■"^oG REPORT OF COMMISSIONER OF FISH AND FISHERIES. [178J 



Enemies. — I had a lot of geese and ducks in the tank where I put the carp and I 

 suppose they ate up all the rest, as the carp were very small, being only 2 inches long. 



805. Statement of J. B. Chalmers, Ennis, Ellis Co., Tex., July 28, 1883. 



Disposition of cakp eeceived. — I received 23 carp about 4 years ago, and 24 more 

 about a year ago. I have kept them in 2 poods containing 1 acre and Ij acres, respect- 

 ively. These tanks are fed by rain water and are screened. 



Plants and enemies. — They contain some lilies, and also catfish, perch, and frogs 

 innumerable. 



Food. — I have never fed them. They appear to do well without much care. 



Growth. — I think the oldest will weigh 20 pounds. 



Reproduction. — The tanks appear to be full of young from 3 to 4 inches long. 



Miscellaneous. — I am satisfied they are the fish for this country. I believe salmon 

 and trout would also do well, and intend trying them in another tank. 



806. Statement of Arthur CKeefe, Honey Grove, Fannin Co., Tex., June, 1880. 



Food. — My carp are quite gentle, seeming to care little for the appearance of man, and 

 even coming slyly up to nibble at a biscuit held in the hand. A few blasts of a tin horn 

 and the scattering of a handful of bread on the water bring them by hundreds to its sur- 

 face, when they eagerly seize their food. 



Growth. — Most of the carp are about 5 inches in length, though there are many both 

 larger and smaller in the lake, which was first stocked with 70 carp last year. 



807. Statement of Samu£l Johnson, Savoy, Fannin Co., Tex., Apr. 24, 1882. 



Disposition of carp received. — The carp received on January 10, 1882, I placed in 

 a body of water that Ls capable of sustaining thousands. 



Food. — I gave the carp Ijiscuit, meal, salad, bread, refuse from the table, and worms. 

 They are perlet^tly gentle and come to the feeding place at the rattle of a sheep-bell. I 

 feed them every day as I do chickens. 



Growth. — The smallest carp that I received was Ik inches long and has now attained 

 a length of 4 inches, while some of them measure 8 inches. They grow like pigs when 

 given a plenty of buttermilk. I can make them average from 5 to 6 pounds by summer 

 if I feed them well. 



808. Statement of G. HiUje, Schulenlurg, Fayette Co., Tex., July 28, 1883. 



Disposition of carp received. — I received 20 carp in December, 1880. My pond 

 covers Ij acres, is 9 feet deep in the deepest place, and has a bottom of loam and mud. 

 There is no water flowing through it except when a heavy rain ca.uses it to overflow. 

 Its temperature is 90° at dinner-time. 



Plants. — It contains Nymphsea odorata, Acoiiis calamus, Typha latifolia, Phragmites 

 communis, and some others. 



Enemies. — There are perch, craw-fish, frogs, and turtles in it. 



Food. — I fed them every morning and evening with bread and Irish potatoes; some- 

 times vnth watermelons and pumpkins. 



Growth. — I have 17 of the original lot. In December, 1882, the largest one meas- 

 ured 24 inches and weighed 11 pounds. The smallest one measured 14 inches and 

 weighed 5 pounds. 



Reproduction. — They had produced 176 young up to December, 1882. These young 

 are now about 10 to 12 inches long. They have not spawned this season. I left half of 

 the young with the original lot and put half in another pond. 



Difficulties. — In 1881 my pond dried up, and I had to keep them in a box 2 

 months. As there are no springs it is sometimes difficult to keep the pond full of 

 water. We are now ha-^ang a dry summer, and I think I will have to buy a hydraulic 

 ram to lift water out of the creek into the ponds. 



809. Statement of Clm^toplier Steinmann, Svoiss Alp, Fayette Co., Tex., Oct. 20, 1883. .; 



Disposition of carp received. — I received 20 carp ia December, 1880, and have 

 received 14 since. I kept them in a pond of about h an acre, averaging 4 feet in 

 depth and with a black, muddy bottom. The pond contains a spring, so that there is 

 water flowing out of it all the time, and it is quite cold. 



Plants. — It contains all kinds of grasses. One grows to the height of 4 feet, and 

 has very thick, fleshy roots. 



