The Portland daily press., 1891-04-21
/ WHERE PORTLAND MEN GO A FISHING.
Some Know Of Trout Brooks Near at
Hand, Others Travel Far.
Sebago Lakes Flnny DenIzens Cos
nopolItan In Character.
All Sorts Of People, Including Dudes,
Seek the Democratic Gunner.

fishing season has begun. vi course In
city so beautifully situated as is Portland
there is always fishing season. In the
spring and fall. when the cold pierces the
thickest coat, there Is the unutterable plea5s
ure Of standing on Deering bridge all night
bobbing for smelts. or of stealing forth over
water or the Deering tributaries Of Back
Cove in the early morning in pursuit Of the
same delectable fish.
But when the ice gets out of the little
streams the pursuit Of a fish greater than the
smelt begins. Any time after the first Of
February the citizen OF Maine Is permitted
by the laws OF the state to catch the trout
for the purpose of taking 1t ito his own
house." Outside sportsmen cannot begin to
catch until the 1st OF May, and no one may
continue tie sport lawfully beyond October
1st. or course the great trout fishing is in
the lakes 10 the northern part of the state.
but that will not begin for some time. If
the ice gets out of the Rangeleys by May 1st
this year. as one of the Rangeley authorities
predicts, 1t will be many days earlier than
the usual time. Ordinarily 1t is not safe to
reckon on much fishing in Rangeley or
Moosehead before June. But the Portland
trout fishermen have consolation for their
impatience nearer home. There Is a sur
prising amount Of brook fishing near Port
land. There are three of four trout brooks
in Cape Elizabeth. and several in Gray. Cum
berland, Buxton, Windham, Hollis and Free
port. 1t Is true that nearly all of them are
fished to death; but the fellow who gets
their first in the season may get very good
string. Fast day generally marks the first
expedition to the trout brooks. One enthus-
iastic local sportsman came back from Gray
on that day with thirty-one brook trout. The
same day Biddeford sportsman tiled Scar
boro marsh, where trout are sometimes
caught, but without good success. Some
times one of the local trout brooks will not
yield single fish to the most persuasive an
gler on that day; but on another day may be
fished for large string. The patient man
and the lucky man Is the favorite of these
brooks. That there are any fish at all left is
due to this capriciousness, and to the fact
that everyone does not know Just what
brooks are tenanted by trout. There are a
few good fishermen in Portland who know q
thing or two that the young fellows would
like to find out; but the only way to spy ou t
their choice grounds would be to put detec-
tive on their tracks. They go off very unob-
trusively and are heard of no more until
they come back with the fish. OF course
there is no fly fishing in these early raids on
the brook trout. The old angleworm Is
plenty good enough for the brook trout this
time of year. Besides, a fly could not be
used reaai's in the bushes ghee that tha hshar-
ihesa ms1 neh Hr the ice gets out Of Sebago Lake.
which depends much upon the season, but is
likely to be as early as May 1st this year,
the fishermen will begin to go there. The
common red spotted trout is found in Seba.
go, and with it Is found the landlocked sal
mon, which comes in the same season as the
trout. The law Of close time for landlocked
salmon is the same as for trout. That the
absolute close time is from October 1st. each
year, around to the following February,
when citizens of the state may begin TO
catch them. Not until the first of May is
the fishing open TO outside sportsmen. Seba-
go Lake is famous for its landlocked salmon.
Last year they caught them there weighing
from five to fifteen punds, although the fish
ing there was not what might be called first
class. The usual way of catching salmon at
SebagO Is not by the fly but by trolling with
| smelts for bait.
Sebago Lake is by the way known to sci
| entists as AVERY remarkable body Of water
for its fish. Here the species of sea fish
seem to meet the fish of the inland waters
| The landlocked salmon of Sebago are the
same fish as the salmon, and the smelts Of
| Sebago are the same species that frequent
the salt water estuaries, only they grow to a
| greater size In the fresh water. Smells
| weighing three-quarters Of pound an(
measuring foot in length, are often caugh
in Sebago, while such fish is rare in thu
salt water. Then there are the fresh waite
cusks of Sebago, which are of the same fam
lily as the cod and cusk Of the ocean. Will
these fish Of families usually at home in the
sea, are the spotted trout and the pickerel Of
the inland waters.
There are also some alewives that frequen
Sebago, the results Of an experiment trlet
several years ago by Everett Smith, Esq, o
this city, when he was fish commissioner
He put number of alewives into Sebag
one May. The alewive Is a very prolific fish
and they breed so fast that In early fall tn
Presumpscot river was swarming with them
They were dipped out of the river in bucket
fuls at Saccarappa. The alewives visi
the salt water as do the sea salmon, return
ing to their birthplace when the spawnin
season comes around. But the great nun
Der of dams and the difficulties Of the fis
ways on the Presumpscot have prevented th
alewives from flourishing In Sebago so we
as was expected. They make an excelleI
food for other fish.
The trout and salmon are the cold watG
fish, and the principal kinds that the sport
men are seeking now. But when the water
} grow warmer the bass will be king. TIL
bass is warm water fish. The close tin
July and August the sportsmen begin
seek them. Duck pond, in Windham,
about the only bass fishing ground ne
| Portland. This in years past has been ia
orite fishing place for such ardent sportsmt
, as the late William Senter and w. w. ThoI
as, Jr., at present minister to Sweden. The
are also some bass in some Of the waite
above Sebago Lake. but in the lake itse
there are none, nor Is 1t desirable. In u
I opinion Of fishesmen that there should
:. any.
Some white perch are caught in the Sc
! son at the Dyke in Scarboro. The clio
Q | time for this fish, however. is between Ap
1st and July 1st.
OF the sea fish that tempt the sportsme
the cod are Of course accessible to all W
l. wish to brave seasickness by going out
1. the fishing grounds. Last season, also, t
:, mackerel were quite abundant; but Of ID
wears the visits of this fish to the Mai
y coast have been very uncertain.
a But after all, the only great fish for sp'
n of all the fish that swim around Portland,
the democratic Gunner. Some Of the old
lows who 60 mousing around trout strea
u In Gray OF Freeport may turn up their nos'
n and the nabobs who yearly 90 to the Ran
Y leys and Moosehead may express their
3 patience audl5ly at this praise Of the cum
D, But after all, the Gunner is the fish Il
10 pleases the greatest number of persons.
to Is the fish of the boys and girls, of eide
E. ladies, Of dudes, and the rest of human
10 who know nothing about lancewood tips a
reels One Of the dealers In sporting goo
Mr. Gilbert l.. Bailey, sold 70 pour
of sinkers for Gunner lines last season alo
o nearly all these sinkers went to assist in
. sophisticated fishing attempts in the wat
around the Islands of Port and harbor. I
Qunnar afforda mora cnorf thar oll tha ntl