves of trees, are more numerous than those of any European country. As a class, they are larger, the ephemerae especially, and although often found to be similar in general appearance, furnish many species unknown there. They have never been properly de- scribed and classified, and no satisfactory work has been written, at all thorough and reliable, in which an attempt is ir.ade to record their nature and habits. Many of them do not return every year, but seem to require several seasons to mature, and the earliest fly of one season may not be t.hat of another. Every observant mmmi II itmvimmmmmmmmmimmiiimm^ 258 FLIES AND KNOia fis ipiinan has noticed flies at one time that he may not see again for a long periodj and has found his imitations of them perfectly useless. Tlie first tree that puts forth leaves in the spring is the maple, and its buds are a bright scarlet. As they drop into and are swept along the surface of the water by the wind, the fish seize them, no doubt either decoyed by their appearance or attracted by insects that may be con- cealed upon or within them. The scarlet ibis resembles these buds nearer than any other known thing, and is probably mistaken by the fish for them. "When commencing thi^i work, it had been my inten- tion not only to describe the artificial flies in general request, but to give the habits, periods and names of the natural ones of whicli they were imitations, without which latter information the former would have been far from complete. But the obstacles in my way were so numerous, the confusion existing as to names, localities, and times of appearance was so utter, the difficulty of finding any satisfactory work on the natural insects so great, that I was almost in despair ; on the point, how- ever, of making the attempt, rash as it appeared, I was informed that the matter had been undertaken by a friend of mine, who is every way equal to the task. Although much relieved, there was still something to be done to give a general idea of the flies in use with us. On this subject, the only work existing of any value is the siip- ]3lement to Frank Forester's " Fish and Fishing," written by a gentleman who is a thorough sportsman, and along- side of whom I have often had the pleasure of casting the fly. The directions in the body of that work itself, PLIES AKD KNOTS. 25a liko many other parts of it, are copied from the English writers, and in our waters are utterly oralueless. The author, although a splendid sportsman, was not as an angler acquainted with our trout streams and ponds, and the contributor of the supplement judged rather too exclusively from his experience on Long Island. The first and most striking difference to be observed between the systems of the two countries is in the com- parative size of the flies, those of America, following the natural insect, being larger, and, probably for a similar reason, gaudier. It is a remarkable fact that the most gaudy of all, the scarlet ibis, is prominently successful alone in the streams of Long Island and of the British Provinces. As many of the Long Island trout yearly migrate to the sea, in which peculiarity they resemble the fish of the latter place, it may be that this fly is only a favorite with sea-going flsh. A little tinsel wound round the body is supposed to improve its efficiency, as some fishermen suggest from a resemblance to the prin- cipal Winter food of the trout, the salt water minnow. The earliest fly on the Long Island ponds is a dark water fly, with a brownish red body and legs, and black, filmy, transparent wings. It is rather large, is wafted along upon and occasionally rises from the water, and never appears in any considerable numbers. It is usually represented by the English or female cow-dung, which, altliongh not similar in coloring, presents somewhat the same general appearance. The wings, being transparent, should not be imitated with a black feather, although I have had great success when these flies were on the water with a fly that had black wings and a claret body and wm wm^mtmi 260 FLIES AND KNOTS. legs. The orange dun, with a body tinged with brown, "would be a good imitation. "llie next natural fly, which is smaller than the last, is of a greenish yellow, and is also caricatured by the cow- dung. But it is decidedly recommended to make a more faithful copy, which the writer has done with eminent success^. In speaking of this matter, it is important to add that the midges, such as the black gnat and others, are out earlier, and it is to the larger flies alone that reference is made. The earliest of the species mentioned appears in ordinary seasons about the first of March, and the next about a week later. At this period, and at all periods, of a bright day a large black gnat with black hackle, black or dark blue body, silver tinsel at the tail, and dark wings, is usually successful. Shortly after the greenish fly, come many others, appearing almost together, and among them the cow- dung and the yellow sally, the latter occasionally fairly covering the water. About this time the professor an Bwers well, although I have never discovered its proto- type, if it has any, and shortly afterward an unimitated brown fly, together with the blue blow and cinnamon, and in warm weather innumerable others. In the latter part of April and early part of May, the bushes and streams are alive with the gay little beauties, of every color, size and shape, and the fish make them their principal food. But the waters are growing clear, the deception is becom- ing apparent to the fish's eye, and the insects, though in reality larger, must have more delicate substitutes. At such times a small red bodied fly, with dun wings, has proved extremely killing, and although large, white, FLIES AND KNOTa 261 wbite, gelatinous ephemei*se swim upon the water, the midges are on quiet days the most successful ; and when the sky is bright, subdued colors are in principal demand. In June there are prominent, among many others, the black fly, with body, wings, legs and antennee all of the same sable hue, busy the entire day dancing over the water a veritable dance of death, for it is often terminat- ed by the fatal rush of the watchful trout ; a dun fly, with greyish dun mottled wings, grey legs, and light green body ; another fly with similar wings, but red legs, and a rich brown body — none of these having any whisks in their tails ; another beautiful and delicate yel- low fly, that appears generally in the morning and eve- ning, and flies heavily and slowly from place to place, till it falls suddenly, and is forever submerged in the cruel waters. Its legs, body and wings are yellow, the latter being the palest, and it has two short whisks and antennsB of the same color. All the foregoing have four wings, in the black and yellow varieties strongly reticu- lated, and all but the last swim well under water. Tow- ard night a frail whitisb fly makes its appearance still more fragile than its yellow compeer ; it has two wings, a thick body and long whisks. The eyes of the yellow and white fly are black spots, and although T. never have done much with a white fly, a small yellowir h drake was successful- when the yellow flies were abundant. A bet- ter imitation however could be made of pure yellow. On one occasion I was struck with the fact that although 1 did not know these insects were on the water, my only successful flies were a yellowish fly, a green- bodied, dun winged fly, and a similar fly with a brown P|iPiPMP**l"«PiPOT"<"<""^^R^ ■^ 262 FLIES AND KNOTS. body, and I hit on them accidentally after trying a great variety. Hackles, in our Long.. Island ponds, are, by nniversal testimony, a failure, and the palmers worthless; and throughout the breadth and length of our country, the winged flies are vastly preferable. The hackles and palmers are intended to represent the caterpillars, which our fish very sensibly ignore alongside of the innumer- able beautiful, delicate and gaudy flies, and which under no circumstances are found except in the fresh-water brooks. Through all the early Spring, the stomaclis of the trout will be found filled with the shells of the caddis, and these, if they could be obtained, would doubtless be a killing bait Fortunately they cannot be, and are not to my knowledge used here at all. In our mountain streams the fish are generally extremely numerous, though small, and will eagerly seize any fly presented to them, vying with one another to be first. The following is a good assortment, and will, in addition to those already mentioned, be sufficient for all waters : The alder-fly, English partridge hackle, hackles of all colors, red and black ants, the devil-fly with a yellow body, the tail of one red and one black whisk, black hackles and red and black wings, dark mackerel, red spinner, English blue jay, fern-fly, orange dun, the camlets of various colors, grey, dun and black liiidges, the coachman, the stone-fly, the. May-flies, millers for night-work, the sand-fly, the various other duns, the turkey brown, and a larg** light grey fly. As each maker employs difierent colors and feathers for the same fly, these descriptions are rather indefinite ; FLIES AND KNOTS. 2C3 Utiiers inite; but by taking a number of yarious shades, you can rea- dily select the most effective. The well-known flies should be dressed after Bonalds as far as practicable. It is to be regretted that there is not more uniformity and pride in, or practical acquaintance with, the subject among our principal tackle-makers. With the English makers it has always been an especial care that their flies should be dressed well and with uniformity ; but here, anything that can be palmed off on an ignorant or indulgent pub- lic, or a barbarous country trade, is all that is desired. It is better always to send a pattern, with instructions to copy it precisely, and that no originality of variation will be permitted. Then, and then only, can you obtain what you wish. So much for trout-flies. To make a salmon-fly, the following additional direc- tions, most of which apply equally to carefully made trout-flies, will be found convenient. Tie on the gut as before directed; upon reaching the bend, fasten the spring pliers on to the thread, and do not take them off till the fly is finished. Take two turns with the silk over a strip of tinsel, pass the latter several times round the hook to form the tag, fasten it with the silk and cut it off; introduce the floss for the tip, take several turns evenly, tie it down and cut off the end ; introduce the tail and then a piece of herl, wind the herl at the root of the tail and fasten it ; take in .a new piece of tinsel and a hackle by rubbing back all the fibres but a few at the point ; leave both pointing from the head. Take a small piece of mohair between your fingers, break it over and over again into small pieces, lengthen it out and twist it round tiie silk toward the left, as otherwise it will ¥ HIHIlliI II.. nil I ^nspp^pimiMHiRPP ^^"if'mmmiKfKiif^ 264 FLIES AND KNOTS. unlay in winding; wind the silk and mohair together round the shank to the shoulder, leave a space of bare hook sufficient for the wings. Wind in loose coils first the tinsel and then the hackle, and fasten both at the shoulder. Strip two wings from feathers that have been taken from the opposite sides of the bird, place them together, hold them firmly on the hook with the left forefinger and tiiiimb, and fasten them securely. Cut off the ends, insert a piece of herl, wind it over the head and tie it down. Lay the end of the silk back down the shank, and take three turns w* ^ the other part over silk, hook and gut ; pass th . gut end through the loop three times and draw the eilk tight. Two turns of silk should hold the different parts during the entire operation, and a couple of half hitches under the wings at the shoulders are sometimes used to fasten off. The feathers should be mated to make neat wings, and if they are laid right side out they will close round the hook ; if otherwise, they will stand out. Do not fail to varnish at the head with wood varnish, or some other kind that will dry rapidly. The hackle may be intro- duced at the shoulder. Where herl or floss is used for the body, it is wound on separately from the tying silk, which is sometimes passed in loose coils afterward. A second hackle of a different color, or a feather wound like a hackle, may be introduced after the first, or after the wings and before the head is finished, and is called the lags. Tlie wings must be tied above the dubbing on tho hook, or they are liable to turn, especially where floss silk is used for the body. The following is a list of Canadian salmon flies, copied FLIES AND KNOTS. 2d5 pi ied from the work on Salmon Fiehng in the Provinces, edited hy Colonel Alexander, supposed to be by Dr. A damson, with two of my Qwn added ; the latter having been iurnished by a friend of extended experience, are warranted excellent : No. 1. Louise. — An extremely beautiful fly, having wings composed of the golden plieapant's top-knt)t, breast feather and tail, with sprigs from the green pan'ot, blue macaw and kingfisher; the b )dy is of fiery b;own mo- hair, with gold twist ; the head of orange mohair ; the tail, a single feather from the golden pheasant's top-knot ; reddish-brown hackle and jay legs. No. 2. Edwin. — A much simpler fly and often equally efficacious among the fins, the wings being composed of the golden pheasant's tail feather with a dash of yellow macaw; the body, yellow mohair; ribs, of black silk; head, black mohair; tail, golden pheasant's top-knot; hackle, yellow ; and scarlet silk tip. No. 3. FoKSYTir. — ^Wings of tlio yellow macaw, with a slight dash of mallard wings at each side ; yellow mohair body, with black ribs ; head, black ; tail, g< 'Iden phea- sant's top-knot ; hackle, yellow, with light blue silk tip. No. 4. Stkphens. — ^Wings of golden pheasant's breast feather, with slight mixture of mallard ; body of reddish brick-colored silk, gold twist ; head, black ostrich ; tail, golden pheasant's top-knot; hackle, red, to match the body ; tip, blue silk. No. 6. Ross. — ^Wings of mallard and peacock's herl ; body, cinnamon-colored silk, gold twist ; no head ; tail, green parrot j red and black hackles and black tip. No. 6. The Parson. — This is a beautiful and efficient m • 0^ 266 VLIES AND KNOm fly. The wings are mixed, and very Biinilar to those of No. 1, but have a slight mixture of wood duck in them ; the body is of very dark claret silk, with gold twist ; head, black ostrich; tail, golden pheasant's top-knot; hackle dark claret ; legs, blue, with a tip of yellow and gola. No. 7. Strachan. — ^Mixed wings, chiefly of golden pheasant's tail, yellow macaw and jay's wing ; body of crimson silk with gold twist ; head, black ostrich ; tail, golden pheasant ; black hackle, with jay's wing legs ; tip, yellow and gold. No. 8. Langevin. — ^Wings, body, tail, hackle, legs, tip all yellow, made of the dyed feathers of the white goose ; the head of black ostrich, and the twist of black silk. No. 9. "WuiTCHKR. — Mixed wings, of mallard and hooded merganser, the latter being like the teal wing, only more of a yellowish green, or the tail of the golden pheasant may be used ; head, black ostrich herl ; black hackle and black mohair body, with a thin rib of silver ; tip, yellow silk ; and tail from the top-knot of the golden pheasant. No. 10. Grey Fly. — Mixed wings, of mallard, tur- key, golden pheasant's neck and top-knot, and sprigs of blue macaw ; head of black ostrich heel ; legs, carmine ; grey hackle ; body of a grey mohair, with silver ribs, and tip of silver and deep orange silk ; tail, mixed grey mal- lard and tail of the golden pheasant. . v ; - It will be observed that the foregoing are not imita- tions of any natural insect, but merely fanciful combina- tions of beautiful colors. The more harmonious the tints the finer the effect. Some of them are gay flies, gaudiei % FLIES AND KNOTS. 2C7 tur- gsof mine ; , and mal- imita- ibina- tints ittdiei tlian I slioiild recommend ; modcgt colors suit the sal- mon as they do the Uirlies of our country. For the rivers of N"ew Brunswick more particularly, I would add tho following, requesting the reader to bear in mind that larger and more brilliant flies are permitted among the rougher waters and heavier fish of the Canadas. Ko. 11. Nicholson. — ^Wings mallard with sprigs of blue macaw ; body, blood-red mohair, head of black ostriclpherl ; hackles, one blood red and one dark blue wound on together ; gold ribs and tip ; tail, mallard and golden pheasant neck. This is one of the best flies ever cast on the Mirumichi or Nipisiquit, and is simple and inexpensive. No. 12. Chamberlain. — ^Turkey wing, the lighter and darker fibres mixed, or turkey and mallard ; head, black ostrich herl; orange mohair body and hackle, yellow legs, silver or gold ribs and tip and black silk twist ; tail of golden pheasant top-knot. No 13. Darling. — ^Wings of turkey and golden phea- sant neck feather and sprigs of blue macaw ; head, black ostrich ; hackles, black along the stem, but with reddish ends ; tip, orange silk ; .tail, golden pheasant top-knot ; thin gold ribs and tag and black mohair body. No. 14. Majob. — ^Wings of mallard and turkey with sprigs of blue macaw ; head, claret herl ; light red hackle, and orange legs ; body, deep purple mohair ; tip, blue silk : tail, golden pheasant neck feathers ; ribs and tag gold tinsel. No. 15. Captain. — ^Wings of turkey and golden phea- sant tail and neck feathers and sprigs of blue macaw ; head claret herl ; red hackle ; body, claret mohair ; tip; mimm'^W't''m^smmmm^ ■wpinfiipii^ipwwiw ^in I 268 FLIES AND KNOTS. orange Bilk ; silver tag, gold ribs, and tail of golden pheasant top-knot. No. 16. Cariboo. — "Wings of turkey and mallard with sprigs of macaw, '^nd a few fibres from the golden phea- sant's neck ; head of black ostrich herl ; claret -legs ; grey hackle ; body of grey cariboo hair or mohair ; lowei part of tip golden yellow silk, and upper part black silk ; tail, golden pheasant top-knot, and gold tag. This fly, with various modifications, is extensively ugod by the resident fishermen of Fredericton. - %• • ; * ^i No. 17. Emmet. — No head ; wv:g8 of black and golden pheasant neck feather with sprigs of macaw ; body, black mohair ; black hackl ) ; gold tip and twist ; a turn of black herl taken just above the tail, . which is golden ■pheasant crest. ■■':->- -/^- ^■-*- ^ir^*'---;,i^^ i-- , .^^'/v; '::^ . ,>■ ^v?^ ' -r- '■'' Ko. 18. LiLLiE. — ^Wings and tail dark grey turkey ; body, mohair of the same dull color ; yellow silk tip ; red hackle, and no head. This is almost identical with the stone fly, and approximates in color to the natural fly, and is generally dressed on a small hook. There is no limit to the list of salmon flies that might be given ; artistic beauty is a great point to be gained, but further than that nothing is positively ascertained on the subject. I was once visiting a well known salmon river with fifty dozen flies loaned to me by an ex"cellent angler who was one of the oldest habitues of the stream. Another excellent fisherman looked over my books with an unapproving air, and after my return told me that he was surprised I had taken any fish at all, for my flies were totally unsuited to the river. It is, however, gene- rally conceded that different waters require different mmmmmm FLIES AND KNOTS. 269 ained, tained Balmon tjellent stream. C8 with that ly flies ', gene- Lfferent flies, and those in vogue in Canada are mnch gayer than those of New Brunswick. In Great Britain it was once the custom, as it still is in Wales, to use sombre colors ; in England and Ireland the gayest are now the rage ; per- haps it will be the same hero, and in tlie end we may find that handsome, gaudy featlieis answer best. The turkey wing is of various colors, but where no other specific direction is given, the common mixture of black and brown is intended. Some sportsmen pretend to assimilate their flies to the sand-lance, others to the shrimp ; as the salmon obtain neither in fresh water, there is little tC' choose between the plans. As will be seen, therefore, from the foregoing, salmon flies are much more complicated than trout flies, and require more skill in their manufacture. The wings are ordinarily made of numerous fibres, frequently of dis- tinct feathers, which are fastened separately upon one another, and usually called toppings. The hook is often first tied securely with thick silk and then varnished, while a small loop instead of a length of gut is used. This is allowed to dry, and finer silk, usually the color of the intended fly, is employed to tie the feathers. Occasional fastenings may be made by taking a hitch over the whole, and varnish is applied, especially at the head and tail. After the hook is tied on, the silk is made fast at the bend, where the tinsel, the whisks, the body and the hackle are inserted ; the latter may, however, be introduced after several turns have been taken with the body, and the body may be divided into sections of various colors, in a manner that the least practice wiU render easy. v •f- I"<"«i:i mm i-wiw vmJii^ffim^'immi^ •mm. ^KWUP iiiiiiiii.ij.i«iiyp^pngpi S70 FLIES AND KNOTS. It is no small matter to give a list of ♦he requisite fly- making materials, bat the following are a few of the most important : Silk of various colors, wax, nippers, scissors, a bench vice, picker, spring pliers, varnish, hooks and gut, tinsel of gold and silver, twisted and plain ; hackles of all colors, feathers of the mallard, teal, woodcock, golden, silver and argus pheasants, turkey, macaws, curlew, ruffed grouse, ibis, blue-jay, black-bird, fresh water rail, guinea fowl, common chicken, and any and all other birds that may come in the angler's way ; dubbings of mohair, pig's hair, wool, seal's fur, rat's, mole's and squir- rel's fur; floss silk of all colors, and peacock's and ostrich herl. Dyed feathers had better be purchased of the tackle makers, and should include blue, purple, orange, yellow, brown, green, crimson and scarlet hackles, and yellow wing feathers. -^v^^:, There is a Limerick hook now made with the shanlc turned over so as to form a loop into which the gut is inserted and the trouble of tying the gut is avoided. They have come into general use among the Irish and Scotch fishermen, and are a great aid to the man that ties his own flies. The gut in ordinary fly fishing wears out just above the hook, a difficulty that if entirely removed by this improvement, and it is by no means so ugly or ungaialy as might be supposed. This is no new discovery, but has beei-. practised with common Araeri- ican hooks for a considerable period, and might be advantageously used in many kinds of fishing, and ap- plied to all hooks, rf - •,^,,,.wv Hooks are numbered in the most singular manner, no FLIES AND KNOTS. 271 er, no two makers agreeing, and some indulging in remarkable eccentricities. But as Limerick hooks are generally used for fly-making, the nurabere 2, 1, 1^, and Vq will include all that is requisite. No. IJ- is my favorite for ordinary purposes, but a few Vo may be desirable in heavy water, with an occasional monster for foaming rapids. The charges for dressing trout flies in this country are exorbitant, whereas in England thoy can be purchased of the best makers at from seventy-five cents to a dollar and a half per dozen ; we are charged from a dollar and a half to three dollars, and generally furnished an inferior article. There is an abominable article of wholesale traffic sold foi fifty cents a dozen, that is beneath any sportsman's notice. I have imported a great many, but it is a troublesome operation, and the best way is to bear the imposition meekly. "■ ^ The English and Irish salmon flies are, on the con- trary, expensive ; a great deal-^f the neck and top-knot of the golden pheasant and of the wings of the blue-jay is employed, birds which cost from ten to twenty-fivo dollars a piece, and which only furnish twenty to thirty pairs of each kind of feathers. The use, therefore, of several long crest and neck feathers at fifty cents a pair in the wing, and five or six from the top-knot for the tail, besides other expensive materials and the employ ment of the best workmanship, will make a fly dear jit the original cost. Blacker, the great English rod and fly maker, lias been paid two guineas apiece for his finest. The reader may console himself by remembering that salmon were taken with the fly before the golden 272 FLIES AND KNOTS. pheasant was heard of as one of the indispensable ingro- dients. A little practice will enable the angler to mako flies himself, and add to his sport the consciousness of invention. Except in that way, and except for salmon fishing, the Bportsmen of our country have no tirxie to waste tying flies. Tlie regular shops charge a heavy profit over the amount paid the workman, and if the purchaser is capa- ble of telling a good fly, the best plan is to go direct to the latter, explain what is wanted, and show an interest in the proceeding. A half dozen of each of the fore- going specimens, firmly fastened on strong, round, even gut, will last two months' daily salmon fishing in well- stocked streams. An average loss of four or five a day would be by no means surprising, although a single one might kill a great many fine fish. Hooks are apt to be broken at the bend by striking against a rock, from care- lessness, or the awkward handling of too long a line. If you find a hook broken in that way, lay it primarily to this cause, and watch the sweep of your cast. After the fly is made, tying it on to the leader and the leader to the line is an important matter, and as it is always desirable to put the right knot in the right place, the following directions may do something toward ena- bling one to effect that object, and after a little practice will be found entirely intelligible. The gut lengths of the droppers should be sliort, to prevent their fouling round the leader. No. 1 and No. 2 are both good ties to fasten xhc leader to the line. No. 3 is a becket-hitch, and No. 4 a double becket-hitch. No. 5 is a single water knot. It It- I mm 274 PLIES AND KNOTS. No. 6 is a double water knot. Tlie latter are used foi tying lengths of gut together. But reeollect that before .a knot is made in gut it must be wet, and had better be soaked for some time in warm water. In using the double knot, the ends need not be whipped down. No. 7 shows how a dandy fastens his droppers to the leader. No. 8 shows how a lazy man does the same thing. No. 10 is a reef, or square knot. No. 11 ia a granny knot, and you had better not knot that knot as a reef knot at sea. The former never slips, and yet never jams ; the latter always slips and always jams. No. 12 is a bowline, the best knot of all. No. 13 is a wall. No. 14, a wall and crown ; follow the strands round with the ends, and it is a double wall and crown. No. 15, a Mathew Walker, is made by unlaying the strands a sufficient distance, and carrying one end underneath and through its own bight, then the next underneath through the bight of the first and its own bight, and then the third underneath through the bight of the first and second and then its own. No. 1 6 shows the first strand passed ; No. 17 is the finished knot. A diamond knot. No. 18, is made by laying the strands back along the rope, then passing the first end over the second through the bight of the third, the second over the third and through the first, and so on drawing all tight. It may be crowned like a wall. No. 19 is a sheet bend. No. 20, a studding sail bend. No. 21, a rolling hitch. No. 22, a timber hitch. No. 23, a clove hitch. A whipping is put on as shown by No. 24, by first passing the turns over one end, and then the FLTES AND KNOTS. 275 its the 16 the end the on )end. 24, the other end under the last few tnrns, and drawing it close. No. 25 is called a cat's paw. These knots will probahly he sufficient without adding the hangman's knot, with its seven professional turns, and a choice among them will often be found convenient, while a glance at the cut will refresh an imperfect recollection. In tying flies or hooks, it is well to use varnish occa- sionally, in fact wherever it can be done without injur- ing the appearance of the colors ; no fly will last well that has not been varnished. In making the wings of salmon flies, it is usual to put on numerous fibres, often of diflferent feathers, and tie them on separately. This renders the wings more pliable, but destroys their beauty and harmony. A number of inconsistent colors will injure the effect of one another ; the contrast between body and wings should be decided, and the unity and coherence of the latter should be preserved. K the tip of the feather is used and fastened by the stem, it will slip unless firmly secured. There is great difference in the adhesion of the fibres of different fea'hers, but a lit- the practice will determine the selection. Black bass flies are generally made with a red body, gold twist, and wings of ibis and white, or black and white, or peacock's herl and white ; but a beautiful and efi^ective fly is made as follows : wings, two plumes of the silver pheasant with two smaller ones of ibis over them; body, blood-red mohair; furnace hackle; blue floss tip"; gold tag, and ibib tail. In salmon fishing it is customary to uso but one fly, as two sixteen-pound fish would be troublesome to handle ; but occasionally a dropper is added at the 276 FLIES AND KNOTS. upper end of the casting line to attract their atten- tion. Three flies are sufficient for trout fishing, and are desirable, although frequently failing to hook the fish in consequence of lying on or close to the leader. This is in a measure prevented by short, stiff gut lengths, but when the rises ai'e mainly at the upper flies, many will be missed. In this connection it may be well to mention that coloring gut, especially for bright, transparent waters, is an error ; remember the fish from below look at it against the sky, and will see it the plainer the more it is colored. The less distinguishable to the angler the more apparent it is to them. This can be proved without difficulty, by holding against the light two strands, one plain and the other colored. For salmon, it should, if single, be round and strong ; for trout, fine and delicate. INSECTS. 277 CHAPTER XXVm. INSECTS. Theee 18 nothing more beautiful, wonderful and inter- esting than insect life ; there is nothing that offers a wider field for examination or affords more gratify- ing results. Under the head of insects are classed, in popular language, all the minute animals ; but only those having six legs and two antennae, and which undergo one or more changes or metamoi-phoses should be included ; most of them have wings, and their name is derived from the word insecta^ divided, which is ap- plied to the divisions or articulations of their bodies. The outer part of their body is slightly bony, and to it the muscles are attached. Insects exist in myriads ; whole families are €till nndescribed, and many species unknown. Even in the old countries new discoveries are made yearly, and in the Kew "World it can hardly be said that anything is authenticated on the subject. Facts concerning the com- monest are most remarkable. One class of wLite ants, like our southern fellow countrymen, makes slaves of a darker race. Many beautiful flies live only a few hours. The eyes of the common house fly are composed of nu- merous surfaces or lenses, and their life, habits and instincts are a study in themselves. Being so numerous mmmmmm mmfimwrv^rmm^ "••'UPCTiifP^wr 278 INSSCTa and so nearly allied, their classification is entirely imper* feet, and like a similar attempt with any other part of animal lite, a failure. Almost every scientific writer has invented a system of entomological distribution for him- self, and their united efforts have produced endless con- fusion ; the arrangement generallv followed is that of Latreille, the fatlier of modern entomology. •* Insects are by him divided into two great divisions : those that live by chewing, mandibulata, and those that live by sucking, hausfellata, whence the name applied to some of the human family. Of the former the beetles, coleoptera^ are prominent, and among the latter the butterflies, lejpidoptera. It is to be observed that the bees, although furnished with a sucking apparatus to collect honey, feed with mandibles, and are in the first class. ..' ./. "■ '■.:•■ :,;. ■ .a Latreille further divides the various groups as follows ; and although English authors have made many changes, the alterations are of such doubtful utility that the origi- nal classification will be retained. ; , > .4 The first class is that of insects without wings, such as the thysanura, or those having a bushy tail, which are mandibulate. Parasites or lice, and fleas, both of which are suctional, the last having a metamorphose, but the first two not. All others have wings, but the second class includes those that have a hard covering or case, called an elytron, over their wings ; the beetles, which have a horny wing cover and perfect metamorphose ; the dermoptera,) which have a horny wing cover but an im- perfect metamorphose ; the orthoptera^ or straight- winged insects, their wings folding longitudinaily, and having a lysEoia 279 leatheiy cover — all of which are inandibulate ; and the hemiptera^ which have the wings half leathery and half membranons, and the mouth fluctorial, and in both of the latter the metamorphose is imperfect. In the third class the wings are naked and alike ; it includes the neuro- ptera^ or nerve-winged insects, in which the veins of the wings are like a net ; the hymenoptera^ the wings being membranous, and veined lengthwise— both families being mandibulate ; the lepidoptera, or scale-winged insects, having delicate scales on the wings — this order is sucto- rial, and the entire three orders have four wings ; the rhijyiptera, which are mandibulate and have two balances or halteres before the wings which close like a fan, whence their name is derived, and the diptera, which have two halteres behind the wings — in these families there are only two wings. The ortJioptera include, as familiar examples, cock- roaches, crickets, katydids, and grasshoppers ; the nev/ro' ptera white ants, May-flies, caddis-flies, dragon-flies or devil's darning needles, and hoodlbugs ; the hymenoptera common ants, wasps and beee; the lepidopiera butter- flies, moths, silk-worms, and humming-birds ; the heTrd- ptera plant lice, cochineals, and locusts ; the diptera mos- quitoes, house-flies, horse-flies, and bot-flies. The order hsmiptera is frequently divided into two, according as the wings are of a uniforni texture, hornO' ptera, or of a varied texture, heteroptera ; the lepidopttra are divided into three classes — ^those that fly by day, and generally have the antennae knobbed ; those that fly in the twilight and have the antennae thickened, and those tliat are nocturnal and have the antennae slender. The II ^ ^^^. IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) // m/. & 1.0 I.I M 12.5 litis 14.0 2.2 2.0 iiy^ l-'^5 1 1.4 1.6 4 6" ► Photographic Sciences Corporation 23 WEST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, N.Y. 14580 (716) 872-4503 6\ 2S0 INSECTS. English writers have transposed the families griUidm and locuatidcB to suit the popular translation of the Scriptures, and have introduced a separate order called trichoptera. As they are principally minute objects, wise men wisely concluded the deficiency should be made up in length of name, and but one class appears under the weigh.t of less than four syllables. The families comp'^s- ing these orders are almost innumerable, and only those that are allied to the subject in hand can even be men- tioned. Amateur entomologists prefer the coleoptera for their beauty and variety, and collections of insects are mainly composed of brilliant, gaudy and wondrous bee- tles, varying in size from the giant, as large as the pretty fisv of one of the reader's little female acquaintances, to the pigmy that is hardly perceptible to the eye. There is the beautiful and useful lady-bird, the wonderful light- ning-bug, the elephant beetle with trunk and tusks, the hercules with stout heavy limbs, the palm weevil, whose disgusting grubs are eaten as delicacies by the deluded people of St. Domingo, and many other dangerous look- ing fellows with long sharp snouts that are really harm- less, and innocent looking fellows that are really danger- ous. The fly-fisher, however, relies for his pleasure mainly upon his imitations of the neuropiera and diptera^ and not so much upon the coleoptera, llie young of the insect tribe, when it issues from the shell in the shape of a worm, is known as the larva^ although the larvae of some butterflies are called cater- pillars, and of certain flies maggots. When the larva begins its metamorphose it is named a pupa or chrysalis, INSECia 281 la and the covering with which it surrounds itself a pupa* case or cocoon. It then undergoes a wonderful change, becoming the full-formed insect or imago — the ngly worm, that a short time previous had surrounded itself with &, silken cocoon, bursting its case and flying off a gay, attractive and resplendent buttei'fly. From crawl- -ing meanly over the ground or the foliage, leaving a slimy streak behind, or horiible with a greenish smooth body and clinging feet, or disgusting witli innumerable bristled, it soars away, its gay plumage glittering in the sunlight as it flits from flower to flower, the envy and admiration of the human female sex. How much is there not in beauty I Many insects live for years as worms, and but a few hours in their perfect state. The ephemercBy so called from appearing in the morning and dying before night, often do not reach half that age, although if the sexes are separated they will sometimes attain the great age of several weeks. They may be regarded as sacrificing their lives for the tender passion. They cover our waters in Summer, warmed into existence by the sun's rays, flit- ting in a graceful but ineflScient way from place to place, or floating calmly upon the surface, dropping back into nonentity with the departing sunlight. They are some- times, especially in the southern country, quite large, and include what among fishermen are known as the May ^fiies. In some classes the change from the larva is not so remarkable, the worm having much of the appearance, and many of the distinctive marks of the perfect fly, as for example the bee ; in these the metamorphose is 283 INSECTS. said to be imperfect. The eyes of insects are either compound, composed of numerous lenses, amounting in certain butterflies to thirty thousand, or simple, called stemmata^ the latter alone being found in the larvse, although in some of the beetles the larvse have eyes in the head and tail both. They are often long ia matur- ing ; one species of locust, as is well known, remains seventeen years before coming to perfection, and many other families continue several years as larvee. Some of the larvae live in the earth, some in wood, and others under water ; some hide themselves in a cocoon ere their metamorphose is effected, others build houses of stones or sticks, others have no protection ; but all are wonder- ful. One swims upon the water, another walks upon its surface, a third crawls along at the bottom, although the majority live upon dry land. In defence they use a sting, simulate death, eject a poisonous liquid, or emit an oflfensive smell. The eggs mature in the running or stagnant water, in the ground, in the limbs of trees, in the foliage and stems, or in the fruit. Grasshoppers in the East, grubs among savages, snails among French- men, ants among Brazilians, locusts among prophets, and, if all reports are true, certain minute parasites among Italians, have furnished pleasing and nutritious food. • -> ;v,-'.^--; >^v; -■•;- J-.., ;v.V': -'<■■■, . But of all the marvels of insect life, that which is least consonant with nature and least credible to human understanding, is the fact that they appear spontaneously. "Why should a few drops of rain in a dusty road produce animalculsB never seen before ? Why should a little per" manent dirt originate two distinct parasites, according as IKSEOTS. 288 it accnmnlatefj on the head or body ? Why should new insecta year after year make a perpetually changing "«varfare against the farmer's crops in gradation with the exhaustion of the soil ? Why should the Hessians bring the Hessian fly, or vice versa, as yon please? And a great many other Whys which never have been and neyer will be answered till the " heavens shall be rolled up as a scroll." Insects feed voraciously on leaves, vegetables, fruit, on human blood — sad to relate — and fortunately on one another. Mosquitoes, thank Heaven, have parasites that cling to the delicate rings of their bodies, stinging the arch-stinger, and inflicting by their venomous bites this same agonies the sufferers inflict on others. It is to be hoped those gentlemen will increase and multiply, and after exterminating mosquitoes may pay their addresses to the black gnats. Certain families, especially of the coleoptera, emit a species of phosphorescent light in the dark, occasionally light enough to read by. The majority of insects have wings, but many have not, and in some only '^ne gender is winged. A few kinds, such as the locusts, katydids, crickets, death-ticks, emit sounds, to which man^s sympathies have added either a pleasant or painful association, and produce these peculiar cries gen- erally by rubbing the wings or some part of the body. The wings of insects do not e.Kceed four, and are often limited to two ; their legs are six ; some have anteniije or feelers, others long whisks from their tails. The newrojptera, or net- winged 'm^QciB, florfilegen^ gauze- flies, as they are called by the Germans, include the principal pets of the fly-fisher. Their bodies are long, 284 INSECTS. tapering and delicate ; their wings, four, almost transpa* rent and marked with net-like veins. They keep in continual motion for the purpose of catching smaller insects, on which they mainly feed, and generally deposit their eggs in the water, where the grubs live from one to two years on plants or other insects. That most fearful looking, but really harmless and bene- ficent creature, the devil's darning-needle, or dragon-fly, Itbellula, is a remarkable specimen of this family. They are called demoiselles by the French, wasserjunferny water- virgins by the Germans; but, in spite of these pretty appellations, are the tyrants of the surfece of the ponds ; they seize and tear to pieces all other insects, including butterflies and mosquitoes, and will clear a house of the common fly. They are cruel, rapacious and insatiable, and I do not know of their ever being used as bait for trout. The phryganea^ or water-moth, is one of the favorites of the fly-fisher. Its grubs surround themselves with a case formed of wood or grass, and are used by him as bait under the name of caddis- worms. They are the favorite food of the trout in early spring. But the ephemeridcB include most of the specimens imitated by the fishei'man. The larvge of these live in the water, for one or more years, and then, swimming to the surface^ suddenly change into winged insects, delicate and beau- tiful. Tliey sometimes appear in myriads, their dead bodies covering the water. A few make a second change after flying about for a time, and crawl out of their skins once more, leaving their old clothes, to all appearance perfect, sticking to a tree or fence. On their first appear* 'i:^kBu-L . # INSECTS. 285 ance they are said to be in the pseudimago state, and to them the name duns is applied by the fly-fisher ; iivhen they change to the imago or perfect fly, they are called piscatorially spinners. There are exceptions to this uni- formity, as Tvith the May-flies ; the green drake is the psevdimagOj and the grey drake the imago. The j^hryganidcB and epkem^ridm are easily distin- guished; in the former the wings lie close along the b^ck, projecting beyond the body; the antennee or' feelers are long, and there are no whisks ; in the latter the wings stand upright from the body like a butterfly's, the antennsB are very short, and there are two, or occa- sionally three, long delicate whisks. The jphryganidcB attach their eggs to the foliage over- hanging the water, whence upon hatching the larvae fall, and immediately proceed to construct, of twigs or gravel, miniature houses like a snail's shell, where they reside in peace and safety. These cases are lined with ^ilk, spun from the insect's mouth, and are so light as not seriously to impede its swimming and rambling in search of food, and being open at both ends, allow him a view of the outside world. The larvae live mainly on aquatic plants, and when the proper time arrives, they close the ends of their houses with a species of grating, and commence the dormant state of the pupa. In this they remain a few days, and then emerging from their case, they ascend to the surface, burst their skin, and fly away in their perfect state of beauty. The ephemeridcB deposit their eggs in the water, where they soon hatch, and where the grub, which lives usually on clay or vegetabl) matter, resides, occasionally for fe^ -;i?^ 2S6 iNSEcra several years, hiding under stones or in holes in the mnd It then becomes a pupa, and after accomplishing its time, rises to the surface, throws oft* ita skin, and flies away, bearing the name of dun ; it shortly alights on a tree or fence, and sheds its entire skin, withdrawing even its delicate wings and minute whisks from their previous covering. Its colors in the second stage are usually more brilliant, and under the name spinner it enjoys the plea- sures of life, perpetuates its species and dies in a few hours. While laying its eggs, it will be noticed either resting on the water or floating up and down over it. Certain species can swim well under water, and I believe descend to the bottom to deposit their eggs. I have had numbers alight on my pants when I was wading a rapid stream, run down my legs to the bottom, crawl over the stones, and with. a zig-zag motion swim against the cur- rent to the surface. Eocks are frequently seen darkened with flies, that on any sudden approach drop into the water and disappear. The ephemeridai include the blue dun, which becomes the red spinner in its final state ; the marsh brown, which changes to the great red spinner ; the turkey brown, that is transforLicd into the little dark spinner ; the iron blue dun, that becomes the jenny spinner; the green and grey drakes, the July and August duns, and many others. The phryganidm comprise the sand and cinnamon flics ?nd the grannom or green-tail, besides many undescribed. Of the diptera, which are distinguished by having but two wings, we have the cowdung-fly, the golden dun midge, and the black gnat ; of the beetles, the peacock and fern flic : and marlow buzz ; of the hymenopteray the INSECTS. 287 red ant and orange-fly; and occaBionally crickets and graBshoppers are imitated. These are a few, and but a few, of the beautiful insects that sport around or upon our lovely lakes and streams ; the advancing heat of Spring warms them into life ; tliey burbt forth, enchanting man with their beauty, and gaily pass a few days or hours, surrounded by innumerable dangers, which they seem never to heed. One kind suc- ceeds another as the summer advances, usually the more gaudy during the greatest heat, till they crowd the ponds, the air, the bushes with indescribable brilliancy. I have seen, toward ' evening, yellow sallies appear in myriads, their dead bodies literally covering the water ; and in the St. Lawrence rivers, dead eel-flies lie in such masses as to give the effect of sea-weed. It is very desirable that fishermen should, for their own sakes as well as the sake of science, pay more atten- tion to tho habits and peculiarities of these insects. The study of nature in its minute productions is wonderful ; the observations of individuals combined is of great value, and adds immensely to the general store of know- ledge ; something more would be effected than the mere pleasure of taking a large mess, and th.e reproach of idleness removed from our enjoyments. To be sure, the men of science, by the use of ridiculous foreign names and the confounding of a confused and worthless system, have done all they can to uiscourage such an undertaking and repel such aid ; but every one can note the pecu- liarities that are heretofore mentioned, can even readily preserve a specimen and mark the times and manner of their appearance and the length of their duration, and '■fV ivjiqipiimppf^m^pipmpRHiviiviiiapiHpHwiHHiw 288 INSECTS. 4^' 9 'though ho may fail to obtain the scientific name, can determine the epecies and ascertain the habits of a few members of the most wondei'fulf intricate, and interest- ing portion of the creation. s--A^i'' "'' " ^: y- • ,«» ^' CAMP LIFB. . / 289 CHAPTER XXIX. OAMP LIFE. One of the most important matters that demand the sportsman's attention, is the equipment he should take with Iiim to make his life in the woods pleasant. He will have many annoyances and even hardships to encounter, and should he as well prepared to meet them as circum- stances will permit. The following directions are founded upon the idea he intends to retire to the wilderness, far from the abode of man, where he will have to trust for his support to his own exertions, and although many of them may seem superfluous, and to the robust may savor of effeminacy, to those who desire real comfort they will prove acceptable. The great pest of the wild woods is — not tigers nor panthers, not bears nor wolves, not even snakes — ^but something far smaller but infinitely more terrible — the Black Fly I If it were possible for the uninitiated to conceive or the pen to describe the horrors conveyed in these words, I should endeavor to record them. Think of the rack, the boot, the thumb-screw, the wheel ; think of being rent asunder by wild horses, or torn in bits with hot pincers ; think of the tortures of the inquisition, or the cruel fanaticism of India, and smile ; they do not compare with the black fly. When mosquitoes hover 13 .s^ mmm^^'^mmifimimiifmm m^mmmmmimmmmmiimimm 290 CAMP LIFE. » round you day and night, when they fill the air you breathe and deafen your ears with their hum, when your hands, face and body are covered witii itching lumps, it is hard to bear. But mosquitoes are comparatively quiet in the sun-light, and are partially affected by smoke ; they can be influenced by a smudge, can be frightened oft' and sometimes killed ; they do not compare with the sand-fly. . The latter, almost invisible to the naked eye, comes in absolute myria'ls ; it settles upon every inch of exposed flesh ; it creeps into every crevice ; it cannot be frightened away, but must be brushed oft' ; its worst attacks are at night, when tired nature is pining for a little rest ; its bite does not itch, but burns like fire, till face, hands and neck feel as though they had been scalded. But the Band-fly, bad as he is, can be persuaded out of your tent by a Hre ; he does not aboimd except in sandy localities ; his bite does not draw blood, nor raise a lump, and is not permanent ; he does not compare with the black fly. The latter comes without a warning note ; he bites till the blood runs in a stream, and inflicts the sharpest pain ; he clings fast till he is absolutely rubbed off, and crawls up your sleeve or pants or down your neck ; he loves not the fire, nor fears the smoke ; he cannot be enticed nor driven away. The mosquito comes numerous as the rain-drops in a shower ; the sand-fly as the motes in sun- light ; but the black fly like the sand of the desert when the simoom is raging. Resignation can endure the first, stoicism the second, but nothing the last. All three of these pests are found abundantly in the woods, and without being prepared for them, instead of CAMP LIFE. 201 m the sad of pleasure, tlie sportsman's trip would bo one long torture. People Lave been known to be completely disfigured by their bites, and I have had my neck as thoroughly gir- dled as though it had been done with a hot iron. Their bite inflames the blood, and if accompanied with the free use of ardent spirits, may produce unpleasant conse- quences. Let no man through foolhardiness brave their attacks, thinking he can rough it and not give way before such pitiful insects ; as brave and strong men as ever lived have had their pleasure destroyed by these curses of our country,, and he will repent his rashness, if not in sack-cloth and ashes, in blood and misery. I have seen a hard-working man so worn out by their attacks as to fall fast asleep standing up leaning against a rock in a hot July sun, that by its excessive warmth had for the moment driven the torments away. He wore a veil, but not being properly arranged, the flies could climb up its folds, and it was little protection. One may well ask how is it possible to defend one&elf from such irrepressible villains ; nor can it be done per- fectly ; with the best precautions there will be enough to try nerve and temper. Gauntlets of leather drawn above the wrists over the coat sleeve will, though rather warm, effectually protect the hand, and when oppressive, may be cooled by being dipped in water. A veil is the best thing for the face ; a piece of elastic run round the top will enable yon to slip it over your straw hat and fasten it above the brim, which will keep it out from the face ; a spring wire or whalebone hoop sewed in a few inches below, will keep it off your nose, and another piece of elastic round the bottom will hold it tight around iip miM^ wmmmmm 292 GAMP LIFE. your cravat, bo that the flies cannot make their way beneath it ; or the latter maj be omitted to enable you to wipe your face and rub off those stragglers that will find their way in, notwithstanding your precautions. There is a light substance called tissue, that makes a cool but delicate veil, and is preferable to the ordinary barege, and- fcr mosquitoes and black flies, bobinet is still lighter, but sand-flies might pass the meshes. Various ointments have been tried with partial suc- cess ; among them, tar ointment has lately become con- spicuous, as also oil with a few drops of creosote, but my favorite has always been a mixture of the oil of pen- nyroyal with an equal amount of almond or sweet oil ; tliis is both- cleanly and effectnd^l, and need only be renewed once a day. But remember ii must be the oil and not the essence of pennyroyal, which^ latter is utterly worthless. Care must be taken with it, as with the others, not to let them run into the eyes, as they will produce unpleasant smarting. This composition is death on black flies, 'and quite successful against mosquitoes ; but it is well, also, to be provided with tar ointment, which will not spill if the bottle is broken. For clothes, the best suit is of strong duck, heavy enough to resist an able-bodied mosquito, but as loose as possible, so that warm flannelp, of which every descrip- tion should be taken in abundance, can be worn beneath. Flannel coats, shirts and drawers or pantaloons can be crowded into a small space, and are excellent for keep- ing out cold, and are not rendered unpleasant by moist- ure. It must be borne in mind that the Summers in Canada are occasionally absolutely cold, and for weeks CAMP LIFE. 293 lavy ie as be jep- nstr in 3eka in July, I have shivered in every coat and flannel I had with me. Moccasins are the things for the canoe, but if you try to clamber over rocks or wade streams in them, your feet will be bruised and cut severely. It is advisable to wear stout ankle gaiters that lace up, with heavy iron- nailed slippers that may be fastened with a strap and buckle over them, after you have left the canoe, and by means of which you can cling to the rocks without slip- ping so frequently as you otherwise would. You will wear a straw hat, of course, and where mosquitoes are not innumerable, your flannel underclothes will make a delightful boating suit. Never use anything but woollen socks for any sort of hard walking, and by having your net handle shod with iron, and carrying it in one hand, you will make your way among the slippery rocks with comparative safety. The bedding should consist of plenty of blankets, and one or two of them coated with India rubber and ren- dered waterproof, to keep off the moisture that will always rise from the ground at night, to wrap the rest of your clothes in, and to protect them and yourself from rain and wot. A stout leather strap and buckle is neces- sary for the latter purpose. The best tent is a circular one without any ridge-pole, but supported by a rope run through a pulley attached to three long poles cut in the woods, and placed in the shape of a tripod above. The pins are driven into the cloth itself, and hold it so close to the ground that no insects can penetrate beneath, while a flap effectually closes the door. There is a hole for ventilation at the top, which, in a rain, may be closed 294 CAMP LIFE. with a canvas cap. A stout post may La sot up iu the centre with a few nails on which to hang clothes. This tent should only be used at a permanent camp ; and for travelling, the ordinary tent with a ridge-pole, as more accurately described hereafter, is preferable ; a piece of oiled cloth laid over sticks planted slanting in the ground, will keep off the rain and dew. A round tent of twenty-four feet in circumference will not accommodate more than two men luxuriously, where- as one of double that circumferen<;e will hold five times the number. A large tent is a great comfort and not much trouble. A separate tent should of coarse be ^ken foi' your men, and another simple one for a make- shift and a dining-roomw To arrange the latter is your first care on arriving at your permanent camping-ground, the table is of bark, either birch or spruce, nailed fast to posts, and shielded by some protection from the rain ; the seats are either a large log or the barrels you have brought with you to carry stores and fiph, or else stools ingeniously chipped from the trunks of trees with the branches for legs. A dressing-stand is then arranged, with a wash-basin made of birch bark ; the fire-place is rigged up with a ridge-pole supported on two notched sticks, and with a hooked withe to support the kettle, and your sylvan home is furnished. To support and gratify the inner man, it is well to have with you all conceivable little delicacies, such as nutmegs, allspice, preserved fruits, meats and vegetables, sweet oil, lemons and raisins, sardines, chocolate, citric acid and ginger ; but the necessaries are clear salt pork, flour, rice, oat-meal and Indian-meal, coffee, tea, brown a:.. CAMP LIFE. ^95 And white sugar, red and black pepper, fine and coarse salt, butter, sauces, preserved and fresh eggs, solidified milk, ales and ardents according to consumption, pota- toes, smoked beef, pickles, piccalilly, matches, the essence of coffee, bacon, ham, dried beans and peas, hominy, cigars, onions, bread, crackers, molasses, tobacco, desiccated meats and soups. Many of these articles may be advantageously stowed in the barrels intended for packing fish, but the butter should be put up in air-tight jar3 in small quantities, and may in hot weather be buried under water in the sand. The oil tried out of the pork is usually used for frying ; but if you have sufficient butter the latter is infinitely preferable. For cooking yon will need an iron pot and boiling ket- tle, tin kettles fitting inside of one another, a frying-pan with a handle like the kettle, a coffee-pot, some knives and tin plates, cups, spoons, forks and deep dishes, and above all an oyster broiler. The latter has thin wires, and, having two surfaces, can be turned more readily than a gridiron. It should be used extensively : fish and game split open and broiled, well basted with butter, are undeniable, and will be found a pleasant change from the eternal fry. Large fish may be boiled and served up with a little of the liquor strengthened with a teaspoon- ful of Worcestershire sauce. The greatest difficulty will be found with the bread ; the latter may be kept a couple of weeks, and when excessively dry, by steaming in the pot will be rendered eatable, but not good. Ship biscuit must be the main reliance for a long tramp. Before taking your departure, if you could obtain a few lessons in cooking from some elderly lady friend whoso 2D6 CAMP LIFE. ;#■ m-- youth has not been so entirely devoted to dress as to pre- vent her knowing something of her household duties, and will carry with you a few simple recipes, you will not regret it. As no one can be certain of perfect health or freedom from accident, it is well to be provided with plenty of sticking and court plaster, cholera medicine and Bochelle salts ; but generally the fine exercise and open air are a brave preventive against sickness. Do not forget brown soap to wash the dishes, candles for light in the evening, and cream of tartar and soda to make the flour rise. The most necessary tools are an axe, a hatchet, one of Aiken's patent diminutive awl tool-chests, with which to mend broken rods, needles and thread to mend torn clothes, some rosin to mend the canoes, and a supply of ^ various sizes of nails for numerous purposes, while a file and sharpening stone will be found useful additions. An india-rubber water-proof bag is admirable as a receptacle for clothes or blankets, which should be heavy, and a tin wash-basin and an air-pillow will be great additional comforts. Fresh eggs may be conveniently stowed in the barrels of coarse salt used for curing fish. Of the foregoing there are none you can comfortably omit, and besides them there are plenty you would do well to have ; but the judgment and taste of each indi- vidual will suggest the additions. As one of the first objects will be to preserve the fish you catch, a preparation of eight ounces of sugar, two ounces of salt, half an ounce of brown pepper, well rubbed into fish from which the back bone has been re- moved, and which are allowed to dry in the sun, will ''^*-- .■#■■ CAMP LIFE. 297 in preserve them over a month. They should be packed in barrels with layers of bark between, and will prove more edible than when simply smoked ; by smoking they may be kept for years, and the fisherman long liave tlje proud pleasure of offering to friend at breakfast a little of the salmon he killed and smoked himself the previous Sum- mer in Canada. ' In warm weather, fish merely salted cannot be kept long, and pickling in brine utterly destroys their flavor ; but if the latter method must be adopted, a pickle of two parts salt and one part common brown sugar will keep them forever. Before cooking, however, they should be well soaked. Pickling in vinegar with a few c.'oves is probably the best mode where it is possible. Tlie gum for mending the canoes — and it is surprising liow large a hole it will fill — is made of one part rosin to three parts balsam gum, fused together. If the aper- ture is very extensive, a piece of linen saturated wi 'h melted gum should be applied. In New Brunswick and Maine it is usual to mix rosin and grease, which answers every purpose. To smoke fish, it is necessary to salt them in a tub, where they can form a brine, and leave them thus for two days, and then hang them in a smoke-house, not too near the fire, for as many weeks, when they are to be packed in lay ere, separate. Fish are soused by being partially boiled, and having vinegar boiled in copper kettles mixed with allspice and poured over them. Iron turns the vinegar black, and hence this mode cannot be pursued in the woods. Small fish may be headed, cleaned and packed in a jar, which is then filled up with 13* pi 29S CAMP LIFE. vinegar and allspice and baked all night. Next day freeh vinegar is added to make up for the evaporation, and lard is run in to exclude the air. They keep well and taste excellent. An air-tight can is now made, with a cover that fits into a trough which can be filled with melted rosin. This may be used over and over again, and is peculiarly adapted to the woods. It must be hermetically sealed while the contents are boiling, but without sealing might be advantageously used t^ protect sugar and such things from the wet. The same cover is applied to brown ear- then jars, which are well suited for carrying butter. Literature will be found a great resource in the woods, and although Harper's last Monthly may be permissible on account of the shortness of its stories, nothing should be taken of too interesting a character, lest it divert attention from the main object in view. This work will be found extremely safe. In giving the foregoing directions it is assumed that the reader intends to travel with canoes, and does not expect to make any extensive portages, or, as they are called in American, " carries ;" for if the men are ex- pected to back the traps for any considerable distance, the only admissible articles are fishing-tackle, penny-royal, an axe, the tents, pork, ship biscuit, tea, sugar, pepper, salt, tea-kettle, matches and a frying-pan. The «lightest weight becomes a mountain on such occasions, and it will require stout muscles to carry enough for their own sus- tenance. In salmon-fishing this is rarely necessary, unless a man would be an explorer, and the adventurous are always sufferers. IM>>. CAMP LIFE. 299 rill lus- )US As it is possible none of my reader's female acquaint- Rnco have ever soiled their rosy fingers — Heaven savo the mark! — with domestic cookery, an outline of the theory of that science may be advantageous. There are certain well known rules that have no exceptions, unless in the hands of a genius, and which apply to classes and divisions of edibles. For instance, a little salt must always be thrown into the water before anything is boiled in it. Thus, again, with the great class of fried cakes : milk thickened with flour, and an egg or two, and a pinch of salt, makes griddle :. add squash, boiled and mashed, and you have squash cakes ; employ boiled and mashed rice in place of squash, and there is produced the delicate rice cake ; introduce Indian-meal, which has been first scalded, and you have Indian cakes. This class of cakes is made by pouring the preparation, in large tableEpoon- fuls at a time, on a greased griddle or frying-pan. In broiling, frying, roasting, baking, or stewing, salt and pepper are first rubbed on the article to be cooked ; in broiling, baking, or roasting, it is basted with butter or grease, and in frying the butter is first put in the pan and heated. Potatoes boiled, and cut thin when cold, are delicious fried. In steWing, a little water is poured over the meat, and the cooking is done with a cover on. Frying is with butter or grease alone ; stewing with grease and a little water ; and. boiling with water alone. You determine when things are done by the color and trying how they resist a fork. An excellent chowder is made by putting pork, fish, cracker, meat, clams, and anything else that is handy, with vegetables, sufficient seasoning, and a little water, and stewing it well. Stew- 300 OAUP LIFE. ing can hardly be carried to excess, as from the cloBencsa of the vessel the nutritious particles cannot escape. Tlie best omelette the tyro can make, and excellent it will bo found, is by frying eggs, which arc first beaten np and seasoned, till they are not quite firm. They must be stirred all the while to keep them from burning, and if they are done hard are ruined. , A white sauce is made of flour and butter well mixed together, stirred into hot water and allowed to boil for fifteen minutes ; a hard boiled egg may be chopped up and added if desired. This is the appropriate sauce for salmon. A brown gravy is made from the drippings of the meat, and some burnt sugar or browned crumbs addl- ed and warmed up. The following is an accurate recipe for griddle cakes : one pint of boiled rice, three tablespoonfuls of flour, two tablespoonfuls of milk and two eggs. While for fried cakes it will be observed that flour, milk and eggs are used, for ordinary cakes flour, butter and eggs are ijeces- sary, with sugar added for sweetening. Thus, a good cake is made of flve cups of flour, three cups of sugar, two cups of butter and four eggs. This cake must be baked slowly, which could be done in a piece of birch bark inclosed in heated stones, allowing room for it to rise. vt Tlie simplest and best way to boil a salmon is to slash him on the sides with vertical cuts to the bone, having previously drawn, opened and cleaned him, to wash him well in the nearest spring, put him into boiling water sufficiently salt to bear an egg^ and cook him seven or eight minutes to every pound of weight, and serve him CAMP LIFE. 80] with some of tho water he was cooked in foi sauce. The latter may he thickened with flonr and butter. He should, like all other fish, be cooked fresh. Broiled fish, or, if they are larq^e, slices of fish, cook better wrapped in a piece of paper oiled ; and the one- half of a salmon spread out, tacked on a board and roast- ed by a hot fire is excellent ; and in cooking small fish suspended by a twig near the fire, Frank Forester recom- mends that a small stick with a piece of pork threaded on it, should be inserted to keep the belly open, and a biscuit placed below to catch the drippings. A hot fire will cook a fish thus m ten minutes. To bake a fish he is wrapped in oiled paper or birch bark, and placed in an oven built of stones laid in a hol- low, and from which the fire has just been removed, other heated stones are placed above him, and the fire is raked back over tlj6 whole. It will be hardly necessary to remark, in connection with these directions, that fish must be cleaned and have the gills removed and be well washed and scaled before they can be cooked ; that when the word butter is used, and my reader have no butter, he must use such grease or oil as he may have ; that in all cases he can add such sauces and spices to his condiments as he may relish and possess. ■ Among all the variety of prepared sauces, an- chovy for salmon and Worcestershire for meats are the best, but lemon alone gives an excellent flavor. To bread anything, whether it be fried oysters or fried eels, dip them in the yolk of egg beaten up, and then in cracker pounded fine, or they may first be dipped in flour and afterward in egg and cracker. %. 802 CAMP LIFE. Tea is made hy '^^o .Ang a little hot water on the leaves and allowing it to draw by the liro for ten minutes and then tilling up with hot water. Coffee, by putting the coffee, mixed with the yolk of an egg, into boiling water and Billowing it to boil once — no more, on your life. If you do not wish to use an egg, put in a teaspoonful of cold water immediately on taking it from the fire. Tliis is done to clear it. Chocolate is made by melting a cake broken into small pieces in warm water, adding a cup of milk after it is perfectly smooth, and boiling for twenty minutes. An excellent tea is made of yellow birch bark. Bread, especially if it is a little stale, is much improved by toasting, which should be done by approaching it close to the fire, even throwing it on the coals and, burning the outside almost black. If buttered and covered with brown sugar and eaten hot it makes an excellent dessert. If salt pork is to be broiled, it should be cut thin, and may be soaked well in water, dipped in Indian-meal, so as to bread it, and then broiled or fried brown. It can be used in soup by being boiled in two waters. Smoked beef is good if stewed a few minutes with a lump of butter mixed witb flour and enough milk to cover the whole, which may be seasoned with pepper. Fried fish that has become cold can be revived in the same way ; the flour may be omitted and some salt must be added. An onion may be boiled in bread sauce, and removed before serving, or pepper may be added ; celery chopped and cooked in a stew or sauce adds a peculiarly pleasant flavor. Tough meat of all kinds should be stewed, and except salt pork, meat should be rarely fried. The fore- ■■^ -jii^"'" CAMP LIFE. 803 going are soon acqnired by practice, and experience will Biiggest many valuable alterations ; but tbey are all the directions necessary to raaice camp life not merely com- fortable, but by the aid of a good appetite extremely pleasant. Cookery is no mean science, and a knowledge of it will prove interesting and advantageous not only in the wilderness, but so long as Irish cooks shall rule our kitchens and miii our digestions, in the realms of civil- ization. To unite economy in space and weight with the utmost amount of accommodation, the following sized tents will be found to answer for two fisherman and five guides or even four fishermen. The tent -of the gentlemen should' be four cloths deep, each cloth of twenty-six inches, and cut twenty feet long, so that there should be ten feet on each side of the ridge- pole ; the wall takes about three feet, at the upper edge of which a small piece is tabled in where the bolt-rope pabses, to shed the rain. There is an extra strip of can- vas along the ridge, with two small grummets in each end, inside the tent, to receive the poles ; but there is no bolt-rope except along the wall, and there must b^ no cross seams, as they are sure to leak. A shoulder is left on the poles, which are thrust into the grummets and a spreader is forced up between them and sustained as a ridge-pole by a notch cut in each. There are three tent ropes on each side, with a stout line and toggle, or but- ton where they join the tent, to trice up the walls in warm weather ; the doors, which are at both ends, lap well over, and are secured by a strong galvanised hook and eye, and are closed with strings. Along the bottom nwp* 304 OA¥P LIF8. of the wall are rings to peg it down, and the width ia the same as tlio depth. This tent Bets up oi^ht feet high, and is quickly pitched if the polos are retained, which can bo readily done, as they are convenient in the bottom of the canoe to keep other baggage from the wet. Tlie size may be diminished to eight feet square, but will be found rather cramped, especially in wet weather, when the iisherman is more or less compelled to stay indoors, and will not permit of what is often desirable, accommodate ing a visitor. For the men, a simple strip of canvas eight feet square, with sloping sides, is all that is required. In fact, in cold weather an open tent with a fire .in front is preferable to all others, and can be kept as warm as an oven. A Si))- ley tent has many advantages, but must be large, and is troublesome to transport. In cold weather, logs should be cut down and laid up with mud like a hut, or boards driven into the ground close together to form the foim- dation, and the tent set over them. It will be warmer and more roomy. Where there is naught to be shot, and as little to be cauglit, no man has any business in the woods ; but as bad marksmanship or scarcity of game may cause the first, or a rise of water the second, it is well to know that a pound of biscuit and a pound of pork per day is all that a man requires for his support. A fair allowance however would be, considering it merely as an addition to the proceeds of the gun and rod, a pound of biscuit or bread, and half a pound of pork. Where flour is taken the amount of bread may be reduced ; but as the staff of life occasionally becomes wet and moldy, it is CAMP LIFE. 805 e better to ho well supplied. Half a pound of solidiliod milk will luBt one man ton days, a pound of tea thirty, and lialf a pound .*" tobacco ono week. Eight pounds of brown sugar, the same of butter, a bushel of potatoes, and two gallons of molasses are sufficient for two anglera and iive men one week. It is not customary to give men milk, sugar or coffee ; they are carried only for the gentlemen, and the above calculations are made on that footing. Tliese computations may bo relied on, and will bo found extremely usoful ; although the luxuries of camp life may fail, the necessaries must not be exhausted. There is no fun in having to send a couple of your best men fifty miles for provisions, when salmon, are rising or a long journey is to be made. Time devoted to pleasure is precious ; a day wasted is indeed a loss. And now, good reader, farewell. In looking over this book, I perceive how far short I have fallen of my own expectations, and feel how greatly I must have disap- pointed yours. Much has been badly said, much omit- ted, and no doubt much unintentionally misstated. Opinions differ, and experience leads to contrary results. There are game fish, and modes of taking them, with which doubtless I am unacquainted, and yet I hope you will find something here that has not been written before. My aim has been to induce sportsmen to study the habits and proper designation of the different varieties of game they pursue, to apply the appropriate names and distin- guish the various species. My hope is to elevate theijr ■^ #■• 306 CAMP LIFE. purpose above the mere indulgence of that peculiar innate pleasure experienced in the chase, and at the same time, if possible, to press upon the attention of natural- ists the vast assistance they might obtain from their humbler brethren by reducing their language to the standard of ordinary comprehension ; and above all, to insist, by every consideration of humanity, upon the absolute necessity of preventing the cruel, wanton, and untimely destruction of the beautiful inhabitants of our woods and waters. These have been my objects ; it is for you to judge how far I have succeeded. But, reader, let me warn you : neither praise nor dispraise overmuch. In either case I shall write another book, to justify the former or disprove the latter. lar me ral- leir the , tc» the and our it is der, ncl). the -;,w :v.«:? APPENDIX. ■••• CAP. LXII. .AN ACT IPSPEOTINO FISHXBIE8 AND FISHINa. • . ■ » Protection to Fisheriet. 1. The Governor in Council may grant special fishing leases and licenses on lands belonging to the Crown, for any term not exceeding uine years, and may make all and every such regulation or regu- lations as may be found necessary or expedient for the better man- agement and regulation of the Fisheries of the Province. — 22 V. o. 80, s. 4. 2. The Governor may, as occasion shall require, appoint two Superintendents of Fisheries, one for Upper and one for Lower Canada. Four Overseers may be appointed by the Commissiqjiers of Crown Lands, in such places, and in such divisions of territory, as may be considered necessary. — Ihid. s. 6. 5. The Governor in Council may cause to be set apart any river or other water for the natural or artificial propagation of salmon, trout or other fish. — Ihid. s. 8. 6. The Governor in Council may grant permission to fish in the rivers within the Eing^s Posts.— /ftid. s. 9. 7. Whoever throws overboard ballast in any river, harbor or roadstead, where fishing is carried on, or the remains of oifal of fisli, in any such river, or within three miles of the coast of the mainland, or of any island, or on any fishing-bank, shall incur a tine not exceed- ing eighty dollars, and the master or owner of such vessel or boat, from which such ballast or offal of fish shall have been thrown, shall be held liable for every such offence : Provided always that it shall be lawful for any person to bury such offal of fish on the mainland or any island at a distance of not less than an acre from the beach thereof.— /6i A s. 11. SOT 308 APPENDIX. 8. No one shall anchor near the shore in snch a manner as lo impede the throwing and hauling of seines, or the setting of standing nets. — Ihid. s. 12. 9. No one shall eet standing nets in such a manner as to impede the throwing or tlie hauling of seines. — IMd. s. 13. 10. No one shall set seines or nets in such a manner as to impede the navigation or anchorage in any bay, harbor or roadstead, or other place required for navigation — Ihid. 8. 14. 20. No one sliall fish for, catch or kill salmon in any way what-, ever, between the first day of August and the first day of March in any year ; except only that it shall be lawful to fish for salmon with a rod and line, in the manner known as fly-surface-fishing, from the first of March to the first of September in any year, in Upper or Lower Canada. — Ihid. s. 24. 21. No one shall use any net, or take salmon in any way what- ever, at any salmon-leap, or where any artificial salmon pass shall have been constructed, nor in any pools or ponds where salmon are wont to spawn. — Ihid. s. 25. 22. Whoever obstructs the main channel or course of any river, either by placing therein nets or fishing apparatus of any kind, or any obstacles of any kind whatever, for the purpose of taking salmon or any other species of fish, shall thereby incur for each offence a fine not exceeding twenty dollars, and the forfeiture of his fishing apparatus ; and in no case shall the said channel or course so left open be less than one-third of the whole breadth of such river. — Ihid. 8. 26. 23. The owner of any dam or slide where fish may ascend, shall, for the purpose of affording a passage to the fish, attach and main- tain to each dam or slide, a fish way of such form and dimensions as shall be determined by the Superintendent of Fisheries, under a penalty of four dollars for each day on which he shall fail so to do after two months' notice by the superintendeat. — Ihid, s. 27. 24. Any salmon taken in contravention of the twentieth section of this act, shall subject all parties concerned in the breach of the said section, whether the actual transgressors or accessories, to a penalty of not more than forty dollars, nor less than twenty dollars, together with the forfeiture of the fish, oaroe, boat or other vessel in wliich the fish may have been placed, or to imprisonment for a jieriod of nut more than six months, nor less than three months. — Ibid. s. 28. 25. The meshes of any net used for the taking of stdmon shall not be less than five inches in extension, knot to knot, under penalty and on pain of forfeiture of the nets. — Ihid. s. 29. ^ 26. No one shall fish with any net or seine whatever, of a less sized mesh than one and a half inches on the square, in any lake, river or bay, or in any of the waters of Upper Canada. — Ihid. 8. 80. 27. No one shall fish for, catch or kill any kind of trout in any jr^^ iLPPENDIX. 309 lall, kain« U as ir a do lars, Issel ]r a way whatever, between the twentieth of October and the first of February in any year, in Lower Canada. — Ihid. s. 81. 28. No one shall kill any kind of speckled trout, in any way what- evek', between the twentieth of October and the first of April in any year ; nor shall any speckled troat be killed at any time by means of nets or seines in any Inland lake, riyer or stream in Upper Canada. — Ihid. s. 32. 29. No one shall catch trout, by means of nets or seines, in any lake or river, or at the outlet or inlet of any lake, or in any river except the river St. Lawrence, in Lower Canada.-^/&i<Z. s. 33. 80. Except in the Lakes Hnron and Superior, no one shall catch salmon-trout between the fifteenth day of November and the first day of February. — Hid. s. 34. 81. Except as aforesaid, no one shall catch maskinonge, pickerel or black bass, between the fifteenth of March and the fifteenth day of May. — Ihid. s. 35. 82. No one shall buy, sell or have in possession any salmon, sal- mon-trout, nor any kii^d of trout, bass nor maskinonge, taken in contravention of this act; and any fish so taken may be declared forfeited by any magistrate whoms^oever, and any person so found in possession of any of the aforementioned fish, or of any part or por- tion thereof, shall be held to have obtained the same in violation of the provisions of this act, except only upon legal proof to the con- trary, which proof shall devolve wholly upon the person accused.T— Ihid. 8. 86. 83. No one shall construct any fish pound in any river.— Ihid. 8. 37. 34. The Superintendent of Fisheries may grant written permission to any person or persons who may be desirous of obtaining spawn for hondjide artifici^d or scientific purposes, to fish for that purpose, during the close season ; and any person who willfully injures or destroys any place set apart for the artificial propagation of fish, shall incur a fine of not less than twenty dollars nor more than forty dollars. — Ihid. s. 38. 36. No one shall throw lime, or any chemical substance or drug, into any water frequented by any one of the kind of fish mentioned in this act, and any person found guilty of having thrown lime or any other chemical substance or drug in such waters, shall be subjected to a penalty of not less than twenty dollars and not more than forty dollars for each offence. — Ihid. 8. 40. White-fish in the Eitert Niagara, Detroit and St. Clair, 47. Any person who nses or employs, or causes to be u^d or employed, any seine or other nets of a greater length than fifty fathoms, for the taking of white-fish in any of the rivers Detroit, Suint Clair, or Niagara, within Upper Canada, bhall, for every such : -'ili-i- L . 310 APPENDIX. offence, forfeit the sum of five hundred dollars.— 8 W. 4, o. 29, s. 1. 22 V. c, 86, 8. 80. 48. Any person fonnd fishing for white-fish in either of the said rivers within Upper Canada, with seines, gill-nets or other nets, on the first day of the week, called Sunday, shall forfeit for every such offence the sam of two hundred dollars. — -3. W. 4, o. 29, s. 2. White-fish in Upper Canada. 49. Any person who attempts to divert the natural progress or running of the white-fish within Upper Oanada, hy shingling or other device, shall forfeit for every such offence the sum of five hundred dollars, or be imprisoned, not exceeding three months, at the discre- tion of the court. — 3 W. 4, c. 29, s. 8. 50. AH forfeitures incurred under the three last preceding sections of this act may be recovered by action of debt, with costs of suit, before any court having competent jurisdiction ; one moiety thereof to the person who sues for the same, and the other moiety to be pud into the hands of the Receiver General. — 8 W. 4, o. 29, s. 5. CROWN LANDS DEPARTMENT. FISHERIES. Toronto^ 20th December^ \%b%. Pursuant to certain provisions of the statute 22d Vict. cap. 86, the Governor General in council has been pleased to adopt the fol- lowing Regulations for Salmon and Sea-trout Fisheries in Lower Canada : By-Law A. — In agreement with the intent and meaning of the 4th and 7th sections of the Fishery Act, it is hereby declared that hence- forth the Crown, for all practical purposes, resumes and reeenters formally into possession of all fishing stations for salmon and sea- trout appertaining thereto, in Lower Canada, and that no claim by priority or by reason of past occupation of any of these places, shall hereinafter exist, and that any party or parties continuing to occupy and use any net-fishery for salmon or sea-trout without obtaining lease or license therefor under authority from the Crown, shall, after previous notice, become liable to such pains and penalties as are impoyd by the aforesaid act — saving moreover, all other recourse in like cases provided by law. B. — Neither stake-nets, drift-nets, gill-nets, float or stell-nets, Bcoop-nets, seines, weirs, nor other self-acting machine whatsoever APPENDIX. 311 58. lets, bver shall Lo used within the course of any river or stream freciuented chiefly by salmon and sea-trout, at a greater distance from the mouth thereof than the usual mark of tidal floods, or inside of such other actual limit as may be assigned in the fleld to each estuary holding by the Superintendent of Fisheries for Lower Canada, or by the sti- pendiary magistrate in charge of the government vessel for the protection of fisheries. C. — All nets, or other lawful appliances for the capture of salmon and sea-trout, shall be placed within the estuary lishings at distances of not less than 200 yards apart, the interval so designated to mean along either side of the stream, and such measurement to leave the space clear from any net on one side to another net upon the oppo- site shore, without separate intermediate nots, or other device, being set anywhere therein. JD. — The Superintendent of Fisheries Ibr Lower Canada, or the stipendiary magistrate in command of the government vessel for the protection of fisheries, may prescribe, either by written or published instruction, or on sight, the open space between nets to be sot ia bays, and elsewhere along the coast. F. — At the outside of the chamber and in the pound of every set or stake-net for the capture of salmon and sea-trout, there shall be maintained a flap or " door " at least ten inches square, wliich must be left open, aflfording ft-ee egress and passage to salmon and trout, from sundown on Saturdays until sunrise on Mondays. F. — All other persons are forbidden to take fisli of any kind, and in any manner, within limits covered by leases or licenses from the Crown, except by special permission of the lessees or licentiates. G^.^-The fishing for, taking, and killing of any salmon or sea-trout by aid of torch-light or other artificial light, and by means of spears, harpoon (n6gog), jigger-hooks, or grapnel, is hereby absolutely forbidden. If. — Indians may, for their own horiA fide use and consumption, fish for, catch or kill salmon and trout by sucli means as are next above prohibited during the months of May, June and July, but only upon waters not then leased, licensed or reserved by the Crown ; provided always that each and every Indian thus exempted shall be at all times forbidden to sell, barter or give away any salmon and trout so captured or killed in the manner hereinbefore described. /. — The receipt, gift, purchase, sale and possession by any person or persons other than Indians of any salmon or trout which may have been speared or taken as aforesaid, shall be punishable accord- ing to law ; and every fish so found or had in violation of this rule, shall become forfeited and disposable as the law directs. ./■.—No fishing shall be allowed in any water set apart by the Crown for purposes of natural or artificial breeding of salmon and trout, except under express sanction from the Superintendent of Fisheries for Lower Canada. ai2 APPENDIX. K. — Hereafter, no slabs or edgings, or otber mill rabbisli, sball be drifted awaste, or be suffered to drift awaste, into any salmon and fiea-tront rivers or streams in Lower Canada. Z. — For any breach of tlie foregoing Regulations the penalty attached shall be as declared in the 42d section of the statute 22d Vict., cap. 86. The publication of the present By-laws in both the French and English languages, in the Official Qazette^ shall be sufficient notice to give legal effect. P. M. VANKOironNET, Commmioner, CROWN LANDS DEPAETIVIENT. FISHERIES BRANCH. ^: Quebec^ \Zth May^ 1860. Pursuant to certain provisions of the statute 22 Vict. cap. 62, Con- solidated Statutes of Canada, His Excellency the Governor General in council has been pleased to adopt the following Fishery Regulations for Upper Canada: By-Law No. 1. — The Crown having, for the purposes of the Act 22d Vict. cap. 62, Consolidated Statutes of Canada, practically resumed and reentered formally into possession of all fishing stations witliin the Province of Canada, it is, pursuant to the said statute, further provided that the following Regulations shall hereinafter apply to the fisheries of Upper Canada, and any person or persons, continuing to occupy or use, directly or indirectly, any such net-fish- ing without lease from the Crown, shall become liable to the pains and penalties imposed by the Fisheries Act — saving moreover all other recourse in like cases provided by law. No. 2. — The use of pound-nets is hereby prohibited. No. 3. — It is forbidden to fish for, capture or kill fish by means of spears ; except only by Indians. No, 4. — No net or other device shall be so placed as entirely t(v obstruct the passage of fish into and from their accustomed resorts for the purposes of spawning and increasing their species. No. 5.— inlets and outlets around Burlington Bay and Dundas Marsh shall be deemed to be, for the application of the Fisheries Act, waters forming part of the said bay and marsh, as described in section 23 of the said statute. No. 6. — No fishing shall be allowed in any water which may have been leased or set apart by the Orown for natural or artificial pro- .^•* i'%.'W', % ,t APPENDIX. 813 pagation of fish, except by express sanction of a fishery officer, or ofiicers. • Ifb. 7. — All other persons are forbidden to take fish, for purposes of trade, within the limits covered by leases from the Grown— except only by written permission of the lessees. Ifo. 8. — The receipt, gift, purchase, sale or possession of any fish had in contravention of these Regulations shall be punishable accord- ing to law ; and the article so had and all materials so unlawfully used therefor, shall become subject to forfeiture and disposal as the law directs. 1^0. 9. — Hereafter no slabs or edgings, or other mill rubbish, shall be sent adrift in any river or stream which may have been leased or reserved by the Crown for propagation, or where fish ways have been erected. No. 10. — ^For any and every breach of the foregoing Regulations the penalty attached shall be as declared by the aforesaid statute — saving moreover all other recourse in like cases provided by law. The first publication of the present By-laws in both the English and French languages, in the Canada Gazette^ shall be sufficient notice to give legal effect ; and the production of a copy, purporting to be printed by the queen's printer, shall be primA facie evidence of every such Regulation, and that it is in force as law. And each contravention of any of the aforesaid By-laws may be stated as an offence against the Fisheries Act. " ': ^ P. M. Vankouqhnet, Commissioner. of to )rts kdas STRAITS OR RIVERS NIAGARA, DETROIT, AND SAINT CLAIR. ACT 3 WILLIAM lY. CAP. 29. •:'"^^*'"^-V"- ABSTHAOT. Sko. I. — It is forbid to use, or cause to be used, any seine or other net for the capture of white-fish, in the straits or rivers Detroit, Saint Olair and Niagara, of greater length than fifty fathoms ; under forfeiture of one hundred and twenty-five pounds. II.— It is forbid to fish in the said straits or rivers, with seines, gill-nets, or other nets, on the first day of the week, called Sunday ; under penalty, for every such offence, of fifty pounds. III.— It is forbid to divert the natural progress or running of white-fish, by shingling or other device ; upon penalty of one hun- dred and twenty-five pounds, or imprisonment. 14- • V'-^,, ^'Un*^ 314 APPENDIX. fir «r ♦ rV.— Repealed. *. '" v.— Tt is provided that one moiety of the forfeitnres incnrred nnder thiff 4.ot shall be applied to the pablio uses of the province, and the other moietj to whomsoever shall have sued out such complaint. •(i-.ii... ■ BURLINGTON BAY. ACT 6 WILLIAM IV. CAP. 16. ABSTBAOT. .' 8so. I. — Repealing clause. II. — It is unlawful to draw any seine or other not in Burlington Bay ; except at a distance of one-half mile from the land at the out- let thereof. III. — It is illegal at any time to set gill-nets in the waters of said bay, or to use any device whatsoever, so as to prevent tlie free pass- ag(B of fish to and from the aforesaid hay. lY. — For each offence against the provisions of this Act, the offender shall incur a fine of not more than five pounds nor less than ten shillings, and in default of payment, will be imprisoned; one moiety of fine to be paid to the ^rown, and tlie other moiety to complainant. DAMS OF FISH PONDS. . ' ACT 4 & 6 VIOT. CAP. 26. « ABSTRACT. ^ 8eo, XV. — And be it enacted, that if any person shall unlawfully and maliciously break down, or otherwise destroy, the dam of any fish pond, or of any water which shall be private property, or in which there shall be any private right of fishery, with intent thereby to take or destroy any of the fish in such pond or water, or so as thereby to cause the loss or destruction of any of the fish, or shall unlawfully and maliciously put any lime or other noxious material in any such pond and water, with intent thereby to destroy any of the fish therein, or shall unlawfully and maliciously bref^ down or other- wise destroy the dam of any mill-pond, every such offender shsJl be gdilty of a misdemeanor, and being convicted thereof shall be pun* ished accordingly. ^ i APPENDIX. 815 i FISHING ON SUNDAY. ACT 8 VIOT. CAP. 46. ABBTBAOT. 8io. III. — ^Prohibits all fishing and shooting on Snndaytf, nnd^r penalty not to exceed ten pounds, nor be less than five shillings and costs. wfuUy )f any or in lereby so as ' shall rial in f tlie ther- allbe pim« MR. WHITCHER'S REPORT. To THE Hon. p. M. Vankouohnbt, ; "^ Gommiaaioner of Crown LandSy ete. Sir — Your directions of the I7th of May last, honored me with tl'^ service of inspecting and taking inventories of certain public properties within the territory known as "The King^s Posts," "pre- paratory to their resumption by government at the expiry of lease with the Hon. Hudson's Bay Company. Obedient to which I have made a personal and minute inspection of the several premises with the view of ascertaining their actual state. The results of such exa- minaticn, and other information affecting their delivery and accept- ance, as between the Company and the Crown, form the subject of various special communications and of a General Beport already addressed to the Department. * * * * * * * « The river Marguerite discharges a large volume of water, and in the tidal portion affords tolerable salmon fishery. The lower coarse is much broken by abrupt falls, and the fish not ascending the stream to the more liighly aerated waters of its sources, are ill- shapen and coarse, and but of middling size. The spawning-places swarmed with salmon fry. A trifling outlay in the construction of stone basin steps would overcome the main obstacles to the ascent of salmon along this stream. The river Pentecost is smaller, and has a high fall quite inaccessi- ble to fish, some three miles from its mouth, where the bottom is soft and muddy, and the sliores clayey, which peculiarities probably deter salmon from entering it. In the entrance, and for upward of^ a league along the St. Lawrence bank westward, there is excellent sea trout fishing for nets. The trout reach four pounds' weight, and are well fiavored. They take the artiticiarfiy and bait with great avidity at ebb and flow of the tide, particularly inside the embou chure. "^ua-f """"^liiHiP f 816 APPENDIX. Stress of weather compelled me to advance from here to Trinity Bay, without exploring the river Oalumet, where I am informed there once was an abundance of salmon. There are several fair salmon, and many good sea troat fishing stands on this part of the coast. The Trinity River I consider a valuable stream. Of the estuary portion I shall not now speak, having described its fishings, etc , in the previous season's report. An almost uninterrupted passage for near forty miles admits salmon into a part of this stream where it widens and is divided by small islands. Here seems to be the breed- ing-ground ; and it is so distant from any place where fish taken could be disposed of, and the labor of navigating it with a canoe, even ligntly laden, is so formidable that salmon may again multiply tliere in primeval quiet. Hitherto the estuary has been over net ted, and the river barred across by gili-iiets. Hence the decline of the fishery. Now, however, fair play is insured, and the natural conse- quence will be a rapid restoration of the river to its pristine cele- brity. Some three leagues west are the forks of the famous Godbout. Here, too, the spawning- beds in the northeast branch are admirably sheltered and spacious. The northwest arm communicates through n long deep lake with one of the feeders of the Manicouagan River. The Godbout salmon breed also in a north tributary of this lake ; and from appearance it might be inferred that they lie also within the main outlet. Were spearing ^erywhere prohibited, and reason- able netting alone allowed, there cannot be a doubt that the supply of salmon from this river would in a few years become almost inex- haustible. Indeed, when we recollect the dire havoc and riotous abuse of fishing which this beautiful stream has already sulfered, nothing save a knowledge of its extensive and fine breeding-places could enable us to account for the present existence of any reamant of former abundance. There is encouragement in the hope that pro- tective measures strictly enforced will fast multiply and improve the run of salmon resorting to this rich river. I cannot close this report without touching upon the subject of spearing by Indians. The practice of capturing salmon by torchlight and spears is justly held to be most pernicious. Employed, as it almost invariably is, at a time when the waters of each river are lowest and clearest, whilst the salmtm are balked at the base of tteep fulls, awaiting the next freshet, and congregate during sultry nights near the months of lit- tle rivulets emptying into the main stream, or loiter about the tails of pools, spear-flshiug involves excessive slaughter. Sometimes in the course of one night as many salmon will bo thu;i killed and maimed as an ordinary net-fishery along the coast, or in the estua- ries, can capture throughout the regular fishing season. Practised APPENDIX. » t 817 ; of stlj at lilst est; lit- aila in md la* kd daring Autumn and periods of reproduction, as is still ipore frcqnentljr the case, it becomes indescribably bad — it is the crowning act of extirpation. The luckless flsh are then killed at a stage which makes the bare feature of destroyal in the highest degree deplorable. They have won their devious way from the luscious pastures of old ocean, through labyrinths of nets and a multitude of watery perils. Urged onward by strong instincts, they have surmounted incredible difficulties, and achieved marvels of adventurous travel. They are now arrived at nature's free hospitals of piscary lying-in. The water-way by which they came is in many parts impassably shoal, and no more heavy breeders can reach the same high grounds, or supply their places, for that year at least. And after all, lean from exertion and thin tbod ; dark and slimy from the physical drain and unhealthy action incident to the procreative state, perhaps sluggish and heavy with thousands of ova, or busied in the exhaustive labor and anxious cares of depositing their prolific burden, they are rutli- lessly slain by the spear. With every dead or wounded fish there perish in embryo from ten to thirty, forty, fifty, even as high as sixty thousand. Spawners and milters both suffer. Is it, then, pos- sible to exaggerate the ruinous consequences of such improvi- dence ? There are also other features in this practice contributing to the waste and injustice which it so entails. The salmon taken by spear are, comparatively speaking, worthless as a marketable commodity. But, being easily taken, the captors willingly dispose of them at miserable prices, and in barter for the cheapest kinds of goods ; for rusty pork and molded biscuits. The wrong to the public, of suffer- ing the richest and finest fish in Oanadian waters — the precious capital of our rivers — ^to be thus traded in when almost valueless, and under circumstances that admit only of unsorttpulous fisher- men and dishonest traders deriving some mean benefits thereby, is obvious. These dealers adroitly scarify the ugly portions, disguise their ill-conditioned bargain by dry salting, or hot pickle, ar.d con- cealing the unwholesome fish at the bottom of the tubs, or dispers- ing them among other sound pieces, thus palm them off upon the public. Costing little at prime, the sale is a ready one below aver- age market price. If consumers were but once to see a few speci- mens of unseasonable salmon struck by the spear, they would remem- ber the loathsome sight, and rather than venture the chances of again eating such deleterious food, would eschew salmon altogether. If the river fisheries become exhausted through this custom, the whole public suffers, because thesa streams are the nurseries which breed supplies and furnish wealtli to the 'longshore and estuary fish- ings. Besides, to tolerate it must always expose crown lessees to the risk of having their limits suddenly deteriorated by the bold ea- croachments of spearers. To punish them, even, cannot restore the damage. Years, indeed, must elapse ere the pirated rivers can reco ■«^1^'> 318 APPENDIX. ^cr from the effects of snccessive or casual devastations. And while there remains a loophole for escape, as between the Indians and abetting traders, active temptations on either side will drive them to calculate their mutual chances of evading the law. The qualified exemption of Indians under the Fislierj Regulations ^ arose, I feel assured, from motives humane and considerate. Tlio^e ' considerations doubtless were influenced by arguments in support of such exception, drawn from the apparent necessities of Indian life. Experience dissipates this cause of sympathy. It proves tiiat tlie Montaignais, Miomacs, Naskapis and Metifi*, seldom spear sal- mon in any considerable quantities for present subsistence ; and to rmoke, or dry, or pickle them for winter use, never. They go to the salting- vats of the nighest trader — pork, tea, sugar, tobacco, and sometimes spirits, principally returning to the wigwam in exchange. I, of course, speak of the Indians whilst near the St. Lawrence, wlie- ther from the interior or residing by turns near the seaboard. It is quite a mistaken notion that they kill and cure salmon for provision- ing the inland hunt. The experienced missionary, Pdre Arnaud, in his evidence to tho Indian Commissioners, says, '^ These Indians care for nothing but hunting and fishing." Indeed I think that, as regards several of them, the native love of excitement in the chose has somewhat to do with their pertinacious pursuit of salmon by spears and iium- beaux. It is a passion among some of the bunds ; and I must admit the habit has peculiar fascinations, and to many it is strangely excit- ing. Nothing can exceed the wild excitement with whicli these men pursue it Thf sombre night-scene of the forest river seems to delight them. The elder man occupies the stern of the canoe, while the younger takes " the post of honor " forward. The murmur of waterfalls and rapids, drown those exclamatory Ughs ! and the fVe- quent splash tljiat would else distfTrb tiie pervading stillness. With steady, stealthy speed the liglit birchen boat enters the rapid, and cutting through its white waters glides smoothly over the fall and into the " tail " of the pool above, or iteross tiiC quiet "reach." Tlie blazing torch, stuck in a cleft stake and leaning over the bow of tlie canoe, glares with dazzling lightness. The llnme and shar'ow, swayed by ripples, conceal the spearers' form.", and bewilder tlie doomed salmon. Like moths, they sidle tuwnrd the fatal liglit; their silvery sides and amber-colored eyeballs glisten through tlio rippled water. The (Jil^'ted eyes, the expanding nostrils and com- pressed lijis of the swarthy canoenien, titly picture their eager mid excited mo-^d. A quick, deadly aim, a sudden swirl, and tliose mo- mentary convulsive wriggles tell the rest. 'J'lie aquatic captive, with blood and spawn, and slime and eritr.iils, besmear tlio inside of the canoe. Often the quarry is transfixed witli wonderful precision iWiJ instantly killed, the spinal marrow being pierced by the barb, and the strong springy tines of tlie spear parulyziiig in their sharp pinch %j;^^ia,^M»^' • ▲FFEXDIX. 819 |)m- lU)- fith Uia Tiid the wholo mnscalftr Rystem, the fin-rays spread in a fooblo qnlver, niid the onoe powerful ftsh dies literally without a straggle. During a Hingle night from fifty to two hundred salmon may be thus slaugli- torod, and half as many more lacerated in their efforts to escape, tlio pools at such seasons being too shallow to afford certain safety iu retreat. Tlie bud of coarse boughs, the chill and hungry awaking . at sniii'lHe, tiio mixture of peril and fagging which form the return down a swift stream, broken by falls, and rocks, and rapids, with hure and there u tedious portage, over which several hundred pounds of fish, and bruised and blistered canoes must be transported — all thoHe exertions appear but natural to Inilians, and not worthy of comparison as against the finiits of so much toil, converted at last into six, eight, or ten dollars' worth of provisions and store goods, or perhaps a demijohn of home-made rum. Speared salmon are sold to traders at their own price, as the deteriorating mode of cap- ture so much depreciates the fish. The illegality of tlie purchase or exchange, also, often is pleaded as a risk for which a further propor- tional deduction in the'value of barter must be made. That the Indians must suffer starvation by being deprived of the " native liberty " to ruin our salmon fisheries, is a very flimsy apo- logy on the part of those who still desire to perpetuate so flagrant an abuse. With the exception of some families or Naskapis, who have imprudently left their upland huutiiig-gtounds and wandered toward tlie rocky coasts, where sickness soon debilitated and cuts off whole encampments, the lower St. Lawrence Indians do not endure privations similar to many of the tribes in western Canada. Tliis comparative immunity is certainly due in great measure to the pater- nal solicitude exercised by the exemplary missionaries of the Roman Catholic Churcli. Almost total abstinence from " fire water " is not the least of a beneficent improvement resulting from the^e self-deny- ing missions. Were there not another salmon to be caught bettreen Quebec and Labrador, the extinction could not occasion to Indians one tithe of the misery depicted by persons wiiose interest or preju- dice it is to excite a sympathStio feeling favorable to the continu- ance of facilities for spearing. I make no more vague assertion ; it is a deduction fVom practical observations and inquiry. The Indians themselves know this, and it makes them all the more reckless and disregardful of tlie future in tlieir ravages. Trout are plentiful all along the coast, and the inner lakes swarm with thorn. Every bay and bank teems with codfish. The rod and lip« and bait will catch both in hundreds. Hooks and lines are cheap as spearing imple- ments. Seals are plenty everywhere. The product of one seal will buy the fisliing-gear of a family for the entire year. But, it ia argued, they need pork and flour, tea and sugar, guns and ammuni- tion, whicli can be bought with salmon carcasses. Yes, and all of tiiese articles can be better had in exchange for trout, cod, seal- oil, skins and furs. Birch canoes, baskets, and other manufaoturea, m 820 APPENDIX. find rapid sale.- Canofts bring from eight to twenty-four dollars apiece, in casli. Necessity, therefore, is simply ap excuse, equally de- ceptious and unfounded. It is the habitual indolence of most of these Indians which lies at the root of the matter. It ties them down to frequented spots, where inducements held out by cunning traders, whether on land or afloat, are irreiistible. Is there, then, sufficient reason why their inveterate habits should be humored at the cost of extirpating the supply of salmon ? ? . . , I have the honor to be, sir, Very respectfully, . -t Your obedient servant, W. F. Whitoiibb, J. P. QuBBKO, 81st December, 1859. NOTE TO THE TRIP TO LA VAL. For the information of those who may desire to trust themselves alone to the companionship of the Canadian French, the following list has been add^ of a few words that will be most necessary, and many of which will be found in no French dictionary : Potak, Batture, I^aril, ^ Brulot, * Buchan, Brochat, Ohaloupe, Perche, Egog, Gruyot, -' Belluat, Pleindurer, Peinturer, Cite, Roches, Pilote, Biarrel. Sand-fly. Smudge. Mascallonge. Pilot-boat. Bod. Speai*. Porridge. Blueberry. To fill. To paint. Here. Rocks. PUot. / Sapin, Moustique, Ecoroe, Aborder, Filer, ^ Coude, Mizzin, Grande voile. Luff, Arrive, Tapecu, Jib, Stearabo, Bagage, Epinette, Marounquin, Balsam fir. Black fly. Bark. To trim in. To ease off. Slieet. Foresail. Mainsail. Luff. Keep off. Jigger. Jib. Steamboat; Baggage. Spruce. Mosquito. ft* :^- '■^ :/ ■'', ", ■ -"■'^'■y?^ '" '?*''»■■':> APPENDIX. 321 and NOTE TO TRIP TO NEW BRUNSWICK. Fish of all kinds are extremely cheap in the provinces. Salmon, near Boiestown, sell for sixty cents apiece, regardless of size, and grilse for twenty. In other places salmon are five cents a pound, while smoked fish are worth one dollar and twenty -five cents apiece. Lohsters are a nuisance to the fisherman, from their numbers ; and herring are abundant. The expenses of a trip for two fishermen visiting both the Mira- michi and Nipisiquit, and occupying a month, were as follows : Faro to St. John $12 00 State room 1 00 To Fredericton 8 00 Extra to Wilson's 11 00 Stores for the Miramichi 32 84 Men's wages. . . ,. 60 00 Extra to Newcastle .' 17 00 Fare to Ciiatham 1 40 " Bathurst Y 00 Stores on the Nipisiquit 29 96 Men's wages 50 00 Wagon to the Round Rocks ; ... . 4 00 Extra on return to Chatham t . '. . . 14 00 Fare to St. John 8 00 '' Bos. on 11 00 Meals and other expenses 36 00 Delicacies 10 00 $306 09- CLASSIFICATION. Every naturalist originates a classification for himself; thank Heaven, I am only a sportsman, and shall merely refer to that of Cuvier. He makes grand divisions of fish into the bony and carti- liiginous: the former being separated into spinous and soft rayed, the latter into those with free or fixed gills. Acanthopterygii, fin-rays spinous, including the percidoi, or perch family, winch has the edge of the gill-cover, or fore gill cover, or both, denticulated or armed with spines ; the cheeks not mailed, and teeth on both jaws, the vomer and palatines. In this family are comprised the perca or perch itroper, the lalraa or salt-water basa, 14* *«««,;. .■■**%'■ '•^ipp' 322 APPENDIX. the huro or black bats of Lake Huron, the lucio perca or pike perch, the teranut or groupa, the eeniropriates or sea bass, the grystes or black bass, tlie eentrarehus or rock bass — two genera generally con- founded — the pomotis or son-fish, and several others so rare in our waters that they are omitted. The second family of the spine-rayed order is the triglidcB, which is similar to the pereidce, except that the cheeks are mailed as it were by the suborbitals being greatly extended and articulated with the fore gill-cover. It includes the trigla prionotus and dactyloptenis or gurnard and flying-fish; the eottvs, sculpin or bull-head; the hemitripterus, also known as sculpin ; and the gaateroateua or stickle- back ; besides many genera that are rare. The third family is the scienidm, which have no teeth in the pala- tines or vomer, but have scales on the base of the vertical fins; otherwise they resemble the perch family. They compi'se the leiostomua or Lafayette, the otolithiis or weak-fish, the eorvina or lake sheepshead and branded drum or red-fish of the South, the umbrina or king-fish, the pogonias or salt-water drum. The fourth family is the sparidoe, which has no spines or denticn- lations on the gill-covers, and no teeth on the palate, but has large scales. It includes the aargus or salt-water sheepshead and sand- porgee, and the pagrua or common porgee. The next family that frequents our waters is the aconibrida, which has no spines or denticulations on the gill-covers, and no scales on the vertical fins; the scales are small. It includes the aeomber or mackerel p||»per, t^e thynniia or tunny, the pelamya or bonito, the triehiurm ribTOjfirfish, the xiphiaa^ or sword-fish, the naueratea or pilot-fish, th# eararSb or yellow mackerel, the aeriole or rudder- fish, the Ufnnodiin or bl\iS'-fis\j^^\trrhombua or Iiarvest-fish. The next failHl)^i»l^« %therinidm, represented by the silversides or sand-smelts; and the next the mugilidce. It has minute teeth, entire and large scales extending over the head, and comprises the mugil or mullet proper. The next family is the gobidce, which have an elongated body, small scales or nofie, the spines of the dorsal flexible, and the ventrals, when present, before the pectorals, and it includes the gunnellua or butter-tish, the zoarees or eel-pout ; and the next the lophidae, which usually have no scales, but occasionally spiny plates in lieu of them, and have the carpal bones elongated to support the pectorals. The lophiua proper is the sea-devil or fishing- frog, a rapacious creature, well known on our coast by various names, and the batraehus, the well-known toad-fish. The last of the spine-rayed families is the labridm, which have fleshy lips doveriog the jaws, toothless tongue and palate, three pharyngeals, two above and one beneath, furnished with teeth, sharp or flattened, and an oblong, scaly body. This family c«)mpri8es the etenolabnta or bergall, otherwise chogset or ounner, and the tautoga, tautog or black-fish. ^bv .^ APPENDIX. 323 lea. irp the 7a, The malacnpterygii^ or soft rayed, are separated into the dhdomi- nal, which have the ventrals in the centre of the abdomen ; the sub- brachial, which have the ventrals at the shoulder ; and the apodal^ or footless, that is without lower fins. Of the abdominal, the first family is that of the siluridte. It is distinguished by a naked, slimy skin, a large head with several fila- ments, usually a second adipose dorsal, and the first ray of the dorsal and pectoral a strong articulated spine. They comprise the cat-fish, bull-pouts, bull-heads and horned-pouts, as you please to call theui, the common kinds being classed under the genus pimelodiis. The second family is the cyprinidoB, which have small jaws, a weak mouth, mostly toothless, large scales, one dorsal, and teeth on the pharyngeals. The eyprinua carpio is the common carp, the cyprinus miratu% the gold-fish, both of which were imported and are not indi- genous. This f'amily also includes the dbramis or bream, sometimes called dace; the Ifiheo, chub or chub-sucker; tlie catdstomiu or common sucker, of which genus the species are known by varied popular appellatives, such as mullet, barbel, dace, horned-dace, golden mullet, red-horse and shoemaker ; the genus leuciacus or dace proper, also the red -fin, roach and shiners ; the fundulua or killifish, other- wise minnow or mummychog ; and the hydragira or fresh-water minnow. The next family, the etocidm^ has one dorsal opposite the anal, an elongated body, and a large mouth filled with sharp teeth. It in- cludes the esox or pickerel and mascallonge; the belone or sea-pike, sometimes miscalled gar-fish and sea-snipe ; th.% >MomJ>l^l^»o» or bill- fish ; and the ea»c«<t« or flying-fish proper. ♦ > ^ The family of the ^tularidee ia^ludes the plpe-fisl); and the next family of importance is that of the mdmouidcB, c(«p^riBlng the salmp salar or salmon, the aalmo fontinalis or Afiierican tiirook trout, the ealmo confinis or lake trout, and the »almo amethyatm or Mackinaw salmon, the oamerua or smelt, and the coregonua or white-fish and Otsego bass. The family of the dupidcB has a single dorsal and compressed scaly body. It includes the elupea or herring, the ahaa or shad, ale- wife and mossbunker; and the family of the aaurida has only one common representative, chlled the buffalo-fish. Of the sub-brachial we have the family gadidca, which have the jaws and point of the vomer armed with rasp-like teeth, and two or three dorsals. Morrhua, cod, tom-cod or frost-fish, haddock and the melueiua, or hake, form the most considerable genera ; the lota or burbot of the lakes, and the merlangua or pollack, ar©«lso taken in large numbers. The next family, the planidm, has a flat body, the under side white and the upper dark, both eyes on one side of the head, and a dorsal extending the entire length of the back. It includes t^e hip' t. ■ S24 APPENDIX. tlie fogh»au» or halibut; the plateuoy floander, flake and flat-fish; pleuronectes orturbot ; and the a^hirtu or sole. Of the apodaU^ or those withoat lower fins, we have the anguiU lidtB or eels, and the geuns conger or conger eel, and the ammodfftei or sand-lance. The sabdivision hpJiobranehii, which is distinguished hj having little tufts at the gills, has the following families : The gj/ngnathidtB, which have the body armed with transverse plates, and have a large gill-cover and single dorsal. It includes the tyngnathui or pipe-fish, and the hippocampua or sea-horse. The subdivision pleetonathi have concealed gills and a narrow fissure for gill opening; the family gymnodontidce has in lieu of ^eth a bony substance like enamel, and includes tlie diodon or bnlloon-fish and the tetraodorfor swell-fish, both of which can infiate themselves. The family baliatidcB is represented uy the file or fool-fish. Of the cartilaginous fish the eUut?ier(^omi have free gills with a strong cover, but no rays, and include the family of the aturionidcBy which have large bony plates in longitudinal rows and a mouth underneath and toothless. The genus aeipetuer or sturgeon is alone common. Tiie order plagioatomi has fixed gills withoat cover ; the family $qv(ltlida^ which has the gill-holes never underneath, comprises the eareharitu or shark, the Mmna or mackerel shark, the muttellus or dog-fish, the 9ela4shvs or basking shark, and the eygcBna or liammer- headed tdiiftrk. The family raii^ has a flattened body, large pectorals and bran- chial ofi#tiings iHiderneath. It comprises the rays, the skates and the devu-fish. The order cyehttomi includes the famWj petromyzonldcBf which has neither pecU^s nor ventrsda, comprising tlie petromyzon or sea- Iwnprey and the ammoeatet or common lamprey. These are the principal varieties of fish found in the waters of the northern section of America adbording to their soientitic designa- tions and their oonfased and intricate popular appellations. Perhaps in time, with the diffusion of knowledge and the efforts of sportsmen, uniformity may be obtained, an^ the language of Massachusetts be comprehensible to the inhabitants of Iowa. To effect this object lUiould b& the desire of all, and it is to be hoped that naturalists and sportsmen will mutually aid one another by ascertaining the appro- Eriate name of each species, and when ascertained, by applying it ivari*blj. ^ , ■ i , -fish; tlie le anguil- immodyte$ by haying transverse oladea the a narrow in lien of diodon or can inflate he file or ills with a iurianidtB, a month )n is alone the family I prises the ^ttellus or hanomer- md bran- cates and ^hioh has or sea- in of the designa- Perhaps |ortsmen, isetts be is object llists and appro- blying it :.11 ^ ■^