Muskrat and Trout Battle.
Lew McQuiston, a well-known angler of Bellefonte, Pa., witnessed a unique battle a few days ago between a muskrat and a two-foot trout.
McQuiston went to Spring Creek shortly before dusk to try and land some big trout. While whipping the stream, he saw something doing on the other side of the creek, about sixty feet away from where he was standing. In the quickly gathering shadows it was hard to tell at first what it was, but after closer inspection he saw that it was a mammoth trout and a muskrat.
They were engaged in mortal combat, and they slashed around through the water until it was churned into foam. Then the muskrat managed to get out on the bank, pulling the trout along with it. But the big trout seemed to be able to fight on land as well as in the water, flopping around and holding on to the muskrat’s nose until they finally both fell back into the water.
Then there was another lashing and foaming, and the noise died away. A few ripples told that the struggle was ended.
McQuiston looked around in the water for evidence of who had won the battle, but found neither the muskrat or the trout. He does not know whether it was a fight to the finish or a draw.