50 FISHES AND FISHING IN SUNAPEE LAKE. 



the foregoing passage, expressed the hope that through fish culture 

 this fish might be spared ''for yet a httle while." It doubtless has 

 in many streams and lakes, but fish culture is also responsible for its 

 diminution m numbers, if not complete extinction, in some waters. 

 This, too, has been referred to in another place, but it will bear 

 repetition. The introduction of more powerful and more voracious 

 fishes has resulted in the great diminution of the native trout and, 

 together with or added to the ill effects of excessive and untimely 

 fishing, has in some instances, at least, notwithstanding the efforts 

 to maintain the stock by artificial propagation, almost completely 

 exterminated the trout. 



Sunapee Lake itself appears to be a specific illustration of the 

 effects of this combination of causes. This lake, according to tradi- 

 tion, at one time abounded in trout, which was the only known or 

 recognized sahnonid of those waters. Trout were killed on their 

 spawning beds, caught tlirough the ice, and netted in the lake from 

 time immemorial, and, as has already been shown, the decrease ia 

 numbers of the trout by these means was hastened by the "success- 

 ful" stocking of the lake with nonindigenous piscivorous fishes, 

 especially the landlocked salmon. To one who will investigate mat- 

 ters it will become evident that where this salmon is introduced and 

 thrives, for some reason or another, the trout diminishes in num- 

 bers and in some instances completely disappears. It matters not 

 whether it is because the salmon devour the trout or for some other 

 reason, the fact remains that the two species do not thrive together. 

 It is true that in some waters where salmon exist a good many trout 

 are still caught, but this is due to vigorous stocking of the waters 

 with trout. Unless there is an adequate annual plant, as before 

 stated, the trout gradually ''go to the wall." 



From 1877 to 1909, inclusive, over 700,000 landlocked salmon, 

 yearlings and fingerlings, were planted in Sunapee Lake waters, and 

 the reports show that from 1880 to 1910 a million 3^oung trout were 

 placed in the same waters, or, to be exact, 273,741 more trout than 

 salmon in 30 years of trout plants against 32 years of salmon plants. 



In the reports of the New Hampshire Fish Commissioners no refer- 

 ence is made to the propagation of the trout until tlie report of 1876, 

 where it is recommended that efforts be made to restock depleted 

 streams. In the report for 1880 it is stated that there were in the 

 hatchmg house 150,000 brook trout eggs, 75,000 of which were sent 

 to Massachusetts and the rest to different parts of the State to replen- 

 ish exhausted brooks, and in the same report is mentioned the fii-st 

 plant in Sunapee Lake from eggs of the "Rangeley trout." While 

 the commission continued to hatch and distribute trout each suc- 

 ceeding year, no mention is made of any more being planted in 



