BULLETIN OF THE UNITED STATES FISH COMMISSION. 209 



Tol. IV, ]¥o. 14. Waishingrton, D. €. July 30, 1884. 



111.— ANTON PINTSCH'S JTIOVABI^E FISH- WAY.* 



By Dr. ITI. NOWICKI. 



At Kurczyn, on the river Poprad, in Hungary, there is a high weir 

 which prevents the sahuou getting up to the spawning ground, and has 

 caused a falling oii" in the number of salmon. 



It was therefore decided, in connection with the attempt which was 

 being made at the time to increase the salmon in the Weichsel district, 

 to open up the Poprad Eiver again to salmon. Count William Migazzy, 

 president of the Upper Hungarian Fisheries Society, and to whom the 

 improvement iu Hungarian fisheries owes so much, took steps to provide 

 the weir with a salmou ladder at his own expense. 



The construction of the ladder was intrusted to the forest oflScer at 

 Kurczyn, Mr. Anton Pintsch, who carried it out in a most creditable 

 manner, inasmucli as at very small cost he made a wooden movable lad- 

 der, which he attaches to the weir every year iu the autumn. The idea 

 was, at any rate, an original one as compared with the multiplicity of 

 kinds of fixed ladders of massive build, those iu use in Great Britain, 

 for example. This ladder answers admirably in practice, and met with 

 entire approbation from the members of the Fish-breeders' Conference, 

 which was held at Dresden last year. It may therefore claim to be 

 somewhat particularly described here and brought under more general 

 notice, especially as Mr. Pintsch has had the great kindness to supply 

 for this purpose the accompanying design and also give instructions in 

 the use of the ladder. 



The wooden weir {a b c) occupies the whole width of the river, about 

 125 yards. Its face (c) rises perpendicularly to a height of over 3 yards 

 in a low water, so that except in a high flood the difference of level be- 

 tween the water below the dam and that above is too great for salmou 

 to overcome, and for just this reason the use of a ladder is imperative. 

 The broad dam head {a b), with gentle slope, is boarded horizontally ; 

 its ridge (a) is horizontal lengthways, and without crown. Below the 

 dam are several deep pools, in which the salmon lie, and it is over one 

 of these just below the weir that the fish pass is placed. 



The ladder {d e) has parallel sides (/), and a level bottom (d e) is made 

 of strong 21-inch planks, 10 feet 4 inches long, 3 feet 6 inches wide. The 

 blocks {(j) are placed widely apart to allow room for large salmon to 

 move about between them easily. The height of these blocks corresponds 

 with the depth of water required for salmou, and the fall is that of the 



'Forwarded by the author; also published in Deutsche Fischer ei-ZtUung, April 22, 



1884. 



Bull. U. S. F. C, 84 14 



