Thompson. — Irrigation and Trout Culture 105 



tion of trout by this agency is far greater than that due to all others 

 combined and it is going on in almost every irrigating ditch in Colorado. 



He goes on further to state : 



It is not easy to suggest a remedy for it. The valleys in question 

 would be worthless for agriculture were it not for irrigation, and the 

 economic value of the trout is but a trifle as compared with the value 

 of the water privileges. It is apparently impossible to shut out the 

 trout from the ditches by any system of screens. These screens soon 

 become clogged by silt, dead leaves and sage brush, and thus will not 

 admit the passage of the water. 



Perhaps most of the trout are lost by entering the ditches in the 

 fall, when running down stream with the cooling of the water. It has 

 been suggested that a law could compel the closing of the ditches after 

 the harvest, allowing the streams to flow freely until March or April. 



In the fall the water is worth most to the fish and least to the 

 farmers. I am unable to say whether this plan will prove practicable 

 or effective. This is certain, that if the present conditions go on the 

 trout in the lower courses of all the streams will be exterminated and 

 there will be trout only in the mountain lakes and mountain meadows, 

 to which agriculture cannot extend. 



More than two decades have now passed. Yet in spite 

 of the admittedly unfavorable conditions, which fully justi- 

 fied Dr. Jordan's gloomy predictions, we find that this irri- 

 gated section, and especially the more accessible and better 

 advertised Colorado, is today the angler's paradise. Not 

 only is the native trout still found in abundance, but brook 

 and rainbow trout as well. In fact Colorado and Wyoming's 

 reputations are upheld largely by the magnificent rainbows 

 found in the larger streams. Brook trout have become so 

 plentiful and widely distributed that many people are in- 

 clined to think them indigenous. 



In the swift, clear, cold waters of the Continental Divide, 

 both the rainbow and brook trout attain a degree of excel- 

 lence rarely found in their native habitat, even under the 

 most favorable conditions. The fish grow larger, are more 

 vigorous and gamy, while the eggs are more hardy and 

 virile. 



That these are not the mere claims of an enthusiast , bul 

 are proven facts, is best attested by the heavy demand made 



