120 Thirtieth Annual Meeting 



the river, and making an immense body of sluggish water. In- 

 terspersed are a large number of spring lakes. In order that 1 

 might know positively what amount of injury had been done by 

 the introduction of the carp into the waters of the Illinois, I took 

 occasion when carp were first brought upon the market and the 

 hue and cry raised as to their destructive qualities, to open and 

 be present while hundreds of carps were opened, to see if I could 

 find in their stomachs anything that would indicate that they 

 took the fry of other fish or spawn of other fish. I can not say 

 that I have never found the spawn of other fish in their stomachs, 

 but when I have found such spawn it has been of such a nature 

 as led me to believe that it was such spawn as floated on the sur- 

 face of the water, and that the carp took them in, in that suck- 

 ing motion tliat he has, going around on the surface of the 

 water. 



So far as their eating up the growth in the water and de- 

 stroying that is concerned, that is to some extent true, but I do 

 not think that it is extensive enough to drive away the black 

 bass from their breeding grounds or in any way interfere wdth 

 them; and I think, Mr. President, you struck the key note ex- 

 actly when you spoke of the increase of bass being due very 

 largely to the immense supply of young fish for food. My work 

 on the Illinois river is of a very peculiar nature, and I say this 

 to show you why I gave you the figures that I did. Our work is 

 simply saving these fish out of the overflow. There are thou- 

 sands of acres of land planted to corn today where the land was 

 water a few months ago, and thousands and thousands of acres 

 more will dry up before the season is over. Into those places 

 we go and take out the young fish, and a very careful estimate 

 made after years of investigation, shows that not over fifteen per 

 cent, of fine fish are taken out of those places under natural con- 

 ditions. That is, go into a place that is not disturbed and eighty- 

 five per cent, of the fish will be the coarser varieties and fifteen 

 per cent. jxThaps of the gamey varieties of fish, and not over one 

 per cent of Ijlack bass. When wc take into consideration the 

 fact that is so well known of the voracious habits of the black 

 bass, it shows an all-wise ]u-ovision of nature to supply a very 

 large quantity of coarse fish to feed the other fishes, and I believe 

 as firmly as I am standing here that if the carp had not been 



