A Mammoth Bull Trout @ Hamilton – 1913
GREAT BULL TROUT BRINGS WORRY TO ANGLERS
YOUNG WHALE IN RIVER AT HAMILTON IS MARKED FOR SLAUGHTER
Hamilton, May 2 – (Special)
Local fishermen have declared war on a mammoth bull trout which has been making the water below the mill dam boil for some time. The fish has been seen with his back out of the water by scores of anglers, and has even been hooked by several, but no fisherman who has had hold of the fish has been able to turn him. In every instance the monster has easily made away with everything but the pole. The bull trout has been declared by several to be at least four feet in length, and as strong as he is long. He has been having all sorts of sport with the lines, minnows, hooks, etc., brought to the dam by the anglers and has sent more than one fisherman home minus a large part of his fishing tackle. For several days, even weeks, he will be missed, only to show himself in some manner again, proving that he is still on the job.
His presence in the river below the dam has got onto the nerves of local anglers and several of them are out to get him. The largest hooks carried by local dealers are being purchased, and with a line to match the size of the hook, fishermen are making preparation to camp on the trail of the young whale until he has been captured. He is looked upon as a menace to good fishing in the vicinity of his haunts, and the campaign planned against him would indicate that he has a rocky road ahead of him. If he gets connected up with some of the outfits planned for his destruction, he will have a merry time making his get-away. One angler recently got hold of a hook that is but little smaller than a battleship anchor, and figures that the trout will have some trouble juggling the hook if he makes a strike at it.
The above article appeared in The Missoulian, May 3, 1913