THE SALMON, THE TROUT, AND THE SHAD. 737 



INTRODUCTION". 



In the year 1852, the Prussian government proposed to forbid the 

 "Biimpcheu-fishery," as it was believed that, in consequence of such 

 fishery, species which when larger might be useful were destroyed. Pro- 

 fessor Troschel, of Bonn, thereupon examined the young fish which, under 

 .the name of " Biiinpchen," are brought to market, and found that the 

 "Lutter-Biitnpchen," or "SiisseBumpchen," was the Cobitis barbatida L., 

 the "Biedlingchen" or "Bitter-Biiinpchen," the Phoxinus Icevis Ag., the 

 "Guwchen," the Gobio fluviatilis C, and the "Kaulkopf," the Coitus go- 

 bio L. The " Biimpchen," brought to market under the name of " Ge- 

 sams," consist, according to Troschel, of the young of all the fish living in 

 the river Ahr; consequently, besides the young of the species mentioned, 

 those of Alburniis lucidus H., Squalius cephalus L., Zeuciscus rutilus L., 

 Barbus Jluviatilis Ag., and Trutta fario Lin. 1 (Sicbold.) On the strength 

 of these investigations, 2 Troschel declared that, as most of the "Biimp- 

 chen" are entirety worthless for fishery-purposes, they might be caught 

 without any injury to the fisheries. But when this problem had been 

 solved, the assertion was made that it would, nevertheless, be injurious 

 to catch the "Biimpchen," because thereby the better kinds of fish were 

 deprived of their necessary food, 3 and the philosophical faculty of the 

 Friedrich-Wilhelms University of Bonn, during the year 1873-'7I, pro- 

 posed a prize for answering the following questions : 



"It is asserted that the catching of 'Biimpchen,' although these fish 

 are in themselves worthless, still proves injurious to the Bhine fisheries, 

 because the larger fish, Salmo solar, Salmo hamaius, and Salmo fario, 

 are thereby deprived of their most necessary food. The salmon go into 

 the sea, where they feed on other fish, and only come into the rivers for 

 the purpose of spawning. The trout always keep in the mountain- 

 brooks. By examining the entrails of the above-mentioned fish at dif- 

 ferent seasons of the year, it is to be ascertained of what their food con- 

 sists while in fresh water, in order to decide whether it is injurious to the 

 fisheries to catch ' Biimpchen.' It is desired to extend these investiga- 

 tions to the 'Maifische,' (Alausa vulgaris,) as these likewise live in the 

 sea and only ascend the rivers in May." 



1 Salmo fario of most authors, the common trout of Europe. 



2 Published in " Verhandluugeu des naturhistorischen Vereina der Preussischeu 

 Rheinlande und Westphalens," 8 Jahrg., Bonn, 1851, p. 563. 



3 Siebold, Die Slisswasserhsche von Mitteleuropa, Leipzig. 1863, p. 420. 



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