The daily morning journal and courier., 1905-01-31
FISHING THROUGH THE ICE.
Spearing Museallonge on Chautauqua
 Lake-Tip-Ups on Oneida Lake.

Lake-Tip-Ups on Oneida Lake.
 In the report of John N. Cobb of the United States Commission of Fish and Fisheries on the commercial fisheries of the inland lakes and rivers of New 1 York and Vermont there is an inter esting description of the method of spearing muscallonge. The species in Chautauqua Lake is distinct from the muscallonge inhabiting the Great Lakes, but is identical with that ocea- sionally found in the Ohio river basin. Its real home is in this lake, only oc- casi0nal specimens being found in oth- CT waters. New York was the first state to propagate the muscallonge ar- tifcially. A hatchery was built in 1890, and the work was continued each year since with considerable success. l The State Fish Commission has intro duced the species in other lakes of the q state, but in none has it yet attained importance. As game fish it is held in very high esteem. In summer it is usually taken by trolling with a spec ialiy made spoon or a good-sized min, now; rather short one is used, and the boat rowed only fast enough to keep the tackle taut, the spoon being a short distance under water.
 Up to and including 1902 fishermen were permitted to spear muscalIonge through the ice on Monday and Thurs day of each week for five consecutive weeks, beginning on the first Monday in February. During this season the | lake presented busy appearance. as fishermen came from not only the i'm mediate vicinity, but from Pennsylva. mia and Ohio. For this method of fish ! ing each man is supplied with a fish coop" and a spear. The ''coops'' are huts about four feet square and from three and one-half to four and one-half feet in height, with a pair of wide runners underneath, and built perfect ly tight in order to exclude every ray of light. Within is a small sheet-iron stove, burning wood or charcoal, 10 furnish warmth for the fisherman.
 Opposite the stove is a seat, with only a narrow margin Of floor around the Inside of the hut for the feet to rest upon. The hole in the bottom of the
 'coope is about three feet across and, | ntASiA NtAO SOOP lil lltISy IS lIlllilG-t diately above a somewhat larger hole which has been cut in the ice. The spear used in taking the fish has five or seven tines and a short handle, to which is attached a stout cord, and hangs half it's length down into the
 water, secured by catch on the floor of the "coop."
 The fisherman sits with one foot on either side of the house and plays | weighted wooden l1linnow about six or eight feet below the ice. Sometimes he does not have long to wait for d muscallonge to appear. but again there may be no sign of one during the whole day. When a fish does appear lit generally approaches the decoy slowly and cafefuily The fisherman grasps the spear and quietly poises it. directly over the fish, which, as there is no light in the hut, is unable to see it's danger. It is his endeavor to plant, the spear q little back of the head, thus breaking the backbone and kill- ing the fish almost instantly. He then carefully brings 1t to the surface, SC cures it on the spear by means of a gait hook, lifts it from the water, and throws it through the door of the
 coop" upon the ice outside. As soon. }as the days fishing is done, the "coop" must be removed to the shore, to re- main until the next legal day for I spearing. Owing to the strenuous oh. l jections made by sportsmen and oth- CTS, the legislature of 1903 amended the law so that the practice is now
 permitted only on Thursday of each
 week during the month of February TIP.UP FISHING IN ONEIDA LAKE.
 The tip-up fishery is especially inter- esting. As in other ice fishing in these lakes, the fishermen have portable huts provided with stoves and bench, 1 es, and sometimes remain on the lake for weeks. The tip.up is constructed
 over hole in the ice, and consists Of two sticks about eighteen and twenty four inches long, one inch wide, and a
 half-ineh thick, firmly tied together
 with twine in the form of a cross. The free end of the line Is drawn through a hollow lead sinker by means of a loop of copper wire, the ends of which
 are bent at right angles for the at tachment of the lines, and these, with two hooks on. each, are suspended
 about eighteen inches below the sink CT. The bait is usually live minnows, and the line is lowered until cose to
 the bottom. The ends of the short
 cross stick rest on the ice on either
 side of the hole, the short end of the long stick being over the center.
 In order that the weight of the sink CT may be just sufficient to make the
 frame lie flat upon the ice, the line is I caught a number of times around the
 stick. The fish nibbling at the bait
 causes the end of the cross to tip up,
 whence the name of the appliance. When the fish seizes the bait the long
 arm becomes almost perpendicular. to the surface of the ice, and attracts the
 attention of the fisherman, who then
 removes the fish and rebaits the hook. The usal number of tip-ups per hut is
 about six or eight, rgged ill as many
 holes cut in the ice q short distance from the hut and a few feet apart, When the fish are biting well a fisher-
 man with six holes to attend to is a
 very busy man. There are number of slight variations of the tip-up useo on the various lakes, but nearly all are