BULLETIN OF THE UNITED STATES FISH COMMISSION. 219 



August, and with my own eyes saw proofs of the correctness of Mr. 

 Montague's statements. Indeed, the Indians were there actually spear- 

 ing salmon, with the ripe spawn coming from them. Here, at last, was 

 found one at least of the spawning grounds of the salmon of the Sacra- 

 mento River. There w T as no doubt about that, but it was associated with 

 another fact that filled me with dismay, and that was that the salmon 

 were at this very time engaged in depositing their spawn, and I had no 

 net, no hatching-house, no hatching apparatus, and indeed nothing 

 whatever, to enable me to avail myself of the facilities presented right 

 here of securing the salmon eggs, that in thousands upon thousands 

 were now being deposited by the parent fish. Every one knows that it 

 is as impossible to procure salmon eggs after the salmon-spawning sea- 

 son is over, as it is to pick a dish of blackberries after the blackberry sea- 

 son is over. In either case no amount of money or zeal is of any avail. 

 Our dismay can perhaps be imagined, then, when it is known that we 

 discovered that the spawning season was nearly at its height, that it 

 must necessarily soon be over, while we had not the means to mature a 

 single egg. It should be remembered also that we were in an unsettled 

 wilderness, 50 miles from a railway and telegraph station, and about 

 the same distance from a saw-mill. The situation called for the most 

 energetic measures, and no pains were spared nor a moment lost in bring- 

 ing lumber to the spot that I had selected for the hatching works, and in 

 getting some system of fishing under way for procuring a regular supply 

 of salmon eggs. Our party worked so industriously, and were so fa- 

 vored by circumstances, that on the lGth of September we had on a brook 

 near by, a set of hatching-troughs established, in good running order, 

 and had also built a small cabin of rough boards, where we could sleep 

 at night and keep our tools and other valuables. I was also prepared 

 to draw a seine regularly in the river for parent salmon. 



It was none too soon, for now the spawning season was very near its 

 end, and by far the larger proportion of salmon in the river had spawned. 

 By dint of persevering labor, which sometimes involved working night 

 and day, we obtained the eggs of about twenty salmon and placed them 

 in good condition in the hatching-troughs. 



Our trials were, however, by no means at an end. In California there 

 are many bands of hogs running in a half- wild state in the woods and 

 hills. One hot day a number of these hogs refreshed themselves by 

 bathing and wallowing in the little brook that supplied the hatching- 

 troughs with water ; in a few minutes the water was as roily as the 

 Missouri River and in half an hour the eggs in the troughs were covered 

 with mud. This was both discouraging and alarming, but we finally 

 cleaned the mud off the eggs, drove away the hogs, and restored every- 

 thing to its normal condition. From this time until the season was over 

 we had to "watch out" for the hogs and drive them off, and notwith- 

 standing our vigilance we were several times compelled to clean the 

 hatching-troughs of the mud which the hogs had stirred up when they 



