Waterbury evening Democrat., 1904-06-30
BIG FISH STORIES.
Hartford Men Had To Register Catch.
 es Like Trolley Car Fares.


 Hartford, June 3O.-A party of Hartford fishermen have returned from the wilds of Maine with fish stor- ies that even the oldest inhabitant cannot match. They got so many fish they couldn't begin to remember how many by the old method of ma|x- ing scratch on their rods for each one landed, for if they had done so they would have needed several sets of rods.
 They had been there before and knowing that their stories might need veri1cation for some uncharitable friends, they went up equipped with conductors registers. These were of the variety that chalk up to 999 and then begin over again. Ex-President Charles D. Billings of the fire board kept his going so fast that it was i'm danger of getting hot box. He al- most made two round trips.
 Silas Chapman, jr, c. H. Case and Arthur Talbot of Wallingford were Mir Billings's companions, but they couldn't touch his record. Harry K Taylor was with the party six days, but he didn't have an indicator and so stopped one fish too soon, or he would have had an even score. He was the last to go up and also the last t5 return, getting home day before yesterday.
 The four men first mentioned went to Boston, then over the Boston & Maine to Pennington, then on to Phil- l lips and Green Farms. From there l they took stage to Gold Springs and 1 then went into the woods by buck board over the worst sort of roads. But the fishing made up for the bad l travelling.
 The total number of the fish caught l by Messrs Billings, Talbot, Case and | Chapman is between 4,00O and 5000. That's as much as they care to con fess. At the place they camped, Tim Pond, the fish ran about quarter Of a pound each. Their number seems i to have been legion. Only such as were needed were kept, the great ma jority being tossed back into the wa 1 ter unharmed., Report has 1t that during the time the party were fish ing there was a continual splashing and clicking going on as tied fish were ''chucked" back into their element and the 0verworked indicators yanked once more.
 MT Billings was high line, captur- ing 1,855, weighing 4SO pounds. MT Chapman landed about 1.600, Mir Case $50, and MT Talbot about TOO This makes grand total of 4,900 trout, something to talk about.
 Mr Taylor was with the party only six days at Tim Pond, going from there to Lake Kennebago and other places and finally tramping to Range ley. Altogether he walked about forty-five miles. While MT Taylor enjoyed the trouting at Tim Pond greatly he found it much better, as far as the size of fish was concerned, at other places. The largest fish of his was a pound and a half, but he had the satisfac ction of landing three fish of one pound each all on a single cast. They made 1t exceedingly lively. His total catch was T99.
 All the fishermen saw deer, MT Tay- Tor seeing seven in one pond. It isn't lawful to shoot them at this time of the year, and the party did not go to hunt, anyway. They had a first class time and came back feeling like new men. While fishing was the chief occupation of the entire party MT Bill lings is understood to have given more time to it than the others and to have been rewarded by gathering in more fish than his fellow fishermen.
 Tim Pond is q favorite outing place of the Hartford fishermen and they have been there many a time. Last year >yas one of the times and the party was the same that renewed the acquaintance this year, with the ex- ception of MT Talbot who didn't go then.