366 REPORT OF COMMISSIONER OF FISH AND FISHERIES. 



not meet in any other river of this region, and since the lower course 

 of the stream is tlirough drift, this sand must come from the middle or 

 upper course. Great quantities of sand are brought down and passed 

 into the Red IMver of the North, from which stream it is dredged up 

 and used for building purposes. The water of Eed Lake River is much 

 clearer and cooler than that of the Red River of the North. The water 

 supply of the cities of Grand Forks, N. Dak., and Crookston, Minn., 

 come from this stream, and water taken from the hydrants of these 

 cities is clear and apparently of good quality. 



The river was seined 2 miles from its mouth. At this point it aver- 

 ages only about 4 feet in depth, but with a current of 4J to 5 miles per 

 hour. The bed of the stream here is of hard bowlder clay, and is kept 

 swept clean by the force of the current. The water was so swift that the 

 seine was handled with difficulty. The bed of the stream was almost 

 clear of bowlders, but offered a number of other obstructions in the 

 way of snags, logs, and brush. 



The fishes most common were gold-eyes {Hiodon tergisus), channel cat 

 {Icfalurus punctatus), suckers {Moxostoma macrolejndotum duquemii), 

 and pickerel {Lucius lucius). A few clam shells were observed and a 

 few crawfish taken, but animal life was by no means abundant, and no 

 plants were observed growing in the water. The low banks of the river 

 were covered with elm, basswood, cottonwood, and box-elder. 



Crool'ston, Minn., August 20. — Crookston is about 18 miles from the 

 mouth of Red Lake River, and is located at a place where tlie ground 

 commences to rise toward the east. The river is dammed at this place, 

 and hence this is an excellent point for making collections. It was 

 fished below the dam, where it is possibly 75 or 85 feet wide, with a 

 depth of from 4 to 10 feet. The current is very rapid, but the bed is 

 smooth and the shore on the north side low and hence convenient for 

 landing the seine. In the deepest places the bed is of smooth, hard 

 clay or rock. This is the best point found for collecting. Suckers and 

 gold-eyes were taken in large numbers, while pickerel and pike perch 

 were also common. Catfish and ling were abundant, but only small 

 specimens of the latter were taken. 



Tongue River, Bathgate, N. Dale, August 15. — This is a small south- 

 ern tributary of the Pembina River, rising in a low drift elevation 

 that borders a section of the Red River of the North on the west. It 

 is about 50 miles long; at the place examined, 10 miles from its mouth, 

 it was 25 feet wide and 2 or 3 feet deep. The water was very sluggish 

 and full of lower-life forms of both animals and ])lants. The bed of the 

 stream is of mud (with a few inches of fine white sand in places) and 

 gives rise to a great quantity of ])ond vegetation. Chara, pondweeds, 

 etc., grew so abundantly that it was difficult wading and almost impos- 

 sible to drag the bottom of the stream with a seine. Pickerel and 

 suckers were about the only common species of fish. 

 Femhina Biver, Neche, N. Bah, August io'.— This is one of the large 



