[29] 



CARP-CULTURE IN THE UNITED STATES. f)S7 



MiscKLLANKOUS.— I uever saw a liuer lot of fisli, and believe tll»^ cuK are of the ciri) 

 will .surpass bog-raising. Many of tlie citizens who witnoRst-d tlu^ drawing of the i)ond 

 resolved to obtain the seed of the wonderful (ish and raise their meat wit7iont trouble 

 and in abundance. 



r2:5. Siateinent of J. T. Chastain, ThomasriUc, Thomas Co., (ro., Jiih/ 17 1883. 



Disposition of carp rkceived.— In 1880, I tSiink it was, I received Ifi young carp. 

 They were consigned to C. P. Hansell, but were for me. The following year 1 re- 

 ceived 1'2, similarly consigned. My pond was then tilled with all sortiTnf lish. In 

 consequence, the young carp were placed in a small pool fed by a s])riug. In the fall 

 of 1H81 nearly all the ponds in this section went dry, my pond and the little pool in- 

 cluded. Before the young carp could be taken from the ])Ool, lish-hawks and similar 

 l)irds caught a good ])ortion of them. I took out ;"> of th(i older ones and al)out the 

 same number of the latter shipment. They were turned loose in a twenty-acre ])ond. 



In the sjjring of 18815 1 received 11 more. These were placed in a ]>ond covering four 

 or ti^•e acres, 5 feet deep in the center, growing gradiuilly shallower to the edges. 

 The bottom of this ])ond is sandy near the edges, muddy in th(> center. It has a spring 

 head of still water which Hows only at i imes. The temperature is from 70° to 8(P in 

 summer. Thin ice occasionally forms around the edges in winter. 



Plants. — The small jjon*! abounds in water-moss, Avith some marsh or water grass. 



Enkmiks. — There are no other fish, but there are spring and bull frogs and water 

 terra])ins. [Fish-hawks — see above.] 



Food.— No food was regularly given to the 2 former lots Avhich were kept in the 

 pool. I occasionally feed the fish I have now in the small pond on bread, but have 

 never seen them since they were turned loo.se in the pond. 



Ghowth. — When the ponds were dried up, in 1S81, the one-year-old tish which I 

 saved weighed about a jjound apiece, and the younger ones abcuit a <|uarter of a jinund. 

 One was taken a few mouths later with a book, but re])la(ed. It showed liqtid growth. 

 This spring one esca})ed during a freshest — one of the younger ones. We estiiuated 

 that it; would weigh at least 10 pounds. A week or two later one of the older ones, 

 about 2| years of age, was caught in the mill-wheel and killed, but as it was cut in 

 several pieces, its weight could not be definitely ascertained. It was, however, con- 

 siderably larger than the former one taken, and perhaps weighed 14 pounds. 



124. Statement of R. H. Cart/, M. D.,La Craiu/e, Troup Co., Ga.,Au(f. 20, 1883. 



Disposition of cakp received. — 1 received 11 carp in November, 1871), which I 

 placed in a private pond i^ of an acre in extent, with a muddy bottom. The inflow 

 is (iO gallons per minut«>, and the temperature of the water in midsuiuiuer is above 1)0 J. 



Plants. — Bermuda grass and other wild gi-asses and water-lilies grow in the pond. 



Exi;mies. — I try to keep all other lish out. Some frogs and turtles will g<it in. I 

 have had great ditliculty in keeping out the tadpoles. I aiu satisfied they destroy 

 the eggs. 



Food. — I give the carp refuse from the kitchen, corn, wheat, oats, and almost any- 

 thing that ])igs will eat. 



Gkowtii.— I have 7 of the original lot left ; they average 10 pounds apiece. The 

 young ones weigh from ^ an ounce to 4 or ;"> pounds. 



A large pond was broken, in April last, in an adjoining county by a freshet. The 

 carp were captured by the use of a seine. The small fry, weighing only a fraction 

 of an ounce when put in, had been in it only 10 months. The aggregate weight of 

 :? of the lish Avhen captured was 25 ]>ounds— the largest growth for the time I ever 

 knew of. I get this from reliable i>arties. 



Kepkoduction. — Several thousand young have been produced. 



Period OF INCUB.xtion of eggs. — I have been taking som(> ])ains for the past 2 

 vears to ascertain the period of incubation of the eggs. A stat<'ment in the V\s\\ Cotii- 

 iuissioner's report for lH7.5-'76 that they hatch in from 12 to 10 days was doubtless 

 based on a lower temperature of water than prevails in this latitude during the hatch- 

 ing season. Last year, with the tem])erature of the water at Jijjout 09^, the «'gg8 

 hatched in 5 to days. The present year, with a higher ttnnperature of Avater, a 

 more carefully conducted experiment has demonstrated that the eggs hatch in from 

 48 to 72 hours. The eggs hatch finally in water at a temperatun; of iW-. 



Disposition of young carp.— I have stocked .several i)onds with young lish from 

 mine. 



Miscellaneous.- Over 3,000 ponds in the state of Georgia have been stocked with 

 carp, and this fish continues to more thau maintain its high character as a valuablo 

 jiond-fish. 



