232 BULLETIN OF THE UNITED STATES FISH COMMISSION. 



the flood of 1S81, it became necessary to build the new hatching-bouse 

 ou still higher ground than the old one, This in time necessitated the 

 building of a correspondingly larger wheel in order to raise the water 

 to the increased height now demanded. The wheel that was then 

 constructed is now running and furnishes the water for the hatching- 

 house. It is 32 feet in diameter and rests on boats 36 feet long and 8 

 feet wide. Its lifting capacity is 50,000 foot-pounds a minute. 



RESULTS OF OPERATIONS AT SALMON- BREEDING STATION. 



In the eleven years since the salmon-breeding station has been iu 

 operation, 07,000,000 eggs have been taken, most of which have been 

 distributed in the various States of the Union. Several million, how- 

 ever, have been sent to foreign countries, including Germany, France, 

 Great Britain, Denmark, Eussia, Belgium, Holland, Canada, New Zea- 

 land, Australia, and the Sandwich Islands. 



About 15,000,000 have been hatched at the station, and the young fish 

 placed iu the McCloud and other tributaries of the Sacramento Biver. 

 So great have been the benefits of this restocking of the Sacramento that 

 the statistics of the salmon fisheries on the Sacramento show that the 

 annual salmon catch of the river has increased 5,000,000 pounds during 

 the last few years. 



UNITED STATES TROUT PONDS. 



In July, 1879, 1 received instructions from the United States Commis- 

 sioner of Fisheries to establish a station on the McCloud Biver, for 

 taking and distributing the eggs of the black spotted McCloud Biver 

 trout (Salvelinus iridea). After a careful and thorough exploration of 

 the McCloud for 17 miles from its mouth, a suitable place was found near 

 the mouth of a creek on the west side of the river, 4 miles above the 

 salmon fishery. This creek is fed by a spring, and furnishes a large sup- 

 ply of cold water in the hottest aud dryest time in summer. A trout- 

 breeding station was built here in the fall of 1879, from which 388,000 

 trout eggs were distributed during the next spawning season (Janu- 

 ary-May, 1880). An immense deal of labor was expended here this 

 year (1880) in catching parent trout for the ponds, and we were so well 

 rewarded for our pains that by Christmas there was gathered here the 

 finest collection of live trout in America, and probably in the world, 

 consisting of 3,000 full-grown fisli, averaging in weight 3 pounds apiece, 

 all in good health and in fine condition. In February, 1881, just as the 

 trout were beginning to spawn, there came the great Hood of that year 

 and washed such enormous quantities of mud into the ponds that many 

 trout were killed, and Mr. Myron Green, who had charge of the station, 

 was unable to send away more than 261,000 eggs. 



During this year (1881) the losses among the parent trout were made 

 lip as far as possible by persistent fishing in the river, and at the next 

 spawning season 337,500 more egga were distributed. 



