American Fisheries Society. 



69 



Mr. Ford threw himself into the work with an enthusiasm 

 which, together with an exercise of common sense, soon raised 

 the reputation of the Commission to an equahty with the best of 

 other States. Soon after his accession to the Commissionership 

 he was chosen its President, a position which he held until his 

 death. Among the questions of importance which came before 

 him for a settlement and action, as far as Pennsylvania was con- 

 cerned, was the most suitable age, other things being considered, 

 for the Commission to send out trout fry for planting. After 

 careful thought he became a strong advocate of a four months 

 old period. He held that if the recipient of trout fry planted them 

 properly, fully as good results would follow as though the fish 

 were what are commonly called yearlings. Properly planted four 

 months old trout, he claimed, were abundantly able to care for 

 themselves. Naturally there were many people in the State who 

 differed with him on this cjuestion, but as a rule he had the sup- 

 port of those who took the most active and intelligent interest in 

 the work of fish planting, and his policy was endorsed and carried 

 out by the Commission. 



One of the greatest ambitions of Mr. Ford was to firmly estab- 

 lish the Atlantic salmon in the Delaware river and form therefrom 

 an industry which would rival that of the shad. An effort had 

 been made in 1870, and a few subsequent years by the late Thad- 

 deus Norris and a few friends, but they soon abandoned their 

 labor in this direction as a failure, although for years after a 

 salmon or two came into the river each season to spawn. Mr. 

 Ford felt there was no reason why this great food and game fish 

 should not do well in the Delaware river. He held it to be an 

 ideal stream. Its waters are pure, and it has numerous fine 

 tril:)utaries of cold water suitable in every way for the fish to 

 spawn in, and there are magnificent pools and reaches the whole 

 length of the river, above Trenton. He held that the failure on 

 the part of Mr. Norris and others to achieve striking success, was 

 not owing to any unsuitable qualities in the river, but through the 

 fry not liaving been planted in the right places. Mr. Norris 

 deposited the young salmon in the Bushkill creek, near Easton, 

 only about fiftv miles above tide water. Mr. Ford regarded the 

 fact that any salmon survived under these circumstances as indis- 

 putal)le evidence that the Delaware is a suitable stream for the 

 fisli in every way. Instead of planting the fry in the lower part 

 of the upper river, he had them taken as far up as the New York 

 State line and placed in sucli streams as the Dyberry and Equi- 

 nunk. He followed the first planting in 1890 by others each year 



