60 



Twenty-sixth Annual Meeting 



in hundreds of seasons under natural environment, and can there- 

 fore well be spared. 



It is evident that restrictive measures need not apply to the 

 adult fish, provided a sufficient number are available for artificial 

 propagation, but as affecting the young and immature fish such 

 measures should be of the most stringent character. The killing 

 of young fish of the more valuable species is little short of crim- 

 inal, and should be penalized in every possible way. 



A little relicction must convince anyone that natural propa- 

 gation is entirely inadequate to keep the waters stocked to their 

 limit if considerable inroads are made in the parent stock at any 

 season of the year, and it is a vain hope to expect nature to re- 

 cover and hold lost ground by nature's methods alone, unless 

 the waters are closed absolutely and permanently. 



It is true that the catching off of one kind of fish sometimes 

 results in increased production of others, and without the aid of 

 artificial propagation, but such increase cannot be relied upon 

 as being permanent, and depletion is sure to follow if fishing- 

 is continued and no restitution is made through the agency of 

 artificial propagation. 



The history of fishing waters is replete vvith illustrations and 

 examples to prove the proposition that the natural hatching per- 

 centage of many species is too insignificant to offset 

 any considerable drain on the parent stock. How often we hear 

 the remark, "There used to be mighty good fishing over in Smith 

 Creek, or Jones Lake, but they are pretty well fished out now." 

 Even our best trout streams, after having been stocked to their 

 limit, sooner or later become depleted unless kept up by occa- 

 sional contributions from the hatcheries, and this, too, notwitli- 

 standing that the fishing is limited to hook and line and the 

 season is closed two-thirds of each year. The reason for this is 

 that it is impossible to recoup from the fish taken in the open 

 season, and equally impossible to protect from natural enemies 

 the ova deposited in the closed season." The unri])e spavin in the 

 adult fish caught in the open season is hopelessl}- and irretriev- 

 ably lost, while the ripe spawn deposited in the closed season is 

 very largely s( >. 



Natural propagation will never force a water to its highest 

 productive limit, unless fishing is absolutely prol'ibited for an 

 indefinite period, h'ortunately, this course is not necessary, for 

 while we cannot prevent more or less destruction of one kind 

 or size of fish by another after they leave our hatcheries, we 

 can and do save the enormous waste that occurs under natural 



