BULLETIN OF THE UNITED .STATES FISH COMMISSION. 249 



64.-CABP CULTURE IIV CHINA.* 



By E. J. SMITI1ERS. 



[Dispatch No. 125 to the State Department.] 



The cultivation of carp from the spawn in this province appears to be 

 unknown. This may be attributed to the great abundance of this de- 

 scription of fish to be found in the Yangtse and in the numerous canals 

 which intersect the province. 



Very small carp are preserved alive by the fishermen and sold in the 

 markets to the farmers, who place them in their irrigating ponds, where 

 they are fed until large enough for use. In the adjoining province of 

 Anhui and in that of Kiangsi the collection of spawn in the waters of 

 the Yangtse has been carried on from time immemorial, and forms al 

 the present time a very large industry. Hundreds of small boats arrive 

 in the Yangtse during the month of April, coming from the Poyang 

 Lake and its many tributaries. The spawn is collected in spawn nets, 

 which are made by suspending very fine cloth from two bamboo poles 

 which are fastened together in the shape of the letter V. At the point 

 of the net a basket about a foot square is suspended so as to catch the 

 spawn which find their way into the net. These baskets are emptied 

 several times during the day into large water-jars, where the spawn is 

 kept until the boat is ready to leave with its cargo, the eggs which float 

 near the surface are considered inferior and are separated from the rest. 

 The Chinese say that the carp's eggs are the heaviest and consequently 

 settle on the bottom of the jars. The water in these jars is frequently 

 changed during the day and the spawn nourished on gruel made from 

 the upland or glutinous rice. When sufficient spawn is collected they 

 are placed in small earthen jars or bamboo baskets, which are deposited 

 on shelves arranged in tiers around the boat. Each boat contains about 

 two hundred jars. 



At the end of June the boats start for the upper waters of the Po- 

 yang Lake and other tributaries of the Yangtse. During the voyage 

 the water in the jars is frequently changed and the spawn fed on gruel. 

 At different points on the route the natives congregate to purchase 

 the spawn, which is sold to them by the measure. When the boats 

 arrive at their destination the remainder of the spawn, which has now 

 reached a considerable stage of development, is placed in feeding 



*In the latter part of 1HS4 Mr. John Eussell Young, the minister to China, requested 

 the several United States consuls to report to the legation on the subject of carp 

 culture in that Empire. With the exception of three consuls, whose statements are 

 here printed, they reported that carp culture was not practiced in their districts. 

 These three statements have been transmitted to the Fish Commission by the courtesy 

 of the Secretary of State. 



