FISH CULTURE. 



919 



stream, the Trout, Gold Fish, a good coarse pan fish, can be grown in all our rivers and bays. 

 Beyond doubt, with very little care and expense these fish can be made to abound in our 

 waters. But for some kinds this requires government aid, since individuals owning parts of 

 streams will not hatch out fish there at their own expense for the benefit of all other owners 

 of the stream, and special legislation seems to be required to get fish passes constructed over 

 the numerous dams in our rivers, and to prevent substances destructive to the fish being 

 thrown into our streams, such as saw-dust and the refuse of paper mills, tanneries, and dyeing 

 establishments. 



But if with comparatively little care and expense our great rivers can be stocked, in the 

 meanwhile there is room enough for private enterprise. There are few farmers in our coun 

 try who do not have upon their land a lake, or spring, or clear running stream. If these 

 men knew how easily they could turn this water to profit, not only by raising food for them 

 selves, but a supply for the city and village market, there would soon be very few waters 

 without their finny inhabitants. How much this would add to the wealth of the country 

 any one can see at a glance. 



As the shad are probably the best and most valuable fish for the public, so is the trout 

 wherever it belongs or can be acclimatized the most desirable for individual purposes. The 

 shad yields the largest amount of food, while the trout holds the highest price in market, and 

 possesses as a subject of sport a still higher value. Where neither shad nor trout can live 

 some variety of the fresh water bass will answer for private or public waters, and the pike 

 perch (wall-eyed pike) is admirably adapted to larger rivers and lakes. There is hardly any 

 pond, stream, river, or lake, be it large or small, that cannot be utilized, and the land owner 

 that has not the facilities for raising salmon may supply his family with an excellent article 

 of food in the shape of bull-heads or gold fish. 



THE ANGLER S PRIDE. 



BROOK TROUT (Salma fontinalis). 

 (Two-thirds full length.) 



The number and kinds of fish that are treated are increasing daily. The Chinese proba 

 bly confined their efforts to carp. We began on salmon. Then the effort was extended to 

 trout, then to shad, to salmon trout, to whitefish, to striped bass, to sturgeon, to smelt, to 

 grayling, and indirectly to black bass, strawberry bass, oswego bass, pike perch, yellow perch, 

 catfish, oysters, lobsters, gold fish, and other fresh water fishes, and we may confidently expect 

 in time, to assist nature in multiplying all or nearly all the fishes that live on our coast or in 

 our lakes and rivers. Not a year passes but some new and valuable discovery is made, and 

 the importance and interest of fish culture increases with every development. 



There are certain well marked eras in fish culture in which the main discoveries have 

 been made. Most of the appliances adopted abroad have been abandoned with us, and great 

 strides have been made in developing the art. Our first great discovery was what is kncftvn 

 as dry impregnation, that is, the use of little or no water in impregnating the eggs with the 

 male fluid. This was kept a secret, however, from the public until it was re-discovered in 

 Russia. Here it was first practiced in 1864, and up to that time twenty-five per cent, of the 

 eggs was the greatest number impregnated ; immediately afterwards the proportion rose to 

 seventy-five per cent, and is now ninety-eight. At present &quot; dry impregnation &quot; is univers 

 ally adopted. 



The next great discovery in appliances was the shad hatching box, which has never been 

 superseded for certain classes of fishes and situations, nor has it been improved on since it 



