How to obtain it. 257 



will, therefore, suffer materially in transit. In a case of 

 emergency, such as the purchaser being called from home 

 suddenly, someone else should be appointed to attend to the 

 fish on arrival at their destination, and in cases where this is 

 impracticable an easy way out of the difficulty is for a man 

 to accompany them who is qualified to see them properly 

 attended to. 



The net used for taking yearlings may be constructed in 

 several ways. The ordinary yearling net is simply a seine which 

 is made large enough to bag considerably in being drawn through 

 the water. Mosquito netting makes a good material, and a brass 

 chain with a few leaden weights attached is useful for the bottom 

 edge of the net. A good heavy weight, say about four pounds, 

 should be attached to each end of this chain ; that is at the bottom 

 corners of the net, so as to keep them down. No floats or corks 

 are needed. Another very useful net is one attached to a large iron 

 rim and suspended by four cords from a pole or handle. This is 

 let down to the bottom of the pond and the fish driven on to it, 

 or fed over it, when it is suddenly lifted, full of fish. This is the 

 best method for ponds containing a large number of trout, as it 

 does not disturb the bottom at all, and there is no fear of getting 

 a lot of mud or other objectionable matter in the net, which may 

 sometimes happen when using a seine or draw net. The contents 

 may be discharged into a tub or some other convenient vessel placed 

 at the pond side, and from this tub the fish may be poured into 

 buckets, the counting being done as they pass over, and the 

 sorting may be managed by means of a small hand net. At this 

 stage they must be manipulated very delicately, and should be 

 handled as little as possible. A novice will make considerable 

 bungling at the work, and will probably injure some of them, but 

 with practice all can be done quite easily and without doing any 

 harm whatever. 



At this stage it is not necessary to give the fish doses of earth 

 as has been recommended for the fry. They are so much larger 

 and stronger that they themselves stir up the matter that is at the 

 bottom and on the sides of a pond by their movements, and in 

 this way they get the benefit of the earth that is at hand. The 

 bottoms of the ponds should be kept as clean as is practicable. 

 s 



