41 



spread in every direction, afflicting even people who 

 never touch food fishes. I think, under these con- 

 ditions, each State should have laws compelling the 

 clearing and lowerincr of the mouths of all rivers or 

 creeks in which the waters he stagnant and restricted 

 by rubbish ; that each State Commission should have a 

 biologist, who could make known the presence of dan- 

 gerous parasites, and all who are interested in fish cul- 

 ture and protection should join in trying to discover 

 whether there could not be some plan adopted to de- 

 stroy them without endangermg the life of the fish ; that 

 the food animalculse should be as carefull}^ protected 

 as the fish themselves, and that all deleterious matter 

 should be kept from them as far as possible. I believe 

 all States, and especially those that have coast lines and 

 bays, should so regulate the fishing seasons that the 

 strong, mature and fertile fish may be allowed to reach 

 the spawning places unmolested, or else that certain 

 streams in every State shall be closed against fisher- 

 men every second year, thus giving them a whole sea- 

 son in which to spawn and multiply. While some are 

 closed, others can be opened and so alternated that 

 there will be no danger of exterminating the fine food 

 supply. The reward in full-grown fishes of good qual- 

 ity would soon compensate for the sacrifice. 



If these plans are not practicable then others must 

 be adopted. Perhaps good results would follow if fish 

 culture were made so universal that at the time of the 

 running of the schools to the spawning grounds men 

 were stationed at the mouth of or along every impor- 

 tant river to catch the fish, obtain the eggs, and hatch 

 them artificially ; then they could be deposited in fitting 

 places, after the season was over, and thus the danger 

 of extinction would be over. 



The present style of ocean pound-nets could be im- 

 proved by making the meshes large enough to allow of 



